1. Back from SAW. As always, hard work that it’s hard to complain about. The setting is so beautiful, the people so kind and the vibe so awesome that it feels like a privilege to be able to work there. How can I not feel so, when this was my classroom. 
2. Yes. If you were at squam, the series of mad leaps into the lake you heard at 10:30pm one night were the Canadians. We were briefly overwhelmed by the sight of unfrozen water and couldn’t restrain ourselves.
3. No. It wasn’t really that cold. Pretty cold, but not terrible. Maybe that was by our own standards, because we did notice that we were alone.
4. Yes. Dead sober.
5. I have pretty pictures. 
6. For the first time ever, a student tried to learn the hand position for lever knitting in a whole new way. 
She tied up her own pinky to get it to behave. Clever knitter.
8. We were not underyarned. 
pictures are lovely! sounds like a great time! lucky you!
My husband would like to know if you knitted the rocking chair. Thanks a bunch!
oh….. so nice! sounds like a great time!
Welcome back. As usual, beautiful photography, especially that rocker! What I wouldn’t give to sit in that for a few hours with my knitting, or anything for that matter.
so sorry…………I was so excited on being first, I must have posted more than once!
What a lovely location! If you must work then this looks perfect.
I just wanted to tell you that I crochet and now you have inspired me to learn how to knit too. For my 40th birthday, I am planning on making the Milkweed cardigan from Sunday Knits. Thanks for inspiring me to try the waters in the knitting pool.
Hugs and thanks,
~Jenn in Forest Grove
I haz a jealous.
Looks like a lovely week! It’s so close to me, and yet I never seem to have the cash flow available at registration time. :^(
Yummmmmmy! The swim sounds nice, too. (Was it dark yet?)
I love that cranberry cabled hoodie. Whose is it?
Do you think anyone would mind if I became a squatter at that absolutely beautiful location? No? Fantastic! Where’s my suitcase….
It looks wonderful. Someday I’ll be able to come. Someday soon, I hope.
Oh, what a beautiful setting for knitting. Sigh. Hope the transition back to real life isn’t too harsh.
“Cold” to people from Northern climes is in a whole ‘nother category. It does sound, and look, like a wonderful time was had.
Oh what wonderful pictures!!! Denny looks like she is in total bliss. How it makes my heart light to see such a glow on her face.
That looks and sounds like so much fun, Stephanie! Great photos.
Definitely clever to tie the finger, but not nearly as much fun as having you stand there holding it…
I love your photojournal of the experience. I am jealous and highly curious for next year…and your next posts!
Aahh. It looks relaxing and wonderful!
I totally understand about the jumping in the lake because it wasn’t frozen…it seems like they just thawed out here a few days ago too! 😉
Jealous, I am. Jealous. Home trying to kick a summertime pneumonia and jealous. Lovely pics. Lovely place. Sigh.
I’m sure I’m not the only one to wonder whether there are plans in the near future (read “your near future”) for a video on lever knitting, because it’s long overdue. Call Judith! She’ll walk you through it 😉
Maybe not under-yarned, but I’m overwhelmed with jealousy. I need to get a job that forces me to go to fiber fests. FORCES, I say!
That is the ultimate, Plationic, Ur-photograph of Denny. No others need ever be taken. Good JOB. (And yeah, that hoodie’s pretty slick, too.)
We almost forgive you for declining to dish the relevant and necessary dirt (hence the slender post) because of your mad photographic skilz. Just don’t believe we don’t notice …
Beautiful!
Good Times!
ahhhh….one of these years……
Was that Natalie, your asst., in the cranberry cardie?
Wow, that looks like a lot of fun! Thank you for sharing, now I know I have to save my pennies for next time
Thank you for all the lovely photos. That red hooded cardigan is unbelievable! Any idea where to get the pattern?
No, you were not underyarned. Overyarned probably?
Of course, the answer to that would be a resounding ‘no’. 😀
I just want to curl up in that rocking chair and knit the day away. ♥
Thanks so much for the terrific class on Friday, and the wonderful talk on Thursday night. It was great hanging out with/near you for the workshop!
I’ve already incorporated the tweaks to my picking style and seem to be back up to my former speed — time trials again in a few weeks! And, the Norwegian Purl has changed my life — I spread the gospel to others at SAW, too. Woot!
I’m diligently practicing my lever knitting a few minutes a day — it’s totally like I’ve never held yarn in my hands before! Will report back on progress.
But the thing I find myself sharing the most is the history we talked about, and how knitting changed from work to the “domestic arts.” Revelatory and fascinating!
Thanks again for being part of my lovely SAW experience!
Awkwardly relearning how to use my finger bones,
–Jen
glad you had such a nice time in my neck of the woods, the weather was spectacular over the weekend…gotta love early summer in new hampshire!
I dream of making it to one of these events. I’d like to try sock summit also but I think I really should finish a pair first Yowzah
The yarny stash looks super yummy!
Ohhhhhhhh I wish I could have been there. it all looks so lovely! Glad it was. 🙂
Oooooh! Denny! GORgeous shawl!
; ) Maura from the Beaches
Memories! I wasn’t expecting this post to trigger any personal memories for me, but that picture of the rocking chair under the lamp… that’s the EXACT SAME rocking chair we had at my house growing up. Exactly the kind of thing I needed today. thank you!
I want to be in that rocking chair! It looks so comfy and serene. My baby needs to be rocked in it and I need to do some knitting in it and perhaps a nap in it…
Lovely pictures. Looking at them, it seemed to me that someone’s knitting in the portuguese way, is that true?
Teresa (the portuguese knitter)
You are right. It really wasn’t that cold. It took my body a day or two to realize that it wasn’t going to get the 80 degrees from the day before, and after that I was aOK. Of course, my body also took that day to decide that the bugs weren’t a problem either. It was a great place to learn!
I am so happy that you are back. Lovely photography! I am slightly jealous of all the people who can go (especially to a sock class taught by you) but, I promise myself that one day I will get to go.
I wish I had that much yarn (The last picture), and what is lever knitting? I knit kind of like a sewing machine in the essence that extend my finger to throw my yarn, but once it is thrown I bring it back toward my hand. I never really leave it extended.
Anyway, I am glad you (and the other Canadian knitters and swimmers) had fun! 😀
I’m delighted to have my picture on your blog and happy that you like my tied fingers! I continue to practice the lever technique and hope to have my speed up in a few weeks.
I am in love with the deck-swivel-rocking chair. I need one like that. Really really need one…
I am green with envy! Glad you and everyone had a great time! I wish I had a lake to jump into at this moment because Minneapolis/St. Paul has quickly gone from a cool damp spring to 97 degrees F. (I think that is well over 30+ C).
Looks like you have the beginnings of a lace Squam shawl design from the top portion of that first photo looking into the studio…. One of these days I’ll make it there!
I would learn anything in a classroom like that. Gorgeous! It looks like quite the fun time.
Forget jumping into the lake. I’d like to jump into that pile of yarn on the table and just roll around in it! Thanks for the pretty pictures. And I second the request for a video from you on the lever knitting technique. I’m moderately fast, but I want to be faster! Doesn’t everybody?
Looks like a wonderful place to be! Wish I could have joined you.
One day (when baby boy doesn’t have to be with me 24/7) I want to go to one of these events. It looks wonderful.
Lovely pictures! Stephanie, it was so very nice to meet you! Thanks for holding my sock in progress @ the art fair. I loved the silk hankie class, very interesting! I’m knitting away on the bonnet tonight.
The pictures are all lovely but the one of your friend, Denny, is really beautiful.
Wonderful randomness! Swim all you want! Pretty photos! I want to move to Canada!
All that yarny goodness…. just yours?
I keep telling myself that I’m going to *some* knitterly destination…next year. And next year never gets here. Soon, maybe.
Beautiful photos! What is lever knitting??
Sounds heavenly. Glad you had a wonderful time–and glad you’re back safely. Maybe one of these days I can go to Squam–it looks fantastic!!
Some year I’ll make it to Squam.
I’d have been glad to join the Canacian leap into NH lake water. Couldn’t be any colder than the Minnesota lake water I had to swim in during summer camp lo those many years ago. And lots more fun with friends.
Same as the others, one of these years I’ll make it to one of these fun events!
As far as the lake…no worse than me being in the pool already. Once to fix a leak (absolutely had to go in), next time to vacuum (could have done from outside the pool).
Sounds like you had lots of fun. Glad it went well.
Only one word… envious.
Looks like you had a great time, I love the pictures, they look so . . . professional. And I love the shawl that Denny is wearing.
I hate to bring this up, but you formatting is a little messed up, at least on my computer. Is this something that I am doing, or is it on your end of the blog. Your font is a whole lot bigger though.
It was something on my part, sorry I was an idoit and brought it up.
I found a youtube video someone took of you lever knitting, but what I would like is a TUTORIAL by you, and preferably done slowly enough that we can see more than a blur of your flying fingers. We are already impressed by your speed, now we need to learn how, exactly, to make the correct hand movements. I for one am willing to tie up my fingers. No problem. Whatever it takes.
The picture of Denny truly is gorgeous — have you thought of a career as a portrait photographer? Watch out, Annie Liebowitz!
I may be the only person to say this, but I’m glad I wasn’t there. I think I would have climbed onto that table, snuggled down into all that yarn, and had a nap to rival Rip Van Winkle’s.
Those pictures are enchanting. I got shivers at the ‘jump into lake’ part…geez…I’m still cold just thinking about it.
HULLO DENNY!!!!!!
I love the pictures. They’re lovely, especially the one with the rocking chair as it’s one my dreams. Maybe one day when I get my country house and I can knit there under the sun all day long aahhh dreams. Glad you had such a nice time.
So lovely! I just hope this is still going on when my kids are done with college – that will be about 2021, I think. Unless we win the lottery, that will be about when there is any kind of funds available in this household’s budget.
Meanwhile, I will just admire the photos, read the blog posts and dream – so keep them coming!
Thanks.
glad you’re back and blogging…i miss you when you’re gone from the cybersphere. one request, could you add a link to these events. even though i live in england, i would love to see what all of you north americans are up to! actually, eastern north americans…i’m from california and somewhat familiar with west coast events; not so much east coast. and hey, it’s only a 5-hour plane ride to new york!
many thanks,
felice
You certainly weren’t underarmed…by unmanned unquestionably. Where were all the swifts? You would need something to tame all that yarn into little neat fiber cupcakes.
It would be hard to be underyarned when you were, essentially, a traveling yarn store.
I’m pretty sure that Squam is the highlight of my year.
Your photos made me smile. 🙂
I want that rocking chair – and in that exact corner. Looks like heaven to me!
The pictures are wonderful, I especially love the one of Cat, It captures her contagious sense of enthusiasm. Thanks for sharing them it looks like a wonderful time and place of community.
It looks great. And thanks for “underyarned”.
I am a green-eyed monster of jealousy 😉
I love knitting outdoors or in rustic settings like the ones in your photos. There’s just something so calming about that atmosphere that doesn’t exist in my T.O. apartment.
I agree with other commenters that the photo of Denny is very pretty indeed. She looks to be totally in her element and happy as a clam!
I had to Google “lever knitting”. Wow. Is that how you crank out all of that knitting so quickly?
Wow, Stephanie. The light in that place is just amazingly beautiful. You got some really lovely pictures!
You got some amazing portraits there. If you were a photographer even you’d be impressed with yourself. 🙂
It all looks wonderful, but I had to laugh when I saw my rocking chair’s twin sitting on the porch. So there’s a Cost Plus in Squam?
I’m so jealous, this retreat looks amazing.
Is there such a thing as over-yarned? Nope, don’t think so.
What a lovely place! Wish I could go. Looks like wonderful people to spend time with. It’s not possible to be over-yarned….
Wow, so beautiful! Thank you for posting such gorgeous pictures. Very inspiring.
Ooooh, I could jump into the lake right now. Did you know that it’s supposed to be 32 C tomorrow, on both sides of Lake Ontario?
It was great to hear you again at SAW, i always love hearing you. I was one of the lucky ones that jen showed the norwegian purl to! See you at sock summitt…..
Wish I cold have been there!
I LOVE that cranberry cabled hoodie! Where can I find the pattern?
I LOVE that cranberry cabled hoodie! Where can I find the pattern? I want one!
looks like fun! if one is unable to make it to your class to learn lever knitting do you have any suggestions of where one could go to learn that technique?
I love how all the women look relaxed and beautific.
”Looks like you gals had a blast” wish i had time to do more fun things like that ! Thanks for sharing.
happy birthday steph,you sure are a superb knitter! do you know where i could have a dale of norway haukeli sweater made? all the best mike.
super website,too,sorry to leave the above message,but wasnt sure how to contact you direct,but if anyone could knit me a haukeli sweater i would be most grateful. xtaskia@yahoo.co.uk happy nitting peeps x