March update

Dear Readers

It’s hard for me to believe that we’ve arrived at another milestone in the magazine’s life, as this issue celebrates the 38th birthday of MKM. Now, as then, I’ve tried to include a mix of articles and patterns that I hope you’ll enjoy. Over the years we’ve seen some big changes in machine knitting, but the craft is still strong. I pass on a huge ‘thank you’ from the magazine’s contributors and advertisers, for your continued support. After all, it’s each one of you reading this now who has kept our craft alive!

You’ll read on Page 39 that we’ve reached the end of another chapter in machine knitting’s life. After much careful thought, Brenda has decided that Heathercraft Machine Knitting Centre will close. It’s simply too big a task to try to keep the shop open on her own. It’s a good opportunity, especially for Brother knitters, to get hold of much-needed equipment and spares from a reputable source. From 11th March and including the Easter Bank Holiday, Brenda will be happy to help if you’d kindly make an appointment. Do give her a call on 01293-851339 or email brenda@heathercraft.co.uk

Over the years, she’s taught a huge number of people to knit, so it’s good to know that she intends to carry on with her excellent personal tuition. She’ll also continue to sell lights, threads and books for lace. They’re part of her lace hobby and she hopes to find more time for it when things settle down. Whilst running the Centre with her late husband Doug, she’s met some lovely people. She’s asked me to pass on her sincere thanks for all your past custom and friendship and here’s her personal letter to you.

“Dear Friends

Thank you to all our customers from around the world for your support over many years. We moved into Bunglebee more than 40 years ago with my first knitting machine, a Knitmaster 321 and all my yarns cluttered up the garage. Since then we’ve gone on to greater things and I’ve many more knitting machines. We made a lot of friends as we travelled the country, visiting shows. It’s been a wonderful journey and a fantastic learning experience. I will miss it very much. All our stock must go, so please come and make your final visit before and during the Easter Bank Holiday.

Sincerest best wishes, Brenda”

As she says, all the stock must go, so do take this opportunity to find out what’s available.

NEXT ISSUE – June 2024

Subscription copies sent out Thursday 2nd May

On sale Thursday 9th May

Ask your newsagent to reserve a copy or order a subscription NOW!

New subscriptions

NEW SUBSCRIPTIONS Our magazines are mailed to subscribers on the first Thursday of the preceding month, so our April 2024 issue was mailed on Thursday 7th March.

If you’d like a monthly subscription to the magazine and order by or on 1st April, your subscription will start with the May 2024 magazine.

Orders received on or after 2nd April will start with the June 2024 magazine. No money is taken with your order and June will be mailed out to subscribers on Thursday 2nd May.

If you’d like to start with an earlier magazine, please buy it as a back issue and you’ll find lots of choice in our shop.

April 2024 (Issue 315) with Alison Dupernex, Barbara Faulkner and Bill King

The cover design on our full-colour April 2024 issue is a short, boxy cardigan in a wide size range. We’ve our usual mix of patterns for standard, mid-gauge and chunky machines including a popular Anne Baker Karabee Design. We’ve two gorgeous Alison Dupernex wraps and a stunning Barbara Faulkner easy-to-wear jacket and dress as well as four more patterns, in ten sizes, in our tuck stitch series. Bill King knits mini cables that don’t slow things down too much and Susan Guagliumi (https://susan-guagliumi.teachable.com/) along with Alison Dupernex are our constant help and support. We learn how to make our own pattern for a personal fit with Ruth Horrocks and Sally-Ann Carroll shows us why skirts have replaced trousers as the everyday go-to. Karin Rogalski adds latex protection to her knitted gloves for a good grip and Roni Knutson’s lined, double mittens are a stash box staple. Claire Newberry has DesignaKnit updates and we’ve all the usual help and advice, news and reviews.

February update

Dear Readers

As Spring approaches I’ve some news to share, which will bring sadness to the many knitters she’s helped over the years. Alison Lee, known especially to past members of the Guild of Machine Knitters, has to give up machine knitting completely. If you were a lone machine knitter, often uncertain about what to do, you kept Alison’s phone number close at hand. She ran the Guild Helpline and dealt with a huge number of assorted knitting queries and problems. She ran classes at Cherry Willingham and often helped out on the Guild stand at knitting shows. She’s had serious health problems for many years and was hopeful that recent surgery would improve the quality of her life. Sadly this hasn’t happened and she’s now quite severely incapacitated. Like others in a similar situation, she can no longer knit and will have to drastically downsize. We send her our sincere thanks for all she’s done to help and promote machine knitting, along with our best wishes and hopes for as smooth and as easy a transition of her circumstances as is possible.

Patricia Dadson has also been in touch to let us know that the very well-known Knitaholics has had to close down. With Patricia at the helm, the club has had 23 really successful years with regular workshops, outings and speakers. Over the years, Romford was also the home of many popular knitting shows. A lot of clubs have found themselves in a similar position, with falling numbers and rising costs. However, all is not lost because the remaining members have amalgamated with the Knit ‘n’ Natter group at North Romford Community Centre. Now the days are getting longer, why not give Patricia a call to renew past friendships. The group meets on alternate Tuesday afternoons, with on-site parking. If you’d like an update or more details, please give Patricia a call on 07806-765876.

Finally, I’ve heard from his wife Janice that Alan Hunt has passed away. Alan was known to all old hands for his Hush Knit Yarns, especially Fine French Crêpe. He was also the man who brought us the Nottingham Show at Harvey Hadden Sports Centre each April and Just Knitting at Thornbury Leisure Centre in September. Alan had been suffering with ill health for some time and, sadly, his heart eventually failed. Rest in peace, Alan and we send our sincere condolences to Janice, their family and many friends.

I still hugely enjoy machine knitting and putting the magazine together, so do please join me next month. We’ll reach another milestone in the magazine’s life as the April issue celebrates the 38th birthday of MKM.

NEXT ISSUE April 2024

Subscription copies sent out Thursday 7th March

On sale Thursday 14th March

Ask your newsagent to reserve a copy or order a subscription in our shop NOW!

March 2024 (Issue 314) with Bill King

The cover design on our full-colour March 2024 issue is a pretty cardigan in a wide size range. We’ve our usual mix of patterns for standard, mid-gauge and chunky machines including a popular Anne Baker Karabee Design. Bill King transforms a simple diamond into an intricate selection of squares and Susan Guagliumi (https://susan-guagliumi.teachable.com/) along with Alison Dupernex are our constant help and support. Claire Newberry looks at audible warnings in Interactive Knitting and it’s a ‘must-read’ for DesignaKnit users. You’ll find Claire at Patreon.com and her page is Claire Newberry’s Knitting School. Sally-Ann Carroll looks at the current trends for Spring/Summer 2024 – and we probably own most of the key elements! As always, our mail order shop is open and we’ve help and advice in Dear Anne plus news, reviews and the fabulous circular yoke challenge completed by members of Rumney Knitting Class & Club.

Ways & Means

Dear Anne

I’m one of Joan’s old hands and love searching through the magazine for small nuggets of information. Time served knitters can forget that not everyone knows these little tips. They not only help beginners, but also jolt the memory bank of us ‘oldies’. One tested and tried thing I do may help other readers, so here it is. I find casting off behind the sink pegs difficult due to arthritis in my neck and shoulders. So I either do one row at Tension 10, waste off, then crochet the stitches with a 2mm crochet hook or I work as follows. I transfer half of one stitch, usually the left hand side, to the next needle and knit through, leaving the stitches on the needles. This gives a nice stretchy cast off, too. When knitting through, it’s also easy to do that as loose or tight as required. Thanks for a very good magazine each month and keep the ‘golden oldies’ coming for ‘oldies’ like me! Kind wishes, Elaine

j

Scrap value

Scrap value

Hi Anne

I’ve just come back to machine knitting after a long break and can you help, please? Years ago a guest speaker visited our club and used cast-on rags. (I’m sure she called them ‘rags’ but I might be wrong.) The club closed down a long time ago, so there’s no-one I can ask. Do you know how they are made? They seemed to make life really easy. Thanks for your help and a great magazine. Yours sincerely, Pat

Thanks for asking Pat and these strips do away, to a great extent, with the need for waste yarn. For beginners, the easy way is to find a bit of (dare we say) ‘rubbish’ yarn in your stash. It’s best to use a smooth yarn in a neutral colour.

Step 1 Cast on about 50 stitches, using the latch tool chain stitch method for a firm cast-on edge.

Step 2 Knit 10 or 12 rows at a fairly loose tension, finishing with one row at the loosest possible tension.

Step 3 Cast off round the gate pegs to make nice little ‘blocks’ at the cast-off edge.

Step 4 If you’ve a ribber cast-on comb and with the wrong side facing, you can push the teeth of the comb through the holes of the cast-on edge then insert the wire.

Step 5 If you don’t have a ribber, keep the wrong side of the strip facing you and start with a couple of needles at each side of centre 0, the centre of the strip and the cast-off edge. Either way and using a transfer tool, pull through a needle at each end then work across, bringing all the needles through the holes.

Step 6 Make sure all needles are in holding position with the machine set to knit them back.

Step 7 Place weights in position, if required.

Step 8 It’s now vitalto knit one row with a nylon cord at a large tension, or you won’t be able to separate the strip from the knitting.

Step 9 Push needles to holding position again and cast on using an e-wrap, latch tool chain or method needed for the garment.

Step 10 Remove the nylon cord when the work is completed and the strip is intact to use over and over again.

Strips (or rags) can be made in different lengths and widths. Short strips are useful for casting on a small number of stitches, as you can hang weights directly on the strip. Some knitters make their strips garment width with a hem, then insert a old Knitmaster welt bar (see Fig. 3 and Fig. 4) into the hem. This adds a little weight plus stability and Brother owners can hook on a cast-on comb. A cast-on strip can be the most useful bit of scrap knitting you’ll ever do, especially if you have an LK-150. Don’t, though, forget the row with the nylon cord or you’ll be unable to separate the strip from the knitting.

Kalamunda Krafts

Slightly more experienced knitters (in less of a hurry!) knit a bias strip. It has its own built-in loops that spread out nicely the more it’s used. Sally Butcher has a step-by-step video demo on her Facebook page, along with videos of techniques on Silver Reed SK280, LK150 and SK155 machines. Visit www.facebook.com/kalamundakrafts She’s also transferred some of the techniques to YouTube, the link is https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSDxy6pQHAs4gd5XBztYWmw and it’s called Sally Butcher’s Kalamunda Krafts Machine Knitting.

What fits what?

Dear Anne

I noticed in the magazine that Mini Mart has Silver Reed sponge bars and I wondered if one would fit my Brother 860? Also would the cast on comb wires be the same as those for my Brother 850 ribber? I haven’t been able to use the machine for a while, as I’ve had a replacement shoulder but now I can and, of course, the sponge bar has had it! Thanks for any help and best wishes, Barbara

PS The ballet cardigan now gets worn to football practice!

I case you missed it last year, Barbara told us about a cardigan she’d knitted for the daughter of a friend of one of her daughters. She was three years old, loved dressing up and wearing tutus. She had a pink tutu and a mauve one so Barbara made her a ‘Lafferty cardi’ to go with them, using up some cone ends in the right colours. It seems the cardi has now moved from the dressing up box to the football field! As for many replacement accessories, Nick Traylen at Uppingham Yarns keeps a list of what fits what and he’s a great source of parts to keep old machines going. Write to Uppingham Yarns, 30 North Street East, Uppingham, Rutland LE15 9QL, call 01572-823747 or visit www.wools.co.uk

Kitchen cabinet

Dear Anne

You mentioning ‘golden oldies’ last month brought a smile to my face. Back in the day, didn’t we all show off when we shared something new! I picked up the tip to use one of the plastic boxes they use for packing peaches. All the odds and ends go into it, it sits at the back of the machine and it’s easy to spot something at the bottom through the clear sides. You need, though, to stop it walking off the table as you knit and dumping the contents on the floor. As long as you don’t have an electronic machine, pop a magnet inside the plastic box and place it against the machine. It will stay put until you want to remove it. I think it was mentioned at one of the old To & Fro ‘At Home’ days, when I also learned to keep my peg bag close to the machine. Sprung clothes pegs have a multitude of uses, especially if you’re knitting intarsia or stripes with cut-off ends. The short ends dangling down have a habit of catching in the moving parts under the carriage and causing one almighty jam. Weight the end with a clothes peg and it remains safely out of the way instead of you grinding to a halt halfway across a row! Happy memories, Margaret

Centre point

Centre point

Dear Anne I was thinking about the words ‘golden oldies’ which you mentioned last month. Do you remember the tip for pulling out the nylon cord we add to get rid of wavy ribs? If you knit a circular row and pull it out from the centre, not one of the two ends, it comes out much easier and I’ve never had a problem. Best wishes, Jackie