KKQ - the 10th year!

10 year cake. BTW...really good!

Ten years! We started out with 26 knitters in 2006. This year...106 knitters and quilters! Not too shabby for a retreat I wasn't sure would get off of the ground.

Group shot...not everyone. Who knew knitters and quilters were so camera shy?

I wish I could show you wonderful pictures of the retreat, but I was so busy, there was just no time to pull out a camera.

Actually, there were a few moments that I got it together enough to capture....

Tower of Textiles ready to be blessed at Sunday service.

2015 KKQ badge...reversed colors for 10th year.

The rest you will just have to image for yourself...

A room full of people, knitting and talking, patiently waiting for the welcome speech (made by me) to be over so the retreat could begin.

The Kanuga Dining Hall ringing with birthday wishes (complete with harmony)....on three different occasions.

Evenings filled with knitters around big stone fireplaces.

Evenings filled with quilters happily sewing away in brightly lit Gooch Main.

Gorgeous quilts spread out at the Show and Mingle...and I mean gorgeous!

Gorgeous sweaters, shawls, and hats worn by knitters as they walked around the Kanuga campus.

Beautiful services filled with images of cloth and yarn.

Quiet moments of concentration over a new technique to be learned.

Joyous sounds of ah-ha moments...and the laughter of new and old friendships.

I could go on...but you get the picture.

Kanuga tells me they have a capacity of 400.  We're already planning for next year. Wish you'd join us...I think there'll be room. ;)

Brandon Knitting Designs - website
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KKQ Preparation

Now that Christmas is over and 2015 is closing in on us, I am turning my attentions to a retreat that I coordinate in the mountains of Western North Carolina.

This January, participants at the Kanuga Knitting and Quilting retreat (KKQ) will meet at the Episcopal conference grounds near Hendersonville, North Carolina. Among those attending will be mothers and daughters, mothers and daughters-in-law, brothers and sisters, and good friends who for most of the year are separated by long distances. They come for the love of the mountains...and for the love of Kanuga. For opportunity to do something for themselves after a hectic holiday season...and to see friends they only see during this long weekend in January....but mostly they come for the company of friends who love to create with needles and yarn or fabric.

This January marks KKQ's tenth year...which seems remarkable to me. Yeah, I know we started in 2006 with 27 people and currently, we have over 100 participants registered...but the years have just gone by extremely fast.

At KKQ '15, there will be six knitting instructors and two quilting instructors...and each discipline offers something for all skill levels.

Most years I teach stranded/Fair Isle knitting. This year, I am giving a workshop on steeking. The project is a steeked cowl and includes instructions for a 3-color stranded version and a version with knit and purl stitches.

I call the class...No Alcohol Fortification Needed...since everyone seems to think you need to be heavily intoxicated to cut open a steek. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Anyway, the retreat is in a few weeks and I have spent the last few days putting my kits together for the class.

In less than three weeks, we will all meet again in front of the great stone fireplace at Kanuga for the tenth annual KKQ (January 15-19, 2015). Will you be there? It is not too late to join us this year...or maybe you would like to be part of the second decade of knitters and quilters at Kanuga in 2016. Hope so.

Brandon Knitting Designs - website
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Ravelry - varianbrandon
Twitter - @vbknits
Pinterest - Varian Brandon
Instagram - varianbrandon