April Meeting Recap and Spring News!

It’s spring! (or is it?) The weather cannot seem to make up its mind lately! We had a lovely April show & tell meeting, and hope that the scheduled speaker is recovering from her illness. It was wonderful for everyone to share their projects – I love to hear the stories of where the yarn was purchased, what the challenges are and see the amazing garments that everyone makes! Here are upcoming events for MKG members to look forward to!

Save the Date!

It’s the 40th Anniversary of Yarnover!

September 25-27, 2026

NEW VENUE! The DoubleTree by Hilton: Minneapolis-Park Place, 1500 Park Place Blvd, Minneapolis, MN 55416

Three workshop timeslots: Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning

Here is the 2026 teacher lineup: Lorilee Beltman, Beth Brown-Reinsel, Cecelia Campochiaro, Romi Hill, Margaret Holzmann, Bristol Ivy, Kasha Linn, Brienne Moody and Laura Ricketts.

Changes for 2026: fun event night on Friday, two classes on Saturday and one on Sunday. The marketplace will be all day on Saturday. On Saturday night the fun KAL meet-up and photo for everyone that knit the Brienne Cardigan! Followed by happy hour, dinner and a speaker, Brienne Moody. The full list of events for the fun weekend is on the Yarnover Events Page at the MKG website.

Do you require a grant to attend Yarnover? Go to the Yarnover Knitting Event page and click on the link. The deadline to apply for a grant is May 5th. Grants cover up to two classes and lunch.

 

Shepherd’s Harvest – May 8-10

There were still two slots for volunteers at Shepherd’s Harvest – look at the MKG calendar and sign up! This is an amazing event full of all kinds of fiber for our members to spin, knit, and make beautiful items! 

Upcoming dates for Knitting Around Town:drawing of a sheep knitting

Friday, May 22nd – Textile Center

1:00 to 4:00 pm – 3000 University Avenue, Minneapolis – in the library

Tuesday, June 22nd – Ramsey County Roseville Library

6:00 to 8:00 pm – 2180 Hamline Avenue North, Roseville in the community room

 

Sip and Knit for May!

Knit and socialize with your fellow MKG members! Service Knitting donations are accepted as well.

Unmapped Brewery 

Dates: May 16th – 10 am to Noon

Address: 14625 Excelsior Blvd, Minnetonka 55435

Venn Brewing

Date: May 2nd- 10 am to Noon

Address: 3550 East 46th Street, Minneapolis 55406

 

 

 

Curating your Stash? Donate to the MKG!

Has the love for some yarn faded with time? Liberate yourself by donating to the Guild!

We need yarn (full skeins with labels) for the November yarn sale and next year’s auction.

Contact service@knitters.org to arrange a donation.

 

I’m getting ready for some upcoming travel and of course purchased yarn at the shop hop to get some smaller projects for airplane knitting! I was reminded the other day of something that I read about online in the late summer a few years back. A post had stated “when you are ready to start back up on your knitting this fall…..” – which greatly amused me. Are there actually some people that STOP knitting in the summer? Whatever for? So many great summer knitting projects that are fun to knit for warmer weather!

Cheers to coming out of a very long winter and hope everyone is enjoying the spring warm-up!

Meg Duncan

President

Recent Posts

Our spinning demonstrations are sponsored by Get Bentz Farm. 

Theresa Bentz of Get Bentz Farm, Northfield, MNAfter growing up in the city and suburbs, the owners of Get Bentz Farm felt a need to be closer to nature and to be more connected to where their food came from. 

In 2014, they found a farm house for sale and later that year they decided on and purchased their first two Icelandic sheep. 

Once they had a good size flock they began marketing the amazing meat and wool. Initially, they found that many mills in the area do not process dual coated long wools, which slowed down their growth in yarn, but they did find a great market for wool filled bedding products and batting for spinning. 

Today, they have a variety of yarns, batting and roving as well as finished products like dryer balls, sheepskins, and wool bedding. Most recently, they opened their own Get Bentz Wool Mill as well as their own line of yarn – Badgerface Fiber.

Jean

Vice President

(Term 1, Year 2)

Jean Gross has had an interest in all things fiber since, at the age of 5, her mother gave her fabric scraps to keep her occupied. She is fluent in knitting, crocheting, tatting, embroidery, sewing, quilting and spinning, thanks to her mother, Janice, and grand mother, Clara. But Jean’s favorite thing to do with fiber is help others to explore its possibilities. She has taught at the Iowa State Fair, Des Moines Library, Freedom for Youth, the Des Moines Knitting Guild, Shepherds Market, local yarn shops and also teaches privately. Jean has served on several non-profit boards including FiberSmiths of Iowa and the Des Moines Knitting Guild. Jean lives in north central Iowa with her husband, Dave, and faithful canine, Rolo. She has published several knitting patterns.

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jtgross

Andi

Newsletter Editor

Andi (she/her) learned to knit from her mom over 40 years ago. She remembers going to MKG meetings in college when they were held at St. Kate’s, her alma mater. She knit on-and-off again for a while, and really dove back into the craft in 2015. She is also a quilter. She enjoys traveling and her husband is happy to stop at a yarn store or to look at sheep while on vacation. She and her husband live in the St. Paul area, both enjoy their respective crafts, and also going to the State Fair multiple times a season.

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Judy

Yarnover Committee Chair

From one of her mother’s friends, Judy learned to knit a pair of “paputki,” which are simple Polish house slippers.  Somehow this gave her the confidence to knit her boyfriend a cabled pullover sweater for Valentine’s Day which was graciously accepted and has lived in the bottom of the bottom drawer of said boyfriend’s dresser for fifty plus years.  Though she has made a few sweaters since then, she mostly knits blankets, scarves, hats and toys.

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Ravelry

Thyra

Marketing Director

(Term 1, Year 2)

I grew up watching my mom knit. She tried to teach me as a kid and I never enjoyed it, but after finishing college I found myself with extra time and no hobbies. In the last 20 years I have dove in all the way and love to learn new and challenging techniques. As my fiber love has grown, I have also started raising sheep in order to go from sheep to sweater. I love interacting with the sheep who have big personalities and learning to process and spin the wool has been a great adventure.

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Maria

Technology Director

(Term 1, Year 1)

Maria learned to knit from her grandmothers nearly 20 years ago and knit off and on through her teenage years, but really got hooked during graduate school. Since then, she has embraced the "never not knitting" mentality and has been spotted knitting on backpacking trips, on a seaplane, and at concerts to name a few. She has also just taught herself to spin. Maria is a recent transplant to the Twin Cities with her husband and two cats, and they enjoy hiking, running, and embracing the Minnesota lake culture.

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vrantisus

Nikky

Programming Director

(Term 1, Year 2)

Nikky was first introduced to knitting in 2012 when her visiting sister-in-law taught her the basics of casting on and the knit stitch. A few weeks later, she learned how to purl from her mother-in-law. From there, it quickly became a passion and she has taken on each new project with a desire to expand her skill and discover new techniques. She loves a good mystery (knit-a-long) and knits way more shawls than a single person can wear in a month.

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FroggyGirl72

Deb

Service Director

(Term 1, Year 2)

Deb learned to knit in the early 1980s as a happy by-product of Hill Street Blues fandom. For a couple of years, she and a gaggle of other students met weekly to watch the show, and one of those friends was always knitting. As it is with so many knitters, that friend was enthused to teach someone else. Deb has been knitting ever since and particularly enjoys playing with colorwork and knitting sweaters. She is constantly astonished at the skill, enthusiasm, and generosity of MKG members. (she, her, hers) (See our Service Knitting Page for more information about our current projects and donation process.)

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Meg

Membership

(Term 1, Year 1)

Meg learned to knit in Bloomington, Indiana at the age of 7 or 8 when her Aunt Anneke who worked in a local yarn shop had to take her along to work. Now a St. Paul denizen, she follows in the tradition of her grandmothers Pauline and Cornelia as a passionate knitter of sweaters. She loves colorwork, bright yarn and meeting new members. Meg is an extrovert and is always happy to connect!

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dotmeg

Kathryn

Treasurer

(Term 1, Year 1)

Kathryn taught herself to knit in grad school, which is a terrible time to pick up a highly addictive hobby! She has since taken many classes, learned from master knitters and explored numerous techniques like brioche, double knitting, bead work, and more. She always has at least four projects on the needles but mysteriously, her yarn stash never seems to go down. Her favorite projects are shawls and socks. In addition to knitting, she does some crochet, tatting, spinning, and weaving. She was inspired to volunteer for the Guild after her first Great Guild Getaway and is excited to give back to this community of incredible knitters!

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KDBren

Kendra

Secretary

(Term 1, Year 3)

Kendra lives in the Twin Cities and learned to hand knit from her mother in middle school. In the last few years, she has also learned crochet and machine knitting. Kendra enjoys knitting items to donate and challenging herself with new techniques. She prefers knitting in the round with colorful yarn. (she, her, hers)

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Meg

President

(Term 1, Year 2)

Meg grew up surrounded by makers. Her mom, a master quilter, former Home Ec teacher, and 4-H club leader in Duluth, taught her to sew, embroider, and cook. She won a trip to the State Fair as the Dress Review Princess at 13! Another MKG member taught her to knit continental style 15 years ago. Meg can’t sit still and NOT be knitting, embroidering, rug hooking or sewing. Favorite thing to knit? Mittens! She loves taking classes and learning new things – absolutely amazed and inspired by all the amazing knitters in the guild! (she, her, hers)

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finchgirl

Kathy

Webmaster

Kathy has always been into crafts, but didn’t teach herself to knit until after college. She really got hooked while living in San Francisco when a friend opened a knitting store. To pitch in, Kathy started knitting up fun (and odd) things for window displays, as well as teaching classes. In the last couple of years, she has started designing her own knitting patterns (many of them available for free on Ravelry!) with toys and mittens being her primary obsessions. (she/her/hers)

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katbaro