February Meeting Notes and Upcoming Events!

 February speaker: Thyra Nelson: WHY WOOL!

What wonderful fibers we knitters are privileged to use! In our February meeting, Thyra Nelson, the Marketing Director of the Minnesota Knitters Guild, shared all things wooly and wonderful! Thyra has 13 sheep on her farm and shared photos of her beautiful wooly sheep during the presentation! Thyra took us through the journey starting from the beginning of the process at the farm of shearing, cleaning, scouring, and spinning. There was a great amount of information that was shared with our members, including breeds of sheep that are both common and rare in the United States – let alone across the world! To view the video that she presented, please go to the following website: American Wool Assurance (www.americanwoolassurance.org)- where Dr. Temple Grandin, Professor of Animal Science at Colorado State University, has several videos regarding handling sheep and the processing of wool, care of sheep and other topics:

Thank you to Thyra for such a great overview of all sides of the process – from the farmer, processor and distributor, as well as the history of wool production in our country.

Service Knitting Volunteers for Ronald McDonald House!

Join MKG members at Textile Center on Saturday, March 14th to help the Ronald McDonald House Charities! We will be re-tieing knots and mending dropped stitches on 80 bulky weight knitted blankets that were donated to them by a local retailer. Bring a large crochet hook, scissors and darning needle. The mending event is from 10 am to 4 pm in the auditorium. Come for an hour or stay and help for the day! Treats and beverages will be provided. There are local restaurants to pop out for a break and a bite to eat, as well as a Fresh Thyme grocery store with hot-to-go food a block away. We’d love for lots of MKG members to join in the knotting fun! Please sign up on the MKG website, so we have an idea of the number of people attending.

Service Knitting for the Minnesota Community

MKG Website Updates: Fiber Business Directory and Past Meeting Recordings

A big thank you to Thyra Nelson, Marketing Director; Kathy Lewinski, Webmaster and Maria Vratsanos, Technology Director for the following updates for the MKG website – we are now current to 2026 for you to view!

  • Under Resources, a Fiber Business directory!
    • Click on the resource button when you have logged in – it’s on the dashboard
    • Click on the Fiber Business Directory
      • It has three tabs:
        • Local Yarn Stores: addresses, phone numbers and website information
        • Fiber Events: listing of non-guild upcoming fiber events in Minnesota and the surrounding region
        • Farms and Dyers: will be updated to have a list of farms and dyers!
  • Past Meeting Recordings: on the dashboard after logging in (you must be a MKG member) click on the “PAST MEETING RECORDINGS” button
    • The available meetings are listed. Click on the meeting you would like to view. The link takes you to YouTube to watch the selected recording.

Volunteer on the board for the Guild:

MKG Secretary position open in August 2026Minnesota Knitters Guild email logo

It’s never too early to think about giving back to the MKG community! Being a member of the board of directors includes you on decisions and planning for the future. We are always looking for volunteers who are passionate about giving back to both the MKG community! Here is some basic information:

Secretary for the MKG Board – 3-year term

Starts August 2026

Responsibilities include: monthly board meetings, responding to requests from MKG members and the public, assisting the MKG librarian with purchases for the MKG magazines and books housed at Textile Center, and maintaining files as needed.

Contact: secretary@knitters.org or president@knitters.org

Save the Date!

It’s the 40th Anniversary of Yarnover!

September 25-27, 2026

DoubleTree by Hilton: Minneapolis-Park Place, 1500 Park Place Blvd, Minneapolis, MN 55416

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

Stay tuned for exciting event updates in the future!

 

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

Friday, March 27th – Textile Center

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

Tuesday, March 31st – Ramsey County Roseville Library

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

 

Sip and Knit for March!

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

Unmapped Brewery 

Dates: March 21st – 10 am to Noon

Address: 14625 Excelsior Blvd, Minnetonka 55435

Venn Brewing

Date: March 7th- 10 am to Noon

Address: 3550 East 46th Street, Minneapolis 55406

 

 

 

What a relief it is to be out of the snowy month of February! The Great Guild Getaway retreat was relaxing, fun, and everyone enjoyed the free knitting time, great food and shopping at Fiber Labs yarn store in Menomonie, WI. Thank you to Janet Ungs and the entire GGG committee for again organizing such a great event for the MKG. Onward we go into spring! Upcoming events include the launch of a knit along, the annual Shop Hop, Shepherd’s Harvest – maybe a trip to a farm to meet some sheep and their cute lambs would be something to look forward to! I hope to see volunteers at the service knitting event at Textile Center on March 14th from 10 am to 4 pm as we fix the blankets that will be given to families that are staying at the Ronald McDonald House in Minneapolis. Thank you for all the service knitting that you as members provide to gift to needy individuals in our community.

 

Cheers –

Meg Duncan

President, Minnesota Knitters Guild

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