Lorilee BeltmanLorilee happily sees no end to where knitting curiosity can take you, so she loves to help knitters make new discoveries. For the past fifteen years she has enjoyed her students at over one hundred national events and fiber tours abroad. She looks forward to meeting you in class! Lorilee is patient with every student and packs her classes with content and lots of extra tips you can really use.
Her articles and designs have been published in books, magazines, and online mags. She is a 2018 Knit Star teacher, the former techniques columnist at Knitty, and an online instructor at Modern Daily Knitting, Interweave, and Craftsy where her classes are consistent best-sellers.
Tent-camping has brought Lorilee to over twenty National Parks. She grew up in Pittsburgh, spent thirty years in west Michigan, and now calls the Seattle area home. There she cultivates a vegetable garden and plays lots of pickleball for fun and as a certified coach.
For more about Lorilee, go to lorileebeltman.com. Instagram @lorilee.beltman
Beth Brown-ReinselBeth Brown-Reinsel has been passionately teaching historic knitting workshops nationally, as well as internationally, for over 35 years. Her book Knitting Ganseys has been deemed a classic. She has completed three DVDs and created a class on Twined Knitting for Craftsy. She loves to prowl the storage section of museums around the world to look at old knitted things for inspiration for her patterns and classes. She continues to design for her own pattern line Knitting Traditions. Beth’s website, blog, and eNewsletter can be found at knittingtraditions.com. In addition, she hosts two retreats in Vermont each year, and a cruise or land tour somewhere in the world. (See her website for more info!) She lives in Vermont in the US and loves New England winters!
Cecelia CampochiaroCecelia Campochiaro appeared on the knitting scene in 2015 with her debut book, Sequence Knitting. Knitting was a casual pastime until she had an ah-ha moment in 2010 and realized that interesting textured fabrics could be created by the simple repetition of a sequence of stitches. This idea evolved and led to her writing Sequence Knitting, which is a reference book about this mindful approach to knitting.
In the years since Sequence Knitting debuted, she has continued to develop new ideas in knitting. Sequence Knitting is about texture, and her second book, Making Marls, published in 2020, is about color. In Making Marls, the technique of working multiple strands together as one is explored as an approach to colorwork. Her third and newest book, Reversible Knitting, is a stitch dictionary of stitch patterns that look the same on both sides that debuted in 2025.
Cecelia lives in Silicon Valley, where for many years she developed specialized microscopes used in computer chip manufacturing. Textiles, photography and the arts have been a lifelong passion running in parallel with her technical life. In high school and college even though her main studies were in the sciences, she also studied drawing, printmaking, ceramics, and photography.
Not only is she interested in the arts and knitting, but also in books. Books have been the primary mechanism for knowledge transfer for over a thousand years. One of her missions is to honor that tradition and create books that are both informative and are also beautiful objects in and of themselves. Makers love beautiful things, and Cecelia feels strongly that books should be as lovely as tools and yarns. Today she is fully dedicated to the fiber world and “unventing” new ways to make amazing handknit fabrics.
Learn more about Cecelia at ceceliacampochiaro.com
Romi HillRomi Hill lives on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada mountains in Northern Nevada, where the high desert nights are cool and the air is clear and crisp. A lifelong crafter and knitter, she is inspired by the natural surroundings in her corner of the world, and her designs have an organic flow. She specializes in lace of all weights, and her patterns are known for their knitterly details.
Romi’s lace book from Interweave Press: “New Lace Knitting” features timeless patterns for garments and accessories. Her work has been featured in numerous magazines and books, and knit by thousands of knitters.
Visit Romi online at designsbyromi.com. Check out her eBook collections and subscriptions on Ravelry where you can see her full pattern collection. Follow her on Instagram and YouTube at @RomiDesigns, and find her under “Romi” on Ravelry.
Margaret HolzmannMargaret enjoys designing the big things: especially blankets, using them as a canvas to explore color and shapes. As a former engineer at AT&T and NASA, she excels in developing new construction techniques, and the geometry of knitting. Her “new colorwork” approach has opened the possibilities of knitting. Her designs have been featured in knitting magazines, and she has authored five books. See all her work at theknitwit.org. Margaret resides in California with her husband.
Bristol IvyBristol Ivy is a knitting designer, teacher, and author from Bangor, Maine. Her work has been published with PomPom Magazine, amirisu, Quince & Co., Making Magazine, and her own eponymous pattern line. She has taught at such events as Squam Art Workshops, Edinburgh Yarn Festival, and Vogue Knitting Live, as well as yarn shops worldwide. Her recent books,
Knitting Outside the Box and Knitting Outside the Box: Drape and Fold, both with PomPom Press, explore her lifelong commitment to breaking rules and finding beauty in unexpected places. When not knitting, she’s sewing, running, watching far too many British murder mysteries, and baking a mean loaf of oatmeal honey bread. Find her online at bristolivy.com
and on Instagram and Twitter as @bristolivy.
Kasha LinnKasha Linn is a St. Cloud-based fiber artist and the owner of Kasha’s Knits. Knitting and crocheting since childhood, she loves exploring all varieties of yarn and needle crafts. She lives in a small century-old farmhouse with her husband, two daughters, and two pets. Her Nalbinding classes focus on gaining confidence in the basic structure and technique behind this ancient handcraft. Find her on Etsy at KashasKnits.
Brienne MoodyBrienne Moody is a knitwear designer and trail-running mom based along the rocky shores of Lake Superior in Northern Minnesota. Her work is deeply rooted in place, movement, and community.
Brienne’s sweater pattern, Brienne, was published in La Bien Aimée’s book Neons & Neutrals. When she’s not designing knitwear, she spends her days teaching group fitness classes and wrangling two high-spirited teenagers and three dogs among the pines and big waters of her hometown.
Brienne believes in the life-changing power of movement and craft within communities, and she is passionate about helping knitters uncover how their personal stories are woven into their projects.
Learn more about Brienne at briennemoody.com
Laura RickettsLaura Ricketts is a teacher, designer, and author. Her history and education background fuels her articles and teaching. A North American expert on Sámi knitting, Laura’s work has been featured in PieceWork, Knitting Traditions, BÁIKI: The North-American Sámi Journal, the Defarge book series and Midwestern Knits! She has lectured and taught at the American Swedish Institute, Finnfest, the National Nordic museum, the National Nordic Knitting Conference and Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum. She currently lives with her smart husband and a dumb coon hound in north-central Indiana where she teaches humanities at an independent, college-preparatory high school.
Learn more about Laura at LauraRickettsDesigns.com
Our spinning demonstrations are sponsored by Get Bentz Farm.
After 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.)
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!
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!
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)
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)
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)