Mason-Dixon Inspiration

And still more from last weekend's Knit-In:



After lunch, Marsha and I spent two hours with Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne, better known as the Mason-Dixon Knitting girls. They are even more delightful in the flesh than in their books and on their blog. In case you live in some cave that these knitter-friends have failed to penetrate: Ann lives in Nashville and Kay lives in New York. They met in chat room when the Internet was young and struck up a friendship that has yielded two delightful books.

Ann and Kay are just as charming in person as on the page. Example, Kay said that she can knit in a dark movie theater. "When I'm dead," she added, "I'll knit a few more rows."

I've only knit the Log Cabin baby blanket from their first book (see above). That will change. Seeing their projects in the flesh (in the wool?) was very inspiring. Their rugs and sweaters are truly beautiful.

I hadn't quite grasped their schtick. They promote Knitting Below Skill Level. In other words, easy projects can be fun and worthwhile. While I tend to knit wearables, they make a good point about how you really get a lot of use out of blankets and rugs. Kay brought some much-used washcloths. They were faded, but still sturdy and useful.

Their first book, Mason-Dixon Knitting: The Curious Knitters Guide, has just come out in paperback. To promite it, they posted a new video -- a spoof, of course -- on You Tube. It's called Grey Garments, and it's very funny.

If you haven't checked out their blog, do! You'll laugh.