UK Knitting Virtuosity at Ally Pally Show 2010

London Design Feast

Getting excited about my upcoming trek to the UK...beginning to plan the routes and make the must-see and must-do lists. Finding the wherewithal and creating the packing list can come later!

Textile-related venues and activities that are high on the list:

The Enchanted Palace, an installation that transforms Kensington Palace into an even more magical space, featuring several of the UK's outstanding designers referencing historical and modern princesses who've lived here.

More in Vogue.com

Fresh perspectives on old favorites, like plaid and handknitting, are hallmarks of the fall/winter collections at Dover Street Market.

Dover Street Market

This hipper-than-thou emporium showcases such names as Comme des Garcons and Adam Kimmel,
as well as up-and-coming young blood with new ideas about both fashion and display.
Love the London textile scene in all its iterations!

While in the neighborhood, we'll probably window-shop on Old Bond Street and see what's new at Cartier, Dolce & Gabbana and Ferragamo, just for fun. And perhaps pop into Ormonde-Jayne to sample some of their luxurious scented things!

Textile Travel Road Trip to Stitches East, Hartford CT, October 2010

The latest Textile Travel Road Trip was a great success!

Our group of fiber enthusiasts left Cape Cod in the early hours of Saturday, October 30, enroute to the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, CT, to shop and gawk at the Stitches East Market.

Dozens of vendors displayed a vast array of commercial and artisanal yarns, fibers, needles, buttons and all manner of accoutrements coveted by crocheters and knitters of all stripes. Attendees swanned around in stunning pieces of knitting and crochet virtuosity....inspiring!

Having attended many of these frenzied spend-fests, I vowed to limit my acquisitions to $100 worth of fibery goodness. First up, a nice fat (4 ounce, 435 yd) skein of silk-and-wool Tinkerbell by Ellyn Cooper, in the Fern Gully colorway, sparkling with sterling silver thread - tasty!

Next, venturing around the floor I came upon the new-to-me booth of Stichuary, featuring a lush collection of yarns from small producers...a kind of distributorship for small farmers?

The deep, dappled shades in Purple Haze called to me....and whaddaya know? it coordinates perfectly in both weight and tone with the Tinkerbell I just acquired.

Sold times two.

...And from the storehouse of delicacy called Habu, a cone of ultra-fine stainless steel thread, and one of a dusty violet fine merino, to complete my Jimi Hendrix-inspired theme of Purple Haze and Heavy Metal.

Now, to find or dream up a project that will incorporate these disparate elements into

a luxurious yet modest garment for MOI...

Every needleworker's dilemma: look, dream, fawn over and pet your stash; eventually the

perfect project will present itself. That, or you'll add it to your own personal Museum of Possibility - a win either way!

Oh wait, I forgot to check my wishlist, and here are the renowned Kollage Yarns Square Needles.

OK, I'll get one set of size 4 circs with the soft cable, just to test them out.

These will be good for many uses; bizarre feeling once they're in your hands... and I've been told that the soft cables can bend at the joint, but the verdict is not yet in. I will report back after engaging in friendly combat with these pups.

Much shopping, visiting and spending later, we repaired to the fabulous

Rein's deli in Vernon, CT enroute back to the Cape....great end to an awesome day!