Midwestern Knitters, Check Out Annie’s Craft Festival

A brand-new, one-of-a-kind craft festival is being presented later this month in the Annie’s Craft Festival, taking place in Fort Wayne, Ind., October 30 through November 1.

The weekend will include classes taught by industry greats such as Lily Chin (I took a class from her at TNNA this year and it was awesome!) and Edie Eckman, as well as an evening with New York Times bestselling author and creator of Hallmark’s Cedar Cove series, Debbie Macomber; a playful Crafts & Cocktails Halloween Party; free make-and-takes; a measuring station and a “stitch doctor” among other attractions.

The festival is hosted by Annie’s, one of the largest and most diverse sources of craft designs, instruction and supplies in American and producer of the TV show “Knit and Crochet Now!” It will include knitting, crochet, quilting, sewing, beading, card-making and paper crafts to cross-stitch, floral crafts, painting and more.

There will be giveaways, free classes, a product runway with prizes and all sorts of other fun stuff.

“There is no other show like this, serving enthusiasts across the breadth of the crafting world,” Annie’s executive VP Michele Fortune says. “We couldn’t be more thrilled about the quality and variety of teaching talent, marketplace offerings and social activities being offered at this festival.”

The festival will be held at the Grand Wayne Convention Center located in downtown Fort Wayne. The Hilton Fort Wayne, which is connected to the Grand Wayne Convention Center, is offering festival attendees a discounted room rate of $124 a night. A limited number of VIP packages are also available.

I’d love to know if any of you attend and what you think of it!

[Photo via Annie’s.]

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The felted slipper craze that began last year doesn’t seem like it’s fading away. The Sailor Slippers, often striped knit and felted slippers made with super bulky yarn, because the project of the moment late last year (check out more knit slipper options in this post all about sailor slippers) and they’re still consistently popular with knitters.

Which makes sense because they are fun and fast to knit, and seeing them go from this giant thing to something that actually fits a foot feels a little magical.

I have always loved felting (in fact my first book was about felting knitting) and it’s always fun for me to see people rediscover this technique.

If you’ve knit enough plain slippers to fit all the feet you know, maybe it’s time to stitch up some tabi style slippers instead.

Maymade Knits has designed these cute tabi ballerina slippers, made with bulky yarn and felted. They’re worked flat at first and then in rounds, and are available in 10 EU sizes (the Internet tells me add 31 to your American shoe size to get your EU size). The designer says the slippers are meant to have a close fit and you should choose a size a little smaller than your foot for the ideal fit.

The pattern includes a video tutorial along with the written pattern.

You can grab this pattern on Ravelry. The same designer has her own version of the striped felted slipper as well, called Sarah’s Striped Slippers. These are worked in super bulky yarn and have a contrasting foot and a striped body. These are knit flat and seamed and there are 7 size options available. Check that pattern out here if you’re looking for a more traditional slipper shape. They also look roomier so you can wear them with socks if you like.

[Photo: Maymade Knits]

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