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Knitting and Stitching at Alexandra Palace

Some days are good days and some days are bad days and some days are golden, to be etched into the memory for a life time. Today was a golden one. If there was a recipe of things to make me smile, today had so many of the ingredients. If you are ever feeling sad about life, a good piece of advice is to surround yourself with your favourite things.

For those who are in love, the memories of where you fell in love are precious places. For those with children, the memories of where your family began are dear to your heart. Alexandra Palace is a place full of those happy times. Mark and I lived in our first flat together about 20 minutes walk from Ally Pally, we were married in Muswell Hill which is next to Alexandra Palace and Josie and I went on our first ever Mummy and baby outing there. It is a beautiful place, an amazing building, stunning views, a breathing space above the city and today it was full of fabulous fabric and sumptuous yarn as well as some incredibly talented people. The key ingredient today though was a old new friend, Kim.

I followed the advice Jane Brocket and took a picnic which inspired by Kim's love of cheese and the fact that knitting has to be combined with cake. There were so many highlights that I felt quite dizzy.



This dress was exquisite. How could a dress not make anyone smile?

















I would have liked to have bought lots of things from lots of the stalls but had to choose, so my first choice was Loop. I could resist two skeins of yarn; Blue Sky 100% baby alpaca and KidMelange.


My favourite of the contemporary exhibitors was Gjertrud Hals (flax pulp on linen thread, kozo paper). The images filled me with inspirational thoughts and memories of the pieces for my final degree exhibition at university.














The colours on the Knitting 4 Fun stand were brilliant and I got three more skeins of yarn: Irish Linen Orange, Bourette Silk Green and Orange.


I also really liked Janice Gunner who was so very friendly and a mine of information about quilting, Janie Crow and her brilliant crocheted cushions, Blooming felt (for future purchases and projects) and Crafty Ribbons for their dinosaur ribbon.



If you haven't made a comment yet to win my Mod Podge Paperweight, I just wanted to add one more picture from today's exhibition. The chair above is covered in the same fabric as I used for my paperweight and it looked incredible.
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Comments

  1. Kim10 October 2010 at 03:55

    I agree, it was a lovely day, and I also enjoyed the cheese-and cake-fest. The photos you took look great. I seriously want a dress like the one above. I'm going to get in contact with the textiles tutor in Nantwich that Janice Gunner was talking about. One of these days I may make that dress. Kim x

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