Report One: Vienna Wool & Design Festival

My first highlight of the Vienna Wool & Design Festival was that I met up with Nancy Marchant at the airport in Vienna on Friday afternoon. She landed half an hour before Michael and I so, Suncica suggested booking a taxi for the three of us, knowing that we would have a lot of luggage with us. It gave me a wonderful chance to get to know the Queen of Brioche Knitting. The festival had already began by the time we arrived; the first set of workshops started in the afternoon. Several of the stands were set-up, ready for the influx of knitters on Saturday, in the Market Hall  (read: the Ballroom) at the Arc Hotel Wimberger. While I was busy looking down at all the yarns on all the 23 stands, Michael looked up and captured the banners with my design Tau, published in the: Vienna Wool & Design Festival Magazine: wool 2 to go 01. Mail order is open from today.

Suncica, one of the two organisers, had three different stands: The first for her current yarnshop: Wollsalon with the wonderful yarns like: Artyarns, Hedgehog Fibres, Lorna’s Laces, Malabrigo and Shibui. The second for her new brands called Pop-Up Store with: The Uncommon Thread, Biscotti Yarns and Doulton Flock. The third for her new yak yarn: Myak. I must admit seeing all those brands made me craving yarn. I am sure that sound familiar to many of you! I was way too busy talking to knitters I had meet in Vienna in 2015, test knitters from my Ravelry group and friends to take photographs, so most of these are taken by my husband!

Uschi, the other organiser, told me that they early figured out that they needed a photo wall, and where better to place it than on the stage. We took advantage of it and asked Susanne, aka shannara13 on Ravelry, to join us. On the Friday we were all wearing the same bluebell shade of blue and all my designs: Uschi, aka Grinsekatz on Ravelry, is wearing Ronette, Susanne is wearing Irina Pullover, both have made adjustments to the pattern to make them their own and  I am wearing Kori.

I was looking forward to seeing Scottish designer Di Gilpin again. I met her first time at the Rowan Yarns’ stand at the Knitting and Stitching Show in London several years ago, while I was still working for Rowan and she was launching her first book with Rowan yarns. Now, she has her own yarn brand: Lalland Lambswool, sell finished garments and designs both for hand knitters and for haute couture. In the photo above you see Sheila, who trains all their sample knitters and assists Di. Her eye for design and especially intricate cable work stand out, just take a look at her website here: digilpin.com. And yes, I have several balls of her yarn to play with now. To be continued.

All the beautiful colours and yarns on the British The Little Grey Sheep stand blew me away. Here I am lost in colours. All you can see of me is the back of my design Helka. I first spoke their shepherdess Susie (you can see her in action in the picture hanging above the mini skeins in the photo below), before I spoke to dyer & manager Emma.

Invited to this festival was also the Polish designer Hanna Maciejewska, aka Hada Knits, who I met up with during the festival. We enjoy each others company a lot! Suncica, aka Sunce5555 on Ravelry, stopped us in our tracks asking for more autographs for the magazines. We obliged, enjoying the lime light for a short period of time.

Hanna’s husband Daniel was walking around with his camera just as Michael was. Another designer who also brought her man was Isabell Kraemer, but due to our workshop schedules I was not able to talk to her until Monday morning when the six of us had a late breakfast. I am very proud of the fact that I did not buy any yarn, but I was given several skeins and balls to play with so I do not feel deprived in any way.

None of my workshops were fully booked and the small groups made them extra enjoyable since it gave us more time to get acquainted! Among the participants I spoke Norwegian to three of them to my surprise; two of them were living in Austria while the third had worked as an au-pair in Norway. The rest of the time, I spoke English and several of the Austrian participants where surprised how quickly they could recall their English vocabulary that not been used for awhile. More photos and stories are coming up next so stay tuned.

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Vienna Wool & Design Festival 2017

I am so chuffed to be invited to hold workshops at this new knitting festival called Vienna Wool & Design Festival 29. to 30. April at Arcotel Wimberger Vienna Hotel. Also invited are the following: Polish designer Hanna Maciejewska aka Hada Knits, who I met at the Wollness Weekend outside of Vienna a couple of years ago; American designer Nancy Marchant; German designer Isabell Kraemer; Scottish designer Di Gilpin , who I first met at the Knitting and Stitching Show several years back; and British designer Anna Maltz, just to mention a few. Some of us will teach in English while the rest will teach in German. The festival is organised by Suncica Wilhelmer, owner of Wollsalon Sunshine Loop, and Ursula Koll. In addition to the workshops there will be a tempting market hall, come together evening, galla dinner and a magazine made with new patterns by participating designers. I already know that a number of my test knitters will be there and I look forward to meeting old and new friends. I suspect the majority of the knitters present will be women but at least two husbands will be there – I know this for a fact since both Hanna’s and mine is coming – both will be busy photographing unlike the rest of us!

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Wollness Weekend Photographed by Dominik Matyas

AYC_499All the brilliant photos Dominik Matyas, bydominik.com, took at the Wollness Weekend, at Hotel Steinschalerhof, 1.5 hour outside of Vienna, are ready. He has captured the fun we had so well. Above are the organizers; the Austrian Yarn Club founders and some of us workshops holders together with the two husbands present: From the right: Uschi – Ursula Koll, aka Grinsekatz on Ravelry; Irene Brenner aka Irenevienna; Teresa Schinwald, aka RedUrchin second from left and behind her Kathi Fritz, aka dewthing. Lovely and talented designer Hanna Maciejewska, aka hada131, in the center who held workshops in English just a me standing next to her with my husband Michael at the back and in the corner Hanna’s husband Daniel. In the opposite corner, far left, is Betta Pierantoni who held a workshop on Estonian colorwork in German.

AYC_500Here we are photographing Isabella doing the hippo dance, on the order of Dominik to make us all laugh, you can see my photo of it here: vienna-calling. Guess who acted like a paparazzi?

5D_58240.finalAbove is the portrait Dominik took during my Finishing workshop, and below a collage of some of the photos he took. Dominik was so surprised by everybody’s delightful reaction to my announcement that buttons and buttonholes were next on the agenda. He added it into his workshop in photography, to my delight.

Lindas-workshop-800x800Below is a collage of Hanna’s workshop: Top-Down Set-in Sleeve. You can read more about her impressions of the weekend on her blog here: hadaknits.com/wollness-weekend.

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Last but certainly not least is Dominik’s collage from the Wool market, open on Saturday evening and Sunday morning. There were lot of temptations but the selection was a bit overwhelming for some of us. You can find even more photos and info on the Austrian Yarn Club website here: yarnclub.at.

WollmarktCollage

It was a thrill being there during the Wollness Weekend, and meeting so many brilliant knitters, test knitters in person, designer Hanna & Daniel and photographer Dominik. Thank you all!

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Vienna Calling

DSCN0310 copyIsabella Mach, aka Isa, offered to take us back to Vienna directly to our hotel from Steinschalerhof and we obviously accepted in a flash. We arrived in a wet Vienna, unpacked and then located designer Hanna Maciejewska + husband, before we headed out for dinner and a long walk through the city centre of Vienna. We are all staying at the Hotel Wien in the 2.nd District with a walking distance to the city centre, recommended by Austrian Yarn Club organiser Irene Brenner who live nearby. Above is a photo of the landmark, St. Stephen’s Cathedral

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Irene and her husband took us sightseeing on our first day in Vienna. They are in the centre of the photo above. Of course we meet up with Ursula Koll – notice her love of bright colours, see pink shawl above – and then later on Teresa Schinwald, as well as the German visitors Betta and Andrea for coffee and cake at a famous café – as you do.

DSCN0288Before we left Steinschalerhof, we had a session with photographer Dominik Matyas who took a number of group photos. Isa was helping out, doing a hilarious hippo dance in the background. We will have to wait a couple of weeks to see all of his photos, since he was busy taking numerous project photos for most of the knitters present.

Dominik Matyas/ byDominik.com

Dominik Matyas/ byDominik.com

Above is one of the workshop photos he took of my Professional Finishing Workshop, part II. At the rail you can see a few of my designs I had brought to show off and to wear at the venue.

DSCN0276 copyThere was a yarn market at the Wollness Weekend, where knitters could destash and yarn shops display their yarn and knitting gadgets. Despite the fairly small room the selection was overwhelming!

DSCN0280 copyAbove is the stunning modified Gyda – from a jacket into a sweater with a wonderful deep square neck knitted by Ursula Koll, aka Grinsekatz on Ravelry. Yet another of my designs I spotted at the Wollness Weekend, to my utter delight. At the moment Ursula is finishing her Hennika, this time not only in pink but in a fluorescent pink. I cannot wait to see the finished result.

Yesterday, we went to visit Suncica Wilhelmer, an architect and a yarn shop owner who lives in the Rufer House designed by the architect Adolf Loos. Not only did we want to see her house but Hanna and I also wanted to check out her yarn selection and fondle some yarn. The name of her yarn shop is Wollsalon Sunshine Loop, and we were both tempted into buying several skeins of yarn. The yarn shop is located in the former kitchen, and I loved the fact that the owner wanted not only a window facing the street but also one facing the indoor staircase so he could spot the visitors from his office. In the evening Hanna and I were at their knit night. We finally managed to do some more knitting…

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