Spend Sunday, November 15, with designer and author Sharon Brant: Design Your Own Accessory Workshop plus Book Signing - 11/18/2009 Sharon’s workshop, Design Your Own Accessory, will be held Sunday, November 15th from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm at Colorful Stitches, 48 Main St. (rear of building), Lenox, MA. Join Sharon as she provides you with the basic knowledge and skills needed for you to design your own accessory whether it is a scarf, wrap, hat, gloves or bag. All you need is an ability to knit and purl and an image of what you want to create. Throughout the workshop you’ll have the opportunity to ask to ask Sharon about what goes on behind the scenes at Rowan. Description How often do we see in fashion magazines, stores and even the movies some accessory that we want to knit. We search our stash of patterns, online pattern resources and check our local knitting stores to see if some knitter has provided instructions. Most often we can only approximate the look we want. Sharon will give you the confidence to be your own accessory designer. Working from your image she will help you understand yarn choices, construction and elements of pattern writing. A good portion of the workshop will be devoted to swatching and calculation. The workshop is open to knitters who know how to knit and purl. There will be a 45-minute lunch break. Lunch is not provided, but light refreshments will be available throughout the day. Workshop participants will need to bring: an image of the accessory you would like to knit (can be a picture or ready-made item) the yarn you will use for your accessory (yarn can be purchased at Colorful Stitches before the workshop begins) knitting needle(s) appropriate for the yarn to be used scissors paper & pencil ruler calculator Workshop Fee: $45.00 (Rowan International members receive 5% off fee) Full payment for the workshop is required at the time of registration. Workshop limited to 12 participants. To register for the workshop: By phone: 800-413-6111 or 413-637-8206 By mail: Colorful Stitches, PO Box 2278, Lenox, MA 01240 Pay by MasterCard, VISA, Discover or MA check. Registration closes Friday, November 13. Book Signing Immediately following the workshop on Sunday, November 15, at 3 pm Sharon will be available to sign copies of her latest books, Finishing Techniques for Hand Knitters and The Ultimate Knitting Bible. Finishing Techniques for Hand Knitters presents expert tips and tried-and-tested shortcuts for beautifully finished hand-knits. Sharon Brant understands that after spending many hours knitting a garment its final appearance can be undermined by bad finishing. It is the reason why most knitters are reluctant to finish their own projects. She also understands that finishing starts with the first stitches cast on since decisions taken at the start of a project and throughout its knitting affect the techniques used in assembling a garment. So she starts with the reading of patterns and instructions and all that it entails from gauge, yarns, choice of size and altering pattern measurements to fit. Among the techniques she explains the different ways of casting on and off, shaping, picking up stitches, seaming, buttonholes, button bands and necklines. For most of the techniques Sharon offers two or three ways to do it. Finally, a section on decorative detail shows how to add beads and other embellishments. The trouble-shooting pages tackle those annoying problems that occur when things have gone wrong. Pattern instructions are included for all the sweaters used to illustrate techniques. The Ultimate Knitting Bible is the one-stop resource for both beginning and accomplished knitters. It’s a definitive reference for all aspects of knitting, from the first stitch you cast on to the care and maintenance of your finished projects. If you are a novice knitter then this book will guide you step by step through everything you need to know in order to confidently knit any project that catches your eye, from the simplest scarf to the most gorgeously textured and embellished sweater. If you are an experienced knitter you’ll find this book a treasure trove of techniques that will help you both brush up on the familiar and expand your abilities. The book has more than 400 illustrations and diagrams to follow covering the basics, knit construction, textured stitches, colorwork, embellishment, professional finishing, troubleshooting and design. There’s even a section on crochet that covers basic crochet stitches and their incorporation into your knitting. About Sharon Brant Did you notice the knitwear in any of the following blockbusters, Harry Potter, Phantom of the Opera, Atonement, Elizabeth or Batman? If not, next time look a little closer. Featured in all those films is knitwear that Sharon helped to design. Sharon Brant is Rowan’s Retail and Brand Development Manager. She has been a passionate knitter since she was a child. Despite starting out in banking, Sharon began working with knitting while she was home with her children. She has run her own knitwear business for over 19 years. She began working for Rowan in 1996 and is now responsible for running the Rowan Design Consultancy across the UK and for planning and coordinating Rowan’s huge workshop program. Sharon calls herself a ‘technician more than anything’. “I either work with designers to help them develop their own ideas, or I write technical knitting books.” She has written and collaborated on several books about knitting and crochet, including the before mentioned two books plus Knitting Goes Large, and Classic Knits for Real Women. She was also the technical support on Rowan’s Crochet Workshop book, Kate Buller’s Knitter’s Bible and Style Your Own Kids’ Knits. Sharon has worked as a pattern writer and technical support for knitwear designers Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably.	Knit caps from a fashion magazine Sketches of accessory trends for fall/winter Finishing Techniques for Hand Knitters The Ultimate Knitting Bible Sharon Brant