TNNA 2011 Recap

This past TNNA was my 2nd Columbus and probably 5th (6th?) TNNA overall.  Every show is a little different, but always exhausting, rewarding and energizing all at the same time. This year was different for me in that it’s my first show with a new distributor, Deep South Fibers. I also was walking the floor with a different purpose: shopping for yarns for my book projects.

Right after the show, I went straight to hot & humid Houston, Tx to visit my family as a Father’s Day present to my dad. So, my update on TNNA is a bit delayed and overdue. So, here it is…

Booth & the Show Floor

I brought many of my samples for DSF to display at the booth and spent some time working the booth and chatting with various LYSOs and yarn shop representatives.  I was also able to spend some time with fellow DSF designers both at the booth and post show hours during dinner and some social bar/knitting time at one of the hotel lobbies.

Below are some photo highlights. The rest of my photos are in my Flickr album.

Above: My areas in the DSF booth. Top: I was right next to Designs by Romi, whose shawls hung to the right of my Issara coat and Weekend Shawl. Bottom: Table with my hats, some other accessories and my “posse” buttons.

Left: Ysolda Teague and Stefanie Japel at Ysolda’s photo booth.  Both of them are also fellow DSF designers. Ysolda generously gifted me a copy of her wonderful book, Little Red in the City. I haven’t really had a chance to look through it in detail, but it looks really wonderful. I’ll have to spend some time examining it and giving it a proper review later.  Right: The beautiful Kristi Porter signing “More Knitting in the Sun.” The hat on the table just happens to be my design contribution to the book, “Eloise.”

Left: With friend and writing mentor Cat Bordhi at the Visionaries booth. Right: Stefanie Japel (with whom I had great fun being roomies!) and I visiting my talented friend and fellow Visionary Debby Accuardi at the Pico Accuardi booth. (I’m wearing Elizabeth Zimmermann in the photo.)

Above: Why yes, that is the great Barbara Walker! She was there for 1 day and I introduced myself to her again (I first met and chatted with her at Sock Summit 2009) and showed her my “Barbara G. Walker” hat that she so graciously allowed me to honor her by naming it after her. She was so humble and said to me “I am so honored that you named it after me. I’ve never had a pattern named after me before.”  Seriously, Ms. Walker? Believe me, it is I who feels blessed and honored! The sample I’m holding up is the one worked in Tactile Fiber Arts Tencel-Merino.

Left: Super fun and lovely lady was a fan of my hats and tried on most of them! She’s from Amitie + Passion in Quebec, Canada (address: 4 rue Jacques-Cartier, Sallaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC J6P 4T4). She’s wearing “Septima Clark” and I’m wearing “Eleanor Roosevelt.” Right: Janet from The Salty Sheep in NC, trying on “ Issara.”

Left: Holy Cow! My first magazine cover! I can’t wait until Knitscene’s Fall 2011 issue hits the newsstands! The design on the cover is Lepidoptera. Right: Sarah Bible of Ravelry looking super fabulous with her very important WIP.

Left: I finally “officially” met Norah Gaughan at the Berroco Yarn Bar (fun, right!?) Pictured are Stefanie, me, Norah Gaughan and Amanda Keep. Right: Teva Durham, who I credit to really encouraging me to write a book last year, signing her new book, Loop d Loop Lace.

Designers’ Dinner & Social Time

Part of TNNA is networking and socializing with your friends in the industry, old and new. The networking included dinner, lunches, ice cream/coffee and knitting in one of the hotel bar/lobbies everyday. One of the events, a Designers’ dinner organized by Marly Bird, was the highlight. Marly went all out in finding us a lovely venue for over 60 designers and getting some wonderful sponsors who contributed some gift bags that made us feel like A-list rock start Hollywood celebs.  To thank my fans and blog readers (and really, I can’t keep all this stuff), I’m giving away most of the things in my goody bag, including a Namaste bag! I’ll post the details in my next blog post.

Having a great laugh at the Designer’s dinner: Woolly Wormhead, Andi Smith (KnitBrit),  Miriam Felton and Ann Kingstone.

At the Designers’ dinner with (left) Miriam Felton and (right) Kimberly Reynolds, aka somebunnyslove.

Left: I dined with some friends that I’m always delighted to see, Kate Oates, Stefanie Japel, Robyn Chachula and Simona Merchant-Dest. Right: I was absolutely delighted to have finally met Woolly Wormhead, who is an absolute delight and a fellow DSF designer. I was also very happy to meet Carol Feller and Ann Kingstone, who traveled from Ireland and the UK, respectively. We had some great laughs over drinks and dinner over some silly things, like the different UK and American terminologies.

Above: The 3 photos above show the tons of people (mostly designers at this location, but also yarnies and publishers) hanging out nightly at the hotel lobby & bar. It was a ginormous knitting circle! Some of the other wonderful people with whom I enjoyed chatting included Laura Nelkin, Kristen Tendyke, Mercedes Tarasovich-Clark (Pie Bird Designs/ Kitchen Sink Dyeworks), Bonne Marie Burns (Chic Knits), Shannon Okey (Knitgrrl), Rosemary Hill (Designs by Romi), Anne Hanson, Annie Modesitt, Benjamin Levisay (Knitting Universe/ XRX/ Stitches Events), Joanna Johnson, Mary-Heather Cogar, Alisha Goes Around, Sabrina Famellos (Anzula Luxury Yarns),  Mary Beth Temple, Sarah Stanfield, Michelle Miller (Fickleknits), Amy Polcyn, and Grace Akhrem. For the first time, in person, I also met Heather Dixon (Army of Knitters), Petite Purls‘ Allegra and Brandy,  Jaala Spiro of KnitCircus, Sarah Wilson, Anna Dalvi, Deb Robson (I got a copy of her fabulous new book “The Fleece & Fiber Sourcebook” – I’ll need to make time to review that one as well!).

Whew! I’ve never made that many links before, and still, I know that there are many others that I forgot to list, and even more folks that I wished that I had more time to chat with. Please forgive me if you are one of those folks.

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