Savoring Sock Summit

Stephanie wrote:

The magnitude of Sock Summit was, at times, overwhelming.

This banner outside the Convention Center made me think this is real and this is big.

As with any event Mona and I get to meet some incredible people. The difference with Sock Summit was the number of ace teachers and designers gathered together at one time. It was nothing to see Meg Swansen and Lucy Neatby strolling the marketplace.

We met both Anne Hanson and Sivia Harding, designers for our sock club. Sorry there aren't any pictures - you'll have to take my word for it. Both of them have been wonderful to work with, and it was nice to have time to chat.

We saw Sheri from The Loopy Ewe again. It's always good to touch base with her.

Probably the biggest thrill was meeting several people who are members of our sock club. Until Sock Summit they were names on a list - now we have faces to go with those names. Thanks to all of you who stopped by and introduced yourselves.

One of the gems of this whole event was the Sock Museum. At the far end of the marketplace in a secluded area were several tables displaying socks arranged in chronological order. I love history. History combined with socks - what a brilliant idea.

I lost myself in the Sock Museum for a good long time, reading and taking pictures. Sorry, Mona, if you felt abandoned in the booth.

Here is a sampling from the Sock Museum.

The Coptic sock with a separate big toe for easy sandal wear. These socks were made using nalbinding.

Thrumming is one of my passions, and I've given several demonstrations on it. I was delighted to see these Newfoundland Thrummed Socks in the Museum.

These toe up Hook and Rose Turkish Socks were impressive.

A work of art.

Argyles in progress and completed. I applaud anyone who can see a pair of argyle socks through to completion.

Wearable Art Stockings designed by Elizabeth Zimmermann. These socks don't have reinforcement in the heels and toes. They are meant to be worn shoeless with feet up on a coffee table - a sock for lounging.

Adorable.

Note the unique toe.

That completes our tour of the Sock Museum.

Here is a larger-than-life swift courtesy of Paradise Fibers. In case you're wondering this swift was actually turning during marketplace hours.

While most of our time was spent in the Convention Center, we did manage to explore Portland a bit. I must confess I never made it to Powell's - the one place everyone said I had to see. I can spend as much money in a bookstore as I can spend in a yarn store. It's probably best to save Powell's for another visit.

We saw this interesting tree, the likes of which I'd never seen before.

This is a monkey puzzle tree. It looks like a naked pine tree.

I was very impressed with this use of space.

This is an ice skating rink in the middle of a mall - space that would otherwise be empty. If we'd had more time, I would have rented some skates and hit the ice.

I had been warned there would be a Starbucks on every Portland corner - not unlike our own beloved Dunkin' Donuts. There was a Starbucks on every corner - and one right inside the Convention Center. I was very grateful for the easy access to caffeine.

One evening we ventured downtown for a well deserved, sit-down meal.

The atmosphere was pleasant and the food was delicious - a nice change of pace from the on-the-go food we had been eating.

If you build it, they will come. Sock Summit proved that notion. People knitting anywhere and everywhere - from big groups of knitters to solo knitters. I saw them in the Convention Center, the hotel lobby, in Starbucks, on the light rail, downtown, on the sidewalks, at the airport. Many were knitting socks, some were working on other projects. They were all knitting. Knitting and enjoying the moment - the Sock Summit moment.

Organizing an event such as this is an enormous task. Many thanks to Stephanie, Tina and crew for a job well done.

Sock Summit was busy and hectic - at times a blur. In the days since Sock Summit I've taken time to absorb and process the experience. And I'm sure I'll revisit those memories many times over.

Recovering

Stephanie wrote:

Reentry from Sock Summit has been painful. I've had blog posts in mind but haven't been able to summon the strength to give the computer more than a cursory glance. The thought of forming coherent strings of words seemed an insurmountable task.

Sock Summit was an amazing event. The energy and dynamics were fun, intense, educational, inspiring. It was an opportunity to connect with old friends, to meet online friends in person, to make new friends. And I feel honored to say I was there. It's like saying you were at Woodstock.

But let's start at the very beginning. This is what awaited us on the first visit to our booth - the space that would be our home away from home.

We had two pallets of inventory and everything necessary to set up our display. We had one minor mishap in shipping, but other than that everything made it safe and sound.

After hours and hours of work and lots of help from our two trusty companions we had this to show for our efforts.

The yarn display covered one end of the booth.

Our new display rack featuring bags. We added a couple of new bag designs for Sock Summit, and they were a hit.

Treat Your Feet - one of the new banners we added to our display for this event.

We had some incredible neighbors. Sorry for the lack of pictures - I didn't take nearly enough. Lisa Souza and her husband (the man with a tool for every emergency) were across the aisle from us. They were great to chat with during quiet times in the marketplace.

Next door we had the friendly women from The Yarnery. They don't do events on a regular basis, but they put together an adorable booth for Sock Summit. I've visited their shop many times. If you're ever in St. Paul, be sure to check it out. Lots of yarn in an old house in an historic neighborhood - need I say more?

I have more to share from Sock Summit, but it will have to wait for another post. During the weeks leading up to Sock Summit I knew it was consuming my life on many levels. As further evidence of that today when I sat down at my desk, I noticed that my calendar still has the July page showing.

Time for me to turn the page and get caught up with some of the other things going on in my life.