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THE GUILD'S 10th ANNUAL GUILD DAY AND AGM, 17th May 2008.

What a great day! A definite hightlight of any year.

The 10th Annual General Meeting of the Guild of Machine Knitters was held at The Gryphon Conference Centre, Sherborne, Dorset on Saturday 17th May 2008. We had the use of The Gyphon Conference Room, the Quarr Hall, the School Dining Hall and the Centre Reception Area. Sounds a lot of space, but all of it was used. We were assisted this year by the ladies from the All Knit Sherberts Club led by Sarah Chilcott and Regional Officer, Pat Ivins.

Registration was from 9.45, but some people were early. The AGM itself started at 10.15 and took about 25 minutes. It followed the standard format of any AGM - minutes of the last AGM, reports from the Chairman and Treasurer, thanks to those committee members who were retiring, election of new committee members, and any other business. Then it was on to the more interesting things. The announcement of the results of the Guild knitting competition. There were 38 entries this year, plus 5 group entries for the Sherborne Vase. All the entries were displayed in the Quarr Hall, and with help from local clubs we were able to display most of the entries in the Adult Garment section on dummies. Everyone attending the AGM was asked to vote for their favourite entry, with the winner being announced during the fashion show at the end of the day. The entry chosen by the members was not the entry chosen by the judges.

Immediately after the AGM and presentation of the cups and awards to the winners of the competition, there was a coffee break and time to browse the stands set up by suppliers. Undy Yarns were there with some of their beautiful yarns as well as spares and accessories, Ann Brown, Fiona Morris, Feola Dawes and Elaine Cater had come along with their patterns. Seven clubs had brought knitted items to display - and what a variety. All the clubs had worked extremely hard to show what they had been doing. There was no way you could look at it all in a 15 minute coffee break, but there was time later in the day to continue browsing as there were breaks for lunch and afternoon tea.

The first speaker of the day was Janet Nabney. The Guild had the use of the conference Centre's audo-visual equipment which enabled everyone to see the details being demonstrated as they were projected on a screen. This was a big asset as, with over 80 people present, there was no way we could all see one knitting machine. It also meant that everyone could see examples of the work at the same time, and you didn't get passed a sample to look at that the speaker had talked about 10 minutes earlier.

The things Janet talked about, and the pictures she showed us, were really amazing, and inspiring. There was so much to think about we came out of the talk with our heads spinning with ideas. Janet talked about origami knitting - casting on across the needle bed and knitting and shaping using holding position to create a garment. Some people have such fantastic ideas and her talk left a lot of us itching to have a go. It was a good job Janet's talk was followed by the lunch break. We needed time to think about what we had just seen and heard.

Fiona Morris was the speaker after lunch. Her talk was so different from the one we heard in the morning. Manual techniques for making open fabrics - holes to you and me. Again it gave us plenty of food for thought and there were samples that we could feel and look at as well.

After a short break for tea and cake there was a fashion show. Attendees at the AGM had been "spotted" by a committee member and asked to stand up and show the garment they were wearing. There are so many clever people around and it is always interesting to see what others have made. The day finished at 4.15. It had been a thought provoking, and inspiring day everyone who attended must have gone home with their head full of ideas.

The Guild would like to thank: our two speakers, Janet Nabney and Fiona Morris for the most interesting and informative talks they gave; the suppliers who came along, Undy Yarns, Ann Brown, Elaine Cater, Feola Dawes, Fiona Morris for their support. The following knitting clubs who put on displays: All Knit Sherberts, Westbury Woolies, Knatty Knitters, Fleet, North East Hants, Middlesex Machine Knitters, Taunton. All Knit Sherberts for their help in organising the day, setting up and clearing up, the catering and the overnight accommodation for those coming long distances. The Gryphon Conference Centre for the use of their excellent facilities and particularly Lizzie Kingsbury for her help behind the scenes.

Margaret Sowden presenting Eileen Polkinghorne with the Chairmans Cup		Alison wearing her concept jacket (pattern in Aug 2007 Newsletter)		Elaine Cater on her stand talking to Janice Engall
L-R Eileen Polkinghorne, Margaret Sowden, Pat Banyard-Smith, Eileen Langford		Feola Dawes (centre) on her stand with Guild members looking at displays		Guild members talking to Ann Brown on her stand
Janet Nabney explaining her origami knitting to members		Janet Nabney showing how origami knitting can be created..		Janet Nabney
Fiona Morris (left) talking to members about her Open Knitting with other members examining samples		Fiona Morris		Judith Cutler at the Fashion Show
Sandra Saunderson at the Fashion Show		Glynn Jones at the Fashion show		Sarah Chilcott at the Fashion Show
Elaine Cater at the Fashion Show		Frank Dineen and Felipe Deveril talking to members at the Fashion Show		Undy Yarns stand at the AGM
Club display by Middlesex Machine Knitters		Club display by All Knit Sherberts Club		Items knitted by All Knit Sherberts Club for donating to charity
Club display by Fleet Knitting Club		Club display by the Knatty Knitters		Club display by North East Hampshire Knitting Club
Club display by the Taunton Knitting Club		Westbury WooliesWoolies - club display by the Westbury Woolies		Members of All Knit Sherberts Club organised catering at the AGM

Guild members admiring the competition entries

Guild Members at the Fashion Show