Sock Summit Field Update – Thursday

Brought to you in conjunction with Knotions- Knit smarter!

Greetings, readers! Today started pretty early for us- we had a 7:30 interview with a knitting notable (who we’ll talk about in Episode 66), and then a day packed with more Sock Summit-y, Portland-y goodness. For those of you who couldn’t be here, here’s the carpeting that has inspired ChloeSparkle:

Fun, right?

After our interview, we went and hung out in this great, open area. We sat with Chloe, who was sporting some awesome elbow-length fingerless gloves

Then, we met Karen, who we learned, is a woman of fine and discerning tastes. Here she is, with her Obamarama socks, which Mom has announced, she is knitting for the younger Knitmore.

When we mumbled about needing lunch and the possibility of going offsite for a little more adventuring, Karen directed us to Twisted, which is a fantastic Portland yarn shop- and to Costello’s Travel Café.

Twisted is gorgeous, welcoming, and come on, who doesn’t love a yarn shop with some extra knitting for the ill-prepared?

(Mom might have put a few rows on it.)

That’s not even the best part. On top of having a great selection of yarns, including some locally dyed stuff, they sell tea. At a glance, the board with teas seems pretty standard, but when you look closer…

Yes. Geek tea. Unfortunately, I had hit my caffeine quota and our group of weary knitters needed sustenance. As usual, the suggestion of a knitter was spot on, and Costello’s Travel Caffé was a big hit with all of us. The food was stellar, a great value, and they serve local beer.

On top of all the usual stuff, they also offer wi-fi, and have incredibly attractive servers, one of whom was a great sport and the other had a friend in town for the Sock Summit.

Handsome, right?

After lunch, we headed back to the convention center for some more social knitting, and while we were waiting for our interviewee (and the student market preview), we had the good fortune of hanging out with Lise (hostess of the Knitting Rose Podcast) and her charming husband – the Big Texan, designer Brenda Patipa, and knitting ergonomist Carson Demers.

We’ll talk more about the market in Friday’s update, but it was PACKED! After the market closed and folks were wandering towards opening ceremonies, we headed back to our hotel to stuff the goodie bags for Saturday’s meet and greet. We worked on them until 10:30, and when we finished, we had an epic Hawaiian Pizza from Rocco’s.

Tomorrow’s plan: interviews, market, and more local fare! Check back in for more updates on Saturday!