With the busy days of summer swiftly approaching, we have begun searching Ravelry for projects that will keep our hands occupied but let our minds be free to watch the baseball game, participate in conversations and outdoor gatherings, or just laze about on the porch. A garter stitch piece can always be set aside temporarily when we want something a little more challenging to engage our minds, but is easy to go back to.  

There is something so delightful about garter stitch and stripes. On its own, garter can be boring, but by switching yarns every other row, you get a much more interesting fabric. Hand-dyed tonal yarns like String Theory Caper Sock, Madelinetosh tosh merino light (we just got a new shipment), or Malabrigo sock can add depth to a piece of knitting that solids simply cannot. A self-striping yarn with a long repeat, like Lang D�grad�, Mille Colori Baby, and any of the Noro sock yarns, make knitting garter stitch a fun surprise as we watch to see how each new color will play with the contrast yarn.

Liz knit this shawl, called Elinya, over the course of last summer. It has become a piece that she wears often, and receives the most compliments on. It's a simple (garter stitch) semi-circular shawl with a picot bind-off for an extra sweet touch. She used what is turning out to be her favorite combination of yarns: one skein each of Caper Sock and tosh merino light (although any two 400-yard skeins of fingering-weight yarn will do). It will be in the shop as a sample until the fall weather returns.

Meanwhile, Helen has cast on for Garter Trap, a trapezoidal garter stitch scarf designed by our Berroco rep, using a skein each of Ultra Alpaca Fine and D�grad�, a long-repeat striping yarn that is new to the shop.

We may have given you this link in the past (Circular Shawl Knitting Cheat Sheet), but we think it is worth repeating because Laylock seems to be an informative Web site. Specifically, there is a (free) chart which gives the basic setup for five basic shawl shapes. We've given you the link to this printout, but enjoy exploring the site!

KnitMaine-ia has a new venue this year, the Belfast Boathouse. The show will be held on October 11 at 2 pm. They are once again calling all fiber artists to submit their work.

This year, the theme is Superhero. Is knitting superhuman? Were you ever Batgirl or a Wondertwin? Does Spiderman wish he were MaryJane Mucklestone? If Catwoman is so bad, why does Batman like her so much? Put your needles where your ponderings are and knit, crochet or felt a superhero something for KnitMaine-ia 2014. All submissions are enthusiastically welcomed (super or no), and will be returned after the show. Proceeds from this superhero fashion event will be donated to New Hope for Women.

For updates and more information about the October 11 show, please find them on Facebook or visit St. Margaret's Knit the Community page.

P.S. This could double as a Halloween costume for you or a little one.

Maine's only fiber festival, the 14th Annual Maine Fiber Frolic, will be held on June 7 and 8, 9 am to 4 pm, at the Windsor Fairgrounds in Windsor, Maine. Features include 80+ fiber vendors, sheep dog demos, fleece show and sale, and educational workshops. Admission: $5.00 adults, $2.00 seniors, children under 12 free. For more information, visit Fiber Frolic, or find them on Facebook.

Thinking of alternative ways to cook? Want to build a solar cooker or a bake oven? Thinking of sharpening your own tools? Farm and Homestead Day, a free, hands-on skill-sharing event, offers hands-on and interactive sessions on farming and homesteading skills. It will be held on Saturday, June 14, 9 am-3 pm, at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association's Common Ground Education Center on Crosby Brook Road in Unity, Maine. Gates will be open at 7 am for scything.

Learn how to:

• weave and spin
• make your own cording with a lucet or learn rug hooking
• operate a treadle sewing machine to make a drawstring bag
• sharpen your own tools
• make cheese, ice cream, bean hole beans, and kimchi
• bake bread in a earthen bake oven, cook on a rocket stove
• manage your herbs for a long-season harvest
• prune and mulch orchard trees
• build a garden cart, or a bike trailer
• make paper pots
• build really raised beds
• make a pollinator bee box
• make a coffin
• build a solar cooker, or a rocket stove for cooking with wood
• make basic leather shoes
• handle rabbits and trim their nails and learn how to tattoo their ears
• tan rabbit hides using a non-toxic method
• mow with a scythe and maintain and sharpen it

Children of all ages are invited to learn how to:

• build bluebird nesting boxes
• make paper
• make paper pots, sow seeds and transplant seedlings
• plant the really raised beds

Participants are welcome to bring any extra transplants and seeds
for a Plant and Seed Exchange.

Those who would like to help continue the long tradition of mowing MOFGA's berm and amphitheater with scythes are welcome to join the Sunrise Mowers at 7 a.m. Scythe Supply will bring tools of the trade, help mowers in fitting a scythe and mowing, and teach blade maintenance. Learn to make hay using horse power.

Dress appropriately for this rain or shine event. Participants will be sampling the morning's food preparation efforts, but bring a dish to share or bring a picnic lunch and enjoy MOFGA's beautiful grounds.

Volunteers are welcomed. To help during, before or after the event, please contact Anna Libby at alibby@mofga.org or 207-568-4142, or the Farm and Homestead Day Rabble Rousing Committee at farmandhomesteadday@myfairpoint.net.

For more information, click 2014 tentative schedule -- please check back for changes.

Pleasant Mountain Fiber Arts Workshops 2014, a three-day instructional fiber arts event, will take place on June 20-22 in Brownfield, Maine.

The program consists of 37 wonderful, full- and half-day workshops, and includes spinning, knitting, rigid heddle weaving, tapestry weaving, a wide variety of felting techniques, Dorset buttons, wool applique, quilting, Amigurumi crochet, working with angora and angora rabbit care, proddy rug technique, book binding, punch needle and more.

Full details about the workshops and registration information can be found at Pleasant Mountain Fiber Arts Workshops. As you browse through the workshop descriptions on the Web site you'll see some instructors from previous years, as well as many new ones.

The Lincoln County Historical Association presents Keeping Warm in 18th Century Maine, a two-day symposium and two hands-on workshops featuring lectures, spinning and weaving demonstrations, hands-on dyeing and bed rugg workshops, and exhibits at three museums, will be held on June 28 and 29 in Pittston and Dresden, Maine.

Day one will be held at the Reuben Colburn House in Pittston: keynote address by Edward Maeder, President of the National Museum of the American Coverlet; session on wool by Sandie Tarbox, professional presenter on 18th-century culture and textiles from Tarbox and Tarbox; session on quilts by Faye Snyder, Wiscasset antiques dealer and expert on antique textiles and quilts; session on dyeing by Karen Clancy, Supervisor of the Weaving and Dyeing Program, Colonial Williamsburg. A reception will be held at the Pownalborough Court House Saturday evening.

Day two will be at the Pownalborough Court House in Dresden, including two workshops, Karen Clancy's dyeing workshop and a workshop on bed ruggs by Sandie Tarbox, along with weaving and
spinning demonstrations by weavers from Old Fort Western. There will be a guided tour of overshot coverlets from the Court House and the Ulrich-Plunkett collections with Edward Maeder.

Participants also receive tickets (good till October) for entry to the exhibits on display at all exhibiting museums: the 1761 Pownalborough Court House, in Dresden; the 1812 Old Jail in Wiscasset; and the 1754 Chapman Hall House in Damariscotta.
The cost for the symposium is $95.00, which includes the two-day program, two lunches and a wine reception on Saturday evening. The hands-on dying workshop is limited to 25 participants and the bed rugg workshop is limited to 10 participants. An additional $25.00 fee for each workshop covers materials.

For more information and to register, click Textile Symposium and Workshops or phone 207-586-5690.

Northwoods Gourmet Girl announces the grand opening of its first bricks-and-mortar store located in downtown Belfast at 92 Main St. The new store features Northwoods Gourmet Girl's full line of all-natural pantry goods and tableware as well as the company's newly launched line of clothing and handmade furniture.

"We are excited about our new venture and have received a tremendous response from the Belfast community. We have expanded our brand over the past year continuing our focus on simple, high-quality products," said Abby Freethy, owner and founder.

Based in Greenville in the Moosehead Lake region of Maine, Northwoods Gourmet Girl has been producing all-natural, elegant pantry staples since 2005, one jar at a time. Chef Abby Freethy, a Culinary Institute of America graduate, set out in 2005 to create a company that specialized in healthy alternatives to common pantry staples. Northwoods Gourmet Girl started with country ketchup produced in Freethy's own home kitchen, and has expanded to a product line of over 25 items, including relishes, jams, preserves and dessert sauces.

"I grew up in a home where the kitchen was constantly filled with the smell of my Ukrainian grandmother's scratch cooking, sheltered from the processed foods that still remain omnipresent in today's society," says Freethy. "Northwoods Gourmet Girl is my attempt to bring quality of life back into the kitchen for families throughout New England." The company has grown from its humble beginnings to a sustainable business with a heavy focus on community enrichment for both children and adults.

The new Belfast store will be open from 10 am-5:30 pm, Wednesday-Sunday, with extended hours on Friday evenings. For more information, visit Northwoods Gourmet Girl.

Did you know that 999,999 divided by 7 is exactly 142,857, and that happens to be exactly the number of crackers that have been served at Aarhus openings over the years? Not that the Aarhus partners are fanatical about details or anything, but as sure as there are seven colors of the rainbow, seven systems of mathematical catastrophes and "Sweet 7" is Aarhus' favorite Sugababes album, the Aarhus Gallery doors have been swinging now for seven years.

So whether you have to hike the seven hills of Constantinople or sail the seven seas, or just row across from Searsport, come join the Aarhusians in celebration of their seventh anniversary on Friday, June 6, 5-8 pm, for an Anniversary Show reception.
      
The show runs from June 3 through June 29 and features artwork by Aarhus partners Mark Kelly, Richard Mann, Wesley Reddick and Willy Reddick.

Aarhus Gallery, 50 Main St., Belfast, will resume summer hours with this show starting in June, and will be open Tuesday through Sunday, 11 am-5:30 pm, and Mondays by chance or appointment. For more information, visit Aarhus Gallery or call 207-338-0001.

Betts Gallery announces the premiere show of the 2014 season: 31 Flavors. Thirty-one Maine artists come together in a group show featuring an artisanal menu -- graphite, oil, encaustic, collage, printing, watercolor, photography, fiber art, sculpture. Each artist combines his or her unique blend of ingredients and expert technique to bring an array of tantalizing treats for the eye of the beholder.

31 Flavors artists include: Jeffrey Ackerman, Daniel Anselmi, Betsy Birge, Sandi Cirillo, Kenny Cole, Susan Cooney, Charles DuFour, Gregory Dunham, Lynette Gaslin, Betsy Headley, David Hurley, Bennett Konesni, Kathleen Mack, Karen MacDonald, Petrea Noyes, Dina Petrillo, Joan Proudman, Abbie Read, Alison Rector, Wesley Reddick, Willy Reddick, Michael Reid, Julie Rose, Dyan Ross, Carol Sloane, Lesia Sochor, John Squadra, Norman Tinker, Kathy Weinberg, Gilbert Welch, James Wolfe, Peg Worth.

The show will run from May 21 through June 21, with an opening reception on Friday, May 30, in conjunction with Belfast Arts' Final Friday Art Walks. Betts Gallery is located at 96 Main St., Belfast, at The Belfast Framer.

Waterfall Arts is now taking registrations for summer art classes and camps for kids held at both their Belfast and Montville locations.

New this year are two 9 am to 3 pm camps led by Bridget Matros -- Wizards and Fairies in the Kingdom for ages 5 to 9 and Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Heart Club Band in Belfast for ages 7 to 14. Russell Kahn offers 8- to 14-year-olds a chance to Draw and Paint Your Guts Out in his week-long afternoon class in Belfast, and in his Montville classes in August, he'll focus on sculpture in the morning and exploring color in the afternoon. Shawn Brewer will lead an exciting class in designing and screen-printing epic T-shirts. Also new this year, Linda Stec will guide 6- to 12-year-olds in discovering the Wonders of Clay Friday mornings from 10 am to noon while the Belfast Farmers' Market takes place at Waterfall Arts.

Mike Fletcher leads a Pinhole Camera workshop for all ages in Montville on Saturday, July 26, from 10 am to 2 pm. This is a really fun way to make your own camera and one-of-a-kind photographs. Discounts are available for families.

Teens age 15 and up can take workshops and classes for adults, including ceramics, printmaking, torchwork and glass beads, watercolor, life drawing, sequencing, Shibori, making viral videos and more. See website for listings and details.

Partial scholarships are available for those in need, generously provided by United Midcoast Charities and private donations. For complete class schedules and details, to register for classes, to request a scholarship, or for more information on studio rentals, exhibitions and events, visit Waterfall Arts, stop by Waterfall Arts, 256 High St. in Belfast or phone the office at 207-338-2222.

Hospice Volunteers of Waldo County announce an open call to artists for the August 2014 Juried Art Show, Celebrate Life. Works under 24 inches wide, in any medium -- painting, relief, photography, collage, etc. -- will be considered. Each piece should be professionally mounted and ready to hang on the wall for showing. All submitted work must be for sale and will help benefit the Hospice Volunteers of Waldo County with a 50/50 split between the artist and Hospice Volunteers of Waldo County (HVOWC).
 
Distinguished jurors include Belfast painter David Estey, who was recently selected by Maine Home + Design magazine as one of 37 well-known, highly respected and collectable Maine artists; Brooks sculptor, Kimberly Callas, a recipient of two Elizabeth Greenshield's Foundation Grants and the Stobart Foundation Grant; and Kevin Johnson, resident Photo Archivist at Penobscot Marine Museum, teacher and fine-art photographer.
 
Approximately 30 pieces will be selected for the Juried Art Show and will be shown for the month of August at the Kramer Gallery on the ground floor of the Belfast Free Library. A gala celebration, artist reception and awards ceremony will be held on August 16 at the library. Multiple honors, prizes, cash awards and a special People's Choice Award (voted on by the public) will be announced during the artist reception.
 
How to enter: Artists may electronically submit up to three works per entry. Suggested donation $25.00 per entry. Submission deadline: June 9, midnight. For the complete entry process, please visit Hospice Volunteers of Waldo County and click on the Art Show link. For more information, phone Flic Shooter at 207-930-2677 or Susan Guthrie at 207-338-6140.

The 2nd Annual Summer Dance Camp, for ages 10-15, will take place at the Belfast Dance Studio on July 28-August 1. The dance camp has a fun, noncompetitive and friendly atmosphere, with instruction from the area's most renowned instructors. Learn the discipline of dance while building confidence, self-esteem, positive body awareness and connection with others. The camp is designed for dancers of all levels, and beginners are welcome.
 
The faculty of highly qualified instructors with professional dance experience will offer daily classes in Ballet and Modern (Sunny Hitt), Repertory (Katie Thompson) and Hip Hop Fusion (Shana Bloomstein). The week will culminate in a performance on Friday at 3 pm.

Classes will be held Monday through Friday, 9 am-3:10 pm, with pickup by 3:30 pm. Cost: $210 early-bird special if registered before June 15, $225 after June 15. Sibling discounts offered. Partial scholarships available; please apply before July 1. For more information and to register, phone 207-338-5380 or e-mail info@belfastdancestudio.com.

Join Belfast Flying Shoes on Friday, June 6, for an evening of contra dancing at the American Legion Post #43 in Belfast, 143 Church St. Chrissy Fowler will be calling dances, with music by Sassafras Stomp. Sound provided by Eric Weest Johnson.

Sassafras Stomp is Johanna Davis, Adam Nordell, and Putnam Smith. Johanna sings and plays fiddle and sometimes banjo. She grew up in Round Pond, Maine, and started playing the fiddle in the 4th grade at Waldorf School She grew up in a thriving community of dancers and contra dance musicians.

Adam plays guitar, sings, stamps his feet in syncopated patterns and sometimes plays the banjo. He grew up in the hills south of Helena, Montana. At age 13 he received a bass guitar instead of a bar mitzvah. He discovered high-octane, traditional fiddle music at the little contra dance in Trenton, Maine. Soon thereafter, he bought a guitar. He also performs as a songwriter.

Putnam Smith sings, and plays banjo and mandolin. He's a fine songwriter who often tours as a solo performer. Adam and Johanna also operate Songbird Farm, a certified-organic, mixed-vegetable farm on the bank of the Sandy River in western-central Maine.

The evening begins at 6:30 pm with a community dance and music by the All-Comers Band. All musicians are welcome to sit in. The contra dance begins at 8 pm and runs till around 11 pm. For more information, call Chrissy at 207-338-0979 or visit Belfast Flying Shoes.

Featured Artist: Leslie Mayer
Leslie Mayer's exhibit, Family Tree Hanging Out, will be on view in the Co-op Cafe through late June. Her work can be viewed at Leslie Mayer.

Round Up for Community Recipients
June 1-14: Belfast Public Health Nursing;
June 15-30: Belfast Garden Club.

Senior Discount Day
Every Tuesday, Belfast Co-op customers 62 years young and up receive a discount upon informing the cashier of their eligibility. Co-op member-owners receive a 10% discount; non-member-owners 5%.

Co-op Grill at City Park
Open daily, 11 am-4 pm, offering a menu of Deli favorites including Caldwell Farm (Turner) burgers, Amy's veggie burgers, Applegate hot dogs, sandwiches, panini, quesadillas, salads, snacks, beverages and Stone Fox Creamery (Monroe) ice cream. For more information, click The Co-op Grill at City Park.

Homemade Tempeh and Natto
Tuesday, June 3, 6 pm, Belfast Free Library, 106 High St.: Free presentation with fermentation enthusiasts Ana and Roy Antaki, who will share how to make these two healthy, traditional Asian fermented soybean foods in your kitchen. Sponsored by the Belfast Free Library and the Belfast Co-op.

Food and Brain Health
Thursday, June 17, 6:30 pm, Belfast Free Library: Free presentation with nutritionist John Bagnulo MPH, PhD, about how the foods we eat influence our brain health, sponsored by the Belfast Free Library and the Belfast Co-op. Read John's article on this topic in the Co-op's May-June newsletter.

Guided Store Tour
Saturday, June 21, 10 am, Belfast Co-op, 123 High St.: Meet near the Co-op entrance for guided store tours (every third Saturday of the month) which highlight the benefits of joining the Co-op and how to take best advantage of shopping here. All are welcome.

Love LOCAL Day
Friday, June 27: Gryffon Ridge, Maine's only certified organic spice merchant, will provide free samples of their herbs, spices, culinary blends and gourmet salts between 11 am and 3 pm; lunch special will highlight local ingredients, 10% off ALL Maine-made products throughout the day.

Wine Tasting and Art Opening
Friday, June 27, 7-9 pm, Belfast Cafe: Free wine tasting of highlighted seasonal wines and art opening. Featured wines will be 10% off during the tasting; participants must be 21 years of age or older to attend.

State of Maine Cheese Co. Tour
Saturday, June 28, 12:15-4:15 pm, meet at the Co-op, 123 High St.: Guided tour of the State of Maine Cheese Co.'s cheesemaking facilities with owner Cathe Morrill. $10.00 pre-registration required; transportation provided. Reserve your seat at any register at the Co-op, or phone 207-338-2532 with a credit card. For more information, visit State of Maine Cheese Co.

For more information about Belfast Co-op events, please visit Belfast Co-op Store.