Meg Swansen in Person

Meg Swansen -- daughter of Elizabeth Zimmerman, for anyone who hasn't heard of her -- was the speaker at last night's Knitting Guild meeting Yes, we are lucky!

Meg always impresses me with her poise, graciousness, and wit and she didn't disappoint last night -- even though she talked about a subject that doesn't figure into my current life: EZ's patterns for children.

She went through EZ's patterns, explaining the construction of each one. My friend Marsha commented, "She was an architect or an engineer." And that's really true. All of the garments had an unusual construction, like the baby hat that starts out as a heart. And of course, everyone is amazed by the Baby Surprise Jacket.

Speaking of the BSJ, Meg announced that her son Cully is writing a "comprehensive book on it with some new developments." I haven't yet knit a BSJ, but I'm still fascinated by this origami-type pattern.

Meg explained that the original pattern for the BSJ gave detailed instructions for the first 7 or 8 rows and then told the knitter to keep going. "My mother's premise was 'you have as good a brain as me so use it!'" Meg said.

My favorite of the patterns she presented was the Katmandu hat. She showed pictures of children wearing it, but the Ravelry link shows at as an adult pattern. It's in EZ's book Knit One, Knit All, which I will be tracking down!

I'll be checking in with Nicole today to Keep Calm Craft On.