Letters
Happy News in the MDK Lounge
Dear knitters,
It’s always a good time for a bit of happy news, and we’re pleased to have some today.
Please make welcome Nashville’s own Allison Volek Shelton, who will be an official point of contact, moderator, and general shenaniganist in the MDK Lounge.
The MDK Lounge has a big place in our hearts—after all, we two first “met” on a yarn company chat board in the Early Internet Times. Allison joins MDK’s beloved knitting expert Nell Ziroli, who will continue to offer practical help and pattern support to knitters, as she’s been doing since day one of the Lounge.
About Allison
Allison joined the MDK team in 2020. She is a knitter, weaver, sewist, and designer. She has owned her own textile businesses and collaborated with other fiber-related enterprises—you may know her most recently from Fringe Supply Company. Given Allison’s range and skills, we’re getting her all loaded up with fun-enhancing future projects for MDK, including an active role in the MDK Lounge.
Come On Over
As ever, we hope that readers will come to the MDK Lounge to hang out, ask questions, offer advice, and share photos, comments, jokes, songs, and recipes—and just generally wallow in good cheer and knitting joy. We know you’ll make Allison welcome, and we know she will be a great moderator. Allison will be keeping an eye on Lounge postings, and you are also welcome to message her directly in the Lounge, where she is MDK-Allison.
Stay safe, and knit on.
Love,
Ann and Kay
This sounds exciting. What is the MDK Lounge, and how does one access it?
I was just wondering the same thing! Lol. I just started clicking to find it and it’s the top left button with the little conversation bubbles. We’ll have to dig into this!
Thanks for your comment I didn’t know where the lounge was. Let me go check this thing out.
All I can tell you is that, at the very top left-hand corner of this page, clicking on The Lounge will get you there. But beyond that I’m useless – it totally confuses me, but no doubt cleverer readers can understand it. Good luck!
The 3 folks who have commented so far echo my questions! So much for thinking I’m the only one in the dark about the Lounge ^..^ I’d appreciate a future column about it – a Lounge 101 perhaps. It would be great to know about it so I’d have a new place to visit, share & learn. Thank you for entertaining that idea.
Welcome MDK-Allison Lounge moderator!
Your first assignment: a post on Lounge 101
Ha- I’m on it! 🙂
I also never heard of the lounge but then I’ve only been subscribing for about 8 months! LOL
This! LOL
Welcome Allison! And to those who haven’t explored it yet, welcome to The Lounge! There are many good conversations there.
Welcome Allison! I’m eager to hear more about your textile company. Do you design, print and/or sell fabric? Tell us more. :<)
Mary Ann
Hi- thank you! I was a professional weaver for many years selling both retail and wholesale fabrics to designers + hand dyeing nearly all the yarn I wove with! I still weave, but on a much smaller scale and just for fun.
Welcome Allison!! I love the Lounge but don’t spend enough time there.
And thanks to Nell, who really does know her stuff.
The lounge has been a strong source of support for me over the past couple of years – it’s a great place to ask questions, share photos, and offer support. I was just thinking the other day about the name “The Lounge” and how fitting it is – a nice, comfortable place to relax, talk and enjoy our shared love of knitting. Welcome, Allison. I look forward to learning more about you, and also to hearing from all these people who never knew the lounge was there.
Welcome Allison! One question, I notice a lot of people saying sewist instead of sewer, or tailor, or seamstress; why is that?
I’ve noticed too, but I think I figured this: Tailor and seamstress are both gendered and imply garment making. Sew-er spelled sewer is easy to confuse with waste water removal. Sewist is just one-who-sews. Could be clothes, crafts, bag linings, quilts, un-quilts…
I guess “sewist” is better than “sewer”.
From a former English teacher: Actually it’s sempstress.
Welcome, Allison! The Lounge is a great place to hang out..
Welcome Allison! I’d appreciate an MDK Lounge Primer too.
I noticed that I hadn’t spent any time in the lounge in the last 6 or 7 months. I usually go there when I’m working on a knitalong. HOWEVER, I also noticed that I’ve been doing a lot of doom scrolling on other social media platforms. My thinking is to stop that stuff and come back to the lounge!! Such a positive place to be!!