Knit Buffalo/Niagara Falls

May 4-7 2023 with Faina Goberstein

Join us, along with guest Instructor Faina Goberstein, for a long weekend in picturesque Williamsville NY. We will stay in the historic and quaint village of Williamsville and enjoy daily yoga sessions, 3 knitting classes and a field trip to visit majestic Niagara Falls.

There will be time for exploring the quaint and walk-able village!

This is our backyard and we are so happy to share a little slice of our hometown with you! Williamsville is close to Buffalo NY and easily accessible from the Buffalo Niagara International Airport and close to exit 50 of the NYS Thruway.

Classes: Two 3 hour slip stitch classes and one 3 hour brioche class

Registration is open.

Included in the cost of the retreat $1050

Welcoming reception

3 full breakfasts

2 lunches

3 dinners

2 yoga sessions

Daily knitting workshops with Faina Goberstein

Materials for classes and swag!

Cost per person: $1050*

Deposit due at time of registration: $300

*Returning participants receive a $50 discount * Returning Participants bring a friend new to PeaceTree and receive an additional $50 off for you and $50 for your friend

All deposits are non-refundable.

Payment in full April 1, 2023 or space will not be guaranteed.

*Room cost is not included--please contact The Mosey Buffalo Williamsville, Tapestry Collection by Hilton directly to reserve your room (716) 276-9600 .

Faina's Classes

The Amazing Art of Slip- Stitch Knitting

Traditional slip-stitch patterns made their way to the modern knitting and this class offers you a tour of all 4 groups of these beautiful and interesting stitches. You will make swatches to learn different slip-stitch techniques to appreciate their full range and usage. Mosaic patterns belong to one of the groups and we will see what is special about them. Taking this class will inspire you to use traditional, fancy, woven, and reversible slip-stitch patterns with contemporary colors and yarns to create your own masterpiece.

Also included:

Yarns and colors discussion
Written instructions
Special symbols and reading charts for these patterns
Tips on working with slip-stitch patterns
Slip stitch in the round versa flat
You will make a sampler of some traditional and unusual slip-stitch patterns
Many projects will be on display to illustrate the class coverage.
Prerequisites: Knit, purl, cast on, bind off, simple colorwork

Shades of Amber Cowl

This class offers you a unique opportunity to learn and try something new and different.

Faina designed this cowl for the purpose of teaching woven slip-stitch patterns. It might look a bit intimidating, but the truth is that this is an easy project. Using slip-stitch colorwork, means you work with only one color throughout a round.

A very simple variation of Woven Waves stitch pattern combined with Dewdrop cast on and two gorgeous colors of yarn brings this cowl to a perfection.

Choose your own colors that are vibrant enough to pop when put together. You will love making and wearing this cowl.

Class format: This class is offered as hands-on class

Level requirements: Basic knitting.

Homework: None

Beginning Brioche

This old, intriguing, and unique knitting technique is very popular in modern patterns for cowls, shawls, hats, and even sweaters. The fabric you create will be soft, 3-dimensional, reversible, and simply irresistible.

In this class you will learn how to work in basic brioche in one and two colors. There will be many tips along the way and you will feel that you learned so much more than you expected. Plenty of swatches and samples to admire this beautiful family of stitches will be on display.

Class format: This class is offered as hands-on class

Level requirements: Basic knitting.

Homework: Practice Long-Tail cast on. https://youtu.be/T-gdAUEjQjU

Yoga with Isabell

Meet Isabell

As a first generation American, Isabell is always seeking out ways to engage with other cultures, learn new languages, and embrace this big beautiful world we live in. After graduating from Villanova University with a B.S. in biology in the mid 1980s, she was transplanted to Buffalo, NY by Marion Labs as a Pharmaceutical Rep/Cardiovascular Consultant. She met her husband, Alan, and happily settled into the community. With the arrival of their second child, she left pharmaceuticals and opened up her own business, Knot by Knot Oriental Rugs, in Williamsville and enjoyed a more home/store based lifestyle.

Active in school activities with the kids, helping out with Booster Clubs and serving as PTA president, Isabell enjoyed watching her children grow up and thrive in Amherst. When not helping out in the community, she and her entire family travel each year to disadvantaged parts of the Dominican Republic and serve on a medical mission trip through Score International. These experiences were humbling beyond words and made her commitment to healthy living a priority.

Sustaining an ACL tear and repair in college limited her athletic pursuits although she did complete a Sprint Ironman for her 40th birthday. (Her son later went on to complete his first full Ironman at Lake Placid as the youngest male participant in 2014.) Yoga became an attractive and safer way to pursue staying active and healthy. In 2006, she walked into her first yoga class, having no idea how it would change her life. Over the years, she has appreciated more and more the calming, centering and grounding affect Yoga provides, in addition to the stretching, strengthening and balance she gains from her practice. Feeling a need to dive deeper, Isabell enrolled in a 200 hr YTT class last year and fell in love with yoga even more. She feels it has enriched her life beyond measure and wants to share this gift with others.

Isabell also enjoys hiking and camping trips with her family, painting, knitting, and visiting her local library for the latest good read.