21st - 23rd August 2026
The Tops Conference Centre
51 Bendena Garden, Stanwell Tops 2508
Registrations will open 1 June and close on 31 July 2026.
Enquiries to:
PLEASE READ THESE NOTES BEFORE BOOKING
Bookings and Cancellations
All bookings are to be made via the Guild website (www.knittersguildnsw.org.au) not by post. Payment is required at the time of booking, by Paypal or by direct deposit into the Guild’s bank account. Bookings will close on 31 July 2026, or earlier if maximum numbers are reached. Bookings cancelled before that date will receive a full refund. In the (we hope) unlikely event that the Gathering has to be cancelled, all money will of course be refunded in full.
Costs (Guild Members)
The all-inclusive price for the weekend is $360 per person. This includes accommodation for two nights, dinner on Friday and Saturday nights, breakfast on Saturday and Sunday, lunch on Saturday and Sunday, morning and afternoon teas, workshops and talks. If you wish to find your own accommodation locally or you live within easy travelling distance of the venue, the price for the weekend is $230, which includes all of the above less the accommodation and breakfast. A Saturday day-ticket is available at a cost of $150, to include lunch, dinner, morning and afternoon teas and workshops/talks. These prices are for Guild Members. Non-members are welcome at the charges shown on the booking form.
Accommodation
Bedrooms at The Tops are designed to accommodate 5 or 6 people. However, we are expecting to house 3-4 people in each room. Many of the rooms have bunk beds as well as flat ones, so please indicate on the booking form if you are unable to use a top bunk. Also let us know if you require a wheelchair accessible room, or need to be allocated a room on the ground floor. Each room has its own bathroom. Bedding (quilt, pillow with pillow case, two sheets) and a towel will be provided. If you feel that this will be insufficient, please feel free to bring along your own additional bedding. Wifi is available across the venue.
Arrivals and Departures
We are not given access to the venue until 5pm so if you are travelling by car, please DO NOT arrive before then. Transport will be provided from Helensburgh Station for those travelling by train and will meet the 5.16pm train from Sydney on Friday 21st (carriages 3-8). Dinner will be served at 6pm, following which registration will take place and you will be given access to your room. If we’re fortunate enough to gain access before 5pm, we may be able to take some registrations before dinner. A lounge room is available for those who arrive between 5pm and 6pm. On Sunday 23rd, transport will be available to return to Helensburgh Station. For those coming by car, there is plenty of parking space at the venue.
Workshops and Talks
The workshops and talks are divided into three sessions – Saturday morning, Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. You may not choose more than ONE workshop in each session. Please bear in mind that as numbers in each of the workshops are limited and set by our tutors, you will not be allocated 3 workshops over the weekend if you have chosen 3. When your booking is confirmed after the closing date, we will let you know which workshops you will be allocated. For those not attending a workshop, there will be talks, hands-on demonstrations and the two Marketplaces – the Retail Members’ Marketplace on Saturday (from 9.00-5.30) and the Regular Members’ Marketplace on Sunday (from 9.00-1.00). Or of course you may just prefer to sit around knitting and crocheting with friends – and perhaps make some new ones.
If you have any queries, please contact
We look forward to seeing you all!
GUILD GATHERING 2026 WORKSHOPS
WORKSHOPS - SATURDAY MORNING
A1 – BEGINNER TUNISIAN CROCHET with Abbey Bongers - 3 hours
Tunisian crochet is a cross between knitting and crochet that has a completely different texture to both. This class focusses on making little achievable swatches. You will learn Tunisian simple stitch, foundation row, bind off, simple increases and decreases. Rather than getting too fancy with different stitches, we will play with what you can do with different ways of changing colours.
Materials required: Small qty of 2 colours of 8ply non-splitty yarn. Recommend avoiding cotton when a beginner as its stiffness is an impediment to Tunisian crochet beginners.
5mm, 5.5mm or 6mm Tunisian crochet hook. (Single ended, nil cable). A standard crochet hook without an ergonomic handle will be ok for this class.
A2 – INTRODUCTION TO AMIGURUMI with Stacey Trock - 3 hours
If you can do a simple crochet stitch, then you're ready to make adorable little plush animals, called amigurumi in Japanese. These fun projects are great ways to use small bits of yarn and also a fab way to learn new crochet techniques, like working in the round. In this class, we'll crochet an adorable little duck. Alongside the tips and tricks you'll need to successfully count and work in the round in crochet (laying the foundation for other projects, like hats!).
Prerequisite skills: slip stitch.
Materials: To complete this pattern, you’ll need:
* 2 colours of 8 or 10 ply yarn: Yellow (40 metres) and Orange (10 metres) * Hook to suit yarn, approx 4mm,* polyester stuffing, * 12mm black animal eyes, * tapestry needle
Pattern to be supplied in class.
A3 – MITRED SQUARES with Jane Slicer-Smith - 3 hours
Jane’s designs have been admired by many of us and admired for the use of mitred squares. Have fun learning how to replicate these techniques and enjoy creating striped mitred squares. Learn to make basic mitres as well as half and quarter mitres. How to pick up stitches to join squares, and increases to create shaping.
Materials: At least 2 colours and needles to suit.
A4 – CROCHET EASY MOSAIC PURSE with Di Scaysbrook - 3 hours
Learn how to create a simple effective mosaic purse with special zipper supplied using 2 colours of 8ply yarn and 4 or 4.5mm crochet hook. Knowledge of double crochet and treble stitch required. $5.00 for special zipper.
A5 – CAST ON/CAST OFF with Robynn El-Ross - 3 hours
Want to learn another way to cast on? A different way of casting off? Robynn will share several different styles with you to give you more range to suit your garment. You will make samples of all purpose, decorate and stretchy cast ons and matching cast offs.
Materials: at least 2 different colours of 8ply yarn and 4mm needles, dpns are good for samples, and a wool needle.
WORKSHOPS - SATURDAY AFTERNOON
B1 – Short Rows with Clare Hacker – 3 hours
Short rows can be done several ways, and used to add shaping at different points of your garment, or even as a design feature. Learn five interesting techniques. Short rows will not scare you after this class.
Materials: 8ply yarn and 4mm needles. And stitch markers
B2 – AMIGURUMI CHART AND DESIGNING with Stacey Trock - 3 hours
If you've made amigurumi before or are an accomplished crocheter, this class is a fun way to advance your skills. We'll learn to read Japanese charts, which are a common way to write patterns in the round and design our own adorable plush animals.
Prerequisite skills: slip stitch, increasing, decreasing, intermediate comfort with crochet
Materials: To complete this pattern, you’ll need:
* A couple of colours of 8 or 10 ply yarn, * Hook to suit yarn, approx 4mm * polyester stuffing * 12mm black animal eyes (optional)* tapestry needle
B3 – STEEKING with Sue Hobbs - 3 Hours
An introduction to the world of steeking. It’s not as scary as you think.
The goal of this class is to learn how to stabilise and cut stranded colour work knitting for sleeves or front bands. We will also learn how to pick up stitches to knit the rib bands. To do this, we need a piece of knitting with steeks to cut open.
Materials required: 8ply wool yarn 4mm needles, 4mm crochet hook. Wool needle
Homework: will be sent to class members prior to Gathering.
B4 – FITTING AND EASE with Jane Slicer-Smith - 3 hours
Like dressmakers need to adjust pattens to fit – so do knitters. Learn how ease and fit affects the outcome of the patterns you knit to achieve a correctly fitted item. Jane will show her designs which have extra hip ease and shoulder fit and then discuss how this can be applied to other commercial patterns. This is a lecture style class and if you have a basic understanding of fit that will help, but is not essential.
Bring a pen and paper, a tape measure may be useful too.
B5 – DORSET AND YORKSHIRE BUTTONS with Pat McGregor – 3 Hours
Have you ever struggled to find the perfect buttons for your newly knitted garment? Make your own. Pat will teach you how to make the flat style of button (Dorset Buttons) and domed stuffed buttons (Yorkshire buttons)
Materials, 8 or 4 ply yarn and tapestry or wool needle. Scissors for yarn. Scissors for thin cardboard.
Pen or pencil. Tutor will supply button templates.
WORKSHOPS - SUNDAY MORNING
C1 – TEXTURE with Jane Slicer-Smith - 3 hours
Learn how to add texture to your knitting with a variety of stitches beyond moss stitch. The best examples of texture include bobbles and cables.
Skills required: Advanced-Beginner knitting skills.
Materials required: 8ply yarn and 4mm needles. Cable needle.
Homework: None
C2- INTRODUCTION TO LACE with Clare Hacker – 3 hours
Pretty, light and floaty, lace. Clare will introduce you to reading lace charts, casting on and casting off, including a provisional cast on ready for a border. The simple stitches will transform into light patterns and create pieces that look more complex than they are.
Materials required: Good quality 4ply yarn and 4mm needles.and stitch markers
C3 – TARTAN SQUARES with Sally Ogilvie – 3 hours
Have you ever wanted to create your own Tartan in knitting? Sally will show you how. Using a combination of knitting, crochet and weaving you will be able to take your Tartan sample home with you.
Materials: Bring at least 3 colours of 8ply yarn, 4mm knitting needles, 4mm crochet hook and a large eye darning needle. Crochet skills not required.
C4 – ENTRELAC with Merrin Marks - 3 hours
Merrin will show you the magic of entrelac knitting where basic stocking stich can create amazing woven looking textures. You will learn how to build the base blocks, pick up stitches and shape fabric which looks more complex than it is.
Materials: at least 2 colours of 8 ply yarn, 4mm knitting needles.
C5 – HOUSE SOCKS INTRODUCTION with Stacey Trock - 3 hours
Want to learn to knit socks but find it a bit daunting? No worries! We'll use 10 ply yarn to make some basic house socks that teach you all the techniques you'll need to know. This pattern is designed with the first-time sock knitter in mind. We'll learn how to knit ribbing, do a heel flap, decrease for a gusset and kitchener stitch. Once you get the hang of these basics, you'll be knitting your next pair in no time.
Prerequisite skills: Knitting in the round on double points, decreasing and picking up stitches (but we can do a refresher there)
Materials: About 200 metres of 10ply yarn, set of 3.75 mm double point needles and stitch markers
C6 – MOSAIC TUNISIAN CROCHET with Abbey Bongers: 2 – 3 hours
Explore this technique from beginning to end with nothing but a Tunisian crochet hook and two colours of yarn. Tunisian mosaic is an extremely popular technique and learning it is not as hard as you might think! Tunisian mosaic patterns do not change colours mid row and there is no carrying of floats along the back of the work. Each row of Tunisian stitches is made in one colour. The mosaic effect is created with overlay stitches over the top of the row below it. If you are already familiar with crochet mosaic, you will see some similarities in doing Tunisian mosaic. The best thing is that regardless of working flat or in the round, you’ll never need to cut your yarn like you would if working 1 row crochet mosaic.
Materials 5.5 or 6mm Tunisian crochet hook, 2 colours high contrast yarn – 8 or 10 ply is best for beginners
