Phyllis Bates and Collen Davis are our Guild Founders
We are fortunate to have our original Guild founders, Phyllis Bates and Colleen Davis, as active members. For a brief history of the Guild from its inception 27 years ago, please go to page 3 in your Membership Directory.
Back when there were more yarn shops and groups meeting at those small venues, Phyllis Bates went from shop to shop meeting other crafters. At a yarn show at the Town and Country in Mission Valley, she was delighted to see many unfamiliar faces. She obtained the show’s roster, noting Collen Davis was a neighbor. They mailed out invitation letters to area knitters, sharing the cost of postage. The first meeting had a total of 15 participants at Phyllis’ home. The next meeting was at Colleen’s, but they quickly outgrew those venues. And so it began… As of this May, we have 285 members!
Phyllis Bates learned to knit as a University of Pittsburgh freshman. She was a docent at the Planetarium when her supervisor, an English war bride, taught the entire crew, both men and women, to knit. The Planetarium would frequently have school groups and the docents were charged with keeping an eye on the potentially rowdy children without looming over them, spoiling their experience. They were to knit in the background and only intervene as necessary. Phyllis even made argyle socks while on duty.
She met her husband in college in an Advanced Calculus class after World War II. They had some family in the San Diego area and moved to East County in the mid 1950s. With four boys, she was a full-time homemaker, but worked a variety of part time jobs to provide special treats and experiences for her family. She edited a plant magazine, The Begonian with a circulation of 3000, for several years. She was the Guild’s secretary, program coordinator and published the newsletter for our first 10 years.
Over the years, Phyllis has knit all manner of items. She currently focuses on baby sweaters, as they are done quickly, and she can employ a variety of techniques. Her family gives them to lucky clients when they travel for business.
Colleen Davis served as the Guild’s original President for 10 years. She and Phyllis wanted to promote the craft of knitting, provide educational classes, invite international and nationally known designers, teachers and writers, and have a place for knitters to socialize and learn new things.
Colleen has been knitting for 75 years, starting with “normal” things like socks and traditional sweaters using published patterns. This changed when Kaffe Fassett revolutionized the knitting world in the early 90s. When she saw his first book, her knitting changed completely. His liberal and unusual use of color combinations inspired her. Since then, her emphasis has been on playing with many colors. She wore a different design to every meeting during the cooler months. When knitters started asking her for patterns, she published them on Etsy and in several knitting magazines. Another inspirational publication was Belle Armoire which published her designs for several years. She attended various knitting conventions such as Stitches and TKGA and eventually started teaching classes there and in yarn stores and guilds all over the country.
Of all the techniques she has learned, her favorites are short-rowing and using color gradation. She’s seen some eyeballs roll at some of her styles and color usage, but revels in her unique designs. She’s been “out of the box” for a long time and expects this reaction to her fun designs.
Presently Colleen is obsessed with learning crochet. She loves that it goes faster than knitting and has so many different possibilities. She takes pride in her overall contribution to promote the craft of knitting, and we are all grateful for her inspiration and leadership.
— Tania Marshall, Co-President
