The Autumn WiP-Along Starts Tomorrow

I'm joining in with Love Charlie Crochet's Autumn WiP Along that she's running with Gosling and Plumb. It takes place throughout the month of October so is starting tomorrow. WiP stands for Works in Progress and any craft qualifies: knitting, crochet, sewing... etc. It's happening on Instagram with the hashtag #AutumnWal17  Charlie is a new crochet podcaster I've been following for a while and she is extremely sweet and very talented but she doesn't seem to know it. Head over to her LoveCharlieCrochet You Tube Channel to check it out.

And good news - my sock crojo has been rekindled by a Sock-a-long run by StarryEyesAli. It's called the Strictly 2017 Sock-a-long and you're only meant to work on your socks while you're watching Strictly Come Dancing. This is a British show that I've enjoyed in the past so I thought I'd try out the US equivalent which just started, Dancing with the Stars, but it's not going work because even though we have lived in the US for five years I don't know any of the stars. I just don't watch enough TV obviously. However, the rules for the Sock-a-long are very flexible and you're allowed to work on your project as long as you're watching a podcaster who is participating in the Sock-a-along. Of course I love this blatant rule-bending because I've discovered more lovely podcasters: Little Drops of Wonderful (by StarryEyesAli herself) and Nordic Stitches by knitting designer Lilli who lives in Norway. And my socks are coming along nicely. There must be other podcasters also taking part - I need to hunt them down using the #strictly2017socks hashtag on Instagram and in the Ravelry thread. Do let me know if there are any more!

No doubt I'll be sharing the latest on my Back To School Sweater CAL (and I have a "Garment in progress" spot in our blog hop on the 14th of October so you'll get more chatter on my specific garment from me then). I finally made a yoke that fits - hurray! - and I'm just about ready for the next stop on our blog hop from lovely Fay of the Crochet Circle Podcast. It's on the subject of Finishing, Washing & Blocking. Check it out here on Fay's company website which is: Knit it Hook It Craft It  and have a wonderful week everyone!

Listen to the Audio Podcast

Crochet Podcast Roundup Spring 2017

Here's my latest roundup of new Crochet Podcasts for your listening pleasure. Enjoy!

 

1. Crochet Luna is Claudia in California who started podcasting last month. She is kind of cheeky and makes me laugh a lot. She even contacted the Craft Yarn Council to ask why they don't have a 3mm hook. Hilarious! I found out about the very popular right now Hotel of Bees Crochetalong from this podcast and had to join in even though I'm now doing two shawl CALs at once and I do really have other hooky projects I should be getting on with. Here is Claudia's YouTube channel, Ravelry Group and she is @crochetluna on Instagram. I'm certain you'll like her!

2. Keep Calm and Carry Yarn is Vivian and Alyson and this podcast started in February. The thing I love about this podcast is that they are daughter and mother and live in Scotland and the US like my mum and I, but we're the other way around. My mum is in Scotland, knits and crochets like me and sends me photos of what she is making. They gave me a little shout out at the beginning of Episode 3 - thank you that was sweet! There is a mix of crochet and knitting. They have a KALCAL coming up soon which I'm excited about so check this out. Here is the YouTube channel, Ravelry Group and on Instagram they are @kcacypodcast

3. B.Hooked Crochet is Brittany a fabulous crochet instructor and designer (among other things). She already has a host of marvellous instructional videos on YouTube but started a weekly audio podcast in February so she makes my new podcaster list. Sessions 2 through 8 cover Mastering Crochet Patterns. I'm playing catch up on these but I know they will be so helpful since from my three years of experience in teaching I know this is a big hurdle for many. Here is the link to Brittany's podcasts on her website and she is @bhooked on Instagram.

Bonus: Yarn Thing with Marly Bird This is not a new podcast. Marly was in fact the first crochet podcaster on iTunes, ten years ago and I've been listening to her for the last five years but I'm including it because I was actually live on this podcast this week! Marly interviews famous knitters and crocheters on air every Tuesday and Thursday. Last week I wrote about wanting to win one of the CGOA CAL prizes, Karen Whooley's new book Garden of Shawls. Well, I was the call in winner!! I was so surprised I couldn't stop laughing. I'm around 44 minutes in but do listen to the whole interview.

New Year adjustments

Oh my goodness, the holiday was such a productive time for my crochet I'm sort of in shock now I'm back to my daily 45 minutes while watching evening tv with my hubby! Our holiday was far longer than usual - three weeks instead of two. We returned to the UK to renew our US visas which entailed two long flights of non-stop hooking watching back to back movies and we took a long drive to New Mexico which included many hours of road trip crochet. And of course while away from home there are not the chores and I didn't have any work projects so there was plenty of time during the day too. I was in crochet heaven. One morning in New Mexico I woke up and hooked an entire cowl, merrily making it up as I went along. What decadence! Here is my dog showing his appreciation:

It's a super simple pattern (US crochet terms).

1. Foundation double crochet to size so it fits over your head.
2. Slip stitch to join.
3. Chain 2, double crochet all around, slip stitch. 
4. Repeat Step 3 trying it on until you can pull it up over your face.
5. Weave in loose ends.

I should really have used a linked double crochet stitch (my daughter commented - "there are holes mum") but there's always a next time, and another ski "buff" to make.

Of course, there was much preparation before my three week trip to ensure that I wouldn't run out of yarn or projects. Oh heaven forbid I should run out. I've written about how I panic about running out of yarn on holiday before!

In early December I went to a holiday event (with discounts) at the yarn store, Nimblefingers, where I teach and decided to treat myself to some new yarn for a project I've had on my list for a long time the Pink Wrapover Top by Hannah Cross in the Simply Crochet Magazine. Mine was not pink, I'm not a pink kind of gal, but it worked out very well and I'm wearing it here in aqua.

I bought The Crochet Circle Podcast's Take Two, Collection One - Crochet book and packed yarn for two projects. Fay told me I was the first person to complete a project from the book and that never happens to me. But I was on my long long holiday after all. Anything was possible! I would highly recommend the book. Lynne and Fay have designed crochet staples and each project has been made twice with different local yarns (hence the name "Take Two"). There are eight patterns, all very well written and I'm on my second project already. I put my version of their Baltum fingerless mittens on Ravelry and I'm actually wearing them as I type... it's an unusually cold January day in Houston, Texas.

Are you still adjusting to January like me, or have you got it all together?

Crochet Podcast Roundup

I love, love, love listening to podcasts. I haven't shared any of these with you for a while so here's a little roundup of recent crochet podcasts for your listening pleasure.

 

I just discovered a super new-to-me crochet podcast from Potter and Bloom which started back in May this year. Late to the party again! I am currently binge-watching these video podcasts. I spotted the #crochetgirlgang hashtag on Instagram a while back and Emma Potter, the podcaster, is the head honcho of this movement. How cool! She's a freelance crochet designer, maker and teacher. Emma has great taste and is a little cheeky in a very good way. 

And I found another fantastic new crochet video podcast Crochet Cakes which started in June. Clarisabeth is a super sweet crocheter who lives in tropical Puerto Rico. She likes to crochet and bake hence the name Crochet Cakes. I am so enjoying seeing what she makes because we also have hot weather here in Houston. When we moved here from the UK four years it was a real issue wondering what people crocheted and knitted in hotter climates.

And of course I continue to listen to the truly marvellous monthly Crochet Circle podcast which I reviewed on this blog back in May. I just love listening to the always entertaining Lynne and Fay. They are hilarious and highly interesting ladies. 

And while I'm at it here are some one-off crochet podcasts which I've enjoyed in recent months:

Vickie Howell, knitter, crochet and craft designer based in Austin, Texas interviewed Twinkie Chan on her podcast Craft-ish. Twinkie is a crochet food designer - isn't that the best job title EVER? You must have seen her designs! My most favorite recent design of hers is the Giant Donut Floor Pouf. It's it great?

Kara Gott Warner, self-described Obsessed Knitter, Podcaster, Maker and Mindfulness Junkie, in her Power Purls podcast which is usually focused on knitting has recently interviewed two crochet designer greats. Yay! You don't want to miss these: Dora Ohrenstein and Robyn Chachula. 

Well, that should keep you going for a while!! If you've heard/watched any other great crochet podcasts recently I'd love to hear about them in the comments below.

My podcast debut - woohoo!

This week I made my podcasting debut!! Woohoo! My audio review of the Houston Fiber Fest has been spliced into The Crochet Circle's monthly podcast (episode six) as part of a Shore to Shore Fiber Fest comparison review. It went live on Friday and you can listen to it here: Crochet Circle Podcast How exciting!! I hope you enjoy it.

 

It all started when I wrote a review of the Crochet Circle on this blog back in May. The Crochet Circle podcast launched the month before and Fay and Lynne the hosts are so fun to listen to. The podcast is about crochet with a little bit of knitting on the side. It's wonderful!

I tried really hard to record my review in one go but I just couldn't pull it off. It was holiday time and my kids were at home. They are so good at keeping quiet while I'm on a client call but this took far longer so I ended recording it in my tiny walk in closet and even then the dog came wandering in looking for me.

I have put a whole load of photos of the Fiber Fest up on a Pinterest board if this is the kind of thing you're into!

And there is a short written review over on the Crochet Circle Podcast Ravelry group on their Fiber Festival Reviews Thread.

So please do head on over, have a listen and let me know what you think.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

I'm going to be on a podcast...!

Yay! I'm going to appear on the sixth episode of British podcast The Crochet Circle out on the first Friday of August. It all started when I wrote a review of the podcast back in May. Lynne and Fay the wonderful hosts found my review hilarious and read out part of it in episode four (at around two minutes). I was extremely surprised to hear my name on air as you can imagine! And then we discovered we were attending a fiber fest the same weekend and Fay suggested we do a Shore to Shore Fibre / Fiber Fest comparison. I couldn't say no. How fun!

                          Lovely local podcasters Katie, Jeanette, Somer, Dianne, Heidi & Darcy at Houston Fiber Fest

And it has been a very interesting insight into how a podcast is created. There is A LOT of work involved and I am feeling a greater appreciation for the many podcasters who get me through my daily chores and accompany me while I craft. You rock podcasters!!

Still on topic, I met up with some local fiber podcasters in person at the Houston Fiber Fest on Saturday June 25th. The event had meet-up tables for different interest groups ranging from "stitch marker swaps" to "crochet" and Saturday 3pm was "podcasters". I already know Darcy, Somer and Katie from Kitchen Stitches and met three more lovely local podcasters for the first time: Jeanette from Bookish Stitcher, Heidi from Undead Yarn and Dianne from Suburban Stitcher. I felt like a total groupie!

And here are the links for y'all if you love your crafty podcasts like me:

The Crochet Circle audio podcast
Kitchen Stitches audio podcast
BookishStitcher video podcast
Undead Yarn video podcast
Suburban Stitcher video podcast

Have a wonderful week everyone!

New podcast review - The Crochet Circle

I just discovered episode three of a brand new podcast (late to the launch again but better late than never!) and I am absolutely smitten. It's "The Crochet Circle Podcast" and it's British, like me, and focuses on crochet with a little bit of knitting on the side - which describes my crafting preferences perfectly.

I smile to myself while listening to how giddy and happy the two hosts are - Lynne Rowe and Fay Dashper-Hughes.  Lynne is a crochet and knitting designer, teacher, pattern checker and copy editor and has even published her own craft books. Fay is a new but extremely enthusiastic crocheter and knitter and has just set up her own company selling carefully sourced products for crochet and knitting.

I had a bit of a binge listening session at the weekend to catch up. They already feel like two dear friends to me and I just want to chip in with my own little anecdote and add to the conversation. So I've joined their new Ravelry group The Crochet Circle Podcast so that I can do exactly this. I'm not on Ravelry as much as I should. It's like a rabbit warren, it draws me in and then I wonder where all that time went....

Their yarn stashes are fabulously named the "Yarn Palace" and the "Wool Nest". Fay likes to shop but Lynne is frugal like myself. Fay is a bad influence on Lynne. Listening to Fay is starting to influence my shopping habits too!   

Both ladies by pure coincidence come from a waste management background and one aim of the podcast is to promote sustainable crochet practices of Reduce Reuse Recycle. Yay! I'm a huge fan of sustainability too.

The kind of things you're going to hear on the Crochet Circle Podcast are: interviews with British yarn industry folk and crochet and knitting groups, tips and tricks to improve and simplify crochet and reviews of crochet magazines and books and yarn.  They have a Crochet Yay and Crochet Nay section which is particularly hilarious and there is a WIP wall where they list out their works in progress for all to hear.

Fay kindly provided me with the images for this blog post. I mainly use my own images as you know. Thank you very much Fay!

Here's the link to the podcast. Have a little listen and if you like what you hear why not join the Ravelry group too? I'll catch up with you there!

Knit or Crochet Texan [Part 3 of 3]

Well this is the third and final part of my little series on Knit or Crochet Texan. I am sure I will repeat it as I discover more yarntastic local folk. Here are the links to Part 1 and Part 2 just in case you are playing catchup.

Local new Podcast: the wonderful Vickie Howell, author, designer, instructor, and broadcast personality in the craft world launched her Craft-ish Podcast last month. She lives in Austin, Texas which is just up the road from me. You must have come across her before. She has a really funky hair cut and I sometimes manage to catch her live Facebook stream Ask me Monday. Her podcast is really worth checking out. I have listened to the one with Clara Parkes several times. It is marvelous. Vickie kindly provided the image for me above.

Local farm: Independence Farmstead Fibers
I have slightly irrational and probably unrealistic dreams of living in the countryside permanently and owning a fiber producing farm. Independence Farmstead Fibers is a mill on a farm. How great is that? Doesn't the description on the about page just make you want to move to a farm right now? Or maybe that's just me? I long for a day trip to this place...

We are an artisan fiber mill located in the historic village of Independence- in the heart of boots and bluebonnets, right outside of Brenham, Texas. We are Paul and Dawn Brown, and along with the mill, we reside on the farm with our herd of angora and pygora goats....numerous barn cats, a few chickens, and some wonderful dogs. Our desire with the mill is to provide processing for the small independent fiber producer and fiber enthusiast, increasing value to the animals that give us fleece year after year. Of interest are those special breed specific fibers with a known "pasture of origin". There is certainly something added to the fiber experience, when you become aware of what animal the fleece belongs to, and where it's home is located.

Local blogger and podcaster: Suburban Stitcher
Dianne has been blogging for 10 years and podcasting for 3 years. I have just discovered her after finding her on a list of exhibitors at last year's Houston Fiber Fest. I am very fond of my podcasts and I really don't know how I managed to complete any household chores prior to having a podcast on the go! Hurrah for another crafty podcast.

Hope you enjoyed this little series. I have just figured out how to add an email sign up on my blog. Yay! So if you want to get my weekly post delivered in your in-box just go ahead and pop your email in the box top right! Have a wonderful week :)

Knit or Crochet Texan [Part 2 of 3]

I'm continuing with my series of blog posts on Knit or Crochet Texan. Here's a link to Part 1 if you missed it! I am really having A LOT of fun researching local yarn industry folk to include.

Local indie dyer: Little Monkeys Stitch n’ Spin
I ordered a kit last week from Little Monkeys using a Christmas Etsy gift card.  Don't you love it when your family buy you a yarn-related gift!? Dena is Houston-based and specializes in hand-spun yarn, custom crochet and supplies for fiber artists. I found Dena on Etsy using the handy shop location option at the bottom left hand side where you can refine your search. The kit has arrived. It looks amazing and I am being very strong and not starting it before finishing at least one or two of my current WIPs (works in progress). I have put the cute stitch markers to use straight away though on a scarf that I am knitting but that doesn't count as starting a project obviously.

 

Local designer: The Crochet Dude Drew Emborsky
On his Instagram profile Drew writes "A couple of years ago I started a blog and now I'm really busy." which I find rather amusing. When I've been teaching boys I tell them all about the Crochet Dude. He really is super famous. He has his own yarn line and his tools are available nationwide. I do actually own a set of his hooks. I've just lost myself on his website for the last half an hour and I think I have a new project. What do you think of this free crochet purse pattern: Chic on the Halfshell. Don't we always need a new purse?

Local podcast: Kitchen Stitches
I do love my podcasts. I wrote about five pleasing podcasts back in February. I included Kitchen Stitches which features three crafty ladies who I have actually met and crafted with in person: Somer, Katie and Darcy. They are long podcasts, over an hour, but there is a lot of content in there. They talk about current and finished projects and casting on soon, acquisitions, local events and what they are reading and watching and what's in the kitchen!! I have not listened to the last two episodes so I better bring this post to an end, get out my current project and catch up.

Five Pleasing Podcasts [4 yarn-related]

A member of my Yarn People group is going to co-present a podcast. How exciting and yay for Darcy! So I thought I'd ramble on about podcasts this week focusing mainly on yarn related ones of course!

So what exactly is a podcast? It's a downloadable audio blog that you can listen to whenever you like on your device or computer while crafting or doing household chores etc. You can find them on just about every topic you could ever imagine including craft of course.

I first began listening to podcasts while driving my 30 minute commute along the narrow winding country roads of Gloucestershire before we made the big move to Texas. My favorite was the BBC Radio 4 show Desert Island Discs. A famous guest is invited to choose the eight records they would take with them to a desert island while narrating their life story.  The guest list is wonderfully varied and the show has been running since the 1940s.

And then, oh joy, I discovered my first yarn related podcast, Cast On with Brenda Dayne started in 2005 to talk about knitting to people who get it. I was more into my knitting back then. She lives in Pembrokeshire, Wales which was just across the Severn Bridge from me at that time and I was and still am absolutely captivated by her calm eloquent voice and fascinating content. Brenda has moved onto other yarny adventures and Cast On is no more but the audio archives live on thank goodness.

Since we made the big move I have been listening to Yarn Thing by Marly Bird dedicated to connecting knitters and crocheters together. She interviews guests from the yarn industry and gives out prizes. What a great format! But the best thing about Marly is her infectious laugh. I just can't help myself from laughing when she laughs. And that is a very good thing. We should all laugh as much as possible, apart from when it's inappropriate to do so obviously.

And a recent discovery is KnitBritish by Louise Scollay with a super mission to love local wool. Louise has a wonderfully soothing Scottish voice and listening to her is a bittersweet experience because my parents are Scottish and far away from me right now. But I still love her podcast very much.

And of course my friend Darcy's podcast is coming up soon on Kitchen Stitches. She makes her first appearance in this super short episode. I am planning more house cleaning each week to accommodate this. My husband will be absolutely delighted!

I'd love to hear if you have a particular favorite podcast yarn related or not. Just let me know in the comments section below.