Episode 169: Apparently, We Stink!

This week's WIPs include a vanilla sock, a cabled cowl, the Star Leaves shawl, the crocheted Rita Rabbit and a colorwork mitten knit from handspun. FOs include Sheila's finished and blocked Tan House Brook shawl. Baubles and Bling include BMFA sock yarn, an awesome monkey Tervis, and a strange offering: all natural deodorant.

SHOW NOTES

KAL/CAL:  We are hosting a Stash Busting KAL/CAL for the month of July.  Post a pic of your finished project made from yarn purchased at least 6 months ago in the July Stash Busters Thread and get that stash under control!  A winner will be drawn at the end of the month.

We are also hosting a Donate a Shawl Charity KAL/CAL.  Check out all the awesome prizes we have in our contest thread on Ravelry.

On The Dance Card:

Wendy is working on:

Star Leaves Shawl by Jenny Johnson Johnen in Fleece Artist Saldanha 2 in the Starlight colorway.

Rita the Rabbit by Lydia Tresselt in Caron Simply Soft Light

Deathflake Mittens by Sissel KB, using her warm/cool color experiment in Portfiber Polwarth (4oz) in the Prickly Pear color way

Sheila is working on:

One vanilla sock in SKnitches Syncopated Sock in the Seriously? colorway.

City Creek Cowl by Susan Lawrence in Madelinetosh Vintage

Rate Your Date:

Sheila blocked:

Tan House Brook Shawl in Gypsy Girl Creations gradient.

Whirlwind Romance:

Wendy is currently spinning:

Frabjous Fibers in the Breeze colorway and Into The Whirled in the Take it to the Bridge colorway (by spinning them randomly together).

Future Dates:

Sheila plans to knit a headband and mitts. Wendy needs to finish all of her WIPs.

Baubles & Bling:

Wendy and Sheila bought:

Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock medium weight mystery bags which contained two mill-end skeins of yarn during a recent on-line sale.

Wendy and Sheila received:

All natural deodorant from Only Goodness Inside (we are not sure who sent this or why, but Sheila is going to try her sample out!)

Wendy received:

An awesome Sock Monkey Tervis from my fairy godmother Netta!  Thank you, Netta!

Gossip & Innuendo:

Book Contest:  A Knitter's Gallery of Mitred Squares by Jill Bigelow-Suttelow and Jane Bigelow. Wendy forgot to start a thread, but it's up now here.

Charity Comfort Shawl KAL/CAL:  This is a new contest organized by our friend Lise from Webs! She organizes donated comfort shawls for people in her church community, but she has recently lost a few of her helpers.  If you donate hand knitted or crocheted shawls to her effort, you can be eligible to win a $50 gift certificate to Webs (one prize will be drawn), a skein of Webs anniversary yarn custom dyed by Lorna's Laces yarn (two prizes will be drawn), a pattern of your choice from KNitDesigns, or a skein of Wollmeise donated by our amazing viewer, Katluvz2knit, or a bag, yarn and stitch markers donated by the lovely Samantha Boggia of Knitrundig!

The contest will run until August 31, 2014.  Shawls should be sent to:

Webs Warehouse
ATTN:  Lise Gill
6 Industrial Parkway
Easthampton, MA 01027

(Note:  The earlier address will still work, but this is the much more direct mailing address which Wendy should have used the first time.  Oops!)

You can knit or crochet shawls specifically for this charity event OR go through your stash and give away some shawls to a good home.  There is no specific fiber content required - they can be machine washable or handwash only.  There is no specific pattern or size.  Lise will make sure your donations go to people in nursing homes, hospice care, new mothers or other people that need a comfort shawl.

You may post a picture of your donation (one picture per shawl - make sure to post them separately to get multiple chances at the prize) in our Contest Thread.

Tour de Fleece runs from July 5 through July 27th this year.  Wendy will be spinning for Team Dyeabolical.  There is a TdF contest thread in our Ravelry group where you can win a bump of fiber from Wendy's personal stash by posting a pic of your finished TdF projects.

Upcoming fiber events in our area:

Fiber Revival at Spencer Pierce Little Farm in Newbury, MA 8/9/14.  Wendy will attend this event.

Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival at Washington County Fairgrounds, Greenwich, NY 9/27-9/28/14.  We do not plan on attending.

VT Sheep and Wool at Tunbridge Fairgrounds, Tunbridge, VT 10/4-10/5/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Stitches East in Hartford, CT 10/9-10/12/14.  Wendy plans on attending the Saturday marketplace.

Rhinebeck at Dutchess County Fairgrounds, Rhinebeck, NY 10/18-10/19/14.  We plan on attending for the weekend.

New England Fiber Festival at Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, MA, 11/1-11/2/14.  Wendy plans on attending.

The Gathering at Sunday River, Newry, ME, 11/7-11/9/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Episode 168: The OTHER Asian Woman

This week we have a LOT going on. We announce another prize donation for the ongoing charity KAL/CAL. WIPs include Star Leaves Shawl, Rita the Rabbit, Deathflake Mittens and a vanilla sock in SKnitches Syncopated sock yarn. FO this week is Sheila's Tan House Brook Shawl. Don't forget about the TdF thread and the Stashbusting thread! Both will be wrapping up soon.

SHOW NOTES

KAL/CAL:  We are hosting a Stash Busting KAL/CAL for the month of July.  Post a pic of your finished project made from yarn purchased at least 6 months ago in the July Stash Busters Thread and get that stash under control!  A winner will be drawn at the end of the month.

We are also hosting a Donate a Shawl Charity KAL/CAL.  We have EVEN more prizes to offer thanks to a donation from Knitrundig, so don't miss out on this contest.

Thanks to Karen from the Stashless Podcast for the shout out about our charity contest!

We will be reviewing 4 new books from Cooperative Press over the next two months!  We will run a contest for two weeks after each review so you have a chance to win an e-copy of the book for yourself!  First up is A Knitter's Gallery of Mitred Squares by Jill Bigelow-Suttelow and Jane Bigelow.  A summary of the review is in the Gossip and Innuendo section below.

On The Dance Card:

Wendy is working on:

Star Leaves Shawl by Jenny Johnson Johnen in Fleece Artist Saldanha 2 in the Starlight colorway.

Rita the Rabbit by Lydia Tresselt in Caron Simply Soft Light

Deathflake Mittens by Sissel KB, using her warm/cool color experiment in Portfiber Polwarth (4oz) in the Prickly Pear color way

Sheila is working on:

One vanilla sock in SKnitches Syncopated Sock in the Seriously? colorway.

Rate Your Date:

Sheila finished:

Tan House Brook Shawl in Gypsy Girl Creations gradient.

Whirlwind Romance:

Wendy is currently spinning:

Frabjous Fibers in the Breeze colorway and Into The Whirled in the Take it to the Bridge colorway (by spinning them randomly together).

Wendy finished:

4 oz of Biltmore Fiber (navy blue pencil roving), Spunky Eclectic (navy top), and Dyeabolical (custom dyed navy top) by spinning them randomly together.

Future Dates:

Sheila plans to knit something with her Madelintosh Vintage yarn from her recent Webs trip.  Wendy needs to finish all of her WIPs.

Baubles & Bling:

Wendy bought:

4 Frances books by Russell Hoban for her niece.

Gossip & Innuendo:

Book Review:  A Knitter's Gallery of Mitred Squares by Jill Bigelow-Suttelow and Jane Bigelow.  We liked the large number of variations on the standard mitred square in this book.  It is especially helpful to have each square rated by how easy it is to change the size of the square.  The book has plain options, textured options, multi-colored options, lacy options and combinations of all of the above.  The book also gives excellent instructions on how to join your squares, and how to make triangles to even out the edge of your blanket.  The book finishes up with a few patterns that show how to create a shawl, table runner and two tops from the mitred squares.  This book would be excellent for a first-time mitred square knitter, someone who wants to use up lots of scrap yarn, and for an experienced knitter who is bored by the usual mitred square but would enjoy taking it to another level with lots of different pattern options.

Charity Comfort Shawl KAL/CAL:  This is a new contest organized by our friend Lise from Webs! She organizes donated comfort shawls for people in her church community, but she has recently lost a few of her helpers.  If you donate hand knitted or crocheted shawls to her effort, you can be eligible to win a $50 gift certificate to Webs (one prize will be drawn), a skein of Webs anniversary yarn custom dyed by Lorna's Laces yarn (two prizes will be drawn), a pattern of your choice from KNitDesigns, or a skein of Wollmeise donated by our amazing viewer, Katluvz2knit, or a bag, yarn and stitch markers donated by the lovely Samantha Boggia of Knitrundig!

The contest will run until August 31, 2014.  Shawls should be sent to:

Webs Warehouse
ATTN:  Lise Gill
6 Industrial Parkway
Easthampton, MA 01027

(Note:  The earlier address will still work, but this is the much more direct mailing address which Wendy should have used the first time.  Oops!)

You can knit or crochet shawls specifically for this charity event OR go through your stash and give away some shawls to a good home.  There is no specific fiber content required - they can be machine washable or handwash only.  There is no specific pattern or size.  Lise will make sure your donations go to people in nursing homes, hospice care, new mothers or other people that need a comfort shawl.

You may post a picture of your donation (one picture per shawl - make sure to post them separately to get multiple chances at the prize) in our Contest Thread.

Tour de Fleece runs from July 5 through July 27th this year.  Wendy will be spinning for Team Dyeabolical.  There is a TdF contest thread in our Ravelry group where you can win a bump of fiber from Wendy's personal stash by posting a pic of your finished TdF projects.

Convergence 2014 at Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, RI, took place this week.  Wendy was unable to attend and unfortunately, Wendy's sister-in-law, who had some exhibits, was also prevented from attended by a canceled flight.

Upcoming fiber events in our area:

Fiber Revival at Spencer Pierce Little Farm in Newbury, MA 8/9/14.  Wendy will attend this event.

Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival at Washington County Fairgrounds, Greenwich, NY 9/27-9/28/14.  We do not plan on attending.

VT Sheep and Wool at Tunbridge Fairgrounds, Tunbridge, VT 10/4-10/5/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Stitches East in Hartford, CT 10/9-10/12/14.  Wendy plans on attending the Saturday marketplace.

Rhinebeck at Dutchess County Fairgrounds, Rhinebeck, NY 10/18-10/19/14.  We plan on attending for the weekend.

New England Fiber Festival at Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, MA, 11/1-11/2/14.  Wendy plans on attending.

The Gathering at Sunday River, Newry, ME, 11/7-11/9/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Episode 167: Sh*t Vinyl

WARNING: We use an expletive quite a bit during this episode, just maybe not for the reasons you think.... This week's WIPs include Sheila's vanilla sock and Wendy's Star Leaves Shawl and Rita the Rabbit doll. Neither of us got much done, so no FOs. Baubles and Bling this week was the June Hello Yarn fiber club offering. We show some more awesome prizes for our ongoing Donate a Shawl Charity KAL/CAL.

SHOW NOTES

KAL/CAL:  We are hosting a Stash Busting KAL/CAL for the month of July.  Post a pic of your finished project made from yarn purchased at least 6 months ago in the July Stash Busters Thread and get that stash under control!  A winner will be drawn at the end of the week.

We are also hosting a Donate a Shawl Charity KAL/CAL.  We have more prizes to offer (see Gossip & Innuendo for more information below), so don't miss out on this contest.

HUGE thanks to viewer Elizabeth for her kind donation to the podcast.  It will come in handy for mailing out prizes!

Check out the Mother Bear Project KAL/CAL currently running in the 2 Knit Lit Chicks Podcast group right now, if you are in the charity knitting mode.  You can win prizes for knitting or crocheting one of these bears, which will be sent to kids affected by HIV/AIDS in developing countries.

Also, thanks to the Moms With Yarn Podcast for spreading the word about our charity effort! Raveler tbmccarthy is one of the driving forces behind the Remembering Remy, a project that collects and sends preemie caps to the NICUs.  Check out her podcast, too!

On The Dance Card:

Wendy is working on:

Star Leaves Shawl by Jenny Johnson Johnen in Fleece Artist Saldanha 2 in the Starlight colorway.

Rita the Rabbit by Lydia Tresselt in Caron Simply Soft Light

Sheila is working on:

One vanilla sock in SKnitches Syncopated Sock in the Seriously? colorway.

She did not show her Tan House Brook Shawl in Gypsy Girl Creations gradient.

Rate Your Date:

Nothing this week.

Whirlwind Romance:

Wendy is currently spinning:

Biltmore Fiber (navy blue pencil roving), Spunky Eclectic (navy top), and Dyeabolical (custom dyed navy top) by spinning them randomly together.

Wendy finished spinning:

Portfiber Polwarth (4oz) in the Prickly Pear color way by separating out the warm and cool colors and spinning two skeins of contrasting yarn.

Future Dates:

Wendy plans to knit:

Deathflake Mittens by Sissel KB, using her warm/cool color experiment.

Baubles & Bling:

Wendy bought:

Hello Yarn June 2014 Fiber Club offering

Gossip & Innuendo:

Charity Comfort Shawl KAL/CAL:  This is a new contest inspired by our friend Lise from Webs! She organizes donated comfort shawls for people in her church community, but she has recently lost a few of her helpers.  If you donate hand knitted or crocheted shawls to her effort, you can be eligible to win a $50 gift certificate to Webs (one prize will be drawn), a skein of Webs anniversary yarn custom dyed by Lorna's Laces yarn (two prizes will be drawn), a pattern of your choice from KNitDesigns, or a skein of Wollmeise donated by our amazing viewer, Katluvz2knit.

The contest will run until August 31, 2014.  Shawls should be sent to:

Lise Gill
c/o Webs Warehouse
75 Service Center Road
Northampton, MA 01060

You can knit or crochet shawls specifically for this charity event OR go through your stash and give away some shawls to a good home.  There is no specific fiber content required - they can be machine washable or handwash only.  There is no specific pattern or size.  Lise will make sure your donations go to people in nursing homes, hospice care, new mothers or other people that need a comfort shawl.

You may post a picture of your donation (one picture per shawl - make sure to post them separately to get multiple chances at the prize) in our Contest Thread.

Tour de Fleece runs from July 5 through July 27th this year.  Wendy will be spinning for Team Dyeabolical.  There is a TdF contest thread in our Ravelry group where you can win a bump of fiber from Wendy's personal stash by posting a pic of your finished TdF projects.

Upcoming fiber events in our area:

Convergence 2014 at Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, RI, 7/16-7/19/14.  Wendy may attend the marketplace.

Fiber Revival at Spencer Pierce Little Farm in Newbury, MA 8/9/14.  Wendy may attend this event.

Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival at Washington County Fairgrounds, Greenwich, NY 9/27-9/28/14.  We do not plan on attending.

VT Sheep and Wool at Tunbridge Fairgrounds, Tunbridge, VT 10/4-10/5/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Stitches East in Hartford, CT 10/9-10/12/14.  Wendy plans on attending the Saturday marketplace.

Rhinebeck at Dutchess County Fairgrounds, Rhinebeck, NY 10/18-10/19/14.  We plan on attending for the weekend.

New England Fiber Festival at Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, MA, 11/1-11/2/14.  Wendy plans on attending.

The Gathering at Sunday River, Newry, ME, 11/7-11/9/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Episode 166: KnitWrecker

This week, Wendy's knitwrecking abilities are explored. WIPs include Sheila's self-striping sock and Tan House Brook shawl, as well as Wendy's Star Leaves Shawl and Lalylala Bunny doll. We had no FOs this week. Baubles and Bling included Wendy's purchases from Webs (a skein of yarn and a crochet hook), and a gift in honor of Sheila's new job. We discuss Tour de Fleece, draw prizes for our two KALs and announce a new Charity KAL with awesome prizes!!!

SHOW NOTES

KAL/CAL:  We are hosting a Stash Busting KAL/CAL for the month of July.  Post a pic of your finished project made from yarn purchased at least 6 months ago in the July Stash Busters Thread and get that stash under control!  A winner will be drawn at the end of the week.

We are also hosting a Charity KAL/CAL.  Please see the Gossip & Innuendo information for more details.

On The Dance Card:

Wendy is working on:

Star Leaves Shawl by Jenny Johnson Johnen in Fleece Artist Saldanha 2 in the Starlight colorway.

Rita the Rabbit by Lydia Tresselt in Caron Simply Soft Light

Rate Your Date:

Nothing this week.

Whirlwind Romance:

Wendy is currently spinning:

Portfiber Polwarth (4oz) in the Prickly Pear color way by separating out the warm and cool colors and spinning two skeins of contrasting yarn.

Wendy plans to spin a sweater's worth of yarn during Tour de Fleece (July 5 - July 27).  She shows how she blended several 4 oz bumps to make her color experiment yarn.  She is using fibers from Biltmore Fiber (navy blue pencil roving), Spunky Eclectic (navy top), Dyeabolical (custom dyed navy top), Frabjous Fibers (Breeze colorway), and Into The Whirled (Take it to the Bridge colorway).

Future Dates:

Wendy plans to knit:

Deathflake Mittens by Sissel KB, using her warm/cool color experiment.

Baubles & Bling:

Wendy bought:

Cascade Sport Weight yarn in a heathered charcoal colorway.

2.55mm crochet hook

Sheila received:

Phlebotomy themed pins

Gossip & Innuendo:

Charity Comfort Shawl KAL/CAL:  This is a new contest inspired by our friend Lise from Webs!  She organizes donated comfort shawls for people in her church community, but she has recently lost a few of her helpers.  If you donate hand knitted or crocheted shawls to her effort, you can be eligible to win a $50 gift certificate to Webs (one prize will be drawn), or a skein of Lorna's Laces yarn (two prizes will be drawn).  The contest will run until August 31, 2014.  Shawls should be sent to:

Lise Gill
c/o Webs Warehouse
75 Service Center Road
Northampton, MA 01060

You can knit or crochet shawls specifically for this charity event OR go through your stash and give away some shawls to a good home.  There is no specific fiber content required - they can be machine washable or handwash only.  There is no specific pattern or size.  Lise will make sure your donations go to people in nursing homes, hospice care, new mothers or other people that need a comfort shawl.

You may post a picture of your donation (one picture per shawl - make sure to post them separately to get multiple chances at the prize) in our Contest Thread.

Tour de Fleece runs from July 5 through July 27th this year.  Wendy will be spinning for Team Dyeabolical.  There is a TdF contest thread in our Ravelry group where you can win a bump of fiber from Wendy's personal stash by posting a pic of your finished TdF projects.

Upcoming fiber events in our area:

Convergence 2014 at Rhode Island Convention Center, Providence, RI, 7/16-7/19/14.  Wendy may attend the marketplace.

Fiber Revival at Spencer Pierce Little Farm in Newbury, MA 8/9/14.  Wendy may attend this event.

Southern Adirondack Fiber Festival at Washington County Fairgrounds, Greenwich, NY 9/27-9/28/14.  We do not plan on attending.

VT Sheep and Wool at Tunbridge Fairgrounds, Tunbridge, VT 10/4-10/5/14.  We do not plan on attending.

Stitches East in Hartford, CT 10/9-10/12/14.  Wendy plans on attending the Saturday marketplace.

Rhinebeck at Dutchess County Fairgrounds, Rhinebeck, NY 10/18-10/19/14.  We plan on attending for the weekend.

New England Fiber Festival at Eastern States Exposition, West Springfield, MA, 11/1-11/2/14.  Wendy plans on attending.

The Gathering at Sunday River, Newry, ME, 11/7-11/9/14.  We do not plan on attending.