008: Seed Stitch Success

008: Seed Stitch Success

Released May 21, 2019

In this episode, Anne shares her experience signing up for Shetland Wool Week 2019, how she finally nailed her seed stitch, the winner of the episode 7 giveaway and more!

Winner-winner!

Congratulations to KnittyMoomin from Instagram for winning the Episode 7 giveaway. Please check your Instagram messages!

Shetland Wool Week Sign-ups!

Anne was up at 4:30 am on May 18th, and was able to get a class in every time slot she was hoping for when the Shetland Wool Week class registration went live at 5 am. Most of her classes relate to Fair Isle techniques, but she will also be taking classes in lace and Bohus knitting, as well as whittling her own shawl pin. She will be reporting back on her experiences there, so stay tuned for the episodes coming in October!

Because it's the 10th anniversary of Shetland Wool Week, there are many, many programs going on. Plus, often times, people overbook themselves for classes and sell their tickets on. So, if you're on the fence about going this year, there will still be plenty to do and see and a good chance that you'll be able to get in to a class.

If you will be attending this year, reach out to Anne and say hi!

Progress on the Master Hand Knitter Program

Anne continued to work on her seed stitch practice scarf over the last few weeks and finally had a breakthrough thanks to a video by Arenda Holladay. It wasn't Holladay's method so much as what she said. Watch the video below to see Holladay's fix and listen to the podcast episode to hear what worked for Anne. (Ok, ok... She found that tugging the yarn after working the purl stitch is what did the trick for her!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15ORNUlhgTM While this isn't the method that eventually worked for Anne, it's what sparked the answer for her!

Anne will be knitting up her official seed stitch swatch and moving along in the program! Stay tuned for further progress and tips!

Knitter's Pride Spring Charity KAL and CAL for Warm Up America!

What started as a baby blanket failed due to insufficient amounts of yarn. But no worries, Anne used the yarn for that failed project, along with all the remaining acrylic in her stash, to crochet 28 blocks for the Knitter's Pride Spring Charity KAL/CAL. Follow that link to get all the details on this project to support Warm Up America! The KAL/CAL launched on May 1 and runs until May 31! There's a chance to win a set of needles or hooks from Knitter's Pride, so get crackin'!

Anne had planned to send a few blocks, but when a baby blanket project failed because she didn't have enough yarn to finish it, she used the yarn to make some blocks to send to Warm Up America. Then she cleaned out the rest of her acrylic scrap yarn and ended up crocheting thirty blocks in all!

Upcoming Events -- Be Sure to Say Hi!

Anne will be heading to the Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft event on May 25. At noon, she will be at the sheep event area in case anyone wants to come by and say hi. Or just look for her in the crowd and say hello!

The I-91 Yarn Shop Hop is scheduled for June 27-30th. Anne will be hitting the yarn stores in the New Haven area on the 28th and in Massachusetts and Vermont on the 29th. If you see her, say hi! Or get in touch to coordinate a time to meet at one of the shops in those areas!

The next place Anne will be popping up is in NYC for 11 weekdays between July 9-25. Anne will be yarn crawling her way around Manhattan on many of those days. What's your favorite NYC yarn shop that she shouldn't miss? Drop her a line in the comments and let her know!

knitCompanion Review

Sally Holt, the genius behind the knitCompanion app, should be up for the Knitting Nobel Prize. That's a thing, right? knitCompanion works on iOS and Android devices and exists to make your knitting life so much easier.
The free version of the app helps you organize your patterns and track where you are in your charts or written instructions. Affordable subscriptions increase the usefulness of the app dramatically, though, adding the ability to create shortcuts and add information to patterns. You can also manipulate the keys and charts within the patterns. Five minutes of prep in knitCompanion can save you hours of frustrations in some of your more complicated projects.
It didn't take long for Anne to fall in love with the program. She uses it all the time. Listen to the episode below for an in-depth review of the features or subscribe through the podcast app of your choice.

Giveaway

The giveaway for episode 8 has a summery theme as we head into the end of May. One lucky listener will win a hank of Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk in the Dragonberry colorway, a new copy of the Spring/Summer 2018 edition of Knitwear Magazine, a device stand from knitCompanion, and a set of stitch markers. Follow her on Instagram and join the Ravelry group for an entry each, and listen to the podcast to hear how you can get 5 more entries!

• The giveaway for episode 8 has a summer theme! It's a copy of Knitwear magazine Spring/Summer 2018, a knitCompanion device stand, stitch markers and a hank of Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk.

Featured Music

Both of the songs in this episode are from Torelli and the Fuse. The first was "Legacy," followed by "Forgive and Remember."

If you are a musician who would like a song featured on the program, or if you have comments or feedback, please contact the show at anne@familypodcasts.com.

Support the Show

Order your laundry detergent from Dropps and support the show at no extra cost to you. Dropps is vegan, plastic-free, effective and less expensive than most of the brands in the grocery store, and it arrives at your door on a delivery schedule that works for you.