Episode 33 - It's so close I can almost sniff it

Hello there and welcome to The Crochet Circle Podcast and the show notes for Episode 33 – So close, I can sniff it! 

 

In this episode, I cover: CALs, Old dog, new tricks; Final Destination; En Route; Designs in Progress; Feeding the habit; Quick News Beats and J’adore?

 

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1 – Old dog, new tricks

My Old dog, new tricks is still about the dratted moth.

Since last month, I have managed to get on top of the moth situation but I have tried a couple of different methods and wanted to tell you what worked best for me. 

 

Lovely Crochet Clan member Lisa told me about pheromone traps that you can buy.  They are meant to attract the male moths which therefore stops the breeding cycle.  I put the traps down as I was coming to the end of dealing with Moth Gate but still didn’t catch and moths with the various traps I put throughout the house. 

 

What worked best for me was using the hoover nozzle (obviously doing this diligently so that I didn’t suck up my boob this time!)  I think that this is the best technique because you can catch them in mid-air and it doesn’t make a mess.  Obviously, I would rather be able to catch them alive and put them outside but this is really hard to do. 

 

Another lovely Crochet Clan member, Mara, has a pest controller friend and they suggest the ziplock freezer method but with an extended freezer time.  Five days in the freezer, five days out and five days back in.  That means that if any eggs survived and hatched after the first freeze, they should be dealt with in the second freeze. 

 

 

2 - CALs

#SummerTopsCAL – is now finished and there have been so many entries.  I am really impressed and thankful to everyone that took part.  Lots of people made their first-ever garments.  Some people made multiple garments for the CAL!

 

If you want to see what everyone has been up to you can see the FOs in two locations:

 

1 – The Crochet Circle Group on Ravelry has a Summer Top CAL FO thread.

2 – On Instagram go to #SummerTopCALFO

 

I did a random number generator for the prizes and the following people won: 

1 - Leather hook case by Nu Shearman, stitch markers by Lisa and a Liberty notebook - Mara (aka @Rubytombstone)

2 – 6 x 50g of Erika Knight Gossypium cotton (enough to make a summer top), stitch markers by Lisa and a Liberty notebook - Wendy (aka @wendlcol)

 

 

I also generated a random number for Sharon’s No Sew Mimosa Kimono.  The winner for that was Diranish from YouTube. 

#Loftalong – This C/KAL is going strong even with the heat that we have had.  If you downloaded the pattern but you’re not sure what colours to use, look at #LoftAlong or #LoftAlongFO on Instagram for inspiration.  There is also a chatter thread in the John Arbon Textiles group on Ravelry. 

 

Use #Loftalong for your WIPs and #LoftalongFO for your FOs. 

 

3 – Yarn shows – how to survive them

I lovely member of the Crochet Clan asked me if I had any tips on how to approach a yarn show, especially if you have never been before. So, I thought I would pull together my top ten tips for surviving and thriving at yarn shows:

 

1 – Go online and see what people have to say about the yarn show.  Is the food good, is the ground uneven, is day two quieter than day one?  All of this information can help you to really enjoy a yarn show rather than be frustrated by it because you know what you are getting yourself into.

2 – Most yarn shows put a map of the vendors up on their website a couple of weeks in advance.  Download it, look at all of the vendors and decide which ones you would be gutted to miss out on.  They should be your first people to visit, even if you miss out lots of stalls in between for now.  You can always go back and see them once you have seen your favourite vendors.

3 – Dress appropriately.  Wear layers because what on face value may look like a very cold venue soon heats up with thousands of bodies in it.  Get your comfortable shoes on because you are going to do a lot of walking.

4 – Arrive early and try to park as close as possible to the venue.  This means that you have easy access to your vehicle should you want to drop bags off and also a place to sit, rest and take your cup of tea to.  Seating is always an issue at yarn shows.

5 – Of all of the yarn shows that I go to, I would say that only two of them have decent quality food (Wonderwool Wales and Woolfest) for all of the others I am always disappointed by the cost, quality and selection.  If you have specific dietary requirements then taking your own food is a much safer bet.  Again, this is where parking your car as close as possible comes in – you can leave your lunch in the car and go back there for a break.  You can also check out what is available locally.  At Yarndale there is a bus that runs down to Skipton and there are lots of cafes there that you can go and eat in.  There is also an AMAZING farm shop down the hill from the venue where you can eat in or take away. 

6 – Go in with a spending budget and take cash with you.  The nature of yarn shows means that many of them are in rural locations and paying by card can be really tricky.  If you take cash then you can only spend what you have with you.  As a general rule of thumb, vendors have a minimum payment for card transactions because they have to pay a percentage for that transaction.  With my system, I have to pay 2.7% of the transaction back to iZettle.  Vendors usually prefer cash for this reason.

7 – Be sociable.  If you have gone alone, go and grab a cuppa and sit with the crowds.  People will gladly strike up a conversation with you.  I am forever being nosy and asking people what they have been buying and asking to see it.

8 – If you have friends on Ravelry or Instagram or a favourite podcaster, see if they are going and whether there is a meetup.  It can be a very lovely hour out of your day where you get to meet people face to face and strengthen your online relationships.

9 – If like me, you don’t do well with big crowds, find out which day is quietest.  In general, a two-day event over a Saturday/Sunday will be quieter in the afternoons and MUCH quieter on Sunday.  For events that are on a Friday and Saturday, the same is true but the Friday would tend to be quieter. 

10 – Check the small print.  I have only just seen that people with advance tickets for Yarndale get in at 10am.  If you are buying your ticket on the day, you won’t get in until 11am.  Different shows will have different rules, so make sure you aren’t standing about waiting to get in when you could have had an extra hour in bed.

11 – I have added an extra one in because rather a lot of theft goes on at yarn shows.  If all of the good people were helping to keep their eyes peeled for thieves we might be able to put a stop to it.  So, if you see something that doesn’t seem quite right, please let the vendor know. 

 

I thought I would also add a couple of things that it’s best not to do to vendors:

1 – If you want to take photos of a vendors stand or stock, please ask them in advance.  It’s just good manners and stops us thinking that you are stealing our intellectual property, ready to create your own items.

2 – Don’t stand in a vendors stall and say “I could make that for half the price”.  Yup, this does happen!

3 – Don’t be shy.  Come and talk to us.  There is nothing nicer for a vendor than people appreciating what they are selling and talking about it.  If you ever see me vend, come and say hi and show me what you have bought so that I can live vicariously through your purchases.

 

 

4 – Final Destination

I have mainly been making Lofts!  A few people asked me for a DK version and so I quickly turned around a DK Loft knitted and crocheted pattern.  Both are available on Ravelry now.  I know that quite a few of you from the US and Canada were interested in trying John Arbon Knit by Numbers but didn’t want to have it sent from the UK.  Corrine from The Woolly Thistle stocks KBN DK in all the colours and shades, so you wouldn’t have to pay international postage. She has pulled together kits that are $49.95 and include 3 x 100g skeins a large tote bag and a pin badge.   Both versions are also much quicker in the DK…

 

 

 

 

5 – En Route

I am still working on my second top for the #SummerTopCAL.  It’s the Verity Top by the lovely Dawn at The Almond Snug.  I am just struggling with time on non-design projects at the moment.  I thought I was going to have a lovely quiet summer crocheting under the umbrella.  Nope.

 

Last night I started my fourth and final crocheted Loft shawl.  This one is in a DK/Light 3 weight and in the plum colour.  We have a friendly competition going between a few of us on Instagram for a LoftOff and I have until midnight on Friday to get the finish line.  I am currently on Row 60…

 

I love and hate deadlines in equal measure!

  

6 – Feeding the habit

I have been to lost of woolly events in the last few weeks.  As with last month, I intend on having a double podcast and showing off all the things I have been doing in Episode 34 which will come out in mid-August when I get back from gallivanting in Northern Ireland because I want to show off Yarnfolk and Giant’s Causeway and, and, and…

In the meantime, here are some of the goodies that I have bought, been given as birthday pressies. 

 

Button badges from Crochet Luna and second hand books from

the Blaze Farm Wool Experience

 

Icelandic wool from dewsnapswoollens.co.uk in the Peak District

(website isn't currently working)

 

1 - Shropshire Ply from Ewe & Ply in Shrewsbury

2 - Alley Cat (or as I called it "Dirty Tiger") from Ewe & Ply's Legends range

3 - Coloured Ryeland from Find Me Knitting

4 - North Ronaldsay from A Yarn From North Ronaldsay

5 - Feral Sphere Alpaca and Gotland blend from Find Me Knitting

6 - Mermaid and minis in shade Fuchsia from Riverknits

7 - Shepherd's Delight & Shepherd's Warning from Riverknits

8 - Hot Socks from Grundl and available from Ewe & Ply

 

7 - Quick News Beats

Global Hook Ups – The next Global Hook Up is due to be on Saturday 11th August 2018 (BST)

Time: Saturday 11th August 2018 8:30 PM London BST

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/4750475819  The meeting ID number is 475-047-5819 and you will need to join via Zoom which you can do here:  https://www.zoom.us/join

There is then a second one on Sunday 12th August at 9am (BST)

Time: Sunday 12th August 2018 9:00 AM London BST

Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/4750475819  The meeting ID number is 475-047-5819 and you will need to join via Zoom which you can do here:  https://www.zoom.us/join

 

Here is the meringue recipe that I promised.

 

Here is the Weekday Summer Porridge recipe that's in the latest issue of www.olannand.ie 

 

I found that I had already created the ragu recipe on my old website, so here it is.  You can use red lentils instead of brown.  I also do this as a massive batch cook and store it in preserving jars for months.  It's a great store cupboard meal that is homemade and we always take a jar and a bag of pasta when we go on self-catering holidays.

 

8 – Big Up

Everyone that joined in with the Summer Top CAL.  I know that it has given a lot of people, including me, inspiration to make more tops.  We even had a couple of crocheted dresses entered! 

   

9 – J’adore

Song - The latest song that I am obsessed with is ‘Shotgun’ by George Ezra and in particular the Danny Dove remix.  Happy, happy summer tune!

TV - The TV programme that we boshed in two nights (two seasons!) was The Good Place.  I loved the premise of this series.  It’s on Netflix and has some great actors (Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil, Manny Jacinto and D’Arcy Carden) and is from the same creator as Parks and Rec – which I also loved!

 

Audio book – I am still making my way through The Baroque Cycle by Neal Stephenson.  I’m on Book 4/5 (told in tandem) and I am loving it every bit as much as I did the first time around.     

                     

I will be back in mid-August with the second installment of my Summer Shennanigans. 

 

Fay x

 

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