Episode 19 - Sweaters, socks and woolly wool

Hello my lovelies!

 

Welcome to The Crochet Circle Podcast and the show notes from Episode Nineteen - Sweater, socks & woolly wool.

 

In this episode I cover: Old dog, new tricks; FOs; WIPs; Review of The Crochet Sock Collection; Festival of Finishing CAL; #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL; Feeding the habit; Big up and What's good?

 

This podcast is sponsored by my online crafting company, Provenance Craft Co. 

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1 - Old dog, new tricks

I know that you should really swatch for each project, but if the meterage to weight ratio is the same or only slightly different then I tend not to and that's a mistake.

 

I have now made the Hove Beach Bag in two different yarns. The first is Erika Knight's Gossypium Cotton which is 100% cotton and 50g/ 100m.  The second is Yarn and Colours Charming which is 68% cotton/ 32% acrylic and 50g/ 102.5m.

 

On face value, they are very similar yarns but when crocheted into fabric, they are very different.  The Gossypium Cotton has very little give to it and so doesn't really condense down when crocheted.  In contrast, the cotton/ acrylic mix does and this makes for a denser fabric and therefore, smaller finished object.  

 

The 100% cotton had 18.5 sts and 21 rows over 10cm whereas the cotton/ acrylic mix was 21 sts and 24 rows over 10cm.  

From now on in I vow to look at the make-up of my yarn as well as the weight/ meterage ratio, particularly if one of the substitute yarns is a blend.

 

 

2 - Finished Objects 

I have a handful of large-ish FOs this month. 

I showed the beginnings of my Fronds Shawl by Joanne Scrace using Touch Yarns Possum/ Silk / Merino in last month's podcast and I worked on it furiously on the journey back from our holiday, finishing it off as we were driving down the side of Loch Lomond.

 

 

The pattern is easy to memorise and grows very quickly. Whilst the yarn was lovely to work with - it is very, very soft - the colours just aren't for me and so my friend Jenny will be the recipient of this shawl.  This also marks bag five of six of my Stash Bingo project, so I am very happy that I am using up some of my older stash in projects.

 

I also managed to finally finish off some things for the Festival of Finishing!  The TARDIS cross stitch was finished just before we went away and then I made it up into a cushion when we got back.  I learned a few new skills in making the cushion (mitred corners and piping) and was using YouTube videos for tutorials.

 

 

The TARDIS cross stitch is by StellarSpaceCraft on Etsy and I used DMC thread 311.  

 

I was encouraged by Crochet Cavalier to rescue my dog tapestries from the charity shop pile and do something with them.  After an hour or so of pondering, I finally fell on the idea of making pincushions.   I cut up two tapestries to make five-pin cushions that will be sent out to lovely friends that will put them to good use.  

 

3 - Works in progress

Last month I talked about doing a yarn comparison on the Evesham socks because I have already crocheted one pair. What I have discovered is that my tension has changed since I made my initial pair and so I have frogged the little that I had done.  

 

Instead, I am going to make four pairs from Step into Crochet by Rohn Strong.  The four pairs will come from two separate patterns, one toe up and one cuff down and they will all compare yarns to see whether there is a difference. This will also allow me to give you a decent review of Rohn's book in a couple of months and assess the yarns that I have used.

 

 

 So far, I have a sombrero for a very small teddy bear!

 

4 - Book Review - The Sock Collection by Vicki Brown

Two very lovely listeners, Anna and Hayley have become a little sock obsessed.  They have both independently crocheted every one of the six patterns in The Sock Collection book by Vicki Brown.

 

 

Here's a quick rundown of what they had to say about the collection and you can read their full reviews in the Crochet Book Reviews thread for this podcast group on Ravelry.  

 

Both gave the book an overall 5/5, and 5/5 for value for money and would recommend to friends.

 

They loved that each pair had a different construction and that no two socks were the same!

 

Here are Hayley and Anna's six pairs of socks:

 

  

 

5 - Festival of Finishing CrAL

The ongoing response to this CrAL is fantastic!  I wanted to point you towards somebody that has been vlogging their Festival of Finishing journey.  His name is David and he has been putting vlogs up on his Boy Who Knits YouTube channel, coming to you from Brisbane, Australia.

 

David has a lovely sunny nature and is a crocheter and knitter.  When I was watching his videos earlier, I was shattered and had just managed to delete the initial version of these show notes.  Tears nearly happened!  I watched David and was re-energised and happier. Thanks, David for unknowingly cheering me up!   

 

I would love you to get involved with the CrAL and share what you are up to within the Ravelry thread in The Crochet Circle Podcast Group or by using #FestivalOfFinishing on Instagram.

 

As an additional element, via my company Provenance Craft Co, Claudia at Crochet Luna podcast and Caroline (also fo the Fibre Friends Podcast) and Kathy at Evertote, each FO you have under the Festival Of Finishing is now worth about £2.37. The charity that will benefit from the money is Knit for Peace.  

 

5 - #BackToSchoolSweaterCAL

Here are the latest details on the sweater CAL. Helen and Tamara are doing a great job pulling all of this together and you can check out the CAL through their blogs and the thread within the Crochet Circle Podcast group on Ravelry:

 

 

Feeding the habit

Hmmm, 'nuff said.

 

 

1 - Border Leicester keyring from Imogen Louise

2 - DK wool from The Little Grey Sheep

3 - Naturally dyed yarn from Shilasdair

4 - Storm Grey and Peaty Brown from The Birlinn Yarn Company

5 - Harris Tweed buttons bought at the Kildonan Museum on South Uist

6 - Hebridean and Gansey wool from Yasin at Island on the Edge

 

My lovely goodies from Fibre Friends Podcast folk.

 

Destined to become part of a jumper or two - my haul from Uist Wool.

 

6 - Big up

Caroline from Fibre Friends Podcast is now also doing a solo podcast all about her cross-stitch projects.  I love Caroline and her energy, so go and check her out at Off The Grid Needlearts.

 

I also came across a new magazine called Reloved.  It's a UK based publication and costs £4.99.  I initially picked it up because there was information on doing modern macrame, which is easily going to become a new obsession. Having now had a better flick through the magazine, I really like lots of the projects and the ideas for upcycling through crafting. There are great photo tutorials throughout the magazine and the projects are stylish, not frumpy!

 

7 - What's Good

I have been on holiday in the Outer Hebrides off the West coast of Scotland.  It was AMAZING!  I clearly bought lots of wool, walked on the beach and generally had a great time chilling out. The house we were staying in looked straight out to sea and I loved sitting crocheting watching the tide roll in and out.  It really was bliss. 

 

 

See you all in September.

 

Fay x

 

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