Episode 32: Heidi"s Yarn Haven

Welcome to ep. 32 everybody! We have a lot of great content for you; including field trip notes, an interview, a research paper, show and tell and more goals! Grab your knitting, a cool beverage and put your feet up  and relax while you join us for this episode.

Episode 32 Audio

 

Pippa is helping me knit at 5 weeks old!

What's in our Lesson Plan?

1. What's on the PA system?
2. Fieldtrip notes: Heidi's Yarn Haven in Ukiah, CA
3. An interview with Heidi
4. Show & Tell
5. Button band research paper
6. Goals
7. What's on our Black Board?

What's on the P.A. System?

We are joining a group of other podcasters and hosting the "Summer Stripe Along CAL." This is a craft along and there are some amazing prizes you can win! Hop on over to the group page for this CAL and read all about it. Happy striping!

Field trip Notes and an Interview

Kim had a wonderful time visiting the LYS in her hometown of Ukiah, CA last week. Heidi's Yarn Haven is a fantastic shop that has an amazing inventory of beautiful yarns. She mainly stocks wool and wool blends and she also has a great selection of fiber, buttons and lots of needles and notions. If you are in Northern California on your way to Mendocino or visiting the wine country, take  a little extra time and visit Heidi; I'm certain that you'll find lots of treasures (like Kim did!) Check out our LYS evaluation spreadsheet to learn more about the shop.

Some local yarn 

Heidi's Yarn Haven, and there's Heidi!

 

So much pretty yarn!

Show & Tell

Marcy has started a new sweater project for the Summer Stripe Along CAL. She CO the ...a hint of summer by Isabel Kraemer. She is using Claudia Hand Painted yarns, Linen in the Lemon Ice and Caribbean Blue colors. The WIP is beautiful and this will be a beautiful striped sweater that is perfect for our climate. 

Yamma's Dress for Zoe.

Marcy has a 2nd new CO; Yemma's Dress by Devon Clement. This cute little girl's dress has a knitted bodice and a sewn skirt, which makes it a quick make and a darling gift. She is using deep stash that is so deep that the yarn isn't even on Ravelry!

Pippa is one lucky little baby, her talented mom is knitting her the cutest little dress; Marian by Taiga 

Hilliard. She is making the 12 month size and using Hedgehog Fibres Sock in the Fly color way. 

Marcy is continuing to work on her Cullum Tee by Isabel Kraemer using KnitPicks Lindy Chain yarn in the Ivy color way. She has made several cute modifications, including adding a lace motif to the back. 

Kim has finally finished her Twigs and Willows cardigan by Alana Dakos. She is tired of talking about it and is certain that you all are tired of hearing about it! The yardage for Stash Dash is 1,100 meters. 

She also finished her 2nd So Faded sweater by Andrea Mowry. She's already worn it and is loving it. This time Kim used Madeline Tosh Dandelion yarn which is a 90/10 wool/linen blend and it was lovely to work with. She used the same modifications as on her 1st sweater and she also played with the stripes a bit more on this one. 

Kim is continuing to work on her St Patty socks and is almost done with these vanilla, 2 at a time on magic loop socks. She also has a new sweater cast on that will be based on the So Faded sweater, but will have many modifications. She is using Cricket yarn for this project. 

Kim and Marcy are doing an informal KAL with the Cullum Tee. Kim got off to a slow start by  not swatching and by casting on with a US4 when she knew that a US3 would be better (it was all knitter laziness!) She ended up having to frog and re knit a portion due to the needle size issue.  Then, she had a huge pile of yarn barf and spent 2.5 hours trying to untangle and finally had to cut the yarn anyway...HOWLER! She is back in the saddle though and is enjoying the knit and looking forward to the FO. 

Kim has finished her sample for her design cowl (no final name or project page for this one, yet,) and is unhappy with the size. She will continue to work on this project and give an update when it's finished. She has also been spending time on other design projects, but can't post anything about them yet. 

Button Band Research Paper

Kim used the "Perfect Buttonholes" tutorial from the book Splendid Apparel by Anna Zilboorg. We will do a book review for this book in a few episodes; its' main premise is embroidering your knits, especially cables and lace. The button band tutorial is very thorough and the finished product is a double layered, beautiful, stable edge that won't flop or pull. I encourage you to check out the book at a library, LYS or other book store. 

A finished, beautiful buttonhole!

Knitting the button band

Kim's finished Twigs and Willows

 

 

Goals

Here's the post mortem for last episodes' goals; Kim wanted to finish:

1. The 2nd So Faded sweater: YES
2. Her Twigs and Willows cardigan: YES
3. Her St. Patty Socks: NO, but almost!
4. The Flutter Sleeve Cardigan: NO, she didn't even touch it : (
5. Knitting the sample for her cowl design: YES

and she wanted to CO or carry on with:

1. The Cullum Tee, to have this cute sweater well on its way: YES
2. Spinning, in order to meet her 10K Stash Dash goal!: YES
3. Weaving (for SD,) either a scarf for her DH Tim or a runner for her dining room table. : NO
4. A new CO using either her hand dyed Soft Linen yarn or her Shibui Linen. Hmmm.....:YES, but the new CO was with Cricket yarn.

Here're Kim's new goals for the next episode:

1. To remember that she has set goals...this helps a person to accomplish them!
2. Weave
3. Finish spinning 2 skeins of yarn
4. Finish her Cullum Tee
5. Finish the St. Patty socks
6. Finish the Flutter Sleeve Cardigan

What's on our Black Board?

In our next episode Kim will share her acquisitions from her LYS visit and Marcy and Kim will review the magazine Making, #3. We will share all of our current WIP's, new cast ons and FO's in addition to any other making that we've been up to.  

We wish you a wonderful 2 weeks with  your knitting and creating and we will see you next time! Thank you for joining us. 

Episode 31:Summer of Stripes CAL

Welcome to episode 31 everybody! Pippa joins us in the classroom today as we discuss all of our FO's (yay!) WIP's and knitting of the future. Grab your beautiful knitting, a soothing beverage, put your feet up and join us!

Episode 31 Audio

Marcy (wearing her Sakasama Jacket,) Pippa and Kim (wearing
her 1st So Faded sweater, having fun after recording.

What's in our Lesson Plan?

• On the PA system
• Show & Tell
• Kim's Goals
• We are Uber Crafty
• What's on our Black Board?

On the PA System

1. The Destined2knit podcast is now officially participating in the "Summer Stripe Along CAL." The other participating podcasts are: AndersMill Knits Podcast, simply stash less podcast, Giddy Knits Podcast, and  Hudson Valley Knits. We have a Ravelry group for the CAL. The idea is to create stripes using knitting, crochet, sewing, spinning or weaving between June 1st-August 31st and there are some awesome prizes! Go ahead and start striping, posting and enjoying your making.
2. Stash Dash 2017. This is a fun summer event that encourages you to knit, crochet, spin, weave, etc... in order to use up your stash. Read all about it here.
3. Kim wants to encourage you to use your magazines. Take 15 minutes and sit down with a few  and reacquaint yourself with the patterns and articles that you already own. For example, Kim found these great items in a few of her Summer magazines: 

• Interweave Knits, Summer 2007: the Oriel Lace Blouse by Shirley Paden; Josephine Top by Deborah Newton (particularly the short rows used to shape the cap sleeve.)
• Interweave Knits, Summer 2010: Marigold Sweater by Amy Polcyn; and the Lace Saddle Tee by Lisa S. rowe.

Show & Tell

Marcy has finished her Sakasama Jacket by Olga Buraya-Kefelian. She used Habu Textiles N-35 Viscose Sizing and she's really happy with the FO! It looks great on her and  she knows that she'll get a ton of wear out of it. 

First direction you can wear this top.

First direction back view.

Second direction you can wear this top.

Second direction back view.

Marcy's Mom helped her to finish the Puff Daddy's Baby by Anna and Heidi Pickles. She used Bernat Collegiate Chunky yarn and a size US 13 needle. The FO is beautiful and she was able to take some amazing pics of Pippa on it!

Pippa showing off the poof.

Kim has decided that she wants to complete the 10K in Stash Dash (that means to knit or otherwise produce or use 10,000 meters of yarn,) and she's charging ahead in order to meet that goal by 8/20/17. She finished her So Faded sweater (731 meters,) by Andrea Mowry using 3 of her own hand dyed skeins. This is a fun, easy and fast knit and she made several mods that she's really happy with. Check out her project page to read all about them.

Kim wearing her finished Veronika sweater.

Kim also finished her Veronika sweater (1,005 meters,) by CocoKnits. She used Shibui Pebble yarn and she's really pleased with the FO.  The only mod that she made was to  change the rate at which she picked up the neckline on this sweater, she picked up fewer stitches because she wanted a tighter neckline.

Pippa's dress.

Marcy has two new CO's: 1) Her Cullum Tee by Isabel Kraemer and she is using Lindy Chain yarn from KnitPicks. Kim and Marcy are doing an informal KAL with this sweater, join us if you'd like! 

Marcy has also cast on the MOST adorable little dress by Taiga Hilliard for Pippa. It's the Marian Dress and she is using Hedgehog Fibres in the Fly color and it is beautiful!

Marcy is contemplating 2 new cast ons: 1) A Hint of Summer by Isabel Kraemer using some deep stash  (Claudia Hand Painted yarn) or, 2) Boxy by Joji Locatelli mixed with the Cancun Boxy Lace Top by  erin kate archer. The Raveler, pooki, has mixed the 2 patterns together for an amazing result! Knitters are so creative!

Kim has several WIP's: 1) Her 2nd So Faded sweater by Andrea Mowry (again!!! because she just couldn't resist another CO of this fast and cute pullover.) This time she is using 3 skeins of Mad Tosh Dandelion yarn, and 2) The Cullum Tee by Isabel Kraemer...although she did have a HOWLER due to laziness with this tee. Kim knew that she should use US3 needles, but was too lazy to go get them and she CO with a US 4 instead. Now, 2  hours into the project she has finally admitted that she needs to Riiiip it out and CO again with size 3's. Sigh. 3) Her cowl design project. 

Kim's Goals

Yes, the crazy goals are baaack! Kim enjoys making goals and finds that they help to motivate her. By the time they record next she wants to finish:

1. The 2nd So Faded sweater
2. Her Twigs and Willows cardigan
3. Her St. Patty Socks
4. The Flutter Sleeve Cardigan
5. Knitting the sample for her cowl design

Her WIP goals are:

1. The Cullum Tee, to have this cute sweater well on its way
2. Spinning, in order to meet her 10K Stash Dash goal!
3. Weaving (for SD,) either a scarf for her DH Tim or a runner for her dining room table. 
4. A new CO using either her hand dyed Soft Linen yarn or her Shibui Linen. Hmmm.....

Review

We thought it would be informative to do a review of the Polygon Blanket by Tincanknit using Cascade yarn Cherub Aran yarn that Kim and her knitting group knit for Marcy and Pippa. Here are the pros and cons that we spoke about:

1. Both Kim and Marcy are happy with the cute pattern. The downside could be that it's knit in pieces and needs to be sewn together, (which ironically, is an upside because you're able to knit it on the go,) and there will be LOTS of ends to weave in. Also, a border needs to be knit or crocheted around the finished blanket. Being knit in pieces though, it does work well for a group project. 
2. The yarn got both thumbs up and thumbs down ratings. It is a nice weight and very easy to care for  and Marcy is using it a lot with Pippa; however, the ends come out even after being woven in for many inches.  Several of the polygons have begun to unravel after laundering as well.  After finishing the blanket, Kim was very unsure about the size/shape as it was a long rectangle; however, Marcy says that she really likes that shape and is able to use it in many situations and she's very happy with it. 

For more information about this project, check out Kim's project page here. We hope that this helps you if you're thinking about knitting a blanket for a baby in your life.

Pippa enjoying her blanket.

Octagon blanket size 30"Wx60"L

Marcy has continued to make cute decor items for Pippa's nursery. Her husband cut the wood and she painted it to make an adorable  set of wooden arrow. She found the tutorial on the site  cherishedbliss.com.

Wood arrows Marcy created with the help of her husband.

What's on our Black Board?

Kim has re-scheduled her trip to her hometown and will be visiting an LYS there. Marcy also has a trip planned for the end of the month and will be visiting her hometown in Washington. 

Thank you for joining us! We hope that your knitting is going well and that you're enjoying your summer and having a fantastic creating and making.