Episode 31 – Washi Tape Addiction!

Hey everyone! We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, Hannukah, holiday season and a Happy New Year!!

We are both very saddened by the deaths of both David Bowie and Alan Rickman 😦 We will miss their wonderful talents very much.

In other news, Katy’s husband got a great new job!!! You can visit his company’s website below and even purchase items!!!

NEOB Lavender

Also, Katy’s little guy got new glasses!  He loves them and he looks super cute 🙂

Downton Abbey Contest!!!

So again, this year we will be having a Downton Abbey contest!  At the end of Season 6, even the Christmas Special, we will cook up an extra hard trivia question!  We will put a link in the show notes to Rafflecopter. Once everyone has answered we will draw from the pool of winners who answered the question correctly for prizes.

So far we have a ‘Behind the Scenes of Downton Abbey’ coffee table book, donated by Katy; a Downton Abbey sock sack donated by KnittyKat Bags; and a skien of ‘Shrewd Lady Mary’ donated by One Twisted Tree. We’re waiting on a couple other emails so hopefully there should be more prizes too.

We hope everyone is enjoying the last season!

FOs and HOs

Katy finished her ‘Socks on a Plane’ by Laura Linneman using Desert Vista Dyeworks sock yarn in ‘Mint Cocoa Quilt’ just in time for Christmas!  She also finished her ‘The Bee Keeper’ cross stitch by The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery and all she needs to do is frame it. As for Ho’s she has one Rose City Roller sock done using ‘Extra Pink Roller Rink’ by Peepaloo Fields on Etsy.

 

WIPs

Katy is working on the second Rose City Roller and also on ‘Tea Time’ cross stitch by The Frosted Pumpkin Stitchery.  She also plans on making a Newborn Vertebrae by Kelly Brooker out of some Tanis Fiber Arts in ‘Blueberry’ for her husband’s new employer 🙂

Needs and Wants

Needs: Val needs a new car!  Katy needs to put her Christmas decorations away!

Wants: Katy wants a new iPhone.  Val didn’t know what she wanted as she was happy with how things were at the time of recording.

Want to do:  Both Val and Katy want to go and see Labyrinth in the theatre!

Learned: Katy learned she is much stronger than she thought she was. Val learned she is also much stronger that she thought she was.

You had me at YARN!

Val was had at yarn (yet again 😉 ) by Expression Fiber Arts in the colourway “I heart coffee”. It is gorgeous and very appropriate for Valentine’s Day ❤

Katy was had at yarn… bowl!  She found Barruntando Ceramica on etsy where you can find pottery made from honey!  There’s some great yarn bowls in the shape of bats, baby sloths, foxes and ones with rain clouds and hearts carved out of them!

New Stuff

We both got some pretty cool stuff for Christmas!

Val got herself a small android tablet and she’s loving it!  She also got a Sherlock funko pop figure (the one with the violin), she got some Red Heart Boutique Swanky yarn and it’s a really nice deep black and it has oblong sequins throughout!  It’s going to be very nice knit up! She also got some really pretty handspun from Katy for Christmas – it was Ashford merino/silk and she spun it into a true 3 ply yarn.

Katy got some pretty Red Heart Boutique Swanky from Val and it’s a gorgeous bright fuscia colourway!  She wants to knit it up into a nice cowl for springtime.  She also got 2 balls of KnitPicks Felici in ‘Countess’ from her friend Kelly and her mom made her a pair of ‘Jane’s Barathea Mitts’ from Jane Austen Knits Fall 2015 out of some stashed Rowan Felted Tweed. Katy also got some new earbuds and season 2 and 3 of Homeland with a gift card that Val had given her!  She also did an order to Jetpens and got a Hi-Tec C Coleto pen to go with her planner.

Reading, Watching & Listening

Reading: Katy is reading Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare, she finally finished Clockwork Angel. Val is reading the Fifty Shades of Grey series (for “research”).

Watching: Both Val and Katy are watching Downton Abbey and Sherlock The Abominable Bride. Katy’s watching Limitless, WWE and the 2nd season of Homeland.  Val is watching Outlander on Shomi and the 3rd season of Hemlock Grove on Netflix.

Listening: Katy and Val are both listening to Ed Sheeran and Adele. Katy’s listening to Metric and Death Cab for Cutie in preparation for their concert in March. Val has ‘Cake by the Ocean’ stuck in her head… and Katy loves that one too 😉

Episode 27 – I hate Burpees!!!

 

Hello everyone! Welcome back to the Stitch Sisters podcast, and if this is your first time listening, thank you for checking us out!

Events:

Hamilton Comic Con – October 3rd & 4th at the Hamilton Convention Center – Guests include Lea Thompson, Tara Reid, Ian Ziering, John Schneider, Nichelle Nichols and new guest, Laurie Holden & probably more!

FanExpo Canada – September 3-6 at the Metro Toronto Convention Center – Guests Include Hayley Atwell, Robin Lord-Taylor, Robert Picardo, Ming-Na Wen, Graham McTavish, Orlando Jones, Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Lennie James, James & Oliver Phelps, Karen Gillan and Jenna Coleman and new guests include Gillian Anderson, Tom Felton, Amy Acker, Danny Trejo, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich, Jason Mamoa, George Romero, Willa Holland, Christian Slater and Mads Mikkelsen.

Kitchener/Waterloo Knitter’s Fair – September 12, 2015 at the Kitchener Aud in Kitchener, ON – lots of vendors, panels and draws.  Katy will be attending with a group of friends and she asks you politely to take a look at her Ravelry destash to help her out! Lots of nice things in there!!!

The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair – November 6-15, 2015, Toronto, Ontario – Agents of Sheep will be there on November 15, 2015 to compete in the Sheep to Shawl Competition again this year, and Katy plans to throw her hat in for the Drop Spindle Competition as well.

KAL/CALs

The Crochet Crowd – Stitchcation Challenge starts July 1st – September 7th, afghan project meant to “tempt, tease & teach you new tricks” and have a cool afghan at the end. It’s an afghan mashup of 2 patterns with 2 original patterns by Mikey & there is no sewing of afghan pieces either.

Stash Dash 2015 – Ended on August 14th! Katy did not reach the 3k goal but did surpass 2k and that’s double what she achieved last year so she’s calling it a win!

Around your neck Kal – hosted by Diane of the Suburban Stitcher Podcast is holding a KAL for anything you can wrap around your neck – shawls, cowls, kerchiefs, scarves, etc. Starting June 1st and running to August 31st. You can include WIPs too and feel free to double, triple, quadruple dip into any other KALs you wish. You can find the full details at the Suburban Stitcher Ravelry Group.

Summertime and the Living is Easy KAL/CAL – June 1-August 31, 2015 – hosted by the Geeky Girls Knit Podcast. Anything you can tie to Summertime somehow (knitting, crochet, spinning) and if you can’t think of anything, you made it in the summertime. You can find the full details at the Geeky Girls Knit Ravelry group.

The Virus Shawl CAL – not really an official CAL but Val noticed a whole lot of people on facebook crocheting this shawl. It’s a free pattern on Ravelry with written and charted instructions!

WIPs

Katy is making a baby blanket for her new neighbours out of Bernat Baby Sport using the Rainbow Shells throw from Crochet Boutique. She added 10 chain stitches at the beginning cause it looked a little narrow. She’s also working on her second sock out of Red Heart Heart and Sole in ‘Toasted Almond’. She is also spinning on her ‘Hand of the King’ rolags from The Wooly Witch and spinning on her wheel to finish the ‘Moon Pie’ on Polwarth by Two if by Hand.

Val started another knitted dischcloth out of Bernat Handicrafter cotton in some pretty blue shades and she is also still working on her rainbow granny square afghan.

FOs

Valerie finished her Easy Triangle shawl in black and she used some yarn hair falls as fringe to make it extra awesome! It’s very big and looks very cozy for fall and winter!

Katy finished her pair of Spring Stripes Socks using Red Heart Heart and Sole sock yarn.

Needs and Wants

Val is wanting to get a septum piercing, she needs to get her bloodwork done to figure out why she’s been kind of tired lately. What she wants to do is organize the bedroom closet and what she learned was if you own a business, you need to sell your brand to potential customers.

Katy needs to keep going on MyFitnessPal to get into better shape. She wants ‘Sherlock:The Mind Palace’ colouring book coming out November 5th. What she wants to do is see the Sherlock Christmas Special at the theatre! Katy also learned how to box a bit going to Fight Fit, a boxing-based workout facility in her city.

You Had Me At Yarn

Katy found some really pretty mini-batts at FireFlyFibreArts on Etsy, especially her ‘Before the Storm by the Lake’ Luxury mini fun buns, and the fun buns in ‘Sea Glass’ as well. She also loves the ‘If they kill Michonne‘ colourway from Desert Vista Dyeworks!

Val was smitten once again by Gnome Acres and her ‘Hermione‘ colourway. It just embodies Hermione in so many ways, especially the Hermione depicted in ‘Prisoner of Azkaban’ with her pink hoodie. Gnome Acres is always a good choice!

New Stuff

Val got a really nice black maxi skirt from Giant Tiger (a really good discount department store here in Canada) and it’s made from a super-soft jersey material. She also received her August ipsy bag which she is thrilled with!

Katy was enabled by the Minerva Turkey podcast and picked up some Tuft Woolens ‘Black Orchid sock soap’ and some vanilla almond hand balm. She also ordered another turkish spindle from TurtleMade in purple and seafoam and she won a really pretty pattern from Irish Girle Knits called the ‘Blue Lake Springs Shawlette’. And in a moment of weakness, she bought a skein of Madelinetosh Twist Light in ‘Chicory’.

Reading, Watching & Listening

Katy is still reading ‘To all the boys I’ve loved before’ by Jenny Haan. She is going to watch Summer Slam on the WWE Network and is looking forward to a lot of matches. Katy and her husband picked up ‘Divergent’ and ‘Insurgent’ and plans on watching them so she can talk about them with Val ❤ and she’s been listening to ‘Cool for the Summer’ by Demi Lovato and ‘Retaliation’ the theme music for Dean Ambrose – she put them both on her workout playlist.

Val finished reading ‘Stripped with a Vampire’ by Jax Garren and loved it. She is watching The Great British Bake-Off with mum on PBS and looking forward to watching ‘Fear the Walking Dead’ on AMC. She is also listening to ‘Good For You’ by Selena Gomez.

And that’s she show ladies and gents!! You can find us on Ravelry, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook!!

Episode 26 – Tossed Salad

Hello everyone! Welcome back to the Stitch Sisters podcast, and if this is your first time listening, thank you for checking us out!

Events:

Hamilton Comic Con – October 3rd & 4th at the Hamilton Convention Center – Guests include Lea Thompson, Tara Reid, Ian Ziering, John Schneider, Nichelle Nichols & probably more!

FanExpo Canada – September 3-6 at the Metro Toronto Convention Center – Guests Include Hayley Atwell, Robin Lord-Taylor, Robert Picardo, Kate Mulgrew, Ming-Na Wen, Graham McTavish, Orlando Jones, Norman Reedus, Chandler Riggs, Lennie James, James & Oliver Phelps, Billie Piper, Karen Gillan and Jenna Coleman, Jennifer Morrison and new guests include Gillian Anderson, Tom Felton, Bonnie Wright, Amy Acker, Danny Trejo, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich and Jason Mamoa.

Kitchener/Waterloo Knitter’s Fair – September 13, 2015 at the Kitchener Aud in Kitchener, ON – lots of vendors, panels and draws.

KAL/CALs

The Crochet Crowd – Stitchcation Challenge starts July 1st – September 7th, afghan project meant to “tempt, tease & teach you new tricks” and have a cool afghan at the end. It’s an afghan mashup of 2 patterns with 2 original patterns by Mikey & there is no sewing of afghan pieces either.

Stash Dash 2015 – Started May 22, 2015 and Ends August 14, 2015 – visit the link provided for full rules and instructions on Stash Dash this year! They have 3 levels this year: 3k, 5k & 10k metres. So bust out your wips and raid your stash! You can knit, crochet, spin, and weave your stash into lovely things!

Around your neck Kal – hosted by Diane of the Suburban Stitcher Podcast is holding a KAL for anything you can wrap around your neck – shawls, cowls, kerchiefs, scarves, etc. Starting June 1st and running to August 31st. You can include WIPs too and feel free to double, triple, quadruple dip into any other KALs you wish. You can find the full details at the Suburban Stitcher Ravelry Group.

Summertime and the Living is Easy KAL/CAL – June 1-August 31, 2015 – hosted by the Geeky Girls Knit Podcast. Anything you can tie to Summertime somehow (knitting, crochet, spinning) and if you can’t think of anything, you made it in the summertime. You can find the full details at the Geeky Girls Knit Ravelry group.

FOs and HOs

Katy finished the Clockwork for her husband using Cascade Heritage Sock in ‘Mossy Rock’ and ‘Walnut’! And she finished one Vanilla Bean sock using KnitPicks Felici in Wizard…which is sold out now so Katy was super happy to have snagged some.

Clockwork in ‘Walnut’ and ‘Mossy Rock’

Vanilla Bean sock out of KnitPicks Felici ‘Wizard’

WIPs

Val is still working on her awesome rainbow stripes afghan using a multitude of colours of Red Heart Super Saver!

Katy is working on ALL the socks!  She’s finishing the 2nd socks using Red Heart Heart & Sole in  ‘Spring Stripes’ and ‘Toasted Almond’. She is also spinning on one of her 22g Ashford drop spindles using the lovely gift that Gingynorth had sent her! (biiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig thank you to Gingy!!). She’s spinning ‘Hand of the King’ Sweet Rolls by The Wooly Witch on Etsy.

Hand of the King rolags by The Wooly Witch

NEEDS AND WANTS

Katy desperately needs a day off!  Val needs to get herself one of those reusable aluminum water bottles.  Both Katy & Val want to see Minions together.  What Katy wants to do is practice spinning for the Royal Winter Fair and she learned that being jacked up on caffeine really makes her feel yucky!  What Val has learned is that the Canadian dollar is at its lowest since 2004!

YOU HAD ME AT YARN!….And Patterns!!!

Katy really likes the ‘Arcane’ spinning rolags from JujaBeesFiber on Etsy!

She also loves a few new patterns:
Glittering Caves by Corrine Walcher
Meniscus by Larissa Brown
Perfect Retreat Shawl by Susan B. Anderson

Val loves the pattern Bug Warmer by Taiga Hilliard! It’s the perfect quick baby sweater to make and the sizing goes up to 6 years!!! You know, for bigger bugs 😉

Val fell in love with “Maple Leaf” by FiberFangirl on Etsy.

NEW STUFF

Val got some new yarn from Katy’s trip to the Spinrite Outlet – 2 skeins of ‘Bramble Stripe’ Patons Kroy Sock yarn.

Patons Kroy in Bramble Stripes

Katy got quite a lot (again!): 2 bags of Patons Bamboo Silk in ‘Pink Petunia’ to make a Gemini Tee-shirt. She received a lovely gift from Gingynorth (Instagram) of 2oz of ‘Hand of the King’ by the Wooly Witch on Etsy. She pre-ordered the Forest Friends Bag (Totoro print) and Totoro notions pouch from Little Skein in the Big Wool on Etsy and a Patchwork Heart V-neck t-shirt from Patchwork Threads.

Forest Friends bag and Totoro notions pouch from Little Skein in the Big Wool

WHAT WE’RE READING, WATCHING & LISTENING TO

Katy isn’t reading much of anything right now, but she did pick up 11 volumes of Ouron High School Host Club graphic novels at a Knights of Colombus garage sale for $5 🙂  She’s watching WWE (of course), Swerved and Total Divas on E! network. She saw Jurassic World and it was really good, really didn’t need 3D though. She’s going to see Terminator Genesys with her husband and a friend and hopes to see Minions as well. She’s listening to ‘The Sound of Your Heart’ by Shawn Hook, ‘Fall’ by Cider Sky and ‘Photograph’ by Ed Sheeran (swoon).

Val has been re-reading a Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon and watching the last episodes of Hannibal and she’s been listening to ‘Fight Song’ by Rachel Platten.

Episode 21 – David Suzuki is a Troll!

Hi Everyone, welcome back to the Stitch Sisters Podcast!  We’d like to welcome new and returning listeners, thanks for checking us out!

We would also like to thank our friend Emily (aka wenchfaery just about everywhere, including Ravelry) for joining us again for this episode! She has an awesome youtube channel where you can watch her play through some pretty awesome videogames, and you can find her at Wenchfaery Games.

And, to explain our title, we were had!!!! David Suzuki had us all thinking that knitting chrysalis’ for Monarch butterflies was actually a thing!! There’s even a pattern on Ravelry for them! But it was a nice big ole April Fool’s joke 🙂  You can still buy the pattern but the proceeds will go toward the planting of Milkweed for the Monarch butterflies.

Giveaway!!!!

We had a very generous donation of a lovely prize from The Wooly Witch!!! She sent us 2 ounces of her ‘Sweet Rolls’ spinning rolags in the colourway ‘The Waterhorse of Loch Ness’! Now in celebration of the return of ‘Outlander’ to television (April 4th in the States and April 5th in Canada) we are giving these 2 ounces of spinning rolags to one lucky listener. All you have to do is head over to our Ravelry group, and take a look at the Wooly Witch’s etsy shop and tell us what your favourite colourway is and what you would make with it! You must be a member of our Ravelry group to win these gorgeous rolags.

The Wooly Witch Sweet Rolls in ‘The Waterhorse of Loch Ness’

Shops We Mention

Passionknit 
Miss Babs
The Wooly Witch
Tanis Fiber Arts
Willow Yarns
Scrumptious Purl
Spanish Peacock
Blue Moon Fiber Arts
KnitPicks
Book Outlet
Lush

Podcasts We Mention

The Knitmore Girls Podcast
The Sassypants Knitter
The Prairie Girls Knit & Spin
The Minerva Turkey Knits Podcast
The Knitgirllls Podcast
The Fat Squirrel Speaks
The Sampler Girl Podcast
The Wolfe Farms Podcast
The Geeky Girls Knit Podcast
The Brass Needles Podcast

EVENTS

Katy’s Birthday was on April 8th and Val spoiled her rotten 😉  Thank you for all the well wishes on instagram and facebook 🙂

Knitter’s Frolic – April 25-26, 2015 – Japanese Canadian Culture Centre – Toronto, Ontario

KAL/CALs

#kiltmenowkal – Outlander inspired KAL on Instagram with The Knitmore Girls, The Geeky Girls Knit, Subway Knits and Yarngasm Podcasts – post pics of your Outlander inspired knits, crochet projects and spinning projects!

Behmalong – the never-ending Behmalong with The Knitmore Girls podcast – knit any of Martina Behm’s patterns and post pictures on instagram and in the thread on the Knitmore Girls Ravelry group.

Sheepy Spring Kal – The Geeky Girls Knit Podcast is doing a Springtime Kal!  It can be knitting, crochet or spinning, has to be started after March 1st and be finished by May 31st. It can be anything related to spring and you just post a picture on their contest thread in their ravelry group to enter.

Steampunk KAL – With Miss Kalendar of the Brass Needles Podcast, for the month of April, knit yourself something Steampunk!  More info in her Ravelry group!

FOs and HOs

Val finished knitting another baby washcloth using Bernat Handicrafter Cotton 🙂

Katy finished spinning a sweet roll sample from the Wooly Witch 🙂  She spun it 2 ply on her Spanish Peacock support spindle. The colourway was ‘Ice Queen’ and it really reminds her of Elsa’s dress from Frozen.

The Wooly Witch Sweet Roll sample in ‘Ice Queen’

Emily finished the ‘Cedar Creek Socks’ – a pattern she purchased from Blue Moon Fiber Arts – out of Classic Elite Alpaca Sox in Baby Blues!

WIPs

Valerie started a Granny Square Afghan out of her Red Heart Super Saver in a bunch of Rainbow colours!

Katy is still working on her Mama Vertebrae out of Malabrigo Arroyo in ‘Aguas’, her Mudblood Cardigan out of Knitpicks Wool of the Andes Superwash in ‘Garnet Heather’ and she’s picking up her Outlander MKAL Shawl again using Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in ‘Seawash’ and ‘Terrarium’.

Mama Vertebrae in Malabrigo Arroyo ‘Aguas’

Emily’s working on another pair of Stitch Surfer Socks using Socks that Rock by Blue Moon Fiber Arts in ‘Manly yes but I like it too’ and ‘Grimm’s Willow Wren’ and also another Age of Brass and Steam Kerchief using Noro Sekku (lace weight) and it’s looking gorgeous as it’s striping!

NEEDS AND WANTS

Valerie needs to stay off Pinterest as it is a total time suck!!! She wants the thing that had her at yarn… see below 😉 She learned a provisional cast on and how to knit a mitred square and she wants to hide because she has 2 wee lads for 2 weeks! Yikes!!

Katy wants baby boy’s tooth to pop out so he can stop suffering. She wants yarn, and she wants to sleep in and she learned how to property park and draft on her support spindle.

Emily needs better time management skills to wrangle her wips into shape. She really wants to go to New York to the MOMA and partake in the Bjork interactive exhibit!!! She also wants yarn from the Scrumptious Purl in the colourway Mischief Managed. She also learned how to cut off a sock cast-on and bind it off again!

YOU HAD ME AT YARN!

Valerie wants Red Heart Boutique in ‘Petunia’. She had seen it in Walmart when she was shopping and she wanted it but didn’t get it. Perhaps the next trip she can purchase it ❤

Emily wants the Mischief Managed yarn from the Scrumptious Purl and she also wants the Hitofude cardigan pattern!

Katy wants the Life Savers Sweater Kit from Tanis Fiber Arts and she also wants a sweater quantity of their yellow label DK weight in Pink Grapefruit. As well, she wants Susan Claudino’s pattern ‘Doctor Ewe’!

NEW STUFF

Valerie bought a 12oz ball of Bernat handicrafter cotton in the colourway ‘Crown Jewels’ – it has lovely teals, aquas and purples in it!  She also bought 2 skeins of Red Heart’s Heart and Sole in “Mellow Stripes” to make some socks with!

Bernant Handicrafter Cotton in “Crown Jewels Ombre”

Red Heart’s Heart & Sole in Mellow Stripes

 

Emily bought a skein of Socks that Rock by Blue Moon Fiber Arts in ‘Manly Yes but I like it too’ and also a skein of The Scrumptious Purl in ‘It’s my Party’. She also found out that there is a new Lush store closer to us than any other in Limeridge Mall in Hamilton, which we will be hitting up shortly. Plus, she ordered the new Loot Crate because it’s Fantasy based, and that is her favourite genre!

Katy got some lovely early birthday surprises from Valerie – 2 handknitted washcloths, a Lipsmacker’s hair care set in the strawberry scent and 2 skeins of Red Heart Heart and Sole with Aloe in ‘Spring Stripes’! She also got a copy of ‘The Fault in our Stars’ by John Green and she got her Spring Swap package in from Tracey!!! It had lovely chocolate in it, a washcloth, 2 mini skeins of yarn and a cute bunny spoon for tea time!

Katy’s birthday goodies from Val and The Hobbit from her Hubby & Lil Boy

WHAT WE’RE READING, WATCHING AND LISTENING TO

Emily is reading a lot of Fan Fiction on Archive of our Own – and Valerie and Katy admitted to going there for some good fan fiction lately too 😉 She’s also listening to music on 8Tracks.com where you can listen to playlists people have made and also make your own!

Valerie is listening to a lot of Top 40 and some new to her podcasts. She’s also watching a lot of the Food Network and The Walking Dead – including the season 5 finale which she loved!!!  She’s reading some fan fiction and some text based RPG interactions which she’s participating in. Valerie and Katy will also be watching Outlander as it makes it’s return to Showcase (in Canada) on April 5th at 10pm!

Katy is happy to watch Finding Carter as it’s second season just started. She’s still reading ‘The Fault in our Stars’ by John Green and ‘Clockwork Angel’ by Cassandra Clare. She finished ‘The Clockwork Scarab’ by Colleen Gleason – it was ok, and you can tell it was YA and it needed closure, even though it’s a first in the series. Both Katy and Emily are really liking ‘Uptown Funk’ with Bruno Mars and were singing and dancing to it on the way to Valerie’s house!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We hope you enjoyed this episode and don’t forget to head on over and join our Ravelry group!!! Take care everyone and we hope you had a Happy Easter and Passover!

Episode 19 – Canadian Mousse

 

Hi Everyone! Welcome back to the Stitch Sisters Podcast and if you’re just finding us now, we hope you enjoy and come back often!

DOWNTON ABBEY TRIVIA CONTEST!!!!

Congratulations to Diana in the US for being our Round 4 Winner! She won the Downton Abbey MKAL kit from Jimmy Beans Wool.  She correctly answered the question: Who destroyed Mr. Bates’ train ticket?  The answer was Lady Mary. 🙂

A big thank you to everyone who donated prizes and everyone who participated and answered our fun little questions! We had a blast and can’t wait to do something else for Season 6!!!

Shops We Mention

Canon Hand Dyes
Western Sky Knits
The Wooly Witch
Vivid Yarn Studio
Jimmy Beans Wool
Desert Vista Dyeworks
Willow Yarns
Must Stash Yarns
Blue Moon Fiber Arts

Podcasts We Mention

The Knitmore Girls Podcast
The Sassypants Knitter
The Prairie Girls Knit & Spin
The Minerva Turkey Knits Podcast
The Knitgirllls Podcast
The Fat Squirrel Speaks

KAL/CALs

Valerie has been monitoring the mystery CAL with the crochet crowd. She has the pattern for it, but she wants to see how it turns out before she commits to doing one of her own.  Katy is still participating in the Behmalong with the Knitmoregirls podcast.

FOs and HOs

Katy finished a very impromptu cowl gift for the land registrar in her area using leftover Berocco Ultra Alpaca. The pattern is ‘Windbreak’ from Simply Knitting magazine and she modified it by just repeating section 1 instead of doing section 3 of the colourwork.

Windbreak using Berocco Ultra Alpaca

Katy also finished the ‘Snowball’s Chance in Hell’ mitts by the Anticraft!!!! Yay! She slogged through the duplicate stitch and then did some ribbing on the thumb gussets and she was done. She can’t wait to give them to her friend.

Snowball’s Chance in Hell mitts using Knitpicks Stroll Sport

WIPs

Valerie has been a bit under the weather so she has been keeping busy with her simple knitted dishcloth with Bernat Handicrafter cotton and working on her crocheted Easy Triangle shawl while recovering.

Katy has been working on her Clockwork by Stephen West, her Foolproof Cowl by Louise Zass-Bangham, her two-at-a-time toe up socks using ‘Night @ the Roxbury’ by Must Stash Yarns, and she plans on swatching for a cardigan that she hasn’t decided on yet.

NEEDS and WANTS

Need:  Katy needs to decide on a cardigan pattern!!  Valerie needs to get over her sore throat that has been going on for almost 2 weeks!

Want: Val wants to eat a Cadbury Crème Egg!! Katy wants her skein of Zombody Loves Ewe from Desert Vista Dyeworks, because she got shipping confirmation!

Want to do: Katy wants to cast on colourful, springy socks using Hobbit Garden by Blue Moon Fiber Arts.  Valerie wants to learn to knit a cardigan for herself.

Learned: Katy learned that life is unexpected!!  Valerie learned that she drinks too much soda and needs to cut back.

You had me at YARN!!

Both Val and Katy have been wanting to buy and cast on Susan Claudino’s pretty little bunny pattern; Bon Bon!!! We both think it would be a super gift for Easter, even if you have some lovely soft multi-coloured baby yarn in your stash, it would be really cute!

Valerie wants a skein of Fairy Hill by Vivid Yarn Studio on Etsy!! It’s so sparkly and she was actually pondering on making a Bon Bon out of it!!!

Katy found some absolutely gorgeous spinning rolags in the colourway ‘The Waterhorse of Loch Ness’ (an Outlander inspired colourway) from The Wooly Witch on Etsy! She loved it so much, she made an early birthday present purchase for herself 😉

NEW STUFF

Katy ordered a new t-shirt from Teefury called “I ain’t fraid of no Girls” and it has this awesome pin-up girl Ghostbuster and it says ‘If someone asks you if you are a GODDESS you say YES!’ on it!!! Katy is very excited and thanked Val profusely for tweeting the tshirt update to her.

I ain’t fraid of no girls t-shirt from Teefury

READING and WATCHING

Katy is reading ‘Clockwork Scarab’ by Colleen Gleason and is enjoying it very much. We both got to see Mockingjay Part 1 and we both loved it! Val has watched it a couple times now and even though it is such a bleak, dark series, we love the movies.  Valerie watched several new movies, including Maleficent which she thinks is a better story than the original Disney version of Sleeping Beauty.

What We’re Listening To

Val has been listening to ‘Running with the Boys’ by Lights, ‘Style’ by Taylor Swift and ‘Love me Like You Do’ by Ellie Goulding.  Katy has also been listening to ‘Style’ by Taylor Swift and she loves ‘Up We Go’ by Lights (it’s her 2015 Anthem).  Katy’s also been listening to and watching a lot of knitting podcasts, like the Fat Squirrel Speaks, The Sassypants Knitter and The Minerva Turkey Knits podcast.

Episode 12: Horrible Teases!

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Stitch Sisters Podcast! If you’re new, thank you for checking us out and if you’re returning, thank you for doing so! We really appreciate it 🙂

Announcements

We recently had a giveaway of a cute little owl project bag from Knitty Kat Bags on Etsy and our winner on our Ravelry board was KnitbyMoonlight89!!! Congrats to you Lee-Ann and hopefully you have the bag in your hands and are enjoying it. Her favourite thing about fall was the cooler weather and being able to wear all her handknits!

AND…. We’d like to tease the heck out of all of you now!!! In January, in celebration of the release of Season 5 of Downton Abbey in the US and Canada, we will be holding a Downton Trivia contest! The trivia questions will be from Seasons 1-4 of Downton Abbey and will span all of our social media outlets; Ravelry, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook! So if you’re not joined up, you should probably do so!  THERE WILL BE PRIZES!! AWESOME PRIZES!! We have had generous donations from Canon Hand Dyes and The Vintage Rose and they are so, so wonderful! Please be sure to visit these shops, because they are wonderful and we can’t guarantee Katy won’t run away to Mexico with the prizes! They’re that good!!!

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Shops We Mention

Canon Hand Dyes
Vintage Rose
Tanis Fiber Arts
Desert Vista Dyeworks
Knitpicks
Must Stash Yarns
Two if by Hand
Redbubble
Mostly Comics
Shirtpunch
Into the Whirled
Yarn Geek Fibers
Willow Yarns
Vivid Yarn Studio

 

Podcasts We Mention

The Knitmore Girls
Knit 1 Geek 2

 

Events

The Royal Winter Fair – November 7-16, 2014 – Toronto, Ontario – Exhibition Place
Katy will be attending the Fair on November 16th with Agents of Sheep to compete in the Sheep to Shawl competition. If you’re there, come and say hi, Katy is Agent Twist – We’ve got T-shirts! Katy will also be posting pictures on her instagram account (kittyvankat) when she has a chance.

 

KAL/CALs

Loved One’s Kal going on in our group until December 31, 2014 – Just pick a pattern with someone you love and knit it together! Submit your photos in the thread so we can see your beautiful work!

Corner to Corner Crochet Afghan CAL going on in our group until December 31, 2014 – check out our CAL thread in our ravelry group with a link to the free pattern and free instructional video and make your own corner to corner afghan, and show us your pics!!!

 

FOs
Katy finished her Happy Birthday Cupcake socks by Desert Vista Dyeworks and she did a true afterthought heel for the first time and she was so pleased! She also finished the Newborn Vertebrae sweater by Kelly Broker in Tanis Fiber Art blue label fingering weight yarn in ‘Jewel’ for friend’s baby girl due very soon!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WIPs

Valerie has started a new dishcloth! The Christmassing has begun!  Baby Star by sewfunky in Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in Psychodelic. It looks like a kid with crayons just coloured all over it! Very bright and cheery! She also started some slippers – working on two different brown yarns combined together – both by Red Heart Supersaver – the skeins were leftovers from her stash- one is a coffee colour and one is a chocolate milkshake colour.

She is also just about to start on wrist warmers – just knitting a square with ribbing on the beginning and the end and then sew up the sides but leaving a hole for her thumb. She’ll be using some Knitpicks Bare fingering weight yarn that Katy had dyed for her in raspberry and burgundy tones.

Katy is working on the ‘Snowball’s Chance in Hell’ mitts by The Anticraft using Knitpicks Stroll Sport in Mink Heather and Rainforest Heather. It’s asking a while but she has the body of one mitt done and two more motifs to sew on using duplicate stitch. She’s also working on a pair of socks for a dear friend’s daughter for Christmas using Must Stash Yarn’s Sport Sock in ‘Elsa and Anna’ and she absolutely loves the yarn!!! Katy did get some spinning in too and is half done a 4 oz. braid of polwarth in the ‘Moonpie’ colourways dyed by Two if by Hand’. It’s gorgeous and she’s having fun spinning it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wants & Needs

Valerie needs to invest in a ball winder and not get freaked out about all the Christmas knitting she wants to do. Katy needs to feel better and get rid of her lingering cough…and to stop eating Nutella straight from the jar!

Valerie wants a Horde Hoodie!  She’s a Warcrafter Geek – love playing both factions but is a Hordie at heart. She found a hoodie she wants on RedBubble, the My Little Horde Pwny ! Katy wants almost everything from the new Knitpicks catalog, especially their limited edition Rosewood needle sets!

Katy wants to go and see Mockingjay Part 1 and The Hobbit: The Battle of Five Armies in the theatres soon. Valerie wants to cast on the Ten Stitch ZigZag Blanket by Frankie Brown.

Katy learned that there is a second Unofficial Downton Abbey Knits and would really love to take a look at it soon. Also, we both learned that Benedict Cumberbatch is engaged to be married to Sophie Hunter!!! We both wish them all the best in their future together ❤  Valerie learned that she needs to invest in a ball winder so as not to get her yarn tangled while winding it by hand. A handy tool and a good investment.

New Stuff

Valerie’s new stuff is new, but old at the same time. She was searching for some cotton to make a dishcloth and found some new yarn she had purchased a couple months ago. Two skeins of Bernat Handicrafter cotton in the colours ‘Neptune Ombre’ which is dark green, blue, baby blue, aqua and white and ‘Moondance’ which is purple and blue and aqua and white.

 

Katy purchased a set of Doctor Who buttons at their local comic shop ‘Mostly Comics‘ and there are 15 of them. Doctor Who buttons on EVERYTHING! She also got a new tshirt in the mail from Shirtpunch which Valerie alerted her to. It’s ‘The Protonpack Guys’; the Ghostbusters drawn to look like the Powerpuff Girls! She loves it so much because she missed snagging it from Teefury a couple months ago.  She also snagged a copy of Jane Austen Knits 2014, generously bought by her Mom while she was in Ottawa! Also, her mom knit her a pair of super cute socks with Patons Kroy stripes with a pretty lavender coloured angora cuff.

Patons Kroy stripes with Angora cuff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Had Me At Yarn

Valerie found two things she wanted from Vivid Yarn Studio on Etsy in the colourway Snapdragon and the other was Elsa, because Frozen is everywhere!!!  She also found the cutest pattern, free on Ravelry, by Frankie Brown: Gingerbread House! Make your own little, intricate gingerbread house this year for the Holidays!!! But don’t eat it… unless your yarn is really yummy 😉

Katy found lots of fibre this time instead of yarn, probably because of all the spinning she’s been doing. She found some Superwash BFL at Into the Whirled in the colourway ‘Chancellor’ and she just loves the contrast between the bright purples and the dark greens. She also found some BFL Sparkle fibre from Yarn Geek Fibers in the colourway ‘Raspberry Swirl’ that’s just gorgeous and it looks like a dessert itself.  And last, but certainly not least, she found a super cute new orifice hook from Vintage Rose with pink and black glass beads and a sheep charm at the end! So cute!

What We’re Reading and Watching

Katy isn’t really reading anything except looking through the Jane Austen knits 2014. Valerie is still reading her way through Diana Gabaldon’s ‘Outlander’ series yet again – cause being on hiatus is tough 😉  But we are both still watching season 5 of Downton Abbey over the internet. We’re loving it!!! We think that Cora and Edith’s plan was ludicrous and all this could’ve been handled a long time ago. We cried about Isis and felt so bad for Isobel and the Dowager Countess for missing her friend. Lady Mary needs to learn some compassion – even though Katy thinks she prides herself on being a bit of an ice queen. We both don’t want Tom and Sibby to leave… they’re both darling and we love them . As well, we both almost hit the floor when Barrow showed a bit of heart and generosity and was basically being nice!??!? That’s not Barrow at all!

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Anyway, that’s our show this time. As always, itunes reviews and star ratings are much appreciated and please come and join us in our Ravelry Group for our KAL/CALs, contests and just plain good ol’ conversation. Take care and have a good fortnight everyone!!!

Episode 11 – Elevensies!!

 

Hi all and welcome back to the Stitch Sisters Podcast! If you’re a new listener, welcome to the crazy and if you’re a continual listener, thanks for coming back to join us!

A brief reminder about our giveaway!!!! Starting October 1st and ending October 31st, all you need to do is visit our Ravelry Group, join the group and comment in the giveaway thread with either your favorite thing about fall or what you’re planning on knitting/crocheting this fall for your chance to win a cute owl box bag from Knitty Kat Bags! A winner will be drawn by random number generator on November 1st and we will PM the winner!!! Good Luck and have fun!

Shops We Mention

Knitting’s My Bag
Tanis Fiber Arts
Lambytoes
Canon Hand Dyes
Must Stash Yarns
Desert Vista Dyeworks
Knitty Kat Bags
Nooch Fibers
Wee Chickadee Woolery

Podcasts We Mention

Wolfe Farms
Geeky Girls Knit Podcast
Subway Knits Podcast
Yarngasm Podcast
Must Stash Podcast
The Knitgirllls
The Knitmoregirls
The Fat Squirrel Speaks
Knit 1 Geek 2

Events

We hope everyone who went to the New York Sheep and Wool Festival in Rhinebeck, New York had a total blast! We loved seeing all the Rhinebeck fun on Instragram!

The Royal Winter Fair – Toronto, Ontario, November 7-16, 2014
Katy will be attending on November 16th and will be on team ‘Agents of Sheep’ for the Sheep to Shawl competition!

Katy went to the knitting group at her local library that meets every-other Wednesday night and there was a lady who had bought an Orenburg lace shawl that was 100% cashmere and she could fit the entire thing through her wedding band!!! The lady who had brought it said she was going to reinforce the damaged bits but not fully restore it. But it was beautiful and the person who had knitted it, also SPUN the yarn for it!!!!

 

Orenburg Shawl body

Orenburg shawl – edging

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

KAL/CALs

Loved One’s Kal going on in our group until December 31, 2014 – Just pick a pattern with someone you love and knit it together! Submit your photos in the thread so we can see your beautiful work!

Corner to Corner Crochet Afghan CAL going on in our group until December 31, 2014 – check out our CAL thread in our ravelry group with a link to the free pattern and free instructional video and make your own corner to corner afghan, and show us your pics!!!

Halloween Craft-A-Long – The Knitgirllls podcast is having a Halloween craft-a-long! Anything you can tie to Halloween counts as an entry! So get in there and craft!

Outlander KAL – this is an instragram KAL with The Knitmoregirls, The Geeky Girls Knit, Subway Knits and Yarngasm Podcasts! Post your most clever knits or crochet items on instragram with the hashtag #kiltmenowKAL and listen to these awesome podcasts for your chance to win some cool prizes!

The Fat Squirrel Speaks is holding a Vertebrae KAL – any of Kelly Brooker’s ‘Vertebrae’ patterns can be entered until October 31, 2014 for some awesome prizes.

WIPs

Katy finished clue 3 of the Outlander Mystery Shawl by Unwind Designs and Yarn and thinks she will put it down for a while because of all the baby and Christmas knitting she’ll be doing in the next couple months. She is also working on a Newborn Vertebrae by Kelly Brooker using Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label Fingering yarn in the colourway ‘Jewel’ for her friend’s baby girl arriving very soon! She is also on the foot of the Happy Birthday Cupcake socks by Desert Vista Dyeworks. She was keeping her projects in her Halloween bag by Knitting’s My Bag on Big Cartel.  Plus, Valerie noticed she was wearing her 221B Baker Street self-striping socks from Canon Hand Dyes.

 

Outlander shawl – Clue 3 completed

Newborn Vertebrae in Jewel by Tanis Fiber Arts

Halloween Bag from Knitting’s My Bag

Canon Hand dyes self-striping yarn in 221B Baker Street

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Valerie is working on her Easy Triangle Shawl even though she had to rip back a few rows of crochet, she’s still at it!!! Plus she’s fallen off the washcloth wagon and going to be casting one on very soon!

Needs and Wants

Valerie’s needs and wants were one in the same this episode!!! She needed new furniture for her living room and was given some by a friend who was moving!!!! Big Thanks to Tracey for the beautiful furniture that looks awesome in Valerie’s living room!

Katy needs to finish a pair of really long fingerless mitts for a friend before Christmas or they may just drive her round the bend! And she wants to organize her house, she just needs the toddler to be watched so she can blitz the clutter.

Since finishing Voyager, Valerie wants to find some new books to read – any suggestions would be appreciated even though she may just pick up the Harry Potter books again. Katy wants to have her friend Heather over so she can teach her, and her daughter, how to knit socks!

Katy learned that she needs to read all of her patterns before knitting them! But Valerie learned that there is still Regretsy submissions out there to be found – such as the Tampon Angel Christmas ornament. Cute but, it is still a tampon – kudos for creativity.

 

New Stuff

Katy got a couple of dog brushes and a multi-tip screwdriver for her emergency kit for the Royal Winter Fair, and also she bought ‘Taking Off’ by The Wiggles for her little guy… and now has constant ear-worms!

 

You Had Me At Yarn!

Katy found a new-to-her shop on Etsy, Lambytoes, and she loves the speckled yarn and ‘Kitten’s Choice’ in particular. She also loves the name of the shop and the yarn!

Valerie was seduced by the season and by Nooch Fiber which has (or had) a colourway called Town of Halloween! Which is (or was) perfect for Halloween this year! Though she also found from Wee Chickadee Woolery she found the 100% Merino fingering weight yarn in the colourway ‘Grape Vines’… which is also perfect for fall since that’s the best time to pick grapes in our area of Canada, Wine Country! Beautiful sumptuous bergundy, raspberry and green tones.

Valerie also found a couple of great patterns; first one was the ‘Mao’ kitty toy pattern from Petite Purls which would be purrrrfect for a little Christmas stocking gift or a little black Mao for Halloween! And the second pattern she found was the ‘Christmas Baubles’ ornament from the Greedy for Colour Blog! Katy loves this pattern to death because she had the idea that if one was to knit a nice pair of Christmas socks with a new yarn every year, you could make one of these and embroider the year on the bauble! Very cute and super easy, makes great gifts!

What We’re Reading and Watching

Valerie is reading The Fiery Cross by Diana Gabaldon and she’s watching Scorpion, Sleepy Hollow, Doctor Who and Downton Abbey.

Katy found out one of her friends writes romance novels under the pseudonym Zoe York and she has some of her books free on the Kindle Amazon app such as ‘See Me’. She’s watching The Flash, WWE, trying to catch up on Doctor Who and Downtown Abbey.

We’ve actually opened up a thread in our Ravelry group called Downton Chatter so we can all knit, crochet, drink tea and talk all about Downton!!! Feel free to go ahead, just tag your post with ‘SPOILERS’ if you have spoilers, naturally.

Episode 7 Deep Stash Nine!

 

Hello everyone, welcome back and thanks for listening!

Shops We Mentioned

Happy Go Lucky Yarn
Must Stash Yarn
HMV

Podcasts We Mentioned

Knit 1 Geek 2
The Knitgirllls

WIPS

Katy is working on the Outlander mystery shawl. Because it is a mystery shawl, we won’t be showing pics for this so we don’t spoil the rest of you who would like to keep it a mystery 🙂

Valerie is working on a crocheted scarf of her own design for her husband’s friend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And she is also working on the So Funky Starfish Dishcloth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finished Objects

Katy finished her Trillian Shawl by Martina Behm out of ‘Girlfriend’ by Yarnloft on Etsy. She also finished spinning ‘Split’ from Squoosh on Etsy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Things we Want and Need

Katy needs less stress and that bubble bath! Valerie needed a hug, which Katy gave her 🙂
Valerie wants a kitten from the Lincoln County Humane Society.
What Katy wants to do is to have one day this fall to sit and knit, have a tea and just relax. Valerie wants to go for a drive through Niagara-on-the-Lake this fall.
Valerie learned that she was doing a different version of a yarn over all these years by watching a Jimmy Bean’s Wool yarn over tutorial video. She learned the usual way to yarn over from the Knit Purl Hunter yarn over video tutorial. Katy learned how to switch out her regular flyer to attach the jumbo flyer on her spinning wheel.

Also we have a correction in regards to the Hello Kitty kerfuffle. She is indeed a cat, it was a mistranslation.

New Stuff

Katy’s last hurrah before a big yarn diet is a skein of Must Stash Yarn on her Ritz base in the colourway ‘Night @ the Roxbury’. However, she did get a Stay Puft Marshmallow Man Funko vinyl figure and a cool Wonder Woman tee!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You had me at Yarn!

Valerie found a stunning sock yarn called ‘Freckled Lemonade’ at Happy Go Lucky Yarn on Etsy!
Katy stumbled upon a new Stephen West pattern called Thighlighters!! only you Stephen 😉
That and we were both drooling over fried pickles at Harvey’s!!! They’re super good with ranch sauce!

What’s in Katy’s Stash?

So here’s a new segment where you help Katy decide on what to do with yarn from her stash. This week we have a skein of Lorna’s Laces shepherd sock in the colourway ‘Maple Grove’. Let her know here on the blog or in our Ravelry group which pattern you think would suit this yarn.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What We’re Reading and Watching

Valerie has finished ‘Dragonfly in Amber’ and has started ‘Voyager’ again while Katy is still reading ‘A Breath of Snow and Ashes’ all of these books are by Diana Gabaldon and are part of the Outlander series of books.

We are both currently watching Outlander (Stars network in the US and Showcase in Canada) and we’re loving every minute of it!!! Oh and we apologize for saying ‘series’ instead of ‘season’… We mean season 1 of Outlander.

Valerie finished watching True Blood and felt a little ripped off at the series finale, it seemed rushed to tie up all the story lines.

Katy is still watching Finding Carter on MTV and thinks Taylor and Max are adorable, and she is also watching Who Do You Think You Are and is finding it very interesting and entertaining, albeit a bit painful at times.

Katy also got to see Guardians of the Galaxy and loved it!!!! So funny, lots of action without being too overwhelming and the soundtrack is pure gold! Be warned though, the beginning is like the beginning of ‘Up’..it will make you cry, if you’re like Katy and Val.

Thanks for listening and don’t forget to rate us on iTunes!

Episode 6: Outlandish!!!

 

 

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Stitch Sisters Podcast and if you’re new, thank you for checking us out!

Shops We Mention:

Jimmy Beans Wool
Must Stash Yarns
Cyborg’s Craft Room
Little Monkey’s Stitch & Spin
Squoosh Fiber Arts
Woodturnerva on Etsy
Kirby Wirby on Etsy
Unraveled Designs and Yarn
Bijou Basin Ranch
Spanish Peacock

Podcasts We Mention:

Wolfe Farms
The Knitmore Girls
Geeky Girls Knit
The Sampler Girl
Yarngasm Podcast
Subway Knits
Suburban Stitcher Podcast

Announcements:

Please head over to Wolfe Farms and help support Fuji’s fight against lymphoma! Purchase a button, make a donation or head over to their ravelry group for some special somethings to help them out!

A very good friend of Val’s is having an especially difficult time, financially, as her friend and her family are facing possible eviction due to her husband’s work cutting his hours in half to avoid having to pay health insurance.  Please help them out by donating to help raise $1,000.00 – they’re over half-way there already!  Margison Family – GoFundMe

Events:

FanExpo Canada – August 28-31, 2014, Metro-Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario

NEW GUESTS! Karen Gillan (Doctor Who, Guardians of the Galaxy), Arthur Darvill (Doctor Who), Dave Bautista/Batista (Guardians of the Galaxy/WWE), Michael Rooker (The Walking Dead, Guardians of the Galaxy)

Kitchener-Waterloo Knitter’s Fair – September 13, 2014 – Kitchener Aud, Kitchener, Ontario

Royal Winter Fair – November 7-16, 2014 – Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario

KAL/CALs:

Our Loved Ones Kal is still going on till the end of September and may be extended as we don’t have a whole lot of people participating and we’d like to give out a couple prizes. Just pick a pattern to make something with someone you care about and post your progress/FO’s in our Loved Ones Thread in our Ravelry Group.

The Corner to Corner Baby Afghan CAL is also still going on until the end of the year seeing as Valerie’s baby nephew was born early and we know of a lot of other babies that need afghans pretty soon.

Outlander Mystery KAL with Jimmy Beans Wool and Unraveled Yarn and Designs started on August 9th and the first clue was released on August 9th as well. It is a paid for pattern on Ravelry and is a mystery shawl.

Outlander KAL on Instagram with The Knitmore Girls podcast, The Geeky Girls Knit Podcast, Yarngasm Podcast and the Subway Knitter Podcast. You can knit, crochet or craft anything you want just as long as you can tie it to Outlander and post it on Instagram with the hashtags: #countdowntooutlander AND #kiltmenowKAL. We know the Geeky Girls Knit Podcast will be giving prizes for this KAL at mid-season and the end of season 1 of Outlander (on Starz network in the States and on Showcase in Canada), please check the other podcasts’ ravelry groups for information about prizes.

WIPs:

Katy is still trying to finish her Trillian Shawl by Martina Behm. She is also working on the Outlander Mystery Shawl by Unraveled Yarn and Designs and is using Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in ‘Terrarium’ and ‘Seawash’.

Tosh Merino Light in Terrarium and Seawash

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Valerie is currently working on her Easy Triangle Shawl, her Orchid Thief Shawl and her Corner to Corner Afghan.  She also cast on a pair of Pixie Slipper Socks by Mary Maxim in Red Heart Super Saver in ‘Camo’ for a friend (which at the time of posting this blog, have been completed!)

Pixie Slipper Sox – WIP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pixie Slipper Sox – Done!

 Spinning:

Katy finished spinning the singles of her Squoosh Fiber Arts 100% Superwash Merino in ‘Split’ but is waiting for her Jumbo Flyer to come in to ply the singles.

Split by Squoosh Fiber Arts

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Needs and Wants:

Things we need: Katy needs more 4mm needles for shawls. Valerie needs a housekeeper to help her out.

Things we want: Valerie wants Jamie from Outlander ;)… ok not really, she wants more yarn and more money to procure more yarn. Katy wants more sweater quantities of yarn.

Things we want to do: Valerie wants to go out on a date with her husband and see Guardians of the Galaxy! Katy wants to take her little guy to the Aquarium.

Things we learned: Valerie learned how easy the Pixie Slipper Socks pattern is. Katy learned how to card and spin raw fleece!

New Stuff!

Elsa and Anna self striping on Sport Sock from Must Stash Yarns! Gorgeous job Stacie, as always!

Elsa and Anna in Sport Sock by Mush Stash Yarns

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

‘Stellar’ on Assparkilate base from The Cyborg’s Craft Room on Etsy, which is absolutely gorgeous and will be made into ‘Dalekanium’ socks by Dena Stelly of Little Monkey’s Stitch & Spin.

Stellar in Assparkilate by The Cyborg’s Craft Room

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pink & Black Spindle Bowl from woodturnerva from Etsy to match Katy’s supported spindle from The Spanish Peacock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You had me at YARN!… and PATTERNS!

Yarn:

Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sport in ‘Fraser’ and ‘Beauchamp’ available at Jimmy Beans Wool

Bijou Basin Ranch has a line of ‘Outlandish’ colourways for ‘Outlander’ KALs and just about anything you want! Katy likes ‘Thistle’ and ‘Dinna Fash’ and Valerie likes ‘Claret’ and ‘Fergus’.

Patterns:

Balustrades and Slates Beanie and Slouchy Hat
Big Damn Heroes – Firefly inspired shawl
Easy Triangle Shawl
Sassenach Capelet
Apothecary Cowl
Through the Woods Hooded Cowl
Woodland Capelet
Claire’s Cowl
Claire’s Shrug
One Skien Ruffled Capelet
Voyager Lace Stole
Tam O’Shanter Hat
Scottish Knee Highs
Kathy Kelly Cabled Capelet
Crocheted Town and Country Capelet

If you would like a lot more Outlander fun and discussion, check out the Outlander Knitters group on Ravelry!!!
What we’re reading and watching:

Valerie is reading Dragonfly in Amber by Diana Gabaldon and Katy is reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon

We’re both watching Outlander… on the internet right now until it comes out on Showcase here in Canada on August 24, 2014. Episode 2 of the series will be on Starz network on August 16, 2014.

Valerie is watching True Blood on HBO Canada and is miffed at it right now. Katy is watching WWE and Finding Carter on MTV.

 

Episode 4 – No Judgey!

 

 

Hello Everyone! Thank you so much for checking us out if you’re new and if you’re a previous listener, welcome back 🙂

Shops We Mention

Coloring Book Yarns on Etsy
Knitty Kat Bags on Etsy
Spanish Peacock
Viking Santa on Etsy
Two if by Hand Fibers on Big Cartel
The Loopy Ewe
Desert Vista Dyeworks
Yarn Vs. Zombies
Jimmy Bean’s Wool

Podcasts We Mention

Knit 1 Geek 2
The Knitgirllls
The Fat Squirrel Speaks

Events

Fan Expo Canada – August 28-31, 2014 – Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario

Stash Dash – May 28-August 7, 2014

Tour De Fleece – July 5-27

The Crochet Crowd Stitchcation – Crochet at least 20 squares that they provide for you in at least 8 different colours and enter to win an awesome prize pack from Red Heart! Check it out!

Royal Winter Fair – November 7-16, 2014 – Exhibition Place, Toronto, Ontario

Finished Items

Katy finished 1 sock from her Desert Vista Dyeworks ‘Happy Birthday Cupcake’ socks. She also finished a couple knitted and crocheted dishcloths and a crocheted bath puff!

Happy Birthday Cupcake socks

Cupcake sock part deux!

Bath Pouf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wips!

Valerie is working on the Orchid Thief Shawl by Ysolda Teague in ‘Quidditch Debt Coma’ that Katy had dyed for her a few years ago.  She found a very informative video tutorial on the ‘garter tab’ cast on by CCKnits on youtube.

She is also working on a Bernat Basketweave Dishcloth and the Corner to Corner Afghan from The Crochet Crowd challenge from the Summer of last year for her new baby nephew. She is also working on the ‘Flowers in the Snow’ Afghan.

Basketweave Dishcloth

 

C2C baby afghan

 

Katy is working on all the things she’s been working on in the previous episodes but she has cast on Lala’s Simple Shawl in Red Heart Stardust in pink using 4mm needles as a gift.

 

 

 

 

 

Spinning

Valerie is still spinning the lavender fibre from the Fibre Garden.

Katy finished 136 yards of a 2 ply sport-dk weight yarn from Squoosh Fiber Arts on Etsy – 100% SW Merino wool – all spindle spun and plied. But since she needs practice for the Royal Winter Fair, she is spinning the rest of the braid on her wheel.

 

 

 

 

 

We Got Stuff!

Valerie got a gorgeous Celtic Cross pendant for her birthday from her Hubby!!

Claddagh Cross Pendant

 

 

 

 

 

 

Katy got another skein of Jack is Back! from The Loopy Ewe, Botanical Knits 1 & 2 by Alana Dakos and she wants to knit EVERYTHING!!

 

 

 

 

 

She also got a lovely skein of yarn from Coloring Book Yarns on Etsy as a gift for a friend (so we can’t show a picture of the actual yarn just yet… cause Emily listens to the show 😉 sssshhhhh) but just know that it’s gorgeous and there was excellent customer service and super fast shipping!!

 

 

 

 

 

What We’re Watching and Reading

Valerie is watching the newest and last season of True Blood on HBO Canada and she is also watching Shogun with her Husband. She had finished reading the latest Diana Gabaldon book ‘Written in My Own Heart’s Blood’ and both Valerie and Katy are looking forward to watching ‘Outlander’ on tv in August – on Stars network in the States and Showcase in Canada.

Katy is still watching 24 (and blaming Karen of Knit 1 Geek 2 for getting them hooked), Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan (he is ‘wildthingsdom’ on Instagram)… and WWE with her Husband. NO JUDGEY!

BIG SHERLOCK ANNOUNCEMENT!!! There will be a Sherlock Special as well as 3 new episodes next year!!! Filming for the special (which will be 90 minutes long) will begin filming in January 2015.

STOP!… You had me at Yarn!

Valerie has been drooling over the colourway called ‘Calico Cat’ by Yarn Vs. Zombies which looks just like a cute calico kitty 🙂 As well, she has found the July colourway of Lorna’s Laces called ‘Beach Blanket Bingo’ available at Jimmy Bean’s Wool which is so bright it’s bound to make anyone happy just looking at it!

Katy was drooling over some whorls that The Spanish Peacock had posted on his instagram account with the script of the One Ring burned on top! He should just take all her money!  As well, she was looking for a supported spindle bowl on Etsy and ran into this cool shop called Viking Santa!  He’s got lots of cool spindles, bowls and other spinning accessories – cool name at the very least 🙂  And she was unable to resist a braid of Polwarth/Silk fibre from Two if by Hand in the colourway ‘Moon Pie’ as in… Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory! It’s gorgeous, as is all the other colours she has available, and Katy is looking very forward to spinning Moon Pie 🙂

Borrowing…

Katy briefly borrowed from Amy Beth of The Fat Squirrel Speaks video podcast – Shameless Self Promotion – to let you know that herself and her mom have an etsy shop now that has project bags and notions pouches available. You can find it at Knitty Kat Bags on Etsy 🙂

As always, you can always leave us messages here on the blog or visit our Ravelry group or contact us by visiting our ‘About’ pages here on the blog! Take care everyone!

Episode 3 – Off the Hook!

 

 

First of all, big thank yous to everyone who is coming back to listen to us, and big thank yous to all the new listeners giving us a shot! We really appreciate it! Also, we are now on iTunes!!! So please, if you listen to us on iTunes, please subscribe and leave us a review, so we can reach more of you every episode 🙂

As well, a huge thank you and shout out goes to Dawn and James of the Wolfe Farms podcast for mentioning us on their last episode! Thank you so much!  You should all check them out and they have a ravelry group as well with a monthly Hatch a Knit prize thread… which Katy won in the month of May and here’s a snapshot of all the goodies she got with her $10 Wolfe Farms gift certificate!

Wolfe Farms Swag

 

Shops we’ve talked about!

Wolfe Farms

Stitch in Jordan Village, Ontario

The Fibre Garden in Jordan Village, Ontario

Mostly Comics in St. Catharines, Ontario

Desert Vista Dyeworks

Quaere Fibres

Squoosh Fiber Arts

Must Stash Yarns – She is on hiatus due to SSK preparation but you can sign up for her newsletter to find out when she’ll be updating next.

Knitty Kat Bags! – Now on Etsy!

The Loopy Ewe

Jimmy Beans Wool

 

Podcasts We Mentioned

The Knitmore Girls Podcast – currently running the Behmalong, The Summer of Lace and Beads KAL, Outlander Read-a-Long

Knitabulls Podcast – Has some great tutorial videos for Stitch Surfers

Wolfe Farms Podcast – wonderful couple with great pets, great knitting and great products! They also have the monthly Hatch a Knit prize thread and currently doing a Designer-A-Long for June and July is Susan Claudino.

The Must Stash Podcast – Katy finished off her Stitch Surfers for the Must Stash Podcast’s Stitch Surfer Knit-a-Long going on until June 30th.

The Knitgirllls Podcast – hosting stash dash and they’re also hosting SSK

 

Events!

Niagara Falls Comic Con – Katy and her husband attempted to get in, but alas, they had reached capacity so they couldn’t attend – next year perhaps. Val’s husband was a volunteer and got to shake William Shatner’s hand as well as Ernie Hudson’s.

Quilt Show – Katy and her mom attended the quilt show at Brock University and had a great time. They purchased some material to make bags for themselves, a small amount of material to make a quilt for Katy’s son and extra material to make bags for their shop on etsy, Knitty Kat Bags.

FanExpo Canada – August 28-31, 2014 – Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, Ontario

Stash Dash!!! – Katy is 440 yards in, Valerie is 1,666 yards in!!

Tour de Fleece – starting July 5th, 2014

Off the Hook! … or needles! FOs!

Valerie – finished her baby blanket, as well as a whole bunch of Bernat Handicrafter Cotton washcloths.  For baby washcloths, work up to 33 stitches instead of the stated 53 in the pattern. Both Valerie and Katy like to work up to 43 for a slightly smaller version that’s more managable when the cotton is wet.

Finished Baby Blanket for Sprout!

 

All wrapped up ready to go!

Washcloths for Babies

 

Katy – finished her stitch surfer socks and made some  washcloths with Bernat Handicrafter Cotton as well… and she actually crocheted!! WooHoo!

Stitch Surfer Socks!

Crochet Dishcloths by Katy

Knit Dishcloths by Katy

Works in Progress

Katy is working on … too much, again:

Vanilla socks in ‘Happy Birthday Cupcake’ by Desert Vista Dyeworks, using Laura Linneman’s afterthought heel with 2.25mm needles.

Trillian shawl by Martina Behm in ‘Girlfriend’ by Yarnloft by Elysia, using 3mm needles

Orchid Thief shawl by Ysolda Teague in ‘Orchid’ by Queare Fibres, using 4mm needles

Valerie is working on …

Orchid Thief shawl by Ysolda Teague in hand dyed yarn by Katy in the colourway ‘Quidditch Debt Coma’, using 4mm needles (when she gets it cast on, that is!)

Spinning

Valerie is spindle spinning some lilac roving purchased from The Fibre Garden.

Lilac Roving from The Fibre Garden

Katy is spindle spinning some fibre from Squoosh Fiber Arts on Etsy in the colourway ‘Split’

Split!

Why we shouldn’t have Paypal accounts!

Valerie received her birthday gift from Katy early! YAYAYAYAY!!! Which contained a huge ball of Bernat Handicrafter cotton in ‘Chrysanthemum’, as well as a skein of Must Stash Yarn in her perfect sock base, self-striping colourway ‘Maleficent’!! Which she was very happy to receive… Katy was stealthy and bought that in February!

Chrysanthemum!

Maleficent!

Katy got her Jack is Back! yarn from The Loopy Ewe and it is dyed by Dream in Color! in their Smooshy base!… and she ordered another skein to design a cowl/hood for her husband.

Jack is Back!

Katy also purchased one skein (she held back people!!!) of Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in the colourway ‘Caligraphy’ from Stitch in Jordan Village, Ontario.

Caligraphy!

Shut up and take my Money!!

Valerie is drooling over the new colourway of Lorna’s Laces ‘Sookie’s Last Stand’  available at Jimmy Beans Wool in all sorts of bases! Valerie is leaning toward the Shepherd Sock base. And after seeing it… Katy needs to stay off the computer! LOL

Crochet Corner

Starting the month of July, we will be holding a CAL for the Corner to Corner afghan. This can be easily done as a baby blanket or larger. Valerie has provided a great video (the link just above) from the Crochet Crowd  as a tutorial on how to make this cute afghan.

As always, you can participate here by posting on the blog, or in our Ravelry group where there will be a thread posted for the CAL 🙂

What we’re watching!

Katy is still watching 24: Live Another Day – Monday nights at 9pm and freaking out over how good it is.  As well, she is watching Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan on Outdoor Life Network (in Canada, it may be on Discovery channel in the States) on Tuesday nights at 4pm and then later that night.  Katy will also be watching Homeland Season 2 on Netflix… and there was much Jennifer Lawrence style fangirling over this!

Valerie watched the season finale of Game of Thrones and enjoyed it very much… even though she kinda sorta felt bad for Tyrion. She is also watching The Vampire Diaries on Netflix and Homeland season 2 on Netflix as well.

We will probably be doing a Homeland watch-a-long with all of you, so there will be a thread in our ravelry group in regards to that! Just a warning that Homeland is definitely NOT A SHOW FOR KIDS!!! So this is your warning.

Valerie is reading ‘Written in my own heart’s blood’ by Diana Gabaldon, which is the latest book in her Outlander series. The Knitmore Girls podcast is doing an outlander book read-a-long for this, so if you’re interested, please head over to their ravelry group and join in! Please tag your spoilers clearly if you plan on doing that!

As Always….

Thank you all for listening and please, leave comments, questions, pictures .. anything here on the blog, or you can head over to our ravelry group and join in the conversation!

Awesome News!

THE STITCH SISTERS PODCAST IS ON ITUNES!!!

Download episodes on the go through the iTunes store here:

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/the-stitch-sisters/id888050541

Episode 2: Cast on ALL the Things!!!!

 

 

WARNING:  This is a very fangirlish episode, as we talk about Nathan Fillion, Kristen Bell and Ian Sommerhalder!

Also, Val apologizes in advance as she was sick with a head cold at the recording of this episode.   She tried not to snuffle and wheeze too much for our listeners!

Events:

Quilters Show – Brock University – St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
June 11 – 14th, 2014
Admission $5 per person per day – $6 Parking
There’s a paneled jury, marketplace, classes and more!

Niagara Falls Comic Con – Scotiabank Convention Centre on Stanley Avenue in Niagara Falls, Ontario Canada
June 6-8, 2014
Admission: $25 per person for a single day pass, $65 for a weekend pass
Lots of guests, comics, gaming, table-top gaming and cosplay competition!

Fan Expo Canada – Metro Toronto Convention Centre – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
August 28-31, 2014
See the website for admission prices and guest list! Sci-Fi, Comics, Horror, Anime, Gaming and Cosplay!

52 Weeks of Dishcloths – On the KnitPicks Blog!  One new washcloth to knit or crochet for every week of the year! Val is most definitely participating, check out the one she made for me!

Stash Dash – Stash Dash is a challenge to all knitters, crocheters, weavers, and spinners to use up 5000 metres of yarn or fibre from your stash! Brought to you by The Knitgirllls podcast, they are very cheater friendly. If you have a bunch of WIPs on the needles, you can finish them off and the entire yardage counts to your Stash Dash totals! See their ravelry group for more details!  Both Katy and Valerie are participating – we may not reach the 5k goal but getting WIPs done is the key! Below you can find page one of Katy’s Stash Dash checklist… there’s more people, there’s more…

Works in Progress

Valerie is working on the edging of the baby blanket for her friend in the States who had a little baby boy!  She can’t wait to send it out to her friend so her little guy can enjoy it!

She is also working on a crocheted shawl for herself in Red Heart Comfort Chunky. Going to be great for late summer, early fall 🙂

And on the washcloth addiction list, she’s cast on a Round Lacy Dishcloth using Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in Smokey Wine. It’s a knitted dishcloth and it’s turning out so nicely.

Katy is working on … too much! LOL  First she had a pair of Stitch Surfer Socks by Louise Robert from Knitty. She’s knitting it out of Must Stash Yarn in the Colourway Elsa and Anna (from Frozen! eeeee!) and the yarn is just gorgeous. The Stitch Surfers are a little intimidating to look at, but Diane of the Knitabulls Podcast has some great tutorials!

Also on the needles is the Trillian Shawl by Martina Behm and the yarn is ‘Girlfriend’ from Yarnloft by Elysia on Etsy!  The colours are fantastic and it is a nice bouncy yarn, perfect for the garter stitch and Martina’s patterns are so potato-chippy and it’s perfect for mindless tv knitting.

Katy also has a pair of Afterthought Heel Socks by Laura Linneman, which is a free pattern on Ravelry. The yarn is ‘Happy Birthday Cupcake’ from Desert Vista Dyeworks. She is going to do a true afterthought heel… which means cutting the yarn (eek!)! But all will work out we’re sure!

And the last thing on the needles, in another Sherlock bag from Bag End Bags on Etsy, is the Orchid Thief Shawl by Ysolda Teague. This shawl is gorgeous and the yarn she’s using is ‘Orchid’ from Quaere Fibres on Etsy in her sparkle sock base! It’s beautiful and this shawl is more special because Katy is knitting this with her Mom and Val!!!

*** We also invite you to knit along with us with one of your loved ones for our first Loved Ones’ KAL!! Just join up with someone you care about, pick a pattern for both of you to knit together and have fun!  Post your status in our Ravelry Group! There will be a KAL thread opened soon and take your time, we’ll run the KAL until September 30, 2014. ***

 

What the Mailman Brought…

We got our needles from China!!! They are very nice and comparable to the Ciao Goo Red needles with the nylon coated cable and stainless steel needles. The tips aren’t as sharp as the Ciao Goo needles, but they are very nice and smooth and have the bend near the cable join to make them more ergonomic and easier on your hands.

Katy got her Desert Vista Dyeworks order in and it contained ‘Happy Birthday Cupcake’ and ‘Solid Chocolate Zombunny’ both in her Viso base!

And the most awesome Sherlock Holmes bag from Little Monkey Stitch N’ Spin on Etsy!  It’s gorgeous, and Katy is a super fan of Sherlock Holmes and all three actors; Basil Rathbone, Jeremy Brett and Benedict Cumberbatch are portrayed on the one side, and on the other is quotes from the books with pics of bees, beehives, fleur de lis, and pictures of Sherlock Holmes himself. The bag is nice and fits a pair of socks easily and it has a strap with a snap on it so you can attach it to your purse, bag or even your wrist and it has a secure drawstring closure! She also included a few freebies!!! Thank you so much! 😀 Katy is also enjoying the mini snag free stitch markers in Southwest that she ordered to match the bag 🙂 They fit up to a 3.75mm/US5 needle.

 

Val received from Katy a little gift of two Bernant Handicrafter Cotton yarn skeins in Ahoy Ombre and Love.  As well, Katy gave her a little stitch marker that is a skull and cross bones blinged out with little rhinestones.

 

What We’re Watching

Valerie is watching Game of Thrones on HBO, she intends on watching the HBO Movie, Normal Heart and she has just started watching The Vampire Diaries on Netflix (and is in love with Damon Salvatore but don’t tell her husband).  She also watched the season 2 finale of Hannibal (on NBC) and can report it was bloody and full of cliffhangers.

Katy is watching 24: Live Another Day (she totally blames Miss Karen from the Knit 1 Geek 2 Podcast for getting her hooked on 24) every Monday night and you can find seasons 1-8 on Netflix (Val has a lot of catching up to do!), Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan on the Discovery Channel on Tuesday nights and she got to watch the Veronica Mars movie… which did not disappoint…she implores for anyone to bring it back to TV!!!  You can catch Seasons 1-3 of Veronica Mars on Netflix as well.

As always, we hope everyone has a great week and if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to do so, and check out The Stitch Sisters Podcast group on Ravelry!

 

 

 

 

 

Episode 1: Better than the Phantom Menace

Hi Everyone! Thanks for checking out The Stitch Sisters Podcast! Here are links to everything we’ve talked about – the only ommission is that we could not locate the Eat.Sleep.Stitch podcast on youtube. It was either removed or I was misinformed on the title. But when we do find it, we will give you a link!

Katy was knitting the mystik spiral socks by Josh Ryks of the Sword of a Knitter podcast on youtube, and he can be found at his website Geoknittrix. Then, her needle broke… so it put the socks on hold, but only until the Chinese needles come in! In the meantime, the yarn to be used was Fibernymph Dye Works and the colourway is ‘Tardis’

Fibernymph Dye Works – Tardis

In Katy’s bag from Knitty Kat Bags she has her beautiful new supported spindle from Spanish Peacock and he was very kind to include some spinning fibre from Loop Fiber Studio in gorgeous deep purples!!!

Spanish Peacock supported spindle with Loop Fiber Studio fiber

More fiber in Katy’s bag – Fifteen Colour Rainbow from Fab Funky Fibres!!! It’s gorgeous and destined to be the most beautiful socks!

Fifteen Colour Rainbow by Fab Funky Fibres

Val purchased a pre-owned, and absolutely gorgeous D Fusion purse for the summer for $10!!! Such a steal and a beautiful shade of deep plum!

D Fusion Bag

In which she has her Stitched by Jessalu bag in a Firefly inspired fabric!

Stitched by Jessalu

And inside THAT bag, she has a pair of Broadripple socks by Rob Matyska from Knitty Summer 2003 in Malabrigo sock ‘Archangel’.

Broadripple socks

We also briefly discussed the greatness of Stephen West and how Katy’s husband’s Clockwork has been languishing in the UFO pile for quite some time while the new yarn was getting all the attention.

Val talks briefly about corking and how she used to make trivets and hot pads when she was little, and how she’s mainly been knitting socks but she would like to branch out into knitting shawls like the Ishbel by Ysolda Teague!

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of our Chinese needles from ebay so we can cast on ALL THE THINGS!!!

Val is making a crochet baby blanket for a friend’s little boy out of Herrschners Baby Yarn. It’s a striped blanket with blue, green, yellow and a scalloped lace border. (And what Val forgot to mention in her ramblings is that the green Herrschners baby yarn had a few breaks in it, but it’s all good!) She’s planning a ‘corner to corner’ blanket for her new nephew that is on the way and we’re anxiously awaiting for his arrival.

Baby Blanket

Also in the works for Val is a crocheted granny square bed blanket for her bedroom. She has some brightly coloured rainbow yarn to pair with some white – all the yarn for this afghan is Red Heart so it is cost effective since crochet uses 3 times as much yarn as knitting, so with a large blanket you can stay in budget. As well it is washable and dryable.

The only thing good about the Phantom Menace was Ewan McGregor!! And we touch briefly on what we’ve been watching, and looking forward to the new Star Wars movie (and Katy was mistaken, much to our dismay it doesn’t look like Benedict Cumberbatch is going to be in it)! But we loooooooooooved him in Star Trek: Into Darkness. For Star Wars, the original trio will be in it as well as rumoured son of Han and Leia!

Katy has been watching 24: Live Another Day, Jim Henson’s Creature Shop Challenge and Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan.

Val has been watching Game of Thrones and Once Upon a Time.

You can find all of our contact info on our respective pages right here on the blog and as always, feel free to friend us on Ravelry, Instagram – Val is ‘stitchesandcurls’ and Katy is ‘kittyvankat’, and you can always ask us questions right here on the blog!

Thank you for listening and have a great week!!