Episode 20 - Flappy Socks

09/01/17 • 83 min

Hello my lovelies!

Welcome to The Crochet Circle Podcast and the show notes from Episode Twenty - Flappy Socks.

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

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

Thanks to everyone who tunes into the podcast whether it is through Stitcher, Podbean, Spotify, iTunes or the YouTube Channel. Your support and engagement are really appreciated and makes running a podcast very special and worthwhile.

If you would like to support the podcast, you can do that through Patreon:

1 - Old dog, new tricks

Having heard lots of radio adverts for the magazine app 'Readly' I was intrigued to see what it was all about. This was also hot on the heels of me learning from Alyson at the Keep Calm and Carry Yarn Podcast that her local library (Edinburgh) has free subscriptions to libraries through a different app (I have looked into this and very few UK libraries actually offer this service).

Already a subscriber to Spotify, I figured that Readly would work in the same way - it doesn't! You can sign up five more friends or family members to the service and they don't appear to need to live at the same address. I have offered this out around Woolgathering and my friend Jenny also has one of my five subscription spots.

CAVEAT - Having recorded the podcast I went to download the latest Simply Crochet magazine and it wasn't there. Nor was Mollie Makes...

I emailed Readly and they say that those publications are no longer available but that they have lots of other craft titles. They seem to have started doing Crochet Now instead which is good news but still means that what has gone out in the podcast is a) inaccurate and b) annoying. I will still subscribe to this because there are so many titles to download, especially if you enable lots of different countries as you can then get magazines from there too.

2 - Finished Objects

There is a bit of a sock theme this month. Had you noticed? I have really enjoyed making the Socks Yeah! (shade is 102 Ammolite) version of the Gorman Street Toe-Up Socks from Step Into Crochet. I can't say the same for the Regia version which is why I have only made one of them. This yarn split with almost every stitch. I like the end product, the sock is squishy and warm but the process very frustrating. I have previously knitted and crocheted socks with a different Regia 4 ply yarn and didn't have these problems. Tonight I was at Woolgathering Sandbach (the crafting group that I run) and Sam had just finished knitting a pair using Regia 4 ply and had the same issues.

In advance of a full book review on Step Into Crochet next month, I wanted to set out the rib changes that I made:

Larger ankles - stick to the pattern and keep a turning chain at the top of the rib - this is what I did with the Regia sock on the left and you can see that it is 'flappy'

Medium ankles - try only doing the turning chain on every other rib at the top. This leads to a tighter rib with good elasticity (see the middle sock) but it was still too loose for me.

Thin ankles - don't do a turning chain at the top of the rib at all. This is how I got a good fit at the top of my socks (see the third sock).

I also finished off my Rambling Friends Socks from my Fibre Friends Podcast kit. The yarn was dyed by Adrienne (Old Oak Yarns), the pattern was created by Louise (Louise Patterson on Ravelry) and I kept it all in my Evertote bag made by Caroline and Kathy. These were lovely to work on - the yarn was squishy and vibrant, the pattern was great (I loved the simple lace detail at the back) and my project bag had mustard and teal birds on it, a winning combination.

My final FO is a crocheted shawl of my own design. It's called Basalt and is 100% inspired by the hexagonal geological features that you get throughout the world. This version is crocheted with John Arbon Textiles Knit By Numbers 4 ply (2 x 100g skeins and one mini skein). The pattern is on

Hello my lovelies!

Welcome to The Crochet Circle Podcast and the show notes from Episode Twenty - Flappy Socks.

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

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

If you would like to support the podcast, you can do that through Patreon:

1 - Old dog, new tricks

CAVEAT - Having recorded the podcast I went to download the latest Simply Crochet magazine and it wasn't there. Nor was Mollie Makes...

2 - Finished Objects

In advance of a full book review on Step Into Crochet next month, I wanted to set out the rib changes that I made:

Larger ankles - stick to the pattern and keep a turning chain at the top of the rib - this is what I did with the Regia sock on the left and you can see that it is 'flappy'

Medium ankles - try only doing the turning chain on every other rib at the top. This leads to a tighter rib with good elasticity (see the middle sock) but it was still too loose for me.

Thin ankles - don't do a turning chain at the top of the rib at all. This is how I got a good fit at the top of my socks (see the third sock).

Previous Episode

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.

If you would like to support the podcast, you can do that through Patreon:

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

Next Episode

Interview with RiverKnits

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

If you would like to support the podcast, you can do that through Patreon:

Whist visiting Yarndale 2017 (Yorkshire based yarn show), I was ushered towards RiverKnits by my friend Bec. I was instantly in awe of their yarns, colours and dyeing techniques.

I discovered that they live and dye (see what I did there!) on a narrowboat that was moored up less than a mile from my house. It was such a golden opportunity to interview a dyeing duo on their boat that I couldn't pass it up.

What you will hear is an interview that was conducted as we sat outside on the narrowboat. There are knocks and bangs and engines noises. I deliberately wanted this as part of the interview so that you got a feel for life on the boat. At the end there are some lovely tunes played by Becci and Markus, so keep on listening.

The interview is also available as a video file on YouTube. Unfortunately, the footage is overexposed (my bad for not sorting out hte wite balance better) but I felt it was still okay to put out and the interview is just so nice that I couldn't be seen.

Rather than write lots about the interview, I just want to show you some photos below that punctuate the interview.

You can buy RiverKnits yarns from www.riverknits.co.uk and follow them on Instagram and Facebook. They also have a Facebook page for their folk band Das Boaty McBoatface.

Some RiverKnits colourways

The most amazing 'Indian Giant Squirrel' colourway

The actual Indian Giant Squirrel.

My latest design 'Barley', which uses 100g of Splenidferous Sock in 'Stoke' and 5 x mini skeins of your choice.

One of Becci's favourite dyers is Victoria from Eden Cottage - you can see why!

Some examples of colourways inspired by life on the canal.

Gorgeous leather project bags made by Nu Shearman. Nu uses British leather and has an Etsy shop.

Thanks for listening and thanks to Becci and Markus for letting me come and interview them.

Fay x

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