Episode 21 of the podcast is now live.
The podcasts will be available on iTunes, PlayerFM and other podcast catchers within 24 hours.
As always, you can find me on Instagram. I am also on Ravelry but have not been particularly active there since the re-brand due to migraines. If you want to follow my pottery journey, including the launch of my online shop, you can follow me on my separate pottery Instagram feed.
Creative twists
Since launching my pottery shop, I’ve been experiencing a bizarre mix of feelings, from exhaustion to hyper-creativity, which I mull over in some details. There has also been a return to writing and I’m now busy finalising Issue 2 of the Mrs M’s Curiosity Cabinet pamphlet.
Check out Episode 15 and this post to learn more about the thinking and some of the dilemmas behind my occasional pamphlet.
Swatching
I have started to swatch for the Johnson top from The Vintage Shetland Project by Susan Crawford. This is the lace top pictured in between the grey and white colourwork gloves and the red and white fair isle cardigan in the photo gallery of the book.
Although I normally talk a lot about the characteristics of the yarn I use, I thought I would start drawing this information out by expressly talk about my swatching, both to help build a body of insight into yarn for the purpose of substitution and to re-value swatching, which is a valuable, but under-appreciated tool in effective yarn substitution.
Rather than using Susan Crawford’s Fenella I am hoping to knit this top in the half cone of Jamieson & Smith Shetland Heritage Naturals I have left from a gift project. So I have knit up two swatches and share my findings.
Preserving
As late summer and autumn are key months in the preserving year, I talk about some of the preserves I’ve been making this year, and especially the preserves that will produce antipasti, side dishes and desserts rather than just jams and chutneys.
I also share a few recommendations for books dealing with preserving:
- Delia Smith’s Complete Illustrated Cookery Course – a general cookbook but with tried and tested preserving recipes;
- Marguerite Patten’s Jams, Jellies and Chutneys;
- Alys Fowler’s Abundance: How to store and preserve your garden produce; and
- Diana Henry’s Salt, Sugar, Smoke: How to preserve fruit, vegetables, meat and fish.
Miscellaneous
Other things referenced and mentioned in this podcast:
- Katie Green’s The Green Bean podcast;
- Kate Davies’ Tonnach cardigan;
- Daughter of a Shepherd’s Heritage 4-ply;
- Donna Smith Design’s Houlland Hap (available in The Book of Haps edited by Kate Davies or as an individual pattern on Ravelry*) and Langsoond DK; and
- my Ko-Fi account (as some listeners have if and how they can support the podcast).
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* Please note that Ravelry rebranded its design/user interface in June 2020. The new design has triggered issues like headaches, migraines, seizures, auras… for some users (including me). If you are prone to these, you may want to avoid clicking through to Ravelry. If you have an account on Ravelry, there is is currently scope to toggle back to the old design by hovering over your account photo in the top righthand corner (on the website version).
Music: As I figure by Kevin MacLeod on FreeMusicArchive and licensed under Creative Commons By Attribution 3.0 License.
I’ve recently discovered Bawn Textiles, a small business selling GOTS and OKEO-TEX fabrics. Their mission statement is exactly the sort of thing I love to read! There is a gap in my wardrobe for neutral coloured t-shirts so I bought two lengths of jersey in different shades of grey. They have arrived and are lovely, and I will report back on how they are to sew up and robust they are when washed and worn!