Episode 282: Every Room is the Craft Room

Down Cellar Studio Podcast

Thank you for tuning in to Episode 282 of the Down Cellar Studio Podcast. This week’s segments included:

• Off the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• On the Needles, Hook or Bobbins
• Brainstorming
• From the Armchair
• Knitting in Passing
• Crafty Adventures
• KAL News
• Events
• Contest, News & Notes
• Life in Focus
• Ask Me Anything
• On a Happy Note
• Quote of the Week

Thank you to this episode’s sponsors: Imagined Landscapes, Fibernymph Dye Works, BellaFio Yarn

Off the Needles, Hook or Bobbins

Wool Ease Hexagon Blanket

• Pattern: Basic Crochet Hexagon Pattern & Tips from Make Do and Crew Website & YouTube Tutorial
• Yarn: Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick & Quick. Centers in colorways- Fern, Coney Island, Seaglass, Slate. Borders- Wheat & Oatmeal
• Hook: 10mm (N/P)
• 96 total hexagons + half hexies to square off the edges.
• Border: 1 round of sc (used nearly 1 skein of yarn), 2 rounds of hdc, 2 rounds of Dc on short sides and sc on long sides
• 4,499 grams used
• 1,728 grams of multi color yarns / around 10 skeins
• 2,771 grams wheat used. / around 16 skeins used
• Total for Stash Dash: 2,567.6 meters

Berry Bliss Socks

• Yarn: Hypnotic Yarn Plush Sock (75% SW Merino/25% Nylon) in the Berry Bliss Colorway (May 2024 Yarnable Box) & Legacy Fiber Artz Glitzy Toes (pink mini from 2023 Advent Calendar)
• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry)
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Cast on July 12
• About the yarn- lemon yellow, sherbet orange and pink. I worked the first heel in a pink sparkle yarn from Legacy Fiber Artz because I have some spiral striping going on and didn’t want to disrupt it.

Stash Dash Update

• Jasmin (of the Knitmore Girls Podcast) & I competed again this year. Check out my Stash Dash Spreadsheet here. Here’s Jasmin’s Spreadsheet.
• My 2024 Stash Dash Total: 12,088
  • 26 projects- 16 knit, 8 crochet, 2 spinning
  • 2 blankets, a cowl, 3 hats, a book holder, a pair of mitts, 11 pairs of socks, 1 Christmas stocking, 2 tops and 4 skeins of yarn
• Jasmin’s total: 29,811 with the meters for a finished spinning project not yet on her spreadsheet. I always knew if she buckled down and finished one of her massive spinning projects she’d annihilate me and she finally did! One of her spinning projects was 23k! Nicely done, friend!! My hat is off to you.

On the Needles, Hook or Bobbins

Static Musselburgh

• Pattern: Musselburgh Hat by Ysolda Teague (7 GBP Knitting Pattern available on Ravelry & Ysolda’s website)
• Yarn: Knit Picks Static Fingering Weight Yarn in the Peppercorn colorway
• Needles: US 2 (2.75 mm) & US 2.5 (3.0 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Note- the pattern just got some updates
• About the yarn: blues, grays, cream and a bit of a salmony orange. Self patterning yarn. I’m loving how its working up so far.

Let the Mystery Unravel 2023 Blanket of Calm

• Pattern: Blanket of Calm by Casapinka (free crochet pattern)
• Yarn: Woolen Women Fibers- Let the Mystery Unravel subscription + Cascade Heritage Sock yarn in the Forged Iron Colorway
• Hook: 3.25 mm (D)
• Ravelry Project Page
• You can find my Let the Mystery Unravel Unboxing Video on YouTube in this Playlist
• This subscription is not available to new subscribers but there’s a new one coming in the Fall.
  • Blanket Pre-Orders for the Murder She Knit club are available now! Please consider using my Affiliate Link.
• Progress: I finished 9 my July squares & seamed them. I started my August squares and have 1 package waiting for me to open- the last batch.

Stranger Things 2 Socks

• Yarn: Desert Vista Dyeworks Viso base (75% SW Merino/25% Nylon) in the Stranger Things 2 Self Striping Colorway
• Pattern: OMG Heel Socks by Megan Williams ($5 knitting pattern available on Ravelry)
• Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm)
• Ravelry Project Page
• Cast on the morning of Thursday 9/5 for the Pigskin Party. I didn’t get to join in the round until that night, but now its well underway.
• About the colorway- stripes of: orange, hot pink, purple, navy blue, medium blue and red.
• Progress- almost to heel of the first sock.

Brainstorming

Autumn Doodle Cup Cozy by Jamie Lomax ($2 knitting pattern- Ravelry) . Quick fall colorwork project with DK yarn.

From the Armchair

Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. Bookshop Affiliate Link. Amazon Affiliate Link.

Listened to this because I want to watch the Netflix series based on this starring Sarah Chalke & Katherine Heigl

Note: Some links are listed as Amazon Affiliate Links. If you click those, please know that I am an Amazon Associate and I earn money from qualifying purchases.

Knitting in Passing

During Marta’s visit, the kids turned the living room at my parents’ into a craft room. Millie knit on the hat she’s making for her dad. Riley worked on crochet hexagons for our matching blankets. Roc crocheted on a crab and eventually started a giraffe amigurumi and a baby hat. Riley taught Roc to make a crochet hexagon. Even Max & Garret got in on the action and did some drawing.

One of the first afternoons, we were sitting at the bar at my parents’ pool. Marta was sewing up a hole in Max’s shirt, I was finishing some socks and Roc was crocheting his crab.

Throughout the trip, Roc (age 12) was crocheting constantly- in the car, at the table, at the park, anytime he had a few free minutes. He was incredibly adept at chatting and keeping up with his pattern working in increases and decreases.

We ended up going to 6 craft stores- Plymouth Harbor Knits, Michaels, Joann, The Craft Loft, Hobby Lobby, Gather Here. Roc also got a crochet kit at Dollar Tree (the same dinoaur my niece Aila bought earlier this summer).

We had a campfire at my house one night. Roc, Millie and Hattie spent most of the night crafting in my studio.

We visited my house after kayaking & ice cream one afternoon- Hattie also did a bit of knitting on my Musselburgh hat. I found a few dropped stitches the next time I picked it up but that’s ok.

Crafty Adventures

Marta, Roc and I did some resin projects while they were visiting. Roc put resin in the bottom of a small wooden crate and then we worked together on a pumpkin lazy susan.

KAL News

Pigskin Party ’24 #DCSPigskinParty24

• Event Dates: Thursday September 5, 2024- Monday February 10, 2025
• Find everything you need in the Start Here Thread in the Ravelry Group
• Official Rules
• Registration Form (you must be Registered to be eligible for prizes)
• Enter your projects using the Point Tally Form
• Find the full list of Sponsors in this Google Doc.
  • Coupon Codes are listed in this Ravelry Thread
  • Exclusive Items from our Pro Shop Sponsors are listed in this Ravelry Thread
• Questions- ask them in this Ravelry Thread or email Jen at downcellarstudio @ gmail.com

• Playoff Prediction Contest: Check this Ravelry Thread on 9/4 for post. Choose the NFL team you think will win the Super Bowl this year (before the thread closes on 9/19). Correct guesses will get you extra points.
• Tailgate Talk Challenge– Click here for Ravelry Link
  • Great way to get to know your team. There will be daily prompts from 9/5 through 9/16. Answer them in your Team thread in the Ravelry Group. If you answer them all, no more than 2 per day, you’ll get 150 points (as long as you enter them on the Points Tally form by 10/1).

Stay Tuned for our October Challenge hosted by The Little Wolf Knits.

Commentator Mary:

• The season is off to a great start! The first Monday Night Football game was still on and there were already 18 projects in the end zone dance thread! There were lots of hats and dishcloths, of course, as these are often quick projects. But one player went above and beyond! Shellylynnknits already completed a blitz in 4 days! She crocheted a scrap yarn basket that is super cool! https://www.ravelry.com/projects/Shellylynnknits/scrap-yarn-basket That pattern looks like a really fun idea for using up scraps!
• The September chat thread is in full swing. There are lots of old friends reconnecting after some months away and new players introducing themselves and getting warm welcomes. There is a lot of chatter about life events, plans for pigskin, and an interesting discussion about why people like knitting socks. In addition, if you are a reader or a cook, be sure to check out that Pigskin Book Talk (Ravelry Link) and Pigskin Recipe Ideas (Ravelry Link)! threads as they are quite lively too! Don’t be worried about falling behind on any of these threads…you can jump in at any time!

Events

• Adirondack Wool & Arts Festival; September 21 & 22, 2024 in Greenwich, NY (GREEN-Witch)
• Vermont Sheep & Wool: October 1 & 2, 2024 in Tunnebridge, VT
• NY Sheep & Wool Festival (aka Rhinebeck): October 19 & 20, 2024 in Rhinebeck, NY
• Sierra Nevada Yarn Crawl, (CA and NV) – Sept 12-15, 2024
• Cape & South Shore Yarn Haul (MA) September 14-17, 2024
• Lambtown, Dixon, CA – Oct 5-6, 2024
• For more West Coast (US) event- check out the Seattle Knitters Guild Site.

Know of an event I should spread the word about? Let me know!

Contest, News & Notes

My friend Linda is looking for donations of warm handknit/crocheted items for adult and youth homeless in Massachusetts. They set up tables on Thanksgiving and put all of the handmade items on the fence outside the First Church in Woburn, MA. Calling for all makers who want to donate. PM me on Ravelry or email me at downcellarstudio at gmail.com and I’ll give you the address to send them to. Any fiber type welcome. Hats, scarves, mitts, shawls, blankets. Anything warm is welcome! This year they’re especially looking for men’s things.

Life in Focus

2024 Word of the Year- Heart

Thank you Emily for sending me a knit & embroidered heart pin! Its so beautiful and it made my day!

Update on Mom:

Mom had a couple good days while Marta was visiting. Grateful we were able to spend time together even when she couldn’t leave the house. The sound of the boys laughing brought her joy.

She had the catheter removed from her lung. Began having throat issues that worsened day after day. On Thursday 9/12 came for scans and chemo, but only had scans and then was admitted. She’s had a whole slew of tests and so far they haven’t found anything wrong which is good news, but we still need to get to the bottom of things.

One bit of good news, she should be having an injection of filler into her paralyzed right vocal cord that will allow her voice to come back.

Ask Me Anything

Herdofhills asked about: fall project plans, books, favorite fall recipes

• I am looking forward to: apple picking, apple sauce, wood chopping weekend, oven baked oatmeal (here’s a recipe I like to use), a Better Off Dead movie party,
• I’ve already enjoyed watching Hocus Pocus (1 & 2), pulling out the wool socks and wearing those at night, decorating, overnight oats for breakfast which I tend to eat more in fall/winter. Even better for fall is warm.

Deborahjay- Love is blind UK

• I was watching but got sidetracked with Marta’s visit. For the first time, I found myself fast forwarding through the pre-wedding stuff to hear yes/no. Liked that it seemed like folks were actually there for love and that the cast was far less dramatic than the US participants.

kjkcrochet- I’d love to know a little bit more about your job

• I’m a Project Manager in the Nursing Dept of a big boston hospital, supporting a communication system and other projects thank involve communication, responsiveness (to patients) and technology). Tune in to hear more.

On a Happy Note

• Max’s reaction to Plymouth Rock!
• Teaching Roc some new crochet stitches and seeing his enthusiasm. He’s definitely my new buddy. My heart almost burst when he sent me a screenshot of his Home Screen- photo of us outside the Craft Loft in Cambridge.
• Handpicked sunflowers from my friend Eileen’s garden.
• Laser tag
• Going on a Duck Tour
• 2 whole weeks with Marta. We haven’t been together that long since 1998! And all of the funny moments and inside jokes that come from it.
• Connections at work making tough days a little easier.

Quote of the Week

Summer ends, and Autumn comes, and he who would have it otherwise would have high tide always and a full moon every night.

~ Hal Borland

——

Thank you for tuning in!

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• Music -“Soft Orange Glow” by Josh Woodward. Free download: http://joshwoodward.com/
• Note: Some links are listed as Amazon Affiliate Links. If you click those, please know that I am an Amazon Associate and I earn money from qualifying purchases.