15 May 2021

152 The Brief

The dog snored, loudly, through most of this episode. There’s also some intermittent electronic interference because my phone was resting to close to the mic. I can’t really do much about the dog snoring, he’s too cute to scold, but the phone thing was a total cock up on my part. Mea culpa.

Highly recommended: the Craftsy class, Pattern Making + Design, taught by Suzy Furrer. (Edit: NOT recommended! The pants drafted using the method detailed in this class were a joke. I couldn’t bend my knees. Enough said?)

I’m still undecided on bind off for the canyon colours scarf, but the How-To for Jeny Staimen’s Interlock Bind Off is here.

You can read more about shou sugi ban (also known as yakasugi) here.

Birch Ply test tiles. Clockwise from upper left: Shou sugi ban, limed and oiled; shou sugi ban, brushed and oiled; limed and oiled; just oiled.

Eurovision is nigh! The easiest way to watch live is via eurovision.tv, but you do need a VPN to do so.

Music in this podcast:

Jim Fidler, Merrigan’s Reel
The Dinah’s, Shai Lai Lai

If you like what you heard in this podcast, I hope you’ll consider becoming a Patron, or buying me a coffee.

Cast On

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Cast On

Cast On began on Monday, 31 October, 2005, founded on nothing more than the desire to talk about knitting to people who get it. Since then, the podcast has evolved to focus on finding inspiration in the ordinary, using it to kick start the process of making stuff, and finding ways to carve out the creative time and space that allows you to work your ass off on the projects that matter most to you. Like knitting a sweater. Or saving the world.

It’s been a week of finishes and new beginnings. Off the needles, I’ve completed a Malabrigo hat and love the color pooling. You don’t hear me say that very often.

I’ve finally finished my Amande socks—though I must say I rather hated working both the nupps and wrapped stitches techniques. Sometimes you have to try things to understand what you decidedly do not enjoy.

My new obsession is Big Love by ANKESTRIK, a top-down cardigan with fascinating construction that I’m knitting in gorgeous Gilliat yarn. The pattern begins with a provisional cast-on at the shawl collar, and I minimised the inevitable ribbing alignment issues by using a Turkish cast-on and knitting across the first row rather than working the ribbing pattern.

For the shoulders, I chose Chinese Waitress cast-on, which creates a lovely firm yet stretchy edge perfect for shoulder seams. The Ravelry community provided essential modifications—working the fronts two inches longer than the back prevents the sleeves from rotating forward due to the unusual construction.

Many knitters went up a size or two for the sleeves, so I did my own spot-checking for sleeve pickup. Remember: Your measurement x gauge (stitches per inch) = Number of stitches you need for your desired size.

This sweater connects to larger work I’m doing on a capsule collection based on my Changing Clothes manifesto. I’ve been thinking more intentionally about getting dressed—not for others’ gazes but for my own comfort in what I call “Secret Pyjamas.” The goal is creating sustainable, perfectly fitting garments made by hand, including finally tackling my Everest of well-fitted trousers.

Behind the scenes, I’ve moved podcast hosting to Substack after twenty years with Libsyn. Yes indeed, I’ve been podcasting since 2005. Where has the time gone?

Music: “Who Knows” by The National Parks

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