I Thought I Knew How

In this episode, Anne sits down to talk to Hazel Tindall ahead of Loch Ness Knit Fest. Hazel shares her experiences knitting as a teenager on Shetland when home production of knitwear was still a major industry. They also talk about the festival, Hazel offers advice to new knitters, and they hit on much more.

In this episode, Anne shares her experience with the classes at Shetland Wool Week 2019. Also, in honor of Wovember, she shares a few sheep-themed songs. And, finally, she gives a heads up for a UFO-finishing knit-along coming in January, 2020.

In this episode, Anne shares the experience of being part of Shetland Wool Week, including the sense of community and the evening events. Next week, she will share her experience in the classes she attended, so stay tuned for that.

In this episode, Janette Budge sat down with Anne to talk about Fair Isle knitting on Shetland in the past and present, with special attention paid to the Shetland Peerie Makkers, a group dedicated to teaching knitting to school children using the old methods.

Harriet Middleton, designer of the Harriet's Hat (and headband, fingerless gloves, gloves, mittens, and cowl!), sits down to talk to Anne about her knitting life before her fundraising for the Shetland MRI Scanner Appeal began, how the MRI Maakers started, the momentum behind her patterns, and the unintended good that has resulted from them.

Anne checks in for a bit mid-hiatus to review Heat Wave, Alize EZ Wool, and the Sea Pinks hat pattern, as well as sharing what she's learned about Fair Isle knitting over the last month. Plus, she talks about her upcoming trip to Knitter's College (aka, Shetland Wool Week) and her invitation to speak at Loch Ness Knit Fest. If you see her at either, say hi!

Anne wraps up her time in New York, reviews Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece, and ties up a few loose ends before heading on hiatus. Listen for details about that and a giveaway!

In this episode, Anne shares the mixed bag that is the Master Hand Knitter questions, talks about knitting in New York, reviews Knitter's Pride Karbonz circular needles, announces a giveaway for all listeners no matter where they live, and more!

Anne has made some progress with the Master Hand Knitter Program, took part in the I-91 Shop Hop, reviews Tatamy DK by Kraemer Yarns and the Spring Treasure Bag pattern from their Festival Wear collection, shares more about Harriet's Hat and Headband, and provides you some music to knit by.

In this episode, Anne still needs to catch up on her Master Hand Knitting work. She shares a few podcasts that also relate to the MHK Program and talks about the effect of a stash-gone-awry. Plus, there's more about Harriet's Hat, a giveaway of some summery yarn, and music from The Suitcase Junket!

009: Catching Up and Keeping Up Released June 4, 2019 In this episode, Anne needs to catch up on her Master Hand Knitting work and uses podcasts to help her catch up with the online knitting community. Winner-winner! Congratulations to Sparky136 from Ravelry for winning the Episode 8 giveaway! She won by sharing some advice for new knitters. A Good Project to Test the MHK Waters Alex's Blanket is a simple baby blanket pattern that incorporates several of the stitch patterns and skills you need to demonstrate mastery of for the Master Hand Knitter Program. If you have been thinking about going through the program yourself, cast on for this project and give it your all! Pay close attention to your tension, research ways to improve, and get a sense for whether you'd enjoy the program. If being hyper-aware of your knitting makes you feel anxious, maybe it's not the time. But if you enjoy the challenge and insight that comes from this "test," you should think about joining up! Progress on the Ma

008: Seed Stitch Success Released May 21, 2019 In this episode, Anne shares her experience signing up for Shetland Wool Week 2019, how she finally nailed her seed stitch, the winner of the episode 7 giveaway and more! Winner-winner! Congratulations to KnittyMoomin from Instagram for winning the Episode 7 giveaway. Please check your Instagram messages! Shetland Wool Week Sign-ups! Anne was up at 4:30 am on May 18th, and was able to get a class in every time slot she was hoping for when the Shetland Wool Week class registration went live at 5 am. Most of her classes relate to Fair Isle techniques, but she will also be taking classes in lace and Bohus knitting, as well as whittling her own shawl pin. She will be reporting back on her experiences there, so stay tuned for the episodes coming in October! Because it's the 10th anniversary of Shetland Wool Week, there are many, many programs going on. Plus, often times, people overbook themselves for classes and sell their tickets on. So, if you're on

007: I'm Just a Teenage Knitter, Baby. Released May 7, 2019 In this episode, Anne realizes she knits like a teenager lives, and that's ok. Winner-winner! Congratulations to BohneJl on Ravelry who won the giveaway from episode 6! The prize was a bag from LittleComfortsAtoZ, a hank of hand-spun alpaca, and a set of stitch markers. Enjoy them! To celebrate the winner coming from the Ravelry group, there was a bonus giveaway added for those who are members. Check the thread for details. This additional giveaway will likely be repeated in the future, so be sure to join the group Progress on the Master Hand Knitter Program Anne began work on her seed stitch scarf to practice for the swatch, and found that by pushing the stitches so the next few stitches were on the tapered area of the needle, she could create a more uniform fabric. Progress! Ooh, la la! Not perfect, but getting better! It also helped to only work on it when she can give it her complete attention. Multi-tasking has been relegated

006: I Went to London and All I Got Was This Yarn Released April 23, 2019 In this episode, Anne announces the winner of the last giveaway, talks about her trip to London, and announces another giveaway! Winner! Congratulations to Euphistic81 on Instagram, who won the giveaway announced in episode 5 from Dragonfly Fibers and Knitter's Pride! London! Anne and her daughter visited two fashion-related sites in London, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Fashion and Textile Museum, as well as the Fashion Museum in Bath. The V&A was hosting special exhibits about Dior and Mary Quant, but also has a permanent exhibit that includes knitwear. The Fashion and Textile Museum rotates it's exhibits frequently. Even if they aren't showing knitwear at the time, this small museum is very informative! The Fashion Museum in Bath walks you through centuries of fashion through 100 representative outfits, as well as hosting an additional exhibit that changes from time to time. The Mary Quant exhibit at the

005: Tension Released March 26, 2019 In this episode, Anne talks about her tension issues with the third swatch of the Master Hand Knitter Program, plus a correction, music to knit by, projects she's been working on, a charity knitting opportunity, and the first giveaway of the podcast! A Correction In the last episode, Anne planned to knit the ribbing for swatch 2 of the Master Hand Knitting Program in smaller needles, but a listener pointed out that the instructions spell out that you should use the same needles. So, thank you to Julie for saving Anne from having to reknit the swatch! Progress on Swatch 3 Swatch three is a seed-stitch swatch, but without proper, consistent tension, gaps appear at the transition from purl to knit. After many attempts resulting in slow improvement, Anne has decided to stop knitting the swatch and, instead, will be knitting a seed stitch scarf, which should give her plenty of practice without ruining the yarn she needs for her MHK swatches! On and Off the Needl

004: Slow Down, Buckaroo Released: March 12, 2019 In this episode, Anne shares what she learned while knitting the first and second swatches of the Master Hand Knitting Program. Thank You for your Pattern Help Anne asked, and listeners responded. A couple of great recommendations came in for Anne's request for a good beginner's sock pattern. Michelle recommended Anne try the Hermione's Everyday Socks pattern, available for free on Ravelry. Nancye from Dragonfly Fibers suggested she pick up a copy of Knitting Rules by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. It hadn't arrived by the time this episode was recorded, but Anne has it now. It has both a "recipe" for socks and an actual pattern, so Anne will be drawing from that as well! Thank you! Knitting Techniques The first two swatches involve knitting K2, P2 and K1, P1 ribbing. In the podcast, Anne discusses three techniques that helped her neaten up ribbing. Listen to the episode to learn more about why ribbing can be tricky and how these techniques might help yo

003B: Tips for Visiting Shetland Released: March 1, 2019 You should visit Shetland. I just want to make that point clear, right off the bat. I love to travel and I've been blessed to be able to travel far more than my original life circumstances led me to believe I'd be able to. On my travels, I have learned that it is a gift to be able to slip on some different cultural lenses for a time. (The greatest blessing might be that I continue to find that the bedrock we share is the same.) While I've enjoyed the all of my trips, there have been only three places where I felt like I'd like to linger in those lenses for a few years and see if I could incorporate aspects of the culture into my own character. One place I ended up lingering long enough to mostly raise my children. The other I'll maybe talk about another time. The third is Shetland. If it's not already on your bucket list of places to go, add it. And place it higher on the list than you think you should. And I'm not just speaking to knitters her

003: Shetland Released: February 26, 2019 In this episode, Anne shares her trip to Shetland in July 2018. History The early days of knitting on Shetland have hazy beginnings. "Gunnister Man" died around 1700. He and his clothing were preserved by the peat he was buried in, including the earliest examples of knitted clothing found on the islands. A recreation of his knitted clothing and purse can be seen at the Tangwick Haa Museum. Shetlanders were trading stockings to Dutch fisherman hundreds of years ago. Over time, the industrial revolution decreased demand for stockings and the knitting industry shifted to fine, open-work shawls in the mid-1800s. A photo of Edward, Prince of Wales, in a Fair-Isle sweater in 1921 popularized the style beyond the shores of Shetland, and it has continued to be a part of popular fashion to one degree or other since then. Excellent examples of both styles of knitting are available for view at the Shetland Museum and Archives and the Shetland Textile Museum. A few of

002: Hand Knitting is Not Machine Knitting Released: February 12, 2019 In this episode, Anne talks in greater detail about the preliminary swatch she talked about in the last episode. Specifically, she talks about how the imperfections nearly halted her progress for good, until some wise words silenced the negative voice in her head. It may seem like a minor thing, but we often get caught up on the imperfections in the "minor things" and keep ourselves from doing bigger things as a result. We are not machines, and shouldn't hold ourselves to a standard of constant perfection. It's ok to make mistakes, as long as we learn along the way and we fix the things we can. Anne moves on to discuss a series of items she finished in the last two weeks. Visit her Ravelry account for photos and information about the Loving Embrace shawl, cacti, Grosgrain Hat, and Girlfriends cowls. Anne has been knitting for over 20 years and has never knit socks. She needs to start learning the ins and outs of the process before she

001: Introduction Released: January 28, 2019 In this episode, Anne takes some time to introduce herself. She learned to crochet as a child and to knit several years later. On January 1, she took the plunge and signed up for the Master Hand Knitter Program offered by the Knitting Guild Association. The first song in the show is "Dead From the Beginning, Alive Till the End," by Doctor Turtle and available at the Free Music Archive. After the music break, Anne shares her first memories of yarn shopping with her mother, as well as some thoughts on her current local yarn store, Marji's Yarncrafts in Granby, Connecticut. Marji's is a delightful yarn shop full of the tried and true as well as items to add extra style to your projects, all in a cozy setting that will have you wishing you had the time to sit and knit for a while. The last time Anne was in Marji's, she picked up a Mybaggee mini zippered mesh pouch set that has done a perfect job at keeping her notions contained and orderly. The second song in