Join Us at Our New Home!

We have a domain!

Join us at CraftLit.com! Here's the feed, too.

Or you can always head over to the Libsyn mirror site.

All new episodes are being hosted over at the new site though I've been able to add a player below for our most recent episode. See you there!

(p.s., clicking on the title of this post will just bring you back here. This link will take you to the new domain.)

Episode One hundred thirty-four: Free to Be Crafty

New shownotes and audio link here.

A couple of links and a few pics and chapter 10! Whoo hoo!

The LocalGringos Etsy shop, The Cloth/Paper/Scissors that I now love,

Some work on my end.
My version of crafty-ness:



And Critter Stuffies (both from Cloth Paper Scissors):



Sister's Wedding Shawl:

My Neverending Amy Plug-n-Play Shawl:

And once I started digging on the drop.io/craftlit site, lookee what I found from forever ago!View voice-mail-mar-29-06-21-pm...And yes...there is Twain in our future. I can feel it...

Episode pending!

First scheduling then technical difficulties!
Soon.
Promise!

Episode One hundred thirty-three: Eek! A Leech!

Now, now...didn't mean to frighten you there...Leech was just a old fashioned way of saying "Doctor."

Which makes me wonder why ANYONE would ever go to the Doctor?!

Huge thanks to Penelope for reading this week!!!! YAY CRAFTLIT LISTENERS!!!

Camille sent this picture she found. Feel the drama?

News from Interweave:

Quilting Arts Gives Away Free eBook of 7 Quilted Bag Patterns

eBook giveaway celebrates launch of the new Quilting Arts website and online community, www.quiltingarts.com

Loveland, Colo. - May 2009: Quilting Arts magazine announced this month that they are giving away a new free eBook, 7 Quilted Bag Patterns: Handmade Quilt Bags from Quilting Arts, to celebrate the launch of their new online community website, www.quiltingarts.com

The new Quilting Arts online community is a place for contemporary quilters to engage with each and the magazine’s editors online, upload photos of their work, share videos, comment on stories, view Quilting Arts Challenge galleries, download free projects and tutorials, and much more.

The 18-page eBook offers easy-to-print sewing patterns and templates for making seven different handmade bags for every personality and skill level, from beginning stitchers to advanced art quilters. The free eBook of quilted bag patterns includes materials lists and step-by-step directions for every bag, along with beautifully photographed full-color examples.

“There is such a wide variety of quilted bags in this free eBook, from quilted accessory purses that are perfect for holding your jewelry or makeup when you travel to evening clutches and eco-friendly shopping bags. You might want to make them all. And what I love about quilted bags is that they are the perfect small project for trying new skills, or to show off your love of quilting when you’re out and about,” says Quilting Arts Editor Pokey Bolton.

Beginners can try their hands at an easy-to-assemble Artful Eco Bag, then apply their quilting skills to a Pretty Purse. The Easy & Elegant Quilted Bag is perfect for people who love embellishment and stitch, but not necessarily the intricacies of sewing patterns. More experienced artists will love the Blue, Yellow, and Purple Evening Bags and the Mini Messenger Bag with a digitally altered and inkjet-printed design.

Download the free eBook of 7 Quilted Bag Patterns here:

http://quiltingarts.com/7-Free-Quilted-Bag-Patterns/

Episode One hundred thirty-two: Quis Custodiet Ipsos Custodes?

For all of you (ahem, all of us) who don't speak Latin...you know...just in general...that would be a title for the Governor in our little book--in English: Who Watches the Watchmen?

This week, Chapters 7 and 8 of The Scarlet Letter.

Some quick links for your merriment: Checkout Scrivener if you have a Mac and write stories, lookee at News Knitter, Interesting idea...LifeHacks, another way to organize your days, quick and dirty (really) mosquito trap, how to read more books this year, how to learn faster, 14 ways to make your resolutions stick, The No-S Diet (not what you think), cool art from a Tucsonan, take a look at Ravelry before there was a Ravelry, a kewl knitted village, more expensive mosquito killer, and, finally, a fun blog add-on.

Episode One hundred thirty-one: Pearls Before Swine...Flu?

Not much for you this episode. Maryland Sheep and Wool was great. Jennie the Potter and Dawn and Amy were spectacular (a year since the cruise! Who knew?!).

And now I'm heading out to NYC. Ping me if you are there and want to hook up.

Whoo hoo!

Next week will likely NOT have a 'cast, but the week after, you know it!

And don't forget the challenge! Lots of Scarlet Letter yarn went at MSW. It really is a great scarlet color--and a wool silk blend.

mmmmmmmmm

yummy...

Perhaps we need a Scarlet Letter T-shirt...

Episode One hundred thirty: But I HATE Embroidery!

Hester embroiders!

Puritans are explained!

My new site is nearly done!

AND MSW UPDATE: After Party that Guido (It'sAPurlMan) and Alanna (TactileTravel) and Jess (Ravelry) have put together—It's Saturday night in Columbia and we'll have food and some door prizes and hopefully a ton of fun. There's more info at http://tactileafterparty.com.

Interweave ROCKS–Go there NOW!!!

Interweave is celebrating Earth Day by offering two free digital issues of the most current Quilting Arts and Cloth Paper Scissors magazines for a limited time.

Digital subscriptions are great for the eco-conscious who are trying to save paper (or who are going paperless to stay organized and clutter-free)! And we love them because you can see the artwork in better detail; zoom in and out to better read the text; click on ads and go right to the website for more information; search your issues for specific articles; and so much more!

Have you taken a look at one? For one week only (until 4/29/09) you can view the entire digital edition of the Quilting Arts April/May 2009 issue and Cloth Paper Scissors May/June 2009 issue. These magazines have a regular newsstand value of $7.99 each!

INSIDE THE ISSUES

The 2009 Craftlit Challenge!

…for the first ever The March Hare loves CraftLit Design Contest!

We have dyed up a brand new colorway for our very special 70/30 wool/silk blend in a very special CraftLit colorway…a very rich, earthy, semisolid scarlet. Just what every self-righteous Puritan would choose to brand one who strays. We have of course named it The Scarlet Letter.

TSL Yarn

Such a yarn of course demands a fantastic design. That’s where we’re hoping CraftLit’s endlessly talented and creative listeners can help us. We’d like to challenge you to design something for the yarn inspired by the novel, the times, the characters. We’ll have a fantastic panel of celebrity judges pick the winner, who will receive the project’s worth of yarn.

The details:

1) All entries should be designed with The Scarlet Letter yarn in mind (not necessarily in hand).
Yarn specs:435 yards per cake. 70/30 merino wool/silk. True fingering weight: 4 ply with 14 wpi.
2) Knitting, crochet, weaving, tatting, macramé, nalbinding…if you can do it with yarn it’s fair game.
3) Entries must be in before the last chapter is posted to the CraftLit feed.
4) All designs must somehow incorporate “the letter” or an interpretation thereof.
5) To be eligible for the prize, the winning designer must agree to have their pattern available for free via the CraftLit website for 3 months after the conclusion of the contest. After that time all rights are retained in full by the designer and the free feed will be removed, pronto.
6) Entries should at a minimum include pictures of the final product and the complete pattern. Everything else we leave up to you. Let your imaginations run wild!

And to sweeten the pot, The March Hare will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sales of The Scarlet Letter yarn to CraftLit for the duration of the contest. (Including the 3 month free pattern period for those inspired by the winning project…)

So there you be CraftLit faithful. Go forth and create!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (3.1KB)

Episode One hundred twenty-nine: 129 and I'm Out of Title Ideas!

Many things from this episode!
Not the least of which is chapter four of TSL!!!!

April Incentive book and yarn!

New Interweave book! LOVE IT!















Our THSG journal fundraiser full of pics of our artsy goodies from last year's challenge!

Maryland Sheep and Wool! Find me at Jennie the Potter's stall with Knitty and the gang!

FAST-DRYING NAIL POLISH (really...but, okay, not in that color)!







Great YA book series!

And SOMEONE out there,
please make Wordpress
speak Mac to me!

Episode One hundred twenty-eight: She Will Not Speak!

I bait the "come-and-see-me" hook with three venues: Maryland Sheep and Wool, Sock Summit, and SFO.

Come by JennieThePotter's stall at MSW if you want to be recorded for a 'Cast! Or, you know, just say hi!

Don't forget about the Challenge!

New Website coming!

Really!

Life is good and we're on Chapter 3 of The Scarlet Letter.

I love this chapter...

Challenge Refresher:
We have dyed up a brand new colorway for our very special 70/30 wool/silk blend in a very special CraftLit colorway...a very rich, earthy, semisolid scarlet. Just what every self-righteous Puritan would choose to brand one who strays. We have of course named it The Scarlet Letter.

Such a yarn of course demands a fantastic design. That's where we're hoping CraftLit's endlessly talented and creative listeners can help us. We'd like to challenge you to design something for the yarn inspired by the novel, the times, the characters. We'll have a fantastic panel of celebrity judges pick the winner, who will receive the project's worth of yarn.

The details:

1) All entries should be designed with The Scarlet Letter yarn in mind.
Yarn specs:435 yards per cake. 70/30 merino wool/silk. True fingering weight: 4 ply with 14 wpi.
2) Knitting, crochet, weaving, tatting, macramé, nalbinding...if you can do it with yarn it's fair game.
3) Entries must be in before the last chapter is posted to the CraftLit feed.
4) All designs must somehow incorporate "the letter" or an interpretation thereof.
5) To be eligible for the prize, the winning designer must agree to have their pattern available for free via the CraftLit website for 3 months after the conclusion of the contest. After that time all rights are retained in full by the designer and the free feed will be removed, pronto.
6) Entries should at a minimum include pictures of the final product and the complete pattern. Everything else we leave up to you. Let your imaginations run wild!

And to sweeten the pot, The March Hare will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sales of The Scarlet Letter yarn to CraftLit for the duration of the contest. (Including the 3 month free pattern period for those inspired by the winning project...)

So there you be CraftLit faithful. Go forth and create!

And a new feedburner link:
Subscribe to CraftLit: A Podcast for Crafters by Email

Episode One hundred Twenty-seven: "Goodwives." Huh.

Today!
Chapter 2!
Fun with the intolerant Puritans of the Dour Physiognomies (love that word! Also love ignominious).

I knit a pair of Knucks in no time (necessity=invention. My hands are freezing), I fall in love with the KOL book Knitting Lessons (good reader!).

And!
A New Incentive Fills Our Lives!

...for the first ever The March Hare loves CraftLit Design Contest! We have dyed up a brand new colorway for our very special 70/30 wool/silk blend in a very special CraftLit colorway...a very rich, earthy, semisolid scarlet. Just what every self-righteous Puritan would choose to brand one who strays. We have of course named it The Scarlet Letter. Such a yarn of course demands a fantastic design. That's where we're hoping CraftLit's endlessly talented and creative listeners can help us. We'd like to challenge you to design something for the yarn inspired by the novel, the times, the characters. We'll have a fantastic panel of celebrity judges pick the winner, who will receive the project's worth of yarn. The details: 1) All entries should be designed with The Scarlet Letter yarn in mind. Yarn specs:435 yards per cake. 70/30 merino wool/silk. True fingering weight: 4 ply with 14 wpi. 2) Knitting, crochet, weaving, tatting, macramé, nalbinding...if you can do it with yarn it's fair game. 3) Entries must be in before the last chapter is posted to the CraftLit feed. 4) All designs must somehow incorporate "the letter" or an interpretation thereof. 5) To be eligible for the prize, the winning designer must agree to have their pattern available for free via the CraftLit website for 3 months after the conclusion of the contest. After that time all rights are retained in full by the designer and the free feed will be removed, pronto. 6) Entries should at a minimum include pictures of the final product and the complete pattern. Everything else we leave up to you. Let your imaginations run wild! And to sweeten the pot, The March Hare will donate 10% of the proceeds from the sales of The Scarlet Letter yarn to CraftLit for the duration of the contest. (Including the 3 month free pattern period for those inspired by the winning project...) So there you be CraftLit faithful. Go forth and create!

To Enter

Send your pictures of the final product and complete "pattern" (or instructions for whatever you've created) to the Craftlit email. Winners will be contacted via email before the announcement is made "on the air".

Contact us today! Questions? Email!

Episodes 124, 125, and 126

Herin lie Episodes One hundred twenty-four, One hundred twenty-five, and One hundred twenty-six: The Party of the First Part, The Party of the Second Part, and Don't Forget the Roses.

The links, as promised: The Dickens Link, the link to Frolicking Deer Lavender Farms, microtia bracelets here, books reviewed are Knitted Lace of Estonia by Nancy Bush and Boutique Knits by Laura Irwin.




April Incentive: Artists' Journals and Sketchbooks by Lynne Perrella.

Scarlet Letter...

Coming soon to a podcast near you!

The Scarlet Letter

I'm researching. Some of you are recording (and doing a BEAUTIFUL job, I might add). And the rest of you are waiting with baited breath...I hope.

Last week of March 2009, look for the first episode in the new series to pop up.

Off to read more...

Episodes One-hundred twenty-two and One-hundred twenty-three

Some fun for you!

A Death Clock! Whoopie! (I've got some time, so we'll finish a few more books...) And check this out! A NYTimes article aggregator! I love this thing. I never close it! And for a hoot--check out friend Haynes' new venture (hint...he's an actor...). And for those of you frustrated with the economy--a little financial...can I call it levity? I don't think so...maybe 4-th Wall Realism is better. Here. And here.

Jennie the Potter has done it again--if you missed it on Knitty, get it here! I'll be reviewing these for Knitty shortly! Whoo hoo! And spinning is (once again) singing it's siren song to me. (Ask me how long I spindled last night). Brookmoore Creations Etsy store coming shortly.

My novel only has three chapters left--I'm so excited...except that they're the hardest chapters. ¿C'est la guerre, non?

The Scarlet Letter coming last week of March, so mark your calendars! If you have early chapters to record, send 'em on!

One of my former (read 9/11 evacuee knitting students) is now teaching herself and is trying to start a knitting group for the troubled children she's working with. She is not a registered 501(c)3 so there would be no tax write-off for helping, but of course, Karma's always good. Please contact me if you would like to send her knitting or crochet materials. ANY cast-offs are a boon. I recall that we received half-finished sweaters, ball-ends from projects, mismatched needles, and such. It's all helpful when working with kids.

Some cool things--YAY CORALINE, Yay Graveyard Book!
Yay teeny-weeny sweaters!



Yay Tikabelle!

Yay Getting Things Done in creative ways!

Yay cables without a cable needle (there're good videos on YouTube, too).

Yay Clear Scientists! (Maybe start with the CalTech lecture.)

Waiting for a schematic or information on the Cardi Cozy...it may be the most frogged pattern I've ever seen on Ravelry! Sadly...

Yay artists' sketchbooks online!

George Orwell (love this!)

Kewl Austen site (fun)

Episode One-hundred twenty: Sorry I was HYDEing

So, today chapters 4–7 of Jekyll and Hyde, and a bunch of links for you: Meg's Victorian site, new Incentive site (Thank you, Debbi), Authonomy is questionable site (and another explanatory), the Knit Kit, Paperworks, cool Victorian movie (Yay Johnny Depp), Knitting Daily Free Sock e-Book, Yay Neil Gaiman, Little Women spinning project, and I think that's it!

Where She At?

Family, illnesses, work, birthdays, and Inaugural Hoo Hah have conspired against me. There WILL be more Jekyll and Hyde...just not today.
Apologies all around!

Episode One-hundred nineteen: Utterly Utterson

Definition of troglodyte. Here's a cute pic of what someone thought a troglodytic creaature might look like.

Nice.

Chapters 2 and 3 today. Not much else newsy except that you writerly-types should go here and checkitout: Authonomy.