Knit Picks' Podcast

This week, Jenny and Stacey chat about what is on every knitter and crocheter's mind this time of the year - holiday crafting! Both Jenny and Stacey share a list of their favorite knit and crochet designs for the holiday season. Find out what makes or breaks a project when it comes to crafting for the holidays and what go-to books are a must have for any knitter or crocheter this holiday season. 

In honor of the 200th Knit Picks podcast, Kelley revisits one of her favorite episodes from the very beginning – deserted island knitting. Back in 2007, Kelley used this idea of being stranded on a deserted island to create her list of must-have knitting supplies. To start, Kelley shares two of her favorite blogs whose stories come awfully close to Kelley’s deserted island scenario. Both The Sailing Knitter and Island and North Country Life are blogs that follow the lives of two women traveling the high seas with knitting by their sides. Inspired by their stories, Kelley begins on her own list of must-have knitting supplies. Although there are some similarities to her list from 2007, Kelley’s focus is on drop spindling this time around with her cherished spindles from Golding Spindles being on top of her list. Along with plenty of fiber and silk hankies, Kelley also adds a few books, needles, and a few other items to her list. Finally, Kelley reflects back on all of the changes that have happened in the world

Not ready to let go of your summer knitting just yet? Keep your lace projects inspired with this week’s podcast as Kelley chats with designer Anna Dalvi, author of the books Shaping Shawls and Ancient Egyptian Lace & Color. Anna talks about her love of shawls, her design process, and shares a few of her favorite mythological stories that inspired her designs.

This bonus Halloween episode is full of adorably scary projects! First, Stacey talks with Anna Hrachovec of Mochimochi Land about her newest book Super-Scary Mochimochi. This latest collection of patterns still highlights the cute and clever knitted tiny toys that Anna is known for, but with a scary and creepy twist! Hear all about Anna's design process for this book, what some of her favorite patterns are, her inspiration for the designs, along with fun behind-the-scenes stories. Next up, Stacey chats with crochet designer Deja Jetmir about her newest eBook Wonderfully Horrific Crochet. In her book, Deja celebrates all of the camp and fun of classic horror themes with 14 patterns for crocheted softies. Hear all about how Deja started designing her own crochet patterns and learn more about the design process for her first book, along with the inspiration behind her designs.    

In this week's podcast episode, Kelley gets a chance to talk with designer Audrey Knight about her newest book Reversible Scarves! Audrey began knitting in 2004 and quickly began exploring the world of designing. Hear all about her transition from knitter to knitwear designer, and how she came up for the idea for her book which features reversible patterns that are sure to "cure the wrong side blues" as Audrey says. Kelley walks through each chapter of the book, and chats with Audrey about the unique patterns and techniques for creating your own reversible patterns and designs.

This week, take a tour of Scandinavia as you hear all about Kerin's inspiration for Northern Lights, a new collection of patterns inspired by the region and its cultures that are steeped in a rich history of knitting. Featuring six stunning patterns, Kerin walks you through the traditions of Norway, Iceland, Finland, Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Sweden as she shares the stories and ideas behind each of the patterns. Naturally, Kerin put her special twist on each of the patterns by melding the traditions, color, and motifs of Scandinavia with updated shaping and elegant, modern details. If you enjoy hearing about the design process and how ideas are transformed from sketches and swatches into finished patterns and pullovers - you'll love hearing Kerin's stories behind each of the six designs of Northern Lights. History buffs will also love hearing more about the cultures and traditions of these six Scandinavian countries. Whether you are drawn to bold geometric shapes, textured motifs, or intricate colorw

Always on the lookout for new and interesting ways to use technology  to organize her fiber life, Kelley shares her enthusiasm for a handful of knitting apps! Kelley reviews three apps for android users that help you stay on track throughout your knitting project and keep you connected to your Ravelry account - no matter where you might find yourself knitting! Kelley first reviews Ravulous, a handy app that links to your Ravelry account so you can manage your stash, search through patterns, and update your projects. Next, Kelley talks about the Ravelry Photo Uploader app that lets you snap a photo of your WIP and upload it to your Ravelry project page directly from your phone! That way you can be sure to keep your projects organized and up to date, no matter if you are at your local knit night or on the road. Both of the Ravelry apps were created by Polly McEldowney, who also created the third app that Kelley goes over - County Plus, which turns your phone into a digital row counter by simply tapping the scr

Kelley and Alison sit down to chat about all of the exciting new things that have been happening around the office - in particular, all of the wonderful new yarns available for fall! First up is Palette, our fingering weight colorwork yarn that is now up to 150 colors! A staple yarn of the Knit Picks family, Kelley reminisces about the debut of Palette and how it first debuted with 30 colors. Next, Kelley and Alison introduce a yarn line new to Knit Picks this fall - Galileo! Hear all about this amazing Merino wool and bamboo blend in addition to some great projects that Kelley and Alison have in mind that would be perfect for this new yarn. Next up is another new yarn line, Reverie! Kelley and Alison chat about this unique brushed yarn, its unique qualities as well as projects that would show off this light and lofty yarn. Finally, Kelley and Alison talk about Sunstruck needles - the newest addition to our line of interchangeable and straight needles! With so many new things to talk about and check out, we'r

This week, Kelley gets a chance to catch up with designer Mary Scott Huff. One look through her book The New Stranded Colorwork and you can clearly see that Mary's passion is definitely colorwork knitting. Which is exactly why she's the perfect person to write a book of the techniques for color knitting! Her new book Teach Yourself Visually Color Knitting highlights Mary's expertise on the subject alongside clear, concise images that will help new knitters learn to master colorwork. Kelley talks with Mary about this unique process of writing a technique-based book, along with getting a few handy tips and tricks as Kelley and Mary walk through each chapter of the book which includes intarsia, entrelac, stranded colorwork, and even embroidery! Mary's enthusiasm for color knitting is so infectious; you'll be tempted to cast on a color knitting project right away.

In this week's episode, Kelley chats about her love of cowls! In addition to covering a brief history of the cowl, Kelley talks about several different varieties of designs that are based in the basic cowl shape - including neckwarmers, infinite scarves, and other styles that experiment with unique ways of closing the loop. This allows designers even more creative freedom in order to come up with even more fun ways to wear cowls. And of course, Kelley also mentions that cowls are the ideal way for using up those single skeins of wonderful handspun yarn. Next, Kelley reviews a few books including The Complete Guide to Spinning Yarn by Brenda Gibson, Knit & Wrap: 25 Capelets, Cowls & Collars by Nathalie Mornu, and Ultimate Mittens by Robin Hansen. Finally, Kelley catches you up on what has been on her needles - or in this case, what will be on her needles! After finishing up all of her works in progress, Kelley shares a few projects from her queue that will be making their way onto her needles very soo

This week, Kelley shares her excitement for finding the perfect summer bag! Finding the ideal summer bag or tote for your knitting can be a hard task and not only depends on how you will be using the bag, but also what kinds of projects you are looking to carry with you. Kelley reviews a variety of her favorite Namaste bags to help make your search a bit easier. Next, Kelley shares her favorite books that are not just wonderful reference books for experienced knittres, but are also perfect for helping new knitters advance their skills. Hear Kelley's detailed reviews on The Fearless Knitting Workshop by Jennifer Seiffert and The Circular Knitting Workshop by Margaret Radcliffe. Finally, Kelley catches you up on what projects are on her needles, what projects might next be on the needles, and reviews a few of her favorite tools and accessories. And of course, Kelley can't help but indulge you in a few audiobook recommendations that she has recently enjoyed!

This week is all about our new summer yarns! Kelley chats with Jenny about two new additions to our line of special reserve yarns – Preciosa and Bare Hare. In addition to gushing over the softness of each and the amazing, saturated colors of Preciosa, Kelley and Jenny chat about tips for working with these new yarns and fun project possibilities. And if lace is your go-to summer project, Kelley and Jenny review new color additions to our selection of lace yarns including Alpaca Cloud, Shadow, Shimmer, and Gloss Lace. Last but not least, Kelley chats with Jenny her newest discovery - washcloth throws. Hear all about this fun project that Kelley thinks might be her perfect answer to summer knitting and more!

This week, Jenny chats with designer Nora Bellows, author of the new book Noni Flowers! Hear all about how Nora's family, gardening, and flowers have influenced her process and designs, in addition to how Nora made the transition from teaching college classes to designing knitting patterns. Nora also reveals a behind-the-scenes look into the process of writing her book, how she began designing the collection of knitted flowers, and what sparked the idea for creating the unique photography of the knitted flowers. In addition to sharing tips and tricks for knitting up the flowers, Nora also shares her favorite techniques for how to use and attach the knitted flowers as embellishments on other projects. After hearing Nora's enthusiasm and passion for her knitted flowers, you'll want to cast on your very own garden of flowers right away!

Afterthought pockets and heels are exactly what you might expect them to be - pockets and heels that are worked after the fact.  This week, Kelley delves into the afterthought technique, explores its many different uses for this trick, and covers the basics of how to work an afterthought heel. Next, Kelley shares her favorite form of entertainment while knitting - audiobooks, of course! Kelley chats about her love of all things audiobooks, including Audible and her favorite narrators and titles. In addition to her go-to selection of audiobooks, Kelley also shares her favorite way to get her history fix. And listening to all those audiobooks and history lectures makes it so easy to knit for hours on end, allowing you to finish up that last project. Finally, hear all about what projects have  been on (and recently off) Kelley's needles in addition to what projects might be cast on next.

Kelley catches up with designer Kathleen Taylor to talk about all things fair isle! As author of the book Fearless Fair Isle Knitting, Kathleen Taylor chats with Kelley in depth about the different techniques for successful fair isle knitting in addition to common mistakes and issues that newcomers to fair isle might encounter. Kathleen truly has a fearless approach to fair isle knitting and has honed in her techniques specifically for knitters new to fair isle through years of teaching. Also, hear Kelley share memories of her first fair isle project in addition to chatting about favorite techniques for fair isle. Kathleen's love and enthusiasm for fair isle knitting is infectious and is sure to have you craving colorful fair isle knits for your next project.

This week we bring you another bonus mini-episode of the Knit Picks podcast! Stacey gets a chance to catch up with designer Allyson Dykuizen, who began designing under the name "Sweatshop of Love." After spending some time teaching and designing, Allyson decided to broaden her design skills by creating Holla Knits - a collaborative collection between designers that focuses on a young, fresh, and modern aesthetic. Hear more about the designers and ideas behind Holla Knits as well as how Allyson began knitting and transitioned into the world of knitwear design, and what inspired her to create Holla Knits!

As the days get both longer and warmer, more and more cotton yarns have been coming to mind for warm weather projects. This week, Kelley catches up with Alison to review the variety of cotton yarns that are available through Knit Picks! Get inspired for your next summer project as Kelley and Alison discuss the different properties, characteristics and uses for Knit Picks cotton yarns. Not only will this mini crash-course in cotton yarns help you pick out the right yarn for your next project, you just might be tempted by Kelley and Alison's project ideas that make the most of each cotton yarn.

In this week's episode, Kelley reunites with author and designer, Hunter Hammersen, to chat about her latest book - The Knitter's Curiosity Cabinet. Similar to her first book Silk Road Socks which features sock patterns based on oriental rugs, Hunter shares her inspiration for creating a collection of designs inspired by curiosity cabinets. Hunter not only chats with Kelley about just what exactly a curiosity cabinet is - but also how they inspired her new book and how she was able to translate a collection of botanical prints into stunning patterns for socks and accessories.

This week, we bring you an extra special, bonus mini-episode of the Knit Picks Podcast! Alison catches up with designer Joan of Dark (aka Toni Carr), author of the new book Knits for Nerds! Hear all about the process and inspiration behind this collection of knitting patterns that your inner nerd will adore. Joan also reveals a few fun facts behind the book, Knits for Nerds and shares details behind a few of her favorite designs.

This week, Jenny gets a chance to catch up with Knit Picks designer Kerin to talk about the newest eBook Rocky Shores! Filled with traditional designs with a modern twist, the eBook includes patterns for the women's garments, a men's vest, a wrap and a purse. Hear all about the design process, inspiration, and challenges that Kerin was faced with as she goes through and talks about each of the featured designs - a must listen for fans of knitting history and traditional techniques!