Power Purls Podcast - Conversations With Savvy Knitwear Designers And Everyday Knitters With Compelling Back Stories

In this episode, I share how to become an intuitive knitter in 7 steps. As a former knitting magazine editor, it's all about the pattern, but sometimes relying only on a pattern can become like a crutch because we can get caught up in focusing upon what the pattern says instead of trusting our own wisdom.  Patterns have their place, they are the beginning tools to help us learn, especially when you are new to the craft, but moving in the direction of trusting what's on your needles is what this episode digs into, along with and tips for how you can take some tiny steps down that path.   Episode highlights Master the tools, then dissect - understand the mechanics, then reimagine them The Picasso metaphor - first learn to see and understand, then deconstruct and question Why there's no right or wrong in knitting - go by the beat of your own drum! A good pattern should lead you down a path Kara shares the best advice given early in her designing career The 7 tips to develop your knitting intuiti

Meet Tara Swiger, marketing expert, author and host of Explore Your Enthusiasm podcast. Tara works with makers and artists to create a sustainable, lovable businesses. She does this through her books, the weekly podcast, online classes, and her in-person workshops. She leads adventures for makers who want to explore your own definition of success! In this episode, Tara shares tips and strategies from her new book, Map Your Business a workbook of exercises designed to help you create your own personal blueprint to reach goals that are important to you, and how you can use it to define success, set goals and make a plan that you can stick with!  In this book, Tara takes an integrative approach, encouraging you to align your life and business, and she invites you to take a look at your progress each quarter to make sure you’re on track.  Episode highlights Tara created her own job instead of "a business." Don't just talk about it ... do it if that's what you want to do!  How there's a b

Vickie Howell is most well-known as the Host and Creative Consultant of DIY Network’s Knitty Gritty, her best selling knitting, crochet, and craft books, and her accessible, inclusive approach to nurturing the creative community via print, video and social media. Today, she shares details about a Kickstarter for Knit Show, which will be the first community funded and internationally accessible episodic knitting & crochet series!   This is your chance to get involved! Without 100 percent funding, this show cannot happen. Click here to help me support the show and let's make this happen! Hurry, because the campaign ends April 19th!    Episode highlights Vickie saw a need for a knitting and crochet show like The Knit Show and filled it She shares how her #1 love for broadcasting and her passion for knitting and crochet and how these created her brand Vickie super power is craft encourager and setting a positive example for yarn crafters Community is no longer local. We are on a global playing field, a

    Meet Stacey Trock, entrepreneur, designer and founder of Fresh Stitches, a successful crochet company and membership club.Stacey also has her hand in a number of pots in the yarn industry. She's the Creative and Marketing Director for Louet North America and ... she's also a crochet/knitting and business teacher both internationally and on Craftsy, an author of multiple crochet books as well as a co-chair of the Business and Creative Services Leadership committee with TNNA. Stacy also has a  superpower, which is education and community building. Whether it's teaching someone how to use a crochet hook or instructing local yarn shops how to use social media for their shops, and she enthuses the world with her spunky, can-do-attitude.Stacey shares what it's like to run a membership club and how she went from offering physical kits and how she reimagined her club this past November to create an all encompassing club and community.   Show highlights: How Stacey began her journey dabbling

In this episode, Kara chit chats with Tabetha Hedrick, Design Director of Sweet Georgia Yarns, and Contributing Editor of Creative Knitting Magazine. Tabetha is also Kara's sidekick in crime co-host of the Ask Kara & Tabetha Anything series. In this episode, we share details about the upcoming Stitchucation Shawls 5-Day Challenge and Workshop starting April 10, 2017, sponsored by Sweet Georgia Yarns. In the extended, patron only version, you're in for a treat because Tabetha closes the convo with the 5 top things to master when submitting designs to yarn companies and craft publishers. This is valuable advice that you can use in any of your professional endeavors. Check out the benefits of membership here.  Episode highlights Tabetha remembers her first ugly sweater project. Don't we all have one?  A random meeting at McDonald's sealed her destiny as a knitwear designer. How to go get what you want instead of waiting for opportunities to come to you.  Diversification is essential to t

Che Lam is the creator behind the knitting blog, Handy Kitty. She was once the in-house knitwear designer at Drops Design in Norway. Today, she she works as a freelance designer, with her designs gracing the pages of popular knitting magazines, including Knit Scene, Creative Knitting, and Pompom.She is also the author of Learn How to Knit with 50 Squares. Che is a contributor to the Annie's Signature Designs Spring Breeze Collection of knit and crochet pattern designs.  Originally from Hong Kong, Che currently resides in Gothenburg, Sweden. Fashion and design has always been a passion of hers, although she graduated as a civil engineer. She followed her heart to pursue the dream of being a knitwear designer.    "I love to create simple and aesthetically pleasing things. As a designer, to see my ideas taking form from sketches to finished knitting, and finally as inspiration for others, is the best feeling ever!" - Che Lam   [Tweet "5 BIG questions to ask yourself before designing knitting

If you're a designer and you'd love to go to The National Needle Arts Trade Show, but you aren't sure what to expect, listen in to today's show, with Kara's guest, Meghan Jones, to get her take on what happens there and to get some great advice and tips for newbies on how you can make your visit to the show really worthwhile.   Meghan, who lives in Spokane, Washington, with her husband, three kids, two dogs, one cat and six chickens, works full time as a knitwear designer and also nurtures obsessions with sharks, gardening, cooking, and chickens- though not necessarily in that order. She is a prolific designer, with a BFA in fiber and textiles. Meghan got on the cover of Creative Knitting Magazine in 2011 and she's still with them today, creating designs and tutorials and she was recently named the Creative Knitting Newsletter Editor. Listen in today and find out what first brought her to the two pointy sticks and also all about her recent experience at The National Needle Arts T

Chelsea Fitch was drawn to yarn as a child - the colors just sucked her in and mesmerized her from her youth. Fast forward years later, when Chelsea was living in Japan and she learned how to knit. She started with continental knitting and she could not get enough of it. She quickly consumed everything she could about knitting and learned all she could. Something told her to start making videos of her knitting and that was the catalyst for what has turned into Chelsea’s knitting empire. Although she’s only been knitting for 3 years, she’s taken action on her ideas along the way and she’s made herself and integral part of the knitting industry. She’s currently pouring all her efforts into KnitFitch.com and she also has courses available at FiberBoss.com. Chelsea's not done yet, because she also might revive her podcast as some point. I can’t wait for you to hear the story of her foray into the knitting world and I hope that it will inspire you to jump in and be a part of the knitting industry!      Learn

Have you ever thought about creating a physical product? The task seems a bit overwhelming to most of us. Today’s guest took the overwhelming tasks of product creation to a whole new level. Not only did she hone in on her target customer, but she ran a successful Kickstarter campaign to validate her idea! Simply brilliant!  Today, we are talking with Mariah Clark. She’s been designing bags for more than 6 years and prior to that, she has spent more than 25 years working with yarn. She has a degree in Apparel Design from Virginia Tech and she even spent time in Paris, studying couture sewing! She is the owner of Stitch Amour, a brick and mortar yarn shop in Waynesboro, VA. Her new venture is Laurie Laine knitting bags. She’s here today to talk about the design process, the Kickstarter campaign and the popular Duo bag!  Listen to the episode as Kara and Mariah discuss: How Mariah went about getting feedback on her bags The development process behind the Duo bag from Laurie Laine The target market for her bag a

Do you love working with beautiful yarns? And have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at a yarn manufacturing company? Then join Kara Gott-Warner as she goes one on one with her guest for today, Amy Gunderson. The topic of today’s discussion is the yarn industry and Amy has a few insider tips for you!   Amy, who lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the creative director for Universal Yarn. When she's not at her day job, she spends her time doing freelance design work for a number of publications, as well as doing tech editing for indie, knit and crochet designers. She's also a freelance graphic designer, focusing mostly on crochet charts. She is the author of two books and has been published in most major knit and crochet magazines, including Creative Knitting and Crochet. She's also done some teaching and article writing for magazines. On today's show, Kara asks Amy for her perspective on the yarn industry.   Join Kara and Amy as they discuss:   What it's like to dev

Does working with color excite you? Are you curious about what it takes to manufacture hand-dyed yarns?  If so, listen in as  Kara Gott Warner interviews Beth Casey, owner of Lorna's Laces, one of the first hand-dyed yarn companies, about her fulfilling and creative work in her wonderful world of yarn.    Beth Casey, business owner and entrepreneur, has been supplying the globe with colorful yarns since 2003. This has afforded her the special advantage of witnessing a new wave of thinking in the way we look at yarn. Ten years later, she introduced Mrs. Crosby, releasing a  whole new range of vibrant possibilities. Listen and find out more about the ins and outs of what happens behind the scenes in the exciting business of running a yarn company, in this week's episode of Power Purls Podcast.   Join Kara and Beth as they discuss:   What prompted Beth to start a hand-dyed yarn company. The fun process of choosing and putting together the colors for a season. How Beth's company manages to keep it

Welcome to Power Purls Unplugged, with me, Kara Gott Warner. Your comments have shown me that the raw, unpolished aspect of a live podcast certainly has an appeal to many of you. I love getting your feedback. It's been necessary, in order to balance the different time zones and to find the best time frame for this show. Join me today, as I talk to the Power Purls Facebook Group, live, while recording my podcast. We will discuss what being creative with your knitting means to you. Take your knitting to the next level. Let's keep the conversation going!    Catch me live at 12pm EST Fridays, on Facebook.com/PowerPurlsPodcast. To watch past broadcasts, you can find them in the video library on the Power Purls Facebook page.   Episode Highlights:   Kara talks about how to make more space and margin time for creativity The inspiration for making FB live a podcast - my episode with Marly Bird What does “creative” mean in knitting creatively? Listen to my episode with Marly Bird and become inspired! Kara t

Marly Bird is bi-crafty - a knitter who also crochets! She has been podcasting about the craft since 2007! She is the national spokesperson for Red Heart Yarns and she’s the host of the YarnThing podcast. She’s an author and designer with a prominent YouTube channel as well! You can find her at craftsty.com and she has classes available at creativebug.com.  Marly had a respectable career in the financial services industry before her love of all things yarn took over her life and career. She was podcasting about it when everyone else was just blogging. She’s always been way ahead of her time, and she’s been able to create a knitting and crocheting empire that has been a resource to share her love of the craft in all forms of media. She’s got a special offer for Power Purls listeners today, so don’t miss out! How she started podcasting in 2007 - Ask Jeeves to the rescue! Her philosophy for sharing her guests with her audience and why she loves sharing the stories and connections How she found her stride when t

Steven Berg is a fiber artisan armed with a wealth of experience, daring sense of style, and a firm belief in the transformative power of creativity that knitting or crocheting offers to those brave enough to push the boundaries. Berg began his career early, furiously knitting lines of sequin dresses for a discerning clientele of Barbies in Wisconsin. This led him to become a star student in fashion design at Parsons and the Fashion Institute of Technology.  Berg found inspiration in the beautiful, fashion capitals of the world as a VP of design at Perry Ellis. His creative work experiences brought him back to his favorite medium again, the one that always inspired him the most, the imaginative world of fiber arts. Steven reminds all fiber aficionados: “The possibilities are endless. There are no mistakes, only variations. And always remember to glam it up!"  Episode Highlights: Halos of Hope - what it is and who it helps! How Steven made enough money from knitting in high school to pay for college What

Lena Skvagerson is the lead designer and visionary behind Annie’s Signature Designs. Lena joined Annie’s in 2014, bringing with her over 25 years in the European design markets. We behind the scenes and what it was like creating the second seasonal Annie’s Signature Designs collection, Autumn Bliss.  Lena is a passionate designer and co-collaborator. Her energy for patterns, design and the whole creation process is contagious. She’s crazy enough to love each and every part of the process and this comes across in the finished product. Today we chat about all the fun we had working through the collection design process. We wanted to share our thoughts in this exclusive “behind the scenes” interview. You’re going to love this episode!   Episode Highlights: Behind the scenes of designing a collection What it’s like to continually multitask and change gears to pull it all together The favorite part of the collection building process……it’s not as easy to choose as you think Find out exactly what is in the Autumn B

Dora Ohrenstein is a designer of fashion crochet, author of 6 books, and a writer specializing in crochet history and international traditions.  Dora’s designs appears in all the major print and digital crochet publications. Given her avid interest in advancing the skills of the crochet community, she includes lots of in-depth technical information in all of her books. She also teaches crochet at Vogue Knitting Live, on Craftsy, and in yarn shops across the country.   Earlier in her life Dora was a well-known soprano who sang contemporary classical music, most notably as the solo voice of the Phillip Glass Ensemble, a position she held for 10 years.  Nowadays in addition to her design career, she is a singing teacher at Wagner College in Staten Island. Dora is a born and raised New Yorker.   Being on the road as a musician gave Dora a love of travel, and today she engages in textile travel, which has brought her to many exotic locations, including the Balkans, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and the Ukraine. 

Brooke Nico is the co-owner of Kirkwood Knittery, where she uses her eye for detail and fashion experience to keep her store ahead of trends in knitting. However, lace is where Brooke has really made her mark, and her talent has been recognized by Vogue Knitting, Knitters, and Debbie Bliss magazine. She has taught lace classes at VKLive, VKLive LA, and several Stitches (XRX) events. Brooke lives in Kirkwood, MO. I think you have to keep the big picture in mind, so over the course of a year, I have a work/life balance. Today, I may feel guilty because I'm missing a soccer game. But next week I'll make the soccer game and have something else to do. I can't take each day as a snapshot. I have to look at the whole picture.   Episode Highlights: 03:50 Brooke and Kara discuss how they met. 05:00 Kara digs into Brooke's extensive knitting background. 06:40 Brooke talks about purchasing Knitting for Dummies as her intro to knitting. 08:45 Kara asks if Brooke took to knitting right away or if she w

Robyn Chachula is the author of Vintage Modern Crochet, Blueprint Crochet Sweaters, Unexpected Afghans, and Crochet Stitches Visual Encyclopedia. Her work has also been featured in many popular crochet publications such as Crochet! and Vogue Crochet.  Robyn is also a contributing crochet designer in Annie's Autumn Bliss, a stunning collection of 40+ knitting and crochet patterns and is one of the crochet experts on the Annie's PBS television show Knit and Crochet Now!. She is also a crochet instructor for Annie’s Online Classes. Episode highlights: 03:10 Robyn shares her excitement for crochet and other types of crafting. 04:09 Robyn tells about her positivity while working on Knit and Crochet Now! 04:44 Robyn describes when crochet entered her life. 06:41 When to decide to turn crochet design into a business 10:04 Robyn discusses the TV show, Knit and Crochet Now! 11:48 Robyn shares her viewpoint on rejections. 13:26 Finding the balance between your day job and creating a business 16:07 Robyn elab

Welcome to Power Purls Unplugged! You asked, I'm answering! If you signed up for the Power Purls Podcast newsletter, you know that I asked you this question: What kind of podcast topics appeal to you most? 65% of you want lifestyle stories and 63% want to know about the business side of design. So I spent some time digging into your comments and questions and today I'll be answering them here and then turning the tables and asking you --  What kinds of topics appeal to you most as a Power Purls listener and what do you want more of?   Catch me live at 12pm EST Fridays, on Facebook.com/PowerPurlsPodcast. To watch past broadcasts, you can find them in the video library on the Power Purls Facebook page.   Episode highlights: Kara answers one of the biggest questions: How do I start a knit design business? Kara says: Just start! -- let your passion drive you. Put yourself out there with just one idea and get started. Don't put a dollar sign on your passion! How you can sign up for my new

Barb Demorest is a wife, mother, grandmother and casual knitter residing in Bellingham, Washington. She recently retired from her 30 year career as a CPA and owner of a tax practice in order to pursue her passion of connecting volunteer knitters and crocheters with breast cancer survivors to provide free knitted knockers to those that can use them. Her purpose and passion is now to inspire and equip the wonderful, caring, fiber arts community to provide these gifts of love to their fellow women in their own communities. She no longer gets paid in dollars for her work but the rewards are priceless.========I take ONE new podcast launch client per month because this how I keep the highest quality in my work, the white glove treatment for YOU. Invest in the podcast you want to give to the world. So here’s what you need to do if you want to lock in your spot with me:Visit karagottwarner.com/services and click on the Ready, Set, Launch program and I will immediately be in touch to set up your onboarding session. I