~Rigid Heddle Weaving with Angela Tong at Craftsy~

by Joanna

I had the opportunity to go out to dinner with Angela Tong last month while she was here in Denver filming her Rigid Heddle Weaving class for Craftsy. It was so fun to hear about how she got started weaving, and how she was able to share so many tips, tricks, and techniques with her students in her interactive class.

Our daughter and I have been experimenting with weaving over the last year or so, and have had a lot of learning on the fly as we figured things out together. Laurel made these two beautiful scarves on her Cricket Loom, and I think they turned out wonderfully.

This year she started trying some new techniques on the loom, like dividing the yarn between colors. We found the Cricket Loom a wonderful loom to start weaving on, but had a lot of questions along the way, such as:

*How much warp will we need?

*How do we warp this loom?

*What makes a good beginner's warp yarn?

*How much tension should we allow for the selvedge?

*How do we prevent the warping peg from flying off the bookshelf when we are 90% done warping the loom? (Yes, this happened to us!)

*What will variegated yarns look like on the warp?

*Do we need paper to wrap the warp yarn?

and so on.

I wish we had access to Angela's class at this time last year, while we were learning all of these things by trial and error, with a little frustration along the way. I love that I can go back and watch Angela's instructions as often as I need, to remind myself of the details I may have forgotten. I also love that she has provided great worksheets for tracking my weaving projects, so I can learn more from each project that I make, and not forget and make the same mistake again! I go through crafting phases, and have been knitting and quilting a lot this winter. Weaving is in the air, and I am eager to put Angela's careful instructions into practice.

Our daughter has been playing a lot with different weights of yarn, trying out various weaves and textures with this little potholder loom. I think my favorite thing about weaving is that it is a wonderful way to incorporate the bits and pieces of my favorite yarns into a new project.

Angela has very kindly provided me with a link to an offer to take her class at Craftsy for half price. I would love to see what you are inspired to weave after taking her class! 

Ravelry's 26 Knit and Crochet Book Library Giveaway!

When Ravelry approached us to see if we were interested in participating in their upcoming giant library giveaway, we were elated. What a fun and wonderful idea to celebrate Ravelry's amazing new library feautures! The details for the giveaway are here, and if you haven't entered, you might want to hustle over, since there isn't much time: the giveaway ends tomorrow, March 22, at 11:59 P.M. eastern time.

25 people will win the following 26 books for their own home library. We are over the moon to be included. My only regret is that I can't enter! Here is the list, (click on cover for more info):

Wow! We are in very fine company! I count several of these authors as friends, and feel honored to do so! Congratulations to everyone who worked together to make this happen!

Stationery Winner and a big "thank you" from Joanna

Hello to you, I had such a wonderful time reading through your comments this week, and hearing about the very special people in your life who will be receiving handwritten letters from you this winter and spring. I am thankful to have one grandmother to send letters to, she is quite happy without a computer or email, and I sometimes wonder how very much wiser she is than me!

I went to the Random Number Generator and selected a winner for our Stationery Giveaway, and I am happy to announce henniepennie on Ravelry as the winner! Stay tuned for some other fun giveaways coming up this spring and summer!

Happy Stitching!

Joanna

Freddie's Blanket Stationery! & a giveaway, too

by Joanna

I am happy to announce that our "Platypodes" stationery is now available in our etsy shop. This opening scene, of Freddie Platypus as a little baby in his envelope, has always been a favorite of mine! Our greeting cards are professionally printed and come as a set of four notecards.

I was thinking it would be fun to do a little giveaway, what do you think? I will include a set of Freddie's Blanket notecards along with a set of four Phoebe's Sweater notecards, too.

This Giveaway is now closed. Thank you all for sharing! Random Number Generator chose a winner and the winner is....  henniepennie on Ravelry!

Giveaway ends on March 19- here are the details! 

1. Leave a comment to enter giveaway.

2. Share the giveaway on Facebook and let me know about it to enter again.

3. Same thing for Twitter, too.

4. To enter a fourth time, promise to send a handwritten letter to someone you love, and share how this person has changed your life. 

I am going to send a letter to my Grandmother. How about you?

~Freddie's Blanket at Yarn Therapy in Tallahassee~

by Joanna

We just shipped out a new order of signed books to Yarn Therapy in Tallahassee, FL. It is always nice to connect with Local Yarn Shops around the country, and we love to see photos of projects from our books, too! Glen created this beautiful version of Freddie's Blanket, and added a contrast color crocheted border to the edges. I wonder who the lucky recipient will be?

Thank you, Yarn Therapy, for sharing this photo with us! 

Happy Knitting!