Podcasts about aroha knits

I'm your host Ashley Yousling and today I'm talking with someone whom I've known for many years, all the way back to when I first began this podcast and she purchased some yarn from my little online shop. Françoise Danoy whom you may also know as Frenchie, is the creator behind Aroha Knits, Swatch Studio Circle, and other fun ventures like the Yarn Alchemist. But we don't spend much time talking about knitting or making, and just like with every episode, we go where the conversation leads and sometimes that means we go deep, to vulnerable and tender parts of our lives and stories. I'm so grateful for Françoise's openness, for sharing this part of her story, heritage and heart, and for her permission to share that with you. I hope you take a moment to really hear Françoise's story and all the richness and beauty of it, while also gaining more insight through the lived experience she so graciously takes time to share with us. You can connect with Françoise on the Making app and Instagram @arohaknitsWe believe that the simple act of making can transform your life and in turn change our world. This is why Making exists. It all starts with inspiration. We're inspired by people, by places, by experiences—a beautiful photo, a soft wool, a kind heart. These are the things that motivate us to make.Making is here to disrupt systems—systems of oppression, systems that only benefit certain groups of people, and systems that extract. We're here to challenge the narrative of profit over people. We believe a company can be founded for the purpose of good and change the world for better, while also creating opportunity at scale. Makers are tired of the monoliths. The few companies that comprise our only choices of how we connect, how we transact, and how we learn.Makers are ready for a better alternative and that is what we are building.Becoming a BRIGHT Collective member helps us accomplish this. Visit makingzine.com to learn more.We have a special 10% discount on BRIGHT Collective yearly memberships for podcast listeners! Use discount code makingconvo10 during checkout. The biggest of thanks to everyone involved in this weeks episode. I hope you'll join me each week as we talk and learn from more fascinating makers. For podcast notes and transcriptions, visit our blog at makingzine.com. Have a wonderful week! 

Françoise of Aroha Knits joins me to discuss her business journey, how she's dealt with a large social media following, and why we all need boundaries.

Current Productions (5:10)   Working on the second sleeve of the Aumangea Pullover by Aroha Knits in Malabrigo Rios “Pearl 10” and “Pines”    Kevin frogged and restarted his Payne pullover by Helena Bristow in Mountain Colors Twizzle in “Headwaters”    Made more progress on the 2nd Pride Sock in White Birch Fiber Arts Self-Striping Sock in “The Full Monty”   Cast on for a Slide Socks  by Cookie A in Black Cat Fibers Nomad Sock in “The Texas Incident”   Cast on and finished the Looped Loop Cowl by Kirsten Johnstone in Lemonade Shop Yarns Classic DK in “Toxic Hippo”   Cast on and finished the Treppenviertel Cowl by Nicola Susen in Onyx Fiber Arts DK in “Veronica”    Events (20:10) Updated list from Knitty with cancelled fiber events as well as links to vendors who we can support   Bay Area Fiber Fair runs from July 17 through October 15   Fiberworld 2020 August 19-23   SBMT E-Studio Events all located on the SBMT eStudio Facebook Group located here and their website   Stitches at Home - September 5, 6, 12, 13   Hey Look Me Over (25:27) Kevin talks about the challenges of starting a knitting and theatre podcast during a pandemic, and reviews the 2015 production of Driving Miss Daisy starring Angela Lansbury, James Earl Jones, and Boyd Gaines, as well as talking about the 1989 film adaptation.   Little Known Facts  (41:45) How the segment titles of the 42nd Stitch Podcast got their name. Ragtime Wildcat You're a Good Man Charlie Brown (1999 Broadway Revival)   Miscellaneous (47:04) Ravelry update: project pages will continue to be created on the podcast website until the site is safe for everyone. Ravelry group for the podcast is now LIVE for those who would like to join and it is safe to do so.

EPISODE 6: A Leg Up on Mistakes Administrative Notes (0:36) Project pages are now setup for all current knitting projects. Show note links will link to the project pages on this website, and those project pages will then contain links to Ravelry for those for which Ravelry is still accessible.     Current Productions (2:01) Kevin has the body on his his Payne pullover by Helena Bristow in Mountain Colors Twizzle in “Headwaters” 85% Merino 15% Silk Working on the second sleeve of the Aumangea Pullover by Aroha Knits in Malabrigo Rios “Pearl 10” and “Pines” (100% SW Merino)    Cast on for the Looped Loop Cowl by Kirsten Johnstone in Lemonade Shop Yarns Classic DK in “Toxic Hippo”   Events (7:27) Updated list from Knitty with cancelled fiber events as well as links to vendors who we can support   Stash Dash 2020 hosted by the Knit Girllls runs May 22 through August 22   Bay Area Fiber Fair runs from  July 17 through October 15   Fiberworld 2020 August 19-23   SBMT E-Studio Events all located on the SBMT eStudio Facebook Group located here and their website   A Review (9:16) Literary Knits by Nikol Lohr Little Known Facts (15:11) Knitting mistakes, how to prevent them & learn from them.

Current Productions (3:51) Kevin has the body on his his Payne pullover by Helena Bristow in Mountain Colors Twizzle in “Headwaters” 85% Merino 15% Silk Working on the second sleeve of the Aumangea Pullover by Aroha Knits in Malabrigo Rios “Pearl 10” and “Pines” (100% SW Merino) Events (9:05) Updated list from Knitty with cancelled fiber events as well as links to vendors who we can support Stash Dash 2020 hosted by the Knit Girllls runs May 22 through August 22 Bay Area Fiber Fair runs from  July 17 through October 15 SBMT E-Studio Events all located on the SBMT eStudio Facebook Group located here and Youtube Channel here Wednesday, July 22, 7:30pm:  A Muse Event: Trivia Night with Walter Mayes Friday, July 24, 7:30pm: South Bay Cabaret: “Hi! Felicia!” with Felicia Chang Tuesday, July 28, 7:30pm: Behind the Curtain: Headshot Photography with Joanna Degeneres Little Known Facts (11:35) The importance of self-care during the quarantine and tips & tricks for coping.

Current Productions (4:02) Kevin has been working on his Payne pullover by Helena Bristow in Mountain Colors Twizzle in “Headwaters” 85% Merino 15% Silk   More progress on the Aumungea Pullover by Aroha Knits in Malabrigo Rios Pearl 10 and Pines (100% SW Merino)   A little more progress on the Pride socks in self striping sock yarn from  Whitebirch Fiber Arts Full Monty (generic vanilla sock with an eye of partridge heel) 80% Superwash Merino, 20% Nylon.   Events (9:25) Updated list from Knitty with cancelled fiber events as well as links to vendors who we can support Tour de Fleece - June 27 through July 19 Stash Dash 2020 hosted by the Knit Girllls- May 22 through August 22 SBMT E-Studio Events all located on the SBMT eStudio Facebook Group located here Monday, July 13, 7pm: BBTD Musical Theatre History: The 1940's with Heather Kenyon Friday July 17, 8pm Pacific: eReaders Theatre The Book of Will Saturday July 18, 10am Pacific: Jazz Dance with Michael Saenz Wednesday, July 22, 7:30pm:  A Muse Event: Trivia Night with Walter Mayes Friday, July 24, 7:30pm: South Bay Cabaret: “Hi! Felicia!” with Felicia Chang Tuesday, July 28, 7:30pm: Behind the Curtain: Headshot Photography with Joanna Degeneres Back to Before (12:16) Kevin discusses the production facts and history of the 1969 Tony Award winning musical 1776 Little Known Facts (29:31) Kevin talks about following through on those knitting projects that never seem to end  

Current Productions (2:17) Kevin is working on the Hermione Everyday Socks by Erica Lueder in Oink Pigments Oink Sock “Mystery Flavor” Kevin is working on the Aumangea Pullover by Aroha Knits in Malabrigo Rios “Pearl 10” and “Pines” and has finished the front and back of the sweater and is making slow progress on the first sleeve. Kevin is working on a basic 2x2 rib hat (no pattern) in MJ Yarns Silken DK: Polwarth and Silk in "Ether", a bright neon blue. There isn't any live theatre going on, but Kevin mentions how arts organizations are currently suffering and suggests looking into your local community to see how you can support them during the pandemic. There are also conversations going on that Kevin has been participating about racism, representation, and diversity in casting in the theatre community.  Back to Before (15:24) Kevin discusses the merits of The Unsinkable Molly Brown Kevin mentionsThe Molly Brown House Kevin mentions an episode of the Whats Her Name podcast for finding out more information on who Molly Brown actually was.

Lots of travel knitting, a natural dye workshop with fiber friends and some listener questions about spinning and stash are the topics for this week. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of  our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com Come join the community on Ravelry or become a patron and support the show on our Patreon Page. Save the Date for a Washington Coast Meet-up! September 20-22.  We'll be meeting to knit and chat at String Theory Yarn and Fiber. Find lodging for the weekend in Seabrook, Washington or in nearby Pacific Beach or Ocean Shores. Or join us for a day if you are nearby! Click here to RSVP so we can reserve your goodie bag! Here is a link to the Ravelry thread about the meet-up. We just spent a week together in Seattle! Kelly came up to join Marsha and some fiber friends for a natural dye workshop.  The dyes used were coreopsis, lichen, avocado, and cochineal. They were dyed on a variety of natural colored yarns using different strengths of dye. We also used an ammonia modifier to change the color of the dye. Very inspiring.  Marsha's Projects: I finished the Lace Market T-shirt by Marie Green using Schoppel-Wolle El Linio several weeks ago. The neck is too big and I had planned to re-knit picking up fewer stitches, small needles, and slightly less loose bind off. Where did the time go? I turned heel and worked gusset of  Schoppel-Wolle Das Paar socks. About an inch of the foot is completed.  I also finished body and neck band of Fine Sand by Heidi Kirrmeier, using Fibra Natura Unity.  Knot a long: Nothing!!!! But that doesn't mean you shouldn't enter. So far we have 38 FOs, our biggest along ever! Enter by August 31st. Remember, it's any fiber related item that is not knit,  crochet, spinning or weaving. We'll draw for prizes in our first September episode. Kelly’s Projects The most significant FO for this week is my 5th metatarsal! Bone is 90% healed and the boot is off. Now on to the physical therapy! I also finished Two cowls from Alchemy yarn 100% silk. The pattern is Simple Yet Effective from Tin Can Knits. I finished the first one on the road trip to Seattle and the second one I almost finished on the trip back home.   The Silk Cardigan from Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk is also finished. The pattern is Koru by Aroha Knits. I got some good wear out of it during the trip to Seattle. The fit is good and the armscye works ok with some of my short-sleeved tees.  I also finished the Tarantula that I was making for my grand nephew. Did you know that Tarantulas have 8 eyes? Two larger eyes and 6 tiny ones. I tried to make this tarantula as realistic as possible. The grands are keeping the class tarantula for the summer, so they are a little tarantula-obsessed! Finally, I finished the miniature punch needle rug. The kit by J. Conner Designs was a gift from Tori (wideanglemind). It was so fun and fast to do and turned out so cute.  I will definitely try more of this mini-punch work. The fabric is thin and flexible compared to the regular punch needle. It is more like embroidery and is often called punch needle embroidery.  Questions from Listeners PegofmyHeart (Peggy) asked about keeping her handspun yarn consistent.  "When I returned to spinning I must have changed my gauge. Now I have a sleeve that needs to be ripped out. New fiber spun, hopefully at a better gauge, and knitted again. HELP!" Suggestions: Take a piece of freshly spun singles off the bobbin and let it ply back on itself to be stablized. I hang this on my wheel so I can keep checking my spinning against this yarn. Unply it so you can see the single if you need to. You can also make a “Spinners Control Card” where you wrap both freshly spun singles and the plied-back-on-itself yarn around a stiff card and keep that with your spinning. This will help with consistency in spinning. Don’t wrap it too tightly or it will seem thinner than it really is.  Other tricks are: Spin all the singles before plying and put them all on storage bobbins and ply them first bobbin to last bobbin, second bobbin to penultimate bobbin, etc.  This presumes that the most widely differing bobbins are first and last and plying them together will average out the inconsistencies.  Spin all the yarn before starting the project and calculate the yards per pound or yards per gram. This will help you see inconsistencies in the skeins and allow you to use the most similar skeins where gauge is important. Any that are significantly different can be used where it matters less or maybe they won't be needed at all. Cindy (CindyQ)  and Valerie29 (Valerie) asked about stash busting, and stash organizing. Marsha suggests: I organize my wool stash by weight and store them in labelled plastic bins I pick up at the Goodwill. I have a separate bins for cotton and handspun. Braids for spinning are stored in those plastic covers that bedding comes in. Yarn/fiber I buy at stores is listed in Ravelry. I tried posting yarn I pick up at thrift stores/destash rooms in Ravelry, but it honestly got to be too much. As for using up the yarn, I made a scarf called Mini Mania using leftover sock yarn. I also made a Steven West afghan called Garter Squish that used up about 5,700 yards of worsted weight yarn. I made a shaw called Sunny Delight using yarn from the NoCKRs retreat destash room. Socks and hats are another great way to use up stash. Here are some other patterns I have been looking at to use up leftovers. Lily’s Scrap Blanket Vintage Crocheted Throw & Afghan Briochevron Blanket  (not sure I can do that much brioche) Stashbuster Blarf Stashbuster Sweater   Kelly says: Right now I have yarn all over the place.  Larger weaving cones are on a shelf in the garage and the smaller cotton, linen, etc. cones are in boxes in the garage since my only available looms are out there.  Usually most of my knitting yarn is in baskets and bowls and sorted however I think looks nice. It varies.  Sometimes by color, sometimes by type, sometimes by weight. Because of the electrical work mess, some of my yarn is also in boxes/bags in the living room (where big piles of stuff are being stored).  After using an already created warp from a destash, I’ve been thinking that winding warps and storing them as warps would be a great way to have weaving projects ready to go. When the inside studio is available again I’ve thought of a system for threading cones onto chains that drape across one of the walls. I like to see my yarn in different combinations to get inspiration. The downside of this system is that there could be sun damage to the yarn if I don’t use it regularly. I’m also not quite sure of the system for getting yarn down easily without having the whole string of cones come down on my head! My stashbuster projects for using leftovers are bears for the Mother Bear Project , charity hats, and baby socks. I also find that having yarn out on display gives me other ideas for combining yarns that weren’t originally planned to go together. Another possible project for using up waste (thrums from weaving) and other leftovers are to make hot pads. One technique is to use multiple strands that are twisted and plied to create a square that is then sewn together and felted. Another technique is to wrap rope with yarn using a coil basketry technique to make a spiral the becomes a round hot pad. Both would be perfect projects for the (K)Not Along that is going until August 31).

Franoicse Danoy of Aroha Knits, is a bi-racial, multi-craftual maker of color. She empowers knitters to explore the intersection of of making with identity. Her designs draw on her Maori heritage, and she celebrates the myths, legends and other stories about her culture and relates them to knitting as an artform.

A fabulous knitting retreat contrasts with a horrible injury, but the fun outweighs the pain in this episode. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts at twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com  or contact us on our website. Project Updates Kelly is plugging away at  Koru by Aroha Knits using the Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk. It is in timeout due to a dropped stitch and will need to have about 4 to 5 rows ripped out and reknit. Meanwhile Kelly started some shortie socks with her Bee Yarn (Sunflower colorway from Duren Dyeworks). She will finish them before the episode goes live.  She also is knitting a The Double Trouble Reversible Beanie by Petite Knitter. Kelly is experimenting with color changes in her version. Marsha has made progress on the T-shirt called Lace Market by Marie Greene and she is using Schoppel El Linio (linen) in Indigo. She finished the body of the pullover Cobblestone by Jared Flood, finished the first sleeve and started the second sleeve. She is using the New Lanark Mill DK she bought in Scotland last year. Other ways to play with string...A Not Along (or is it Knot Along?) The Two Ewes will be starting a challenge for fiber projects that are NOT knitting, crochet, spinning, or weaving. The NOT (or KNOT) Along will start on May 31 and goes through August 31, so think about what you want to be working on this summer that is NOT knitting, crochet, or weaving. Retreat Fun We had a great time at the NoCKRs retreat. Lots of relaxing (at least when Marsha wasn’t fetching ice, etc. for Kelly!) lots of good food, lots of friends, and some learning.  Monica (Kirbymo) taught us how to make Beeswax Wraps that are an alternative to plastic wrap. There are lots of YouTube tutorials, but this was a good one and included links to purchasing supplies. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_bsxrqAF-s There were some great designers in attendance at the . Do check out their patterns on Ravelry. Celia McAdam Cahill Brenda Castiel Heddi Craft gave a demonstration on sock machine knitting. Her book is CSM: The Cookbook Elizabeth Doherty gave a talk on short rows. Recommendations Kelly: Don’t carry a bunch of crap when you walk up the stairs in the dark! Marsha: Spicy Red Lentil Soup from The Splendid Table’s How to Eat Weekends adapted by Nancy Leson food writer at the Seattle Times.

Celebrating member weaving projects and highlighting the work of designers who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. You’ll definitely add patterns to your queue after this episode! Doing our part for World Fleece! Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. Use email twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com or contact us on our website. Project Updates Kelly is plugging away at  Koru by Aroha Knits using the Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk. The patterned sections have become almost routine and she is approaching the length where she will begin armholes. Kelly also finished a small shawlette/cowl out of handspun.  The project was started and finished in one weekend trip to San Francisco to see the musical Hamilton. Marsha has cast on two projects. The first is a T-shirt called Lace Market by Marie Greene and she is using Schoppel El Linio (linen) in Indigo. She also cast on for her brother the pullover Cobblestone by Jared Flood using the New Lanark Mill DK she bought in Scotland last year. Celebrating Weaving The Two Ewes celebrate weaving with a review of member weaving projects. Lots of members are weavers and participated in the recently finished Winter Weave Along. Besides looking at the finished object thread the Ewes went to the Ravelry advanced search, selected the “projects” tab at the top, selected “weaving” as the craft in the filter boxes on the left, and selected “Groups” from the very last filter box with additional characteristics.  This allows you to select a Ravelry Group, for example Two Ewes Fiber Adventure. Once you do that you see a page of all the weaving projects by group members. Gorgeous and inspiring! A Diversity of Designers The Ewes highlighted patterns from the Designers of Color Bundle that was created by the Solidarity Swap Ravelry Group. Some of the patterns are: Lesedi Shrug by Noma Ndlovu, Mermaid Top by Rebecca McKenzie, Summertime Tee by Toni Lipsey (crochet) Inseparable Cowl and Shawls by Tami Gore And many, many others (over 70 pages of patterns!) The Two Ewes dare you to look at this bundle and not add to your project queue! Other ways to play with string...A Not Along (or is it Knot Along?) Group member Jill contacted Kelly about punch needle rug hooking. Kelly has been planning a project for awhile, but hasn’t gotten started. Jill also wanted to do a punch needle project.  So the Two Ewes will be starting a challenge for fiber projects that are NOT knitting, crochet, or weaving. The NOT (or KNOT) Along will start on May 31, so think about what you want to be working on this summer that is NOT knitting, crochet, or weaving. Recommendations Kelly recommends  Fiber at the Speed of Life podcast by Erica (Weavolution) and Michele.  They just published their first episode.

The Ewes talk knitting and then have a discussion of dyeing techniques in answer to a listener question. A little Enzo and a little bee news round out the episode. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com is our email address or you click contact us on our website. Project Updates Marsha finished Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmaier using The Croft Shetland Tweed by West Yorkshire Spinners that she bought at the The Yarn Cake in Glasgow. The sweater fits beautifully and she’s happy with her modifications. She is still looking for a pullover pattern for her brother using New Lanark Wool & Textiles DK that she bought at the mill in New Lanark, Scotland last March. Kelly continues to work on Koru by Aroha Knits using the Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk She ripped out the mistake and is now making good progress. She also finished 5 hats from spirit yarn (destash yarn): Caron Simply soft Mardi Gray. Variegated gray with soft pink, yellow and green. Acrylic yarn, called Mardi Gray. It was a full bag of 4 balls, 150 yards in each ball. Dyeing Techniques Discussion The Ewes answer a dyeing questionMomdiggity/Jo Ann, who asked, “I would love to hear you talk about your fiber dying techniques.” Kelly and Marsha talk about choosing and blending colors, the different techniques they’ve tried over the years and in particular under-dyeing and over-dyeing.  Kelly tells about her natural dyeing experiments and Marsha found two dyeing classes on Craftsy (now Bluprint) that she thinks she may try. Both are taught by Sarah Eyre. Professional Yarn Dyeing at Home: dyeing solids, semi-solids speckled, and variegated. Discusses yarns, dyes, mordants, safety, gear and studio set up. Next Steps in Dyeing: gradients, sock blanks, self-striping, hand-painted, dyeing fibers. Twenty Stitches Notecard Giveaway The Two Ewes are having a giveaway for notecards that they received as a promotion from the  Twenty Stitches booth at Stitches West. Twenty Stitches has beautiful cards, tags, gift boxes, and kits to make them. Here is an description of the product from the website. Clear instructions, pre-cut and perfectly spaced embroidery holes, a #20 Chenille needle, and all the necessary thread and adhesives are included in our kits, making it easy to create perfectly embroidered notecards, tags, and giftboxes.  Our book artsinspired samplers are a fun way to practice or learn twenty embroidery stitches. Head over to the Giveaway Thread in the Ravelry Group to see how to enter. The giveaway thread will be open until May 8 when we will draw a winner for a pack of notecards to embroider. Winter Weave Along ends March 31. Don’t forget to enter your weaving projects in the FO thread. Next episode will be a celebration of weaving and a drawing for prizes. Recommendations Kelly: Xerces Society Pollinator friendly plant list  

Whisky tasting, a trip to the Scottish Highlands, a knitting mishap, and podcasting in pajamas are some of the tangents this episode! Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com is our email address or you click contact us on our website. Project Updates Marsha has finished the body and one sleeve of a pullover Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmaier (again!) using The Croft Shetland Tweed by West Yorkshire Spinners that she bought at the The Yarn Cake in Glasgow. She also swatched with New Lanark Wool & Textiles DK that she bought at the mill in New Lanark, Scotland last March. She is looking for a sweater pattern for her brother. Kelly continues to work on Koru by Aroha Knits using the Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk that she bought last year at Stitches. Somehow she began using the left chart on the right and the right chart on the left so there is about 2-3 inches that need to be ripped out. The back and two fronts of the Sonny Bono jacket are done. Kelly will definitely need more yarn for the two sleeves and collar. There is about a skein and a half left and a call to Amazing Yarns is needed. Gauntlet was thrown down by Heddicraft who finished a linen bath mitt from 2 retreats ago. So Kelly dug in her stash for NoCKRs spirit yarn with a goal to use something up before the retreat.  She is making hats from a variegated gray with soft pink, yellow and green. Acrylic yarn, called Mardi Gray. It was a full bag of 4 balls, 150 yards in each ball, so she plans at least 4 hats. Thank You Patrons! We have 21 Patrons at patreon.com/twoewes.  Patrons help us buy prizes, pay for podcast hosting, and ship prizes.  Patrons sign up for a support level starting at $3 per month. Our patrons help us make the show available for free to everyone. This month we’re giving away two prize skeins of Studio Fingering from Neighborhood Fiber Company.            Events The Winter Weave Along is ending March 31. Come chat with us about weaving in the We Sley thread on Ravelry and don’t forget to post your finished objects in the FO thread. Our first April episode will be a celebration of weaving! Recommendations Kelly recommends coming home from work and putting on your pajamas at 5:15! Also, she recommends two shows she has been watching on Amazon Prime video: Unforgotten a British police drama about solving cold cases Case Histories, also a crime drama. Based on stories by Kate Atkinson.

A Stitches recap with a Two Ewes twist.  We’ll let the others tell you about the popular knits at Stitches West. We fell in love with skulls, knitted plants and animals, and furry jackets! Plus we met some great listeners. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com is our email address or you click contact us on our website. What did we wear on the Stitches West carpet? Marsha wore her cardigan Cloud Cover and her handspun combo spin sweater made with Simple Summer Tweed pattern. Both patterns are by Heidi Kirrmaier. Kelly wore the  Mystery Knit Along with Cozy Up Knits using the Two Ewes Replenish Rambouillet and the Running Water cardigan by Claudia Eisenkolb. What did we work on at Stitches West? Marsha exclusively worked on a pullover Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmaier (again!) using The Croft Shetland Tweed by West Yorkshire Spinners that she bought at the The Yarn Cake in Glasgow. Marsha has a finished object her Slack Tide Scarf by Poststitch for her brother Kelly worked on Koru by Aroha Knits using the Dragonfly Fibers Dance Rustic Silk that she bought last year at Stitches. However, with three traveling stitch charts, it wasn’t the best choice for social knitting. Anticipating the need for a second project Kelly brought an in-progress Mother Bear and a kit of leftover yarns. She got one bear to the point of needing some stuffing and started a second bear. What did we see at Stitches Ellen’s Wooly Wonders has fabulous patterns including Daphne’s Skull Amazing Yarns is where Kelly found her dream project. New cast on! Lady Dye Yarns had great colors and her signature “BadA$$ Knitter,” Sheep Fro, and other bags. Neighborhood Fiber Company is full of beautiful yarns as always. It’s one of our favorites. At Bay Street Yarns, Anne, spent some time talking to us about her Fire Relief yarns. Knitting on the Fringe had a wide variety of non-yarn products, including Fair Trade felted bags. New friends from Stitches The Two Ewes met some great new fiber friends including Rhonda Waipahu who came to Stitches all the way from Pennsylvania, Noelle in the double knit class who recognized Kelly’s voice, Drummer Girl Creations aka Drummergirlmakes aka Patricia was at the show with her two boys. Later the Ewes met Marisa Quiltotaku who came with their friend Marianne, and Pamela who they met briefly last year but got to talk with more this year. She came with their friend Alissa. They tried to talk the Ewes into going to the pajama party, but the Ewes couldn’t stay up that late!  They also met Sarah, Imagined Landscapes, gnome designer extraordinaire! Madrona Fiber Arts Marsha attended The Madrona Fiber Arts with her friend Kim. The show had a nice market. They stopped by the Brooklyn Tweed booth where Kim mentioned to Luigi Boccia that the sweater she made several years ago with Loft and developed holes. Luigi explained the company discovered the original Loft was too fragile and has reformulated yarn. He extended a discount to each of us to try the yarn again. So a huge thank you to Luigi for doing this and for those knitters and crocheters who may have had a similar experience, do give the yarn another try. Recommendations Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism by Safiya Umoja Noble. This book reads like a textbook and takes both concentration and familiarity with the academic language of social justice studies. Kelly is really enjoying this listen but has looked up words, used the repeat button, looked up phrases,, and bookmarked clips a lot! Events We will be having a Thank You Patrons episode in March with patron appreciation drawings. To become a Patron go to http://patreon.com/twoewes. We have several levels of support for those who are interested. Other ways to support the show: tell others, participate in the group, leave us feedback.

Despite the noises and interruptions the yarn talk continues! Through downpours, laundry, head shaving, a neighbor coming by and odd thumping in the background, the show goes on.  Hear the Ewes respond to the Fiberuary Challenge and Yarn Love Challenge prompts. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com is our email address or click contact us on our website. Project Updates Marsha finished her cardigan Cloud Cover by Heidi Kirrmaier and loves it. Marsha double checked the label on her fleece and it is Wensleydale x Cormo x Merino fleece. After our last episode Marsha ordered another skein of worsted yarn from Thirteen Mile Lamb and Wool to have extra for dyeing for the colorwork pullover, Snowflower by Heidi Kirrmaier. She is still in the planning stage for dyeing the yarn. Plus she wants to take a colorwork class. Marsha is almost done with Slack Tide Scarf by Poststitch that she is making for her brother and she cast on a scarf for herself called Shared Rib by Anne Hanson using Old Maiden Aunt Yarns fingering weight that she bought last March at the Edinburgh Yarn Festival. She also cast on a pullover Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmaier (again!) using The Croft Shetland Tweed by West Yorkshire Spinners that she bought at the The Yarn Cake in Glasgow. Kelly finished the  Mystery Knit Along with Cozy Up Knits using the Two Ewes Replenish Rambouillet.  It will be one of her Stitches garments if it gets blocked in time. Kelly has started the Koru by Aroha Knits. She’s using Dance Rustic Silk from Dragonfly Fibers. News The Solidarity Swap on Ravelry is a pattern and/or yarn swap celebrating designers and dyers who are people of color or from underrepresented groups. The group has a designer bundle listing a variety of designers and  Indie dyers that you might not have seen before. Another resource for finding designers, dyers, and other makers of color is Jeanette Sloan’s site POC Designers and Crafters. AllFreeKnitting has added the Two Ewes to its updated list of the top 10 knitting podcasts. Upcoming Events Stitches West Northwest Regional Spinners Association Whidbey Weavers Guild Black Sheep Gathering

A little knitting and a lot of permission to break spinning and knitting rules. Wait--there are no rules! The Ewes share anti-racism resources, plus, listener questions and feedback to round out the show. Full notes with photos and links can be found in the podcast section of our shop website: TwoEwesFiberAdventures.com.  Join the community on Ravelry  or email us with your thoughts. twoewes@twoewesfiberadventures.com is our email address or you click contact us on our website. Project Updates Marsha continues to work on her  Cloud Cover cardigan by Heidi Kirrmaier. She is almost done with the collar and then will weave in the ends and block.  She has been spinning her  Wensleydale x Cormo x Merino fleece. It has been slow but steady progress but Kelly gives her permission to break some rules! Marsha is also planning her next project. She plans to use Imperial Ranch Columbia, a mulespun worsted weight yarn in the colorway Juniper Green. What is “mulespun”? Below are two links with for information: https://www.marrhaven.com/faq.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spinning_mule She is also thinking about starting her Snowflower by Heidi Kirrmaier using worsted yarn from Thirteen Mile Lamb and Wool. Kelly is continuing the  Mystery Knit Along with Cozy Up Knits using the Two Ewes Replenish Rambouillet.  She made only a little progress in the last two weeks but still plans to finish by the February 14th deadline. She is dreaming of her next sweater, perhaps the Koru by Aroha Knits. The Ewes share some anti-racism resources recommended through the discussion about racism in the yarn community.   The Ravelry Thread Racism and Inclusion in the Fiber Community #diversknitty and other hashtags on Instagram where the discussion started and continues Me and White Supremacy, a workbook by Layla F. Saad White Fragility by Robin di Angelo Seeing White, a series on the podcast Scene on Radio Although there was only a little knitting progress, listeners saved the day with some great questions and feedback. Momdiggity asked Marsha about how she splits braids for a combo spin so Marsha talks about that in the episode. The Ewes also had some feedback from the southern hemisphere. Leanne from South Africa shared with us about Knit-a-Square South Africa and the 67 Blankets for Nelson Mandela Day project. Aimee from New Zealand listens on her commute and was finishing up an epic project, her crocheted blanket.  Meanwhile, back on the California coast, Stella provided an interesting article by Jilian Moreno about how your knitting style affects your gauge. Events We will be having a Thank You Patrons episode in March.  We have reached a milestone and we’ll have our second quarterly drawing, this time for two winners. Patreon terms of service don’t allow us to advertise drawings for patron levels on our Patreon page so that information will be revised on the page.  However, we’ll have quarterly Thank You episodes on the show and we can recognize our patrons there. Other Events Northwest Regional Spinners Association Fleeber Farms Twisted Straight Fibers Whidbey Weavers Guild Stitches West Black Sheep Gathering

What's your brand? Is worrying about it going to increase your sales? What is translating marketing on Instagram into sales? Today we're going to talk about the difference between branding, marketing and sales, as it's related to your small business. A few weeks ago we talked about increasing sales through marketing on Instagram and then I was talking with a Captain about being sure they were spending their time on SALES, not just on Branding. It got me thinking, there's an important distinction between Branding and Marketing and Sales, and we don't talk about it a lot. In a big a business, these three things are clearly separate, there are different people in each department. But in your small business, you're doing it all. And in different businesses, they have different weights, .... Branding The vibe of your business. Your brand is the answer to the question: “How do people think about your business? How does your business makes people feel?" When they see it, they know it's yours, because it's your branding. It's the visuals, the tone of voice, the kind of media you use, and how you show up. This is super important in a business that sells commodity - in other words, the same thing as similar businesses. For example, a comic shop sells the exact same comics and uses the exact same distributor as every other comic shop. So the branding is EXTREMELY important to help it stand out. For a shop, the branding is going to be how the shop makes you feel - the customer service, the vibe of the shop, the events and activities going on. Everything from the staff you hire, to the comics you highlight, to the way you treat customers - that's all going into the way your customers feel about you. Now, before we dive into this, I want to be clear about something. In all areas of your business, you're going to be authentic and honest. Just because you THINK about something and decide something, doesn't make it inauthentic. I think makers get confused about this because they think: I'm going to be myself and any amount of being strategic isn't authentically myself. No no no. The goal of effectively branding your small business is to find the brand that flows authentically from you. But to also be aware of it and intentional with it. So you're not just providing amazing customer service in your shop because it's what's your brand about it, you're doing it genuinely and authentically. If you (or a branding expert you hire) try to push a brand that isn't who you really are, it's going to fall apart. For example, the knitwear designer Frenchie behind Aroha Knits - her business has this very beautiful, elegant, styled in natural materials and soft colors brand, and when she talks in her videos, you can feel it's all very authentic. But if I tried to pull that off? If it would be fake and be So. Much. Work. I just can't be airy and elegant and styled. My branding is bright colors and being honest and being my goofy self. While that's authentically me, I have to actually remind myself of that, especially when I compare myself to others or I feel like maybe I should be X or Y. A few more examples: If you're in a direct selling company, like doTERRA, the company brand stands for something already. But you have to build your own brand - not with a fancy website or anything, but through how you treat every customer, through how you sample people, invite them to learn more. If your brand is aligned with the bigger brand, and if you use the bigger brand to give you focus, you'll do better.  Your brand of education and support is going to be what builds trust and creates a community. A yarn dyer is creating a brand with every skein of yarn she dyes - the colors she uses, the yarn she uses, all of it. What also impacts your brand: the label, the shops or shows where you choose to sell, what you focus on about your yarn (is it the material? Fun? Community?) A few things to remember about Branding: If you're making your thing and putting it out there, you're going to have a brand. You don't have to "make" one, they occur naturally. Your brand is going to come from your IG, your products, photography, way you write your descriptions. Since you're going to have a brand anyhow, spend a little time thinking about it. The questions I ask in my marketing classes guide you through this. You can get access to my marketing class that goes into Instagram and email in the Starship, which opens in a few weeks. Sign up to learn more at taraswiger.com/starshipbiz. Branding is really important in a business that sells commodities, and if you want to stand out in a crowded marketplace. Be consistent. Choose some colors, your tone of voice, and stick with it. Brands (and businesses) evolve and change, that's ok. Marketing Marketing is communicating with your customers. It includes your brand (what do people think of when they think of you), but marketing is the ongoing communication of both that brand + feeling, and of the products you have. Marketing is everything that creates, keeps, and satisfies the customer. Branding is the feeling, marketing is what you DO that creates that feeling. Marketing is alllll the things you're doing in your business. It's putting things on sale, it's photography, it's what you post and how you say what you say. We talk a lot about marketing, but after we talk about sales, I'll give you a  few examples where people get confused about if they need to focus on marketing or sales. Sales Sales are: HOW YOU MAKE MONEY. It's the final step in the relationship that starts with marketing, contains your brand, all of that should lead to people making the sales. It's where you say: Click here to buy this. Here's how you can get this. Would you like to join? You can have the best branding and marketing in the world, but if you don't follow through and focus on sales - nothing. It won't matter. This is ESPECIALLY important in the online world. All your marketing might never be seen, until you focus on sales and you get in front of people. For a crafter this includes: Doing shows Sell to retail shops (you close the sale to them and they close sales to many consumers) I feel like I've been in an intensive training school for sales since joining doTERRA. Their branding is perfect. They already have marketing figured out. The products are amazing and pure and there's research projects that back it all up. In order to share the oils, I have to focus not on marketing (which is where I've spent a lot of my time in my other businesses) or in product creation, but in sales. How do I talk about these in a way that communicates clearly? How do I educate people so that they understand how they'd use them (because I don't want you to buy something you won't use?) These are the questions you ask yourself to improve your selling - Do people know this exists? What do they need to understand or know before they will want to buy? Am I making it clear how to buy? (So many people skip this part!) Understanding these questions has made me better at sales in every area of my business - from the Starship, to book sales, to classes. You can hear more about being better at sales here. I want to reiterate what I said earlier - you're going to do ALL of this with authenticity. People have such stereotypes about "sales", that they think you have to leave your integrity behind. Of course not! Sales is a natural outgrowth of your brand and marketing. If you make it NOT a natural outgrowth, you're going to be really bad at it. As I said before, just because you're thinking about it and getting better at it, doesn't make it inauthentic. If you feel like it does, or you are thinking "I don't want to do sales", then honey, you don't want to have a business. A business is sales. So let's look at some examples of where people get confused about which of the three they need to focus on: If you have started an online shop and you haven't gotten sales or traffic, my #1 recommendation is that you focus on making sales, before you worry with anything else. Get your products in front of people - go do a craft show, do a local farmer's market, approach local shops or galleries. Spend all your time on sales, and in the in-between times, post to Instagram, or start to build your online marketing. But I see a lot of makers spend hours and hours on their online marketing, which takes MUCH longer to turn into sales. So when they don't have sales after 2 or 6 or 12 months, they stop their business and  say, "people didn't want what I sold". Nope, it's that people didn't know what you sold. The social media world has confused us by thinking a big following = a steady business. Nope. Steady sales = a steady business. Now, if you've GOT a big social media following, you can absolutely start a business and start making sales, but my friends and students who have done this tell me that they're shocked by how SMALL percentage of their audience actually buys their thing. If you are making some sales and you're getting real customer feedback, absolutely build an online following, but realize that a small following that actually buys is 100x better than a big audience that doesn't. I'm pretty passionate about this topic, because I've seen so many business owners spin their wheels online instead of going out there and making sales. I have 2 businesses that earn over six figures a year, and you can see on my Instagram, I don't have a huge audience. This podcast isn't in the top 10 or even 50 on iTunes. I don't even have 5,000 email subscribers. So why do people focus more on marketing than sales? Sales is scary. You can be rejected. When you focus on marketing, you're just "putting it out there" and people can either opt in or not opt in. That feels much less risky. When you focus on sales, you're giving people the opportunity to say yes OR NO. And we're afraid of hearing no. But as my mentor told me in the first few months of my doTerra business: You have to get a lot more comfortable being rejected. Ha! Yes! Also, ouch. So how do you know what you need to work on? Almost always you can spend more time on sales. If you've been building piecemeal over the last few years, take a step back and look at your branding. Does your site and Instagram and tone "match" your products? Does it make sense? If you threw your product (and tag) in a pile with others, would people know which is yours? It may be time to think through what you want your brand to be and how you're communicating that. Everything is marketing. If you are posting online regularly, updating your shop, putting labels on your products, you're marketing. Like we talked about in episode 217, focus on your right people and on communicating clearly. If you'd like to work on all three and get my feedback on your branding, marketing and sales, join the Starship!   Listen in and find out when the Starship opens at TaraSwiger.com/podcast219

In this episode, Kara chats with special guests, Chelsea Fitch of Knit Fitch, Francoise Danoy of Aroha Knits and Claire Probst of We Love Knitting to share details about FiberBoss College LIVE. If your wish is to profit from your passion, then this is a must-listen to episode!   

It wasn't long ago that Frenchie was just picking up knitting for the first time, but you wouldn't know that by the look and feel of her business. Frenchie now has Aroha Knits and is kicking so much ass in the knitting world it's hard to imagine she hasn't been doing this for a decade. I love love love chatting with Frenchie and you will love all the wisdom and passion that comes packaged in this episode! Who's ready to head to Japan with me?   Find Frenchie: http://www.arohaknits.com/ Instagram: @ArohaKnits Which Fiber Muse Are You? Quiz: http://www.arohaknits.com/discovery-test Swatch Studio: http://www.arohaknits.com/swatch-studio-course Jennifer Kem (http://www.jenniferkem.com/)     3 CWL Musts: read: Start With Why by Simon Sinek, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck by Mark Manson, and many more! Follow: Chelsea Fitch @knitfitch Believe: I don't fail, I gather data

In this episode, I chat with Francoise Danoy, knitwear designer, Instagram guru and Marketing maven, who designs under the label Aroha Knits. Her brand's mission is to enrich, encourage and empower creatives in the fiber industry so that they can fearlessly pursue their goal of running a small fiber business. You'll learn how Francoise took her Instagram following to over 15k loyal followers and she will explain exactly how she did it! To read to the full show notes and get the free guide: www.PowerPurlsPodcast. com To subscribe on itunes: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/power-purls-podcast/id1043956186

Francoise Danoy who is a Franco-Maori American-Australia knitwear designer currently living with her husband in a small village on the southern island Kyushu in Japan. More than just designing knitwear, Francoise also strives to be a mentor to independent fiber artists, entrepreneurs, and aspiring designers.