Saturday, September 26, 2009

Knitting in Spirit - Listen to Podcasts!

I can't believe its been so long since I've posted.  There just never seems to be enough time in the day, does there?  I have finished some small projects, but haven't been able to photograph them in decent light just yet, so you'll have to wait to see those.  Because I've been so busy, I've been knitting in spirit only - skimming posts on Ravelry, looking at new magazines, and listening to podcasts!

I have an hour commute in the car to my little shop, so I have started listening to podcasts, specifically knitting podcasts.  After a little research, I discovered a couple podcasts that I am really enjoying.  First there is Cast On with Brenda Dayne.  Her story is quite interesting - she's an American living in Wales.  In addition to discussing her knitting projects, she tells charming tales of her community and even such mundane things as the weather in Wales seems a little more romantic than the weather here in the Mid-Atlantic.  Her website, blog and podcast can be found at Cast On.  She's taking a little break from the podcasts at the moment, but old episodes are so worth a listen.  I love how she produces a series all based on the same theme.  I especially enjoyed the Make Do and Mend series, beginning here.  The current economy has us all tightening our belts, and spending more wisely, and its a natural extension to be more careful in our crafting or to craft new uses for items rather than spending on something new.

Another podcast I have enjoyed is Never Not Knitting (what a great name!) with Alana.  She has a blog here, with links to her podcast episodes, some beautiful children's patterns and lots of interesting knitterly things to pass along.  She does a product review which I appreciate - its always helpful to get someone's honest perspective on something, isn't it? Listening to a few of her podcasts recently helped me get through a day of cleaning in preparation for house guests. It was nice to be in the world of knitting in my head, while busy vacuuming and tidying up.

Both of these are available through ITunes.  Just type in knitting in a search of their podcasts, and a whole list pops up for you.  I have downloaded some others as well, but these two are my current favorites.  Grab an easy project, and have a listen!