Episode 34 : Living a colourful crochet life with Emma Leith

When I sat down to chat with the self-named ‘Queen of Colour’ & crochet designer Emma Leith, I was in for a treat. Emma’s enthusiasm for creativity and colour is infectious and she was a delight to speak to. She started out teaching mosaic but a couple of large scale yarnbombs brought Emma to prominence and two books of crochet patterns soon followed.

Emma’s mindful creations and colour choices are so zingy and uplifting – you can’t help but be filled with optimism when you see them.

I hope you enjoy our chat which covered subjects including how a breast cancer diagnosis gave Emma the time to focus on her crochet without pressure, how her creativity is a conduit for her Buddhist practice and how she has learned to embrace the colours of autumn.

You can hear Emma’s episode here.

You can find Emma’s work on her website & Instagram.
Mary Rose Young Pottery is one of Emma’s inspirations.

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.
The Making Stitches logo was designed by Neil Warburton at iamunknown.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.

Making Stitches Podcast is also supported by the Making Stitches Shop which offers Making Stitches Podcast merchandise for sale as well as Up the Garden Path crochet patterns created by me & illustrated by Emma Jackson.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay Weston.

Episode 32 : Yarndale 2021 : A festival of yarn, creativity & community

After a hiatus due to the pandemic last year, Yarndale returned to Skipton Auction Mart on 25th & 26th September and I was thrilled to be able to go along! As well as my mask and hand sanitizer I took my microphone and met so many truly lovely people.

Me (on the left) with Yvonne (R) from Bonnie’s Little Crafts in front of the charity shop Yarndale blanket mentioned in this episode.

This episode is my experience of Yarndale 2021, which in a nutshell was wonderful, friendly, colourful and utterly uplifting. In it you will hear from yarn dyers, craftspeople and business owners who were exhibiting their wares along with Matt Farci from Crojo.Life and Alyson Chu from Moorit Magazine as well as friend of Making Stitches, Carole Rennison from Hooked by Design who is also one of the festival’s organisers. I hope you enjoy listening to it as I enjoyed my Yarndale experience – it was a blast!

Carole Rennison from Hooked by Design and one of the Yarndale organisers in her gorgeous granny square cardigan

Here are the people & businesses who feature in this episode – my thanks to everyone who spoke to me.

Yarndale Festival
Juey from Juey Jumbo Craft Tools
Matt Farci from Crojo.Life
Niki from Allium Threads
Sarah Paul from Bigwigs Angora
Kate from Kate’s Kloths
Jenny & Ruth from Ammonite Yarns
Michelle Lewis from Woolly Wumpkins
Alyson Chu from Moorit Magazine
Judith from Buttoned Up
Carole Rennison from Hooked by Design

Looking down towards Yarndale at the Skipton Auction Mart from the Yarn Walk where I recorded at the end of the day

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.
Making Stitches Podcast is supported by the Making Stitches Shop.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay Weston.

Episode 31 : Teaching the world to knit socks with Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum

Hello and welcome to the first episode of series four of Making Stitches Podcast. It has been a very busy summer for me researching stories and makers to share with you on the podcast as well as working on my own creative projects too. It’s a real joy to be back with you!

In this episode we hear from Christine Perry, who you may know better as Winwick Mum, a champion of sock knitting who has made it her life’s work to simplify the sock-knitting process so anyone can achieve success and knit their own socks. Christine’s knitting journey began in earnest at the age of 18 when she saw a jumper she simply had to have and her mother told her to knit it herself. It wasn’t until several years later though, that her obsession with knitting socks began.

After being told that knitting socks was too difficult too many times at a knit and natter group, Christine decided to make her own tutorial to demystify the process and published it on her blog; Winwick Mum. That was when the ‘Sockalong’ was born and in the six years since, over 15,000 pairs of socks have been knitted around the world using Christine’s tutorials – and those are just the ones she knows about! She went on to write two books with sock patterns in and has her own YouTube channel in which she shows the process of creating socks. Christine has also designed a range of sock yarns for West Yorkshire Spinners.

Christine was a joy to talk to and her enthusiasm for her craft is truly infectious. I can imagine an awful lot of new sock projects will be cast on after listening to this! You can find Christine and her work via her blog Winwick Mum.

Listen to Christine’s episode here.

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

Photo credit: Christine Perry, Winwick Mum.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.
Making Stitches Podcast is supported by the Making Stitches Shop.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay Weston

Episode 28 : Hooking a brighter future with Louise Murray from Hooked by Lou

So many of my guests on the podcast so far have spoken about the healing properties of their crafts, the mindfulness of repetitive stitching, be that with a sewing needle or machine, a pair of knitting needles or a crochet hook. For my latest guest; Louise Murray, crochet and other crafts have helped her in her journey since losing her brother suddenly four years ago.

Back on 22nd May 2017, a terrorist attack on an Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena left more than 800 people injured and twenty two people lost their lives. One of those who died was Louise’s brother Martyn Hett. At the time, Louise was nearing the end of her foundation year studies ahead of plans to study for a degree in Fashion Design. All that was put on hold when the tragedy struck her family so suddenly and so publicly.

Hooked by Lou ‘Mixed Emotions’ bag, bralette & earrings

Since then, Louise’s love of crafts and creating helped her find a new direction and she’s now crocheting full time with her business ‘Hooked by Lou’ designing and making clothing and accessories. I’m so grateful to Louise for agreeing to share her story and for speaking so openly about her experiences.

You can hear Louise’s episode here.

You can find Louise’s work through the following links:
Hooked by Lou website
Hooked by Lou on Instagram
Hooked by Lou on Facebook

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay from Postcard from Gibraltar.

Episode 27: Crochet, Cherry Blossom & Friendship – A Day Out at The Crochet Sanctuary

Lisa Hesketh & Lynda-Rose Simonini from The Crochet Sanctuary

I’m so happy that I’ve been able to bring you this latest episode of Making Stitches. Back in the spring of 2020 when I was recording my first episode of Making Stitches, I imagined that before too long, I would be able to travel to meet inspiring makers and record their stories in person. Thanks to Covid lockdowns and restrictions, that hasn’t been able to happen until now.

That first episode of the podcast featured two ladies, Lisa Hesketh & Lynda-Rose Simonini, the creators of The Crochet Sanctuary, and the brains behind the Pandemonium Blanket Crochet-along (or CAL) which helped hundreds of crocheters cope through that first lockdown. That interview was recorded remotely as the vast majority of the Making Stitches episodes have been, but I hoped that one day, we would get the chance to meet in person. That day came two weeks ago at the first Crochet Sanctuary day of 2021.

The Crochet Sanctuary was first launched back in 2018, after Lisa and Lynda-Rose decided they wanted to create the kind of crochet get-away that they would like to attend themselves. They focus on inclusion and making sure everyone is welcomed and feels part of the group and there is help on hand if you are usure of stitches or techniques. The reason for the sanctuary is crochet, but from my experience on the day, the true message is friendship.

I took my microphone along with my crochet hooks and met some lovely ladies. I hope this epsiode gives you a flavour of the great time I had at my first ever Crochet Sanctuary!

You can hear the episode here.

My thanks to Lisa & Lynda-Rose, Amanda from Mrs G Makes, Diane & Sam for speaking to me for the podcast and to all the other lovely ladies I met that day.

Sam with her first ever finished Crochet Sanctuary item – a cherry blossom tea cosy

You can find out all about The Crochet Sanctuary here and do give their podcast a listen too!

If you would like to vote for Making Stitches Podcast in the ‘Specialist Interest’ category of the Quite the Thing Media 2021 Podcast Awards, voting is open until 19th June 2021. You can vote here. You can also vote for Making Stitches in the Listener’s Choice Category of the British Podcast Awards here.

My very own cherry blossom tea cosy & napkin rings

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

You can support Making Stitches Podcast with running costs through Ko-fi.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay from Postcard from Gibraltar.

Episode 22 : From Christmas Crochet to Amigurumi April with Hayley Shelton from Dotcraftstudio

Hello again! Last episode we heard from Louise Armitage aka Gini’s Dorset Buttons, and how a friendship blossomed between her and Hayley Shelton from Dotcraftstudio while they were competing in Kirstie’s Handmade Christmas last year. Well it didn’t seem right to only hear from one half of that crafty partnership, so in this episode I share the chat I had with Hayley all about her craft and her amazing end to 2020.

We know Hayley for bringing amigurumi to a national television audience in December last year as she created a beautiful reindeer head using the amigurumi crochet technique. However, she is also an accomplished illustrator and won a tv competition for her Christmas card design last year as well and her work has been shared online by the influencer Mrs Hinch.

I caught up with Hayley a few weeks ago to hear about her big tv experience, how she first got into crafting and her exciting plans for this month. You can hear her episode here or here.

You can find Hayley on Instagram at @dotcraftstudio
The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

Making Stitches Podcast is presented, recorded and edited by Lindsay from Postcard from Gibraltar.

Episode 19 : Doing What You Love with Sara Huntington, Editor of Simply Crochet Magazine

Happy New Year and welcome to the first episode of Making Stitches for 2021! In this episode we hear from crochet designer and Editor of Simply Crochet Magazine Sara Huntington. Sara tells me how she first discovered crochet by chance on a family holiday and hasn’t put her hook down since! She also explains how, several years ago, she made a conscious decision to follow her dreams and turn her passion for craft into her profession after juggling two jobs as well as motherhood to get there.

Sara has seen a boom in the number of people becoming interested in crafts, and specifically crochet, in recent months and is a keen advocate for its benefits. In this episode she shares her creative journey and the amazing determination she had to get to where she is today. Sara also shares her experiences of the process of finding inspiring designs to fill the pages of each issue of Simply Crochet magazine.

Bunting designed by Sara for Simply Crochet Magazine

You can hear the episode by searching for Making Stitches on your favourite podcast app or via this link.

Blanket designed by Sara for Simply Crochet Magazine

For more information on Simply Crochet, please visit the magazine website and you can find Sara on Instagram as @crochetdeli.

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

Making Stitches Podcast is recorded and edited by Lindsay from Postcard from Gibraltar.

Episode 17 : Finding colour inspiration in a lockdown veg patch with Agnis Smallwood

Agnis Smallwood
(Photo credit: Joanne Crawford)

This week, designer, maker, educator and weaver Agnis Smallwood speaks to me about her craft, her creative journey and how she found inspiration for her work this year among the carrots and radishes she grew in her small veg patch during lockdown. Agnis, who is based in Yorkshire, works on solo weaving projects as well as collaborations with organisations like museums. She also teaches weaving and other crafts like rag rug making and felting.

Just a few generations ago looms were a familiar sight in domestic settings giving artisans the chance to work from home. Just like the generations of weavers who have gone before her, Agnis is currently working on her loom from home which is where she spoke to me from.

Lockdown veg patch inspired woven scarves
(Photo credit: Joanne Crawford)

You can see Agnis’ work and find out about her workshops on her website.

Agnis’ radish inspired scarf
(Photo credit: Joanne Crawford)

Listen to this episode either by searching for Making Stitches on your favourite podcast app or here.

This episode is dedicated to the memory of Anu Dent, a crocheter and a much valued supporter of Making Stitches who very sadly passed away in November 2020. My condolences go out to her family and friends.

The music featured in this episode is Make You Smile by RGMusic from Melody Loops.

Making Stitches Podcast is recorded and edited by Lindsay from Postcard from Gibraltar.