RESOURCES & FAQ

KNITTING

Q: How many stitches do you cast on for socks and what needle size do you use?

A: Everyone's mileage may vary, but I generally cast on 64 stitches if knitting socks for myself, or an average woman's foot — 72 stitches for a man or large foot. I almost always use US 1.5 / 2.5mm needles.

Q: What size needle are you knitting  your scrap yarn blanket with? And how many stitches do you cast on, for each square?

A: I'm using a size US 4 / 3.5 mm needle, and cast on 40 stitches for each square, to knit my scrap yarn blanket (or Cozy Memories Blanket).


Q: What needles to you love to use or recommend?

A: My go-to knitting needles at the moment are HiyaHiya Sharps, especially their US 1.5 / 2.5 mm fixed circulars to knit socks. I also love Chiaogoo Red Lace circulars. While I don't knit very often on dpns, I do enjoy Knitter's Pride Cubics.



SPINNING

Wheel Spinning
  •  Any tutorial by Judith MacKenzie is GOLD. Check out her book The Intentional Spinner. She also has several video tutorials on Interweave.com, which you can purchase and download directly.
  • Craftsy's "Drafting From Worsted to Woolen" with Jaycee Boggs Faulkner is excellent! Learn different drafting styles and techniques from one of the best spinning instructors out there.
  • Craftsy's "Spinning Dyed Fibers" with Felicia Lo. Another great Craftsy class that shows many different ways to spin hand dyed fiber.
Drop Spindling 
Q: Can you demonstrate how to "Ply-on-the-fly"?

A:
I do a quick demo of plying on the fly in Episode 128 

DYEING YARN

SEWING
  • Learn to Sew Clothes video tutorial on CreativeBug.com. Perfect for beginners — it will teach you several essential sewing techniques.
PODCASTING

Q: What equipment do you use or recommend for podcasting? 

I use a Canon G7 X mounted on an AmazonBasics Lightweight tripod, to record my podcast. I love it because it's compact, great video quality, and has a flip screen. The audio is decent and doesn't pick up on auto-focus noise.

For vlogging, I usually mount my camera on a JOBY GorillaPod. Great for when I'm on-the-go because I can bend the leggs to double as a selfie-stick ... or position the camera in tricky spots.
 
Before, I had been using my iPhone 6 plus to record. While my smartphone's video quality is great, It doesn't have much storage. It can only hold up to 45min of footage, before I need to stop and unload it onto my computer.

With the iPhone, I also used a mini cell phone tripod and an AmpRidge microphone. I find these things easy to setup and break down. Portability is also a plus! 

Another great microphone is this nifty clip-on one from Audio-Technica.

In the past, I've used a Logitech Carl Zeiss Tessar HD 1080p webcam to record straight to my computer with Quicktime and an external condenser microphone. The video quality was excellent, and would still recommend it.

For lighting, I use a table-top photography light (like these) to light my face, and have a softbox light to light the background.

To edit, I use Final Cut Pro ... but you can certainly use whichever editing software comes with your computer, like iMovie, to make basic cuts and titles. The only difference professional bells and whistles.

Q: What other podcasting tips do you have?

  • If you don't have professional lighting equipment, recording in natural daylight, facing a window, is best!
  • Make sure any light source you are using is pointing at you, and not lighting you from behind. 
  • Minimize head space. You don't want too much room between the top of your head and the top of the frame.