Allison Thistlewood is a Canadian living in the UK and growing a community of passionate knitters and spinners there. Together with her "Yarn in the City" business partner, she is blogging, podcasting, and running The Great London Yarn Crawl.

007: Allison Thistlewood on Community Building in the UK

Join Felicia Lo, founder of SweetGeorgia Yarns, as she explores the sweet spot between craft, creativity, and colour together with some of the most inspiring knitters, spinners, designers, shop owners, and makers in this handmade community.

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This week Felicia is talking with writer and spinner: Debbie Held from Atlanta, Georgia. If you've been following our news at SweetGeorgia this year we created a brand new Ambassador Program this past August and introduced nine people in the knitting  and fibre arts world to help SweetGeorgia share the love of colour and craft and Debbie is one of those ambassadors. Debbie was chosen as an ambassador due to her passion for handspinning and her ability to share it with the community in such an encouraging and inviting way. She has written for Interweave, Schacht Spindle Company, Spin Off, Ply magazine, and more. And her writing has led to teaching opportunities all over the world. We hope you'll join us for the chat today!   "...finding spinning has brought me an entirely new, incredibly rewarding life... I just feel lucky." - Debbie Held on how her life drastically changed when she was introduced to the art of spinning   In this episode, we talk about:  1:24 Debbie chats about what got her into spinning in the first place 5:41 Felicia asks Debbie how she combined her creative life and her professional life 9:08 Debbie chats about how spinning helped her in her darkest times in life 13:15 How Debbie encourages people who want to spin for fun or for a career 17:30 Felicia chats about her new e-spinner with Debbie and how spinning can look different for everyone depending on their circumstances in life 20:57 What other kinds of fibre arts are in Debbie's life? 22:03 What kind of spinning trends Debbie is seeing lately 24:53 Debbie and Felicia chat about being multi-craftual makers 25:49 Debbie chats about the fear of creating and how it can hold you back 29:48 Debbie chats about her column "Her Handspun Habit" 34:24 Debbie chats about her exciting trip to Scotland to research some very rare spinning wheels 44:18 Where you can find Debbie online 47:34 Felicia's Final Thoughts    Here's Where You Can Find Debbie: Website: www.debbieheld.com Instagram: @doodler01 Ravelry: www.ravelry.com/people/doodler01   Thanks for Listening! Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre art friends. And if you like what we're doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. We read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so we welcome your comments. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our show! Until next time, enjoy colour!   Music Credits: Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic Click to subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Stitcher Radio Subscribe on Spotify

Episode 097: The Encouraging, Passionate Spinning Teacher with Debbie Held

This week on the show, Felicia is chatting with Claudia Gossens: the owner of the yarn shop Lanaphilia in Germany. Claudia has a joyful passion and excitement for yarn, fibre, knitting, and colour in everything she does and recently began sharing her experiences on her podcast: Wollinspirationen (available in German only). It’s always wonderful to be able to chat with yarn shop owners from all over the world so we hope you’ll join Felicia and Claudia for their conversation!     "...the feedback is enormous and I love it, it's just like having a huge amount of good knitting friends." - Claudia Glossens on how her podcast, Wollinspirationen enhances her fibre arts world   In this episode, we talk about:  1:20 Claudia's nickname 2:31 How Claudia started knitting and how it became such a large part of her life 5:05 Knitting over language barriers 8:47 Claudia's favourite things to knit 9:45 Where Claudia finds inspiration for her knitting projects and her goals to finish before 2019 ends 12:45 Does Claudia have any other fibre interests other than knitting? 13:35 Claudia discusses her interest in spinning 15:21 What Claudia does with all her handspun and the difficulties and fun of blending certain colours with carding and knitting 19:00 Learning more about colour and the ones that suit you and bring you joy 21:32 How Claudia started running her yarn store: Lanaphilia and her biggest challenges in running a yarn store 27:01 Claudia chats about her Lanaphilia works as an online-only yarn store 27:45 Felicia asks Claudia about what knitting trends she's finding in Germany and online 29:45 Felicia asks Claudia if starting her podcast Wollinspirationen has affected what inspires her. 36:42 Where you can find Claudia online 37:56  Felicia's Final Notes and Giveaway    Here's Where You Can Find Claudia: Website: www.lanaphilia.de Podcast: https://wollinspirationen.de Instagram: @lanaphilia Ravelry Group: https://www.ravelry.com/groups/lanaphilia   Enter to win a Copy of the Taurus Shawl Pattern: Claudia is giving our listeners a chance to win a copy of her  pattern: Taurus a triangular shawl that plays with slipped stitches. Thank you Claudia! Click here to enter the giveaway »   Thanks for Listening! Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre art friends. And if you like what we're doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. We read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so we welcome your comments. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our show! Until next time, enjoy colour!   Music Credits: Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic Click to subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Stitcher Radio Subscribe on Spotify

Episode 096: Finding Playful Joy and Purpose Through Knitting with Claudia Gossens

This week, Felicia is joined by Kara Gott Warner and Stephanie Palmer of The Knitter's Planner. Kara has been on our show not once, but twice before, as she is the former editor of Creative Knitting Magazine and is now the host of the Power Purls Podcast. She is also a coach for creative women and entrepreneurs and is now the editor of The Knitter's Planner. If you want to listen to Kara's previous episodes with us they are Episode 24 and  Episode 50. We are also joined by Stephanie who is the creator and publisher of The Knitter's Planner. Please join us this week and get ready to nerd out about planning and time management!    "...we live in a hybrid time... we are in between two worlds in a sense... I do love my digital planners... but I think that there is just no replacement for putting a pen to paper... there's something meditative about it that you don't get with digital planning and there's a peaceful calming portion and there's a different level of commitment when you're thinking of your own goals and how you're structuring your time with pen to paper... that I just don't think digital can replace." - Stephanie Palmer on analog planners in a digital age    In this episode, we talk about:  1:20 Stephanie and Kara introduce themselves to the listeners 4:12 Felicia asks Stephanie why she decided to first make The Quilter's Planner 5:40 How is The Knitter's Planner different from other planners? 9:03 Sunday-Starter vs Monday-Starter: the customization options in The Knitter's Planner 13:24 Discussing how to merge a digital and analog planning systems 17:05 How using a planner can make a difference for fibre artists who want to create more 22:34 Chatting about the fear of "ruining" a beautiful planner 24:28 Discussing everyones personal workflow around their planner 29:50 How to plan around the holiday season 33:06 Tips for people who are not planners, but want to become one 35:43 Where people can find The Knitter's Planner 37:22 Felicia's Final Notes and Giveaway!    Here's Where You Can Find The Knitter's Planner: Website: www.knittersplanner.com Instagram: @theknittersplanner Facebook: www.facebook.com/KnittersPlanner   Enter the Giveaway to win a Free Knitter's Planner: Stephanie and Kara are giving one of our lucky listeners the chance to win a free custom Knitter's Planner! This is a giveaway you certainly don't want to miss! Click here to enter the giveaway »   Thanks for Listening! Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre art friends. And if you like what we're doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. We read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so we welcome your comments. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our show! Until next time, enjoy colour!   Music Credits: Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic Click to subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Stitcher Radio Subscribe on Spotify

Episode 095: Organizing your Knitting and Life with the Knitter's Planner

This week on the show, Felicia is chatting with Abby Glassenberg: a sewing pattern designer, craft book author, writer, and teacher. Since 2005 she's been writing a blog called While She Naps: which is about the home sewing industry and creative entrepreneurship with a focus on craft publishing, fabric manufacturing, feminism, and social justice. Ten years after she started the blog in 2015 she co-founded Craft Industry Alliance and now serves as its president. Join Felicia and Abby as they chat about the crafting industry and the challenges makers have as they pursue the dream of turning their passion into a sustainable business. "...I want to be where people are... and see what it's all about and not... live in fear... when I posted that there were a lot of people who were... really scared of Tik Tok... this is going to steal my privacy... and I understand the fear... about it but I just also feel like... get in there and play... see it with [your] own eyes... I would rather take a look myself than... believe the hype and... not make my own decision" -  Abby Glassenberg on crafters being on the new social media app, Tik Tok In this episode, we talk about:  1:29 Abby chats about when she began creating and how she stared her business 8:39 How Abby transitioned crafting from her hobby to a business and how it affected her audience base, and how business itself can be creative 13:58 Abby and Felicia discuss a common question in the industry: If you help other crafters succeed in their business, aren't you creating competition for yourself? 19:23 Abby chats more about Craft Industry Alliance and what it has to offer members 23:14 Felicia asks Abby what are the biggest challenges the craft industry and business owners are currently facing 26:53 The opportunities Abby is seeing in the creative industry space 29:44 Crafting and Tik Tok? Abby discusses the new social media app and how crafters could be a part of it 34:45 How Abby's business has changed now that her children are older 38:39 Abby discusses the team behind Craft Industry Alliance 41:03 What's coming up in the Craft Industry Alliance 45:33 Felicia's Final Notes and Special Discount Code for Craft Industry Alliance Membership    Here's Where You Can Find Abby: Abby's Blog: www.whileshenaps.com Craft Industry Alliance Website: www.craftindustryalliance.org Abby's Instagram: @abbyglassenberg Abby Glassenberg Design Facebook: www.facebook.com/pg/AbbyGlassenbergDesign   Get a Special Discount for Craft Industry Alliance Membership: If you are a small business owner and are interested in joining the Craft Industry Alliance, Abby has created a special discount code for our listeners to receive 20% off the membership fee! Use the code: SWEETGEORGIA at checkout to receive your discount. Thank you so much Abby!   Thanks for Listening! Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre art friends. And if you like what we're doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. We read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so we welcome your comments. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our show! Until next time, enjoy colour!   Music Credits: Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic Click to subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Stitcher Radio Subscribe on Spotify

Episode 094: Building the Craft Industry Alliance with Abby Glassenberg

This week Felicia is joined by weaver, teacher, and designer:  Kelly Casanova, from Melbourne Australia. Kelly runs an online weaving school called:  Kelly Casanova Weaving Lessons and has been working tirelessly to create ongoing weaving instruction, initially with a rigid heddle loom and now with multi-shaft looms. Kelly has been a huge inspiration for Felicia because Kelly was creating online weaving tutorials when there weren't any available. Join Felicia and Kelly as they chat about the involvement and control that weaving offers a fibre artist and how to encourage others to start weaving.   "...I felt like I was always looking for something really authentic, like I could do it from start to finish and have as much involvement in the process as I possibly could. And weaving was it for that because I could get the fibre, I could spin it, I could dye it, and then I could weave it, and then I could sew it..." -  Kelly Casanova on her love of weaving In this episode, we talk about:  2:09 Kelly chats about how she first got into the fibre arts 3:43 What was it about weaving that captured Kelly's interest so much? 5:19 What is Kelly's favourite fibre or yarn to work with? 6:20 Kelly discusses her upcoming course on studying Japanese techniques of dyeing and weaving 8:37 Felicia asks Kelly how she comes up with her course ideas for her online school 12:38 Kelly explains what students can learn at her online school 14:05 Kelly gives advice to first-time weavers and how to get started 16:49 Felicia and Kelly chat about how to encourage more weavers to create content for the Internet 18:31 What are the differences Kelly sees between weaving on a rigid heddle looms weaving on a floor loom? 21:30 Felicia chats with Kelly about her Etsy shop and her experience selling on that platform 23:06 Kelly's tips for production weavers 25:19 Kelly describes why she loves the online weaving community 27:19 How Kelly finds the time for self-care in a busy life 31:29 What Kelly has planned for her online school 33:36 Where can you find Kelly online 34:12 Felicia's Final Notes and Giveaway!    Here's Where You Can Find Kelly: Website: www.kellycasanovaweavinglessons.com Online School: www.kelly-casanova-weaving-lessons.teachable.com YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/kellycasanova Etsy Shop: www.etsy.com/shop/kellycasanovaart Facebook: www.facebook.com/kellycasanovatextileandfibreartist Instagram: @casanova_kelly_weaver   Enter the Giveaway for 5 Free Weaving Patterns from Kelly's Etsy Shop: If this week's conversation has inspired you to give weaving a try, then enter down below to win 5 free weaving patterns from Kelly's Etsy Shop! Thanks Kelly for giving our listeners a chance to win some of her gorgeous patterns! Click here to enter the giveaway »   Thanks for Listening! Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre art friends. And if you like what we're doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. We read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so we welcome your comments. Thank you all so much for your continued support of our show! Until next time, enjoy colour!   Music Credits: Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic Click to subscribe on iTunes Subscribe on Stitcher Radio Subscribe on Spotify

007: Allison Thistlewood on Community Building in the UK

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