On this episode of the podcast we  chat about what's making us happy at the mo, including an update on our progress with the Blacker PodKAL for the Edinburgh Yarn Festival and the new #yarnlovechallenge on Instagram. We also find out what happens when you love yarn so much that it leads you to making your own. For that conversation we'll be chatting with our friend Carmen from A Yarn Story in Bath, who's been working with Sharon from Great British Yarns on a new joint venture, Walcot Yarns.

Grab your favourite beverage and your WIP and let's go!

What we're working on (aka Make Happy):

The Blacker Yarns PodKAL continues apace! Allison has her SSS well underway, and Rachel is casting on for her Inglis Mitts as we record (better late than never!)

The projects shown on Ravelry and Instagram all look amazing and there are some truly speedy knitters out there! We have some special kudos too, for those of you who have come on board #teamYITC:

• Hdayananda is knitting with a gorgeous green Cornish Tin for her In the Pines Pullover
• Mariette694 is making a capelet/wrap of her own design in both Tamar and Cornish Tin that is look stunning already
• And then there's Josh (breiwerken on Instagram) who is also making his own colourwork design out of Cornish Tin that is nothing short of amazing!

If you want to join in with the Blacker PodKAL, it's not too late! Here are the details:

• Any design or pattern you want (some great freebies on the Blacker Yarns website)
• Must be knit with Blacker Yarns to be eligible for prizes and discounts at EYF
• Can be used in combination with other yarns too
• Chat thread in Blacker Yarns Ravelry group
• Tag with#BlackerPodKAL on social media & Ravelry
• Cast off date is 4th March (just in time for EYF!)
• If you wear your FO at EYF you can get a discount on more Blacker Yarns!
• There are multiple teams and you can be on more than one – we hope you'll tag your projects with #teamyitc so that we can see what you're working on for the KAL (we'll have a special #teamYITC prize too!)

In other make happy news, Allison has been working on a (gorgeous!) super secret deadline project, and doing lots and lots (and LOTS) of sewing.

Rachel has been working on a design for Walcot Yarns, but has managed to finish her Vestvember project (again, better late than never). She's also been doing lots of #spinningSundays.

Yarn Love Challenge

Okay, the #yarnlovechallenge is something that you've probably seen popping up on Instagram in the last couple of day and it's pretty fun so we wanted to let you know about it. It's a daily Instagram photo challenge put together by @oharethey and @maryheatherb from Ravelry to celebrate the idea that "Yarn is Love". We agree!

Yarn Love

There are fewer things we love more than a new yarn. And we were particularly excited when we found out that our friend Carmen was working on a brand new bespoke yarn – Walcot Yarns.

If you haven't heard us mention Carmen before, she is a North American transplant like us and the owner of A Yarn Story – a specialty yarn boutique in Bath that is stuffed with gorgeous yarns from around the world. Aside from the yarn itself, what got us really excited to chat with Carmen is that she developed this new yarn with in collaboration with Sharon from Great British Yarns – also in Bath.

We got Carmen to chat with us and tell us more about Walcot Yarns and what exactly is involved with bringing your own yarn to market.

Wrap up

You can find the podcast on iTunes and Stitcher Radio and us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, in our Yarn in the City group on Ravelry, or in person on Wednesday nights at our knit night at The Goat on the Rise between 7 and 10pm. Everyone's really friendly and we hope to see you there!

Music credits (all available on NoiseTrade) Ridiculously Happy (feat. Twilight Meadow) - Owl City