Fiber Hooligan

Next week (09/15/2014) my guest will be Andrea Marquis of YarnSuperhero. She is a long-time knitter crocheter, and newly impassioned spinner. She loves to make things and grow things, and her superpowers include working with what is available, seeing the bright side, and helping people reach their 'Next Great Idea'.With twenty years of business to business sales experience, Andrea approaches the yarn business and the rest of life with an improvisational spirit. An unrepentant optimist with a weird love for spreadsheets, she is a member of the small but mighty Spinzilla committee.Andrea will be joining us to tell us more about herself as well as telling us all about Spinzilla. This will be a first for us Fiber Hooligans… delving into the world of spinning.I can’t wait to have Andrea on the show so we can learn more about her and this growing (even international) event that is Spinzilla.

Next week (08/25/14) my guests will be knitwear designer and author, Deborah Newton.Deborah has been designing knitwear for the yarn industry and Seventh Avenue for over 30 years. Her book DESIGNING KNITWEAR (Taunton Press) has been in print since 1990. Her most recent book FINISHING SCHOOL (from Sixth & Spring) was chosen by Amazon to be one of their Top Ten Craft Books of 2011.She lives in her favorite city Providence, Rhode Island, with writer and book reviewer Paul Di Filippo. She is an avid gardener and also works daily in her family's business Maps for the Classroom. Deborah has been a collaborator and ‘friend of the family' for decades. And I’m so pleased to be able to share this wonderfully talented lady with all of you. I hope you’ll join us for a great show.

Next week (08/04/13), my guest will be the very talented Rick Mondragon, editor of Knitter’s Magazine. He’ll be talking about upcoming Fall 2014 issue. We invite you to listen as he takes you into the pages and between the lines of Knitter’s Magazine.Rick, who also is the co-host of STITCHES, will also be giving us his take on what we’ll be seeing at STITCHES Midwest in early August… from the market to the fashion show.He’s one of the smartest and most creative people in the fiber arts world. And I know you’ll love his insights. I hope you’ll join us for the show.

Next week (07/28/14) my guests will be Veronica Van from Dream In Color Yarn andSteve Elkins from WEBS - America’s Yarn Store.

These returning champions of the show are back to tell us how they are going to work together to help support Chelsea’s Light foundation with a new beautiful kit… which includes the Rivington Cowl pattern from Kirsten Kapur.

We’ll also be talking about new fibers from Dream In Color as well as some great stuff from WEBS as part of their year-long 40th anniversary celebration.

This is going to be a fun show. And it should be a great time to catch up with two of our favorite past guests.

I think these are two of the very best people of the fiber arts industry. I hope you’ll join us for the show!

OK… my guests (07/21/14) today are the newest dynamic duo to hit the fiber arts scene, Steven Be & Stephen West. These two amazing fiber artists are on an epic fiber tour across the United States — the Stephen & Steven Tour - 2014. To imagine it fully, you have to first conjure up thoughts of a traveling rock band, then take away the bus, the sweaty roadies, and the music. Add instead two jet setting, fabulous Steph(v)ens (one with a 'v' and one with a 'ph'), luscious yarn and wild creative abandon and then... you’re almost there. I managed to catch up with these fiber artist road warriors in Denver, CO. I hope you'll tune so you can hear from these inspiring men yourself.

Next week (07/14/14) my guest will be the very talented Australian crochet designer, teacher and author Jenny King.

She has been designing in crochet since about 10 years of age… well before she knew it was called designing… just making what she wanted without a pattern. Then, at age 12, she made her first crochet bikini from a pattern in a magazine. There were lots of designs in every magazine as it was the 70’s and crochet was supreme! Then the patterns for crochet dried up so she just grabbed a Vogue Knitting magazine and crocheted to the schematics in Vogue. Didn’t everybody? Apparently not. She crocheted her first bikini commercially and sold it to a boutique in Byron Bay at age 15. Many years have passed and many projects have been created. Now Jenny is all about teaching crochet and writing the patterns for others to make her designs. And the reason for this is that she would like everyone to feel the sense of satisfaction that comes from creating a work of art, the sense of peace that comes from crocheting and the ability to open up the brain with the satisfying rhythm of repetitive stitching. She believes that taking time out each day to stitch is both therapeutic to the body and brain and will always keep it young. So she is attempting to take over the world one crocheter at a time so that everyone can have this pleasure. Jenny will be our first guest from Down Under. And I’m delighted to be able to share this preeminent crochet designer with all of you. I hope you’ll tune in for this show. It should be a lot of fun… and heck… you’ll love her accent.

Next week (07/07/14) my guest will be the very talented and stylish Kristin Omdahl.

Founder of StyledByKristin.com and design company KRISTIN, Kristin Omdahl frequently contributes to the website that bears her name. In addition to showcasing her designs, Kristin serves up terrific articles about knitting, crochet, yarn and even a few sneak peeks at what's new.

Kristin Omdahl designs knit and crochet garments and patterns under her label KRISTIN, and is the author of “Knitting Outside the Swatch" (Interweave, October 2013), "The Finer Edge" (Interweave, December 2012), "Seamless Crochet" (Interweave, December 2011), "A Knitting Wrapsody" (Interweave, January 2011), "Crochet So Fine" (Interweave, July 2010) and "Wrapped In Crochet" (Interweave, 2008). She was the crochet expert for 8 seasons on Knitting Daily TV on public television, and she conducts seminars around the country on crochet and in her DVD workshops, "Crochet Basics and Beyond with Kristin Omdahl" (Interweave 2011) and "Innovative Crochet: Motifs" (Interweave, 2009). Kristin’s work has appeared in Interweave Crochet, Interweave Knits, Knitscene, Vogue Knitting, plus books including "Blueprint Crochet Sweaters" (Interweave 2012), "Unexpected Afghans" (Interweave 2012), "Crochet Gifts" (Interweave, 2009) and "Crochet Me" (Interweave, 2007). Passionate about design, Kristin seeks inspiration in textures and geometric shapes found in nature. Her quirky fondness of mathematics and attraction to natural fibers make knitting and crochet heaven on earth for this talented designer. She’s got a lot of projects going right now. She also has some big announcements that we will be lucky enough to hear directly from her. I hope you’ll all tune in for what I know will be a remarkable show.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (06/30/14) my guest will be very talented and effervescent crochet teacher, designer, and author Stacey Trock.Stacey has been bringing cuteness into the crochet-world with her adorable stuffed animal designs since 2008. Her website, FreshStitches.com is a premier destination for crochet patterns, tutorials and kits. She is the author of Cuddly Crochet, Crocheted Softies and Modern Baby Crochet.Stacey firmly believes that there's no 'right way' to crochet and enthusiastically experiments with a variety of techniques (even less-popular ones!) to achieve the desired finished product. This philosophy spills over into her teaching style: she encourages students to discover what works best for their own crocheting style for maximum crochet enjoyment! A passionate crafter and advocate for self-sufficient living, Stacey and her husband live in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she also knits, bakes bread, makes jam and tends to her garden!Stacey personifies cute… and that cuteness is infectious. I hope you’ll join us for a healthy dose of both creativity and enthusiasm.