Fiber Hooligan

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (12/16/13) my guest will be the incredibly talented artist and dyer, Babs Ausherman… otherwise known as Miss Babs. Miss Babs is, of course, the owner of Miss Babs Hand- Dyed Yarns & Fibers in Mountain City, Tennessee. 'Miss Babs' was started by Babs in 2003. In 2005 'Miss Babs' morphed into 'Miss Babs Hand-Dyed Yarns & Fibers' as she developed the business and found that placing color on yarn and fiber had become her core focus. This was also the year that she moved from being a full-time adjunct instructor in marketing at a local university to fiber as a full-time passion and occupation. We're going to talk about her long and varied work experience… as a chef's apprentice, a real estate agent, an insurance agent, an office manager in a mental health facility, director of staff development in a hospital, teaching business courses at a community college, teaching marketing at a university, and finally becoming a dyer of some of the most beautiful yarn and fiber that can be found. We're also going to be talking about her philosophy as a business owner and as an artist. Babs is a fascinating lady. And I hope you'll tune in next Monday for what should be an exceptional show.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (12/09/13) my guest will be the very talented Amy Herzog. Amy is passionate about sweaters people love to wear. She is the author of Knit to Flatter and designs sweaters that flatter the figure and are easy to modify. She is also a knitting expert on American Public Television's ?Knit and Crochet Now?. She teaches classes across the country and on craftsy.com, and her figure-flattering pattern designs have been published in Twist Collective, Knitscene, Interweave Knits, Knitty, and more. After several years of teaching knitting classes, she realized that knitters will skip modification math if they can but would really like to wear sweaters that fit them well. So she created CustomFit, a website that produces custom sweater patterns. It can be found at customfit.makewearlove.com. Amy will be with us to talk about all of that, the Opening Day presentation she's planning for STITCHES South, and much more. This will be a great show. I hope you'll join us.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (12/02/13) my guest will be my dear friend, Betsy Hershberg. Betsy is an award winning designer, teacher and author of Betsy Beads: Confessions of a Left-brained Knitter, published by XRX Books. After more than 50 years of knitting she is thrilled to have discovered a creative process that allows the left and right sides of her brain to play together nicely. She has yet to encounter a knitting project that cannot be enhanced by the judicious application of beads. She is a staple and a favorite at STITCHES Expos. And her Craftsy.com class Brilliant Knit Beads, has allowed her to share her innovative techniques with thousands of students. Betsy has also recently launched her own e-commerce site, The Studio B Knits Shop, where her original patterns, materials kits, limited edition and the occasional piece of her highly regarded, one-of-a-kind jewelry is available for sale. And since this show is airing on cyber-monday… I encourage all of you folks to save a few of your online dollars. Because I think you might find yourself infected with bead-mania by the time this show is over. Beyond the artistry that Betsy has to share, she has a message of empowerment that you will NOT want to miss. I hope you'll join us for this very special show.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (11/25/13) my guest will be Theresa & Ron Miskin from the Buffalo Wool Co. Ron & Theresa have been playing with bison fiber for almost 10 years now. In addition to their 6 hand-knitting yarns, they have a line of American made ready-to-wear bison products… from socks & gloves, to felt hats and insoles. They work very closely with the American Bison Association as well as ranchers from Kentucky to Nebraska. They are dedicated to promoting and conserving the American Plains Bison and supporting the ranchers that raise them. They are exceptional people… people of the finest character. And I'm eager to interview them so I can share with all of you just how amazing and generous they are.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (11/18/13) my guest will be erudite Heather Ordover. Heather is a writer of stories, teacher of things, knitter of socks, designer, podcaster, spinner, weaver, mother of boys, tutor, and all around interesting person. I've listened to her CraftLit® podcast, read her knitting blog 'Mama O Knits too Much', and read her last book Grounded. She's eloquent and funny. I know you're going to love her. I can't wait to have her on the show so I can share the interview of this very classy lady with all of you.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (11/04/13), my guest will be the very talented Fiona Ellis. Fiona is a British trained knitwear designer & has been designing commercially since graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Fashion Knitwear Design from DeMontfort University.Her original designs have been sold to major fashion houses in New York, London, & Paris for mass-market production and have been widely published through premier knitting magazines such as Vogue Knitting International, Interweave Knits, and Knitter's Magazine, also online at twistcollective.com. You can also find her patterns being carried by many leading yarn companies.She is the author of Inspired Cable Knits & Inspired Fair Isle Knits, both published by Potter Craft. They each contain instructions for 20 all new patterns with the addition of written & visual materials reflecting her design philosophy. Fiona has an innate creative flair, a keen sense for developing trends & trend prediction, and a unique talent for being able to communicate not only design ideas but also the principles of creativity. She's also just a lot of fun to talk to. I hope you'll join us next Monday for what should be a wonderful interview with a remarkable lady.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (10/28/13) my guest will be Kelly Wetherbee Lealos, one of the founders and owners of Namaste, Inc. (the folks who make the beautiful Namaste bags).Kelly is a former Occupational Therapist. She considers herself and all the like-minded fans and Namaste lovers to be "Namasterians"- beings who appreciate the human connection; those who are determined to kindle kindness and practice positivity and gratitude in daily life. Kelly believes that life is too short to sweat the small stuff and it's all small stuff. She's a lucky mother of 1 and wife to a talented cameraman and co-founder of Namaste.Kelly is using the #Namasterian pedestal as a way to spread love, goodwill, and good karma in her little corner of the world. Namaste is a family owned and operated "shindig" and all materials are vegan and many materials are recycled.I'm very eager to interview this wonderful lady. I hope you'll join us for this show.

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (10/21/13), Benjamin is back and will be interviewing Steve Malcolm, host of the very popular website ItTakesBallsToKnit.com and the brand new online knitting variety show - It Takes Balls To Knit - The Show.What can we tell you about Steve? There is so much to say. He's Canadian. He is a proficient knitter. He is a showman and a wonderful communicator. He has style. He has passion for the fiber arts world. And he is here make a difference.I hope you'll join us for this great show when we'll talk to Steve about his story and his adventure… as one man aspires to knit the world together, one stitch at a time!

On the next edition of Fiber Hooligan (10/7/13), Ron & Theresa Miskin will be interviewing Cornelia Tuttle Hamilton. Cornelia is now in the 30th year of her design career. She started in New York where she developed her talent during the early 80's. There she designed for knitting magazines, specialty shops and a private clientele. The high point of her time in NY was a hand knit collection under her own label that was sold to select boutiques in 20 states from Florida to Alaska. A move over the Atlantic from New York to Sweden 26 years ago gave her the peace and harmony to raise a family and further develop her artistic creativity. The business diversified and she started distributing the artisan yarn collections from Noro, Colinette, Koigu and Malabrigo in Scandinavia. Cornelia has 12 pattern books to her name. The last - Noro: Meet the Man was published by Soho Publishing in the fall of 2009. A new book will be released next month using the Poems Collection from Universal Yarn. For the past two years Cornelia Tuttle Hamilton has been focussing more of her efforts in designing for & promoting her own yarn label - Heaven's Hand. Please join us for what we know will be a wonderful show.