The SweetGeorgia Show

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077: Knitting Design and Life Through the Lens with Sylvia McFadden Mar 12, 2019

Show notes

Sylvia is a knitwear designer who has self-published several knitwear design collections. She is well-known for her Waiting for Rainshawl which is one of the first shawls of this design to use short rows and lace together. Sylvia is also a photographer and does all the photography for her gorgeous collections.

Please join us this week as Felicia and Sylvia discuss photographing knitwear!

In this episode, we talk about:

2:05 Felicia and Sylvia reminisce about when they first met at Knit City years ago
4:48 Sylvia discusses her passion to teach other designers photography
7:01 Sylvia and Felicia chat about how perfectionism can interfere with artistic progress
7:54 Felicia asks Sylvia what her process is as a self-publishing knitwear designer
11:07 Discussing the "creative gap" of what vision you have in your mind versus the results you get
11:51 Chatting about moody and dark photography trends coming into fashion and the cyclical nature of trends
17:46 Discussing the challenges of photoshoots and finding models
22:06 Sylvia explains why she left photography school and the issues in fashion photography today
24:49 Felicia asks Sylvia if she keeps photography trends in mind when she does her own knitwear shoots and designs
26:02 Talking about Sylvia's latest purchase of a Lensbaby lens
27:53 The gear Sylvia recommends for photography
28:47 Felicia asks Sylvia how she gets her beautiful "thrown in the air" shawl photos
31:35 Sylvia discusses what she's working on right now
33:33 The difficulty of sizing in knitwear patterns
36:49 Felicia and Sylvia chat about dealing with the discomfort of seeing photographs of yourself
40:43 Sylvia offers advice to those wanting to get into knitwear design or photography
43:35 Felicia asks Sylvia how she manages to publish knitwear designs on her own
47:09 Where to find Sylvia online and her new YouTube podcast
48:30 Felicia's Final Thoughts and giveaway!

Here's Where You Can Find Sylvia:

Instagram: @softsweater

Website: www.softsweaterknits.com

Ravelry: softsweater

Ravelry group: www.ravelry.com/groups/softsweater-knits

YouTube: The Wrong Side Podcast

Facebook: Softsweater Knits

Enter the Giveaway for a copy of Gentle Armour:

Sylvia has generously offered our listeners a chance to win a hard copy of her shawl collection Gentle Armour: Five Shawls for Sensitive People! If you'd like a chance to win these gorgeous patterns click the link below and enter this episode's secret word. Thank you so much Sylvia!

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, whethe

076: Zombies, Skulls, and Sheep - Extraordinary Colourwork with Andrea Rangel Feb 26, 2019

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This week Felicia is chatting with Andrea Rangel: a prolific and popular knitwear designer living in Victoria, British Columbia. She is the author of two books: Alterknit Stitch Dictionary and Rugged Knits. Although creating knitting patterns and planning workshops keeps her busy most of the time, Andrea also loves cycling and hiking when she can. She also has a great passion for sewing and dreams of having a wardrobe that is entirely handmade!

Please join us as Felicia and Andrea discuss colourwork motifs and how to modernize them.

“I think the thing about knitting is that it’s so infinite… I never stop learning, there’s always more… That is really exciting.” – Andrea Rangel

In this episode, we talk about:

1:17 Felicia and Andrea chat about the recent Knit Social industry retreat on Galiano Island
3:58 Felicia asks Andrea what her plans for 2019 are
6:03 Andrea discusses her other crafty interests and how she started knitting
11:30 What pulled Andrea into the knitting rabbit-hole
15:56 Unique knitting niches and groups on the Internet
17:18 Andrea’s design process and how she organizes the many steps that go into publishing a pattern
23:55 Digital vs Analog: How Andrea keep track of her project management
26:25 Felicia and Andrea chat about bullet journalling (and their lack of Instagram fanciness)
28:18 How do you knit for fun when it’s also your job?
32:33 The ladies chat about Andrea’s book: AlterKnit Stitch Dictionary
36:28 Felicia asks Andrea how she modernized colourwork motifs for her book and designs
41:19 “Remember: what matters is how you feel about your work.”
43:40 How did Andrea create her tidy swatches pictured in her book?
50:54 Andrea discusses where you can find her online
52:00 Felicia’s Final Thoughts and prize giveaway!

Here’s Where You Can Find Andrea

Instagram: @andrearangelknits

Website: www.andrearangel.com

Ravelry: Andreakr

Ravelry group: https://www.ravelry.com/groups/andrea-rangel-knits

Twitter: AndreaRKnits

Facebook: Andrea Rangel Knits

Enter the Giveaway for a copy of Alterknit Stitch Dictionary

If you’ve been inspired by Felicia and Andrea’s conversation and want to give stranded colourwork knitting a go, enter our contest to win a free copy of Andrea’s book: Alterknit Stitch Dictionary!

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, <

075: Kicking off with Questions about Creativity, Art, and Fear with Felicia Lo Wong Feb 12, 2019

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Welcome to the first episode of season four of The SweetGeorgia Show! Thank you all for your patience in waiting for this season as it’s been a long time coming. Last year was a busy one of new challenges as we worked diligently to grow my online fibre arts school: The School of SweetGeorgia. Now that the school is off the ground, it’s time to get back to having great discussions with some amazing artists.

Please join Felicia this week as she kicks off the fourth season of The SweetGeorgia Show!

In this episode, Felicia talks about:

0:53 Why she started The SweetGeorgia Show
2:35 Why she took a year off of the podcast and why she created The School of SweetGeorgia
3:52 The creative itch and the fear that accompanies it
7:13 Felicia’s Final Notes

Check out Felicia’s Vlog

Every Friday Felicia posts an episode of my vlog “Taking Back Friday” on the SweetGeorgia YouTube channel! In this vlog, Felicia discusses what current project she’s working on, happenings at the SweetGeorgia studio, and how to organize life more efficiently to have more time for the crafts we love.

Thanks for Listening!

Thank you so much for joining us this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow fibre arts 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 support of the fourth season of The SweetGeorgia Show! Until we meet again, enjoy colour!

Music Credits:

Playbook of Happiness – by RimskyMusic

Click to subscribe on iTunes

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Subscribe on Spotify

074: Seasons of Craft with Felicia Lo Jan 23, 2018

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Thank you for joining us this season on The SweetGeorgia Show! This is the last episode this season and we are doing things a little differently from usual. This week, Felicia is by herself and wants to share with you the idea of “seasons”, why we do this podcast, and why we make it in the way that we do. Perhaps this discussion of seasons will inspire you to think differently about your own crafting life.

Please join Felicia this week as she discusses the Seasons of Craft!

In this episode, Felicia talks about:

1:58 The first season: Seasons of Life
7:17 The second season: Seasons of Creativity
10:55 The third season: Seasons of Productivity
14:26 The fourth season: Seasons of Rest
18:58 Felicia’s Final Notes

Thanks for Listening!

Thank you so much for joining me this episode! If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with your fellow knitting friends. And if you like what I’m doing here, please leave a rating and review on iTunes for the show. I read each and every email and bit of feedback, whether it’s on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, so I welcome your comments.

Thank you all so much for your support of the third season of The SweetGeorgia Show! Until we meet again, enjoy colour!

073: Weaving What Makes You Happy with Jane Stafford Jan 16, 2018

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This week Felicia is joined by Jane Stafford: production weaver, teacher, and business owner behind Jane Stafford Textiles on Salt Spring Island in British Columbia. For over 35 years, Jane has been exploring weaving and has built the most extraordinary career in textiles. Jane is the instructor for Louet dealers in North America and you might recognize her from her teaching on Louet’s instructional DVDs and videos. It’s also no coincidence that Jane shares her name with Louet’s newest table loom. The Jane loom is an acknowledgement of Jane Stafford’s years of contributions towards weaving loom design. Seriously, how many people can say that they have a weaving loom named after them? Jane is also the recipient of teacher of the year award from Handwoven Magazine and now teaches exclusively from her studio on Salt Spring Island and her online weaving guild.

Join Felicia and Jane this week as they discuss Jane's humble beginnings of weaving her first piece of fabric to creating an online guild so she can reach weavers all over the world!

In this episode, we talk about:

2:22 Felicia reminisces how she first learned about Jane from a book on a coffee table many years ago
3:27 Jane discusses how she first got introduced to weaving
9:00 Did Jane ever feel like quitting during the long process to becoming a weaver? Jane also discusses the frustration of having so many teachers with different methods.
11:15 Weaving is attractive to many different kinds of people. Some are very exact and precise, some are very free and unstructured. Felicia asks Jane what her personality is when it comes to weaving. Also, the method Jane used to save herself from the tedium of production weaving.
20:02 Is Jane still into production weaving?
21:32 How Jane started to teach weaving to others
25:20 Jane gives advice on how one can start something as seemingly-complex as weaving
29:04 Jane and Felicia discuss Jane’s online weaving guild she’s developing
34:38 The ladies discuss mistakes and problem solving in weaving and the dangers of perfectionism
38:02 Chatting about how weavers can find support when they are learning online
40:28 Jane discusses her plans for the guild for 2018
44:00 Felicia asks Jane what she considers is good design for weaving and how people can get there
47:17 Jane created the online guild so she could reach more people and have more time for her own personal weaving projects. Felicia asks Jane what she is looking forward to making.
51:49 Felicia’s final notes and podcast giveaway!

Links and Things

Here's where to find Jane online:

Website: www.janestaffordtextiles.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/janestaffordtextiles
Facebook: www.facebook.com/janestaffordtextiles
Ravelry Group: www.ravelry.com/groups/browse/show/weave-with-jane-stafford
Pinterest: www.pinterest.ca/janestaff

072: Exploring Sustainable Fibre Farming with Anna Hunter Jan 09, 2018

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This week Felicia is joined by Anna Hunter: knitter, business owner, entrepreneur, community leader, and now shepherdess and homesteader. For some of our listeners in the audience who are from our local Vancouver, BC area, you’ll recall that Anna was the founder of the Baaad Anna’s yarn store in East Vancouver. About two and a half years ago, she sold the store to a longtime friend and customer Paula who has continued to build the store. Since that time Anna, her husband, and her two young sons have had some big adventures on their new farm Long Way Homestead.

Please join us as Felicia and Anna discuss the challenges one faces when starting your own farm!

In this episode, we talk about:

1:43 Anna talks about how she was first introduced to knitting and how she was inspired to open Baaad Anna’s
7:00 Felicia asks Anna how her strong beliefs in community building has affected her decisions in creating Baaad Anna’s and her current business ventures
9:34 Anna talks about why she decided to sell her yarn store and move to Manitoba to start a farm
13:01 Talking about starting up the homestead and the Kickstarter that made Anna’s SponsorSHEEPprogram possible
18:54 Anna and Felicia discuss the SponsorSHEEP program in more detail and how it changes the way fibre artists view the materials they work with
24:00 Garlic VS sheep, escaping llamas, and how Anna documents all that she’s learning living on a homestead
27:09 Anna discusses why local wool production is so important and the lack of wool mills in Canada and how it affects our carbon footprint
36:32 With all the responsibility of keeping a homestead going, does Anna have time to knit?
40:13 What kind of sheep Anna raises on her farm and some nerding out over sheep facts
44:25 How Anna’s family has adjusted from living in the big city to now living on a rural farm
46:07 Where to find Anna online to follow her family’s adventures and information on upcoming SponsorSHEEP opportunities
47:15 Felicia’s final notes

Links and Things

Here’s where to find Anna online:

Website: www.longwayhomestead.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/longwayhomestead

071: Finding What Sings to You: Romi Hill on Shawl Design Jan 02, 2018

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This week Felicia is joined by Romi Hill, a knitwear and jewelry designer. Romi is an inspiration as a knitwear designer who has been working in a very specialized niche in the knitting world. She designs gorgeous shawl pins that go with her equally gorgeous lace shawl patterns. Romi’s work is breathtakingly delicate and awe-inspiring so it’s no surprise her Ravelry group is over 9,000 members strong!

Please join us today as Felicia chats with Romi about how she found her passion in designing lace shawls and crafting exquisite shawl pins.

In this episode, we talk about:

1:22 Felicia asks Romi how she first got interested in knitting and jewelry making
9:02 Romi describes how she changed her career from music to knitwear and jewellery design
16:25 Romi and Felcia chat about Romi’s Pins and Lace Club which is now in it’s 9th year!
19:44 Felicia chats with Romi about her subscription based business model, her e-book subscriptions, her 7 Small Shawls to Knit collections, Romi’s secret “sock hate”, and her 7 reSizeable Shawls pattern collection
27:24 Felicia asks Romi how she writes her lace patterns (chart VS written)
30:13 How to choose yarn for lace projects
37:06 How Romi chooses colours for her lace projects
38:52 Where to find Romi online and keep up with her latest works
41:45 Felicia’s final notes and podcast giveaway!

Links and Things

Here’s where to find Romi online:

Website: www.designsbyromi.com (Check out this site to sign up for the 2018 Romi’s Pins and Lace Club!)
Instagram: www.instagram.com/romidesigns
Twitter: www.twitter.com/RomiDesigns
Facebook: www.facebook.com/DesignsbyRomi
Ravelry Group: www.ravelry.com/groups/-romis-studio

070: Regal Beading in Knitting with Sivia Harding Dec 26, 2017

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This week Felicia is joined by Sivia Harding, a knitwear designer who has been working with fiber and art ever since she can remember. As a youth she became obsessed with the fiber arts and dabbled in weaving, spinning, and dyeing as well as other activities. She finally came to knitting in the year 2000 and almost immediately began to design. Sivia is best known for exceptional lace and bead designs. Her patterns also include accessories, garments, and Möbius creations. Sivia has been widely published in books and collections including Jared Flood’s Wool People series, Twist Collective, and Knitty. She also self-publishes as Sivia Harding Knit Design. Since 2009 Sivia has also been travelling and teaching at larger venues and shows.

Please join us as Felicia and Sivia chat about how to add a little extra splendour to your knits with beads!

In this episode, we talk about:

1:43 Felicia and Sivia reminisce about when Siva used to live in Vancouver, BC and Sivia’s first big venue teaching gig at Sock Summit
6:33 Sivia chats about her love of fiber arts from an early age and how she got into knitting and design
13:20 Felicia asks Sivia how she got into what she is best-known for: beading in knitting
17:50 Felicia asks for tips for knitters who want to add beads to their projects but feel a little apprehensive
22:15 Sivia gives us a glimpse into the history of the bead industry and how some bead companies specifically advertise to fibre artists who work with beads
24:20 What kind of designs Sivia is focusing on presently
26:30 Felicia asks about the current trend of knitters moving away from lace weight yarn into thicker yarns
29:50 What classes and retreats Sivia has been teaching, including her time at Vancouver’s own Knit City
36:25 Felicia asks about the knitting community in Portland
39:40 Felicia’s final notes and podcast giveaway!

Links and Things

Here’s where to find Sivia online:

Website: www.siviaharding.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/siviaharding
Facebook: www.facebook.com/siviahardingknitdesign
Ravelry Group: www.ravelry.com/groups/sivia-harding

069: Preserving Natural Dyeing Traditions with Kristine Vejar Dec 19, 2017

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This week Felicia chats with one of her personal heroes in the world of hand-crafted colour: Kristine Vejar. Kristine is a natural dyer, teacher, owner of A Verb for Keeping Warm and the author of The Modern Natural Dyer. She is also the founder of many thoughtful projects including The Seam Allowance and The California Wool Project.

Please join us as Felicia and Kristine discuss Kristine’s rich and fascinating journey through textiles, yarn, and colour.

In this episode, we talk about:

1:24 How Kristine got into natural dyeing and created A Verb for Keeping Warm
9:26 Describing the set up of the studio at A Verb for Keeping Warm in Oakland, California
11:42 Felicia asks Kristine how she learned natural dyeing
13:29 Discussing the difficulty of doing natural dyeing on a large scale and the issues that come with natural dyes like colour consistency
19:57 Felicia and Kristine chat about Kristine’s book: The Modern Natural Dyerand the challenges that came with creating it
27:57 Felicia asks Kristine what she learned on her trips to Iceland, Indonesia, Oaxaca, and Japan
34:16 What Kristine plans to do with all her natural dyeing research
36:38 Discussing the “universal truth” of makers around the world
39:33 Kristine discusses the keynote address she gave in June 2017 at the Flag and Wool Fiber Festival
44:08 Felicia and Kristine discuss what the value of the things we make
47:35 Where to find Kristine online
49:25 Felicia’s final notes and podcast giveaway!

Links and Things

Here’s where to find Kristine online:

Website: www.averbforkeepingwarm.com – Sign up for the monthly newsletter to keep up with all the happenings at Verb!
Instagram: www.instagram.com/avfkw
Facebook: www.facebook.com/avfkw
Twitter: www.twitter.com/avfkw
Creativebug: www.creativebug.com/instructors/a-verb-for-keeping-warm

068: Creating a Community Through Colour with A Yarn Story Dec 12, 2017

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Today Felicia welcomes another yarn shop owner to the show: Carmen Schmidt. Carmen is the owner of A Yarn Story, a knitting shop in Bath, England. She’s also begun a new venture called Walcot Yarns, with the goal of producing luxurious yarns and fabulous patterns for knitters and crocheters alike. A Yarn Story opened almost 3 years ago in 2014 and has become a destination shop for knitters and yarn lovers.

Please join us this week as Felicia and Carmen discuss creating a knitting community through colour!

In this episode, we talk about:

1:38 The ladies chat about how they first met when Felicia was teaching at Unwind Brighton in the UK. Carmen also chats about how she started A Yarn Story.
5:00 Why is the shop called A Yarn Story?
6:28 Carmen shares some of her favourite “yarn stories” from customers
8:45 Felicia asks Carmen what her vision for A Yarn Story was when she first decided to open a yarn store and how she tries to foster a knitting community through her shop
11:14 How Carmen chooses which colours of yarn to stock in the limited space in her store and what colour trends Carmen has been observing lately
16:00 Felicia asks Carmen about the rise of popularity of knitting in Europe
17:52 Felicia asks Carmen how she made A Yarn Story the successful yarn store it is today in a tough economy
20:30 Carmen talks about her latest venture: producing her own line of yarns called Walcot Yarns
25:52 Felicia asks Carmen why she feels driven to start a yarn company now when so many new yarn companies are being created and there is so much competition
29:07 What is next for Walcot Yarns?
31:05 Discussing planning (or lack thereof!)
32:32 What is currently capturing Carmen’s imagination and attention knitting-wise
36:40 How you can find A Yarn Store and Walcot Yarns online
37:42 Felicia’s final notes and podcast giveaway!