I'm back from Colorado, dear readers! After successfully filming 4 videos for Interweave (coming this fall), I'm happy with how smoothly things went (thanks to years of teaching and filming Knitting Daily TV, being in front of the camera is decidedly less terrifying). I filmed videos on how to make jersey yarn from tie-dyed t-shirts, how to knit up a market tote bag specifically designed for jersey yarn, how to dye yarn using ingredients all found in your kitchen on the stove, in the crock pot and solar dyeing, finishing techniques and the endless possibilities with stockinette and garter stitch. The prep work was intense (hence the radio silence on the blog these past few weeks) but it's always so worth it once you're in hair and makeup, mentally prepping yourself and you step up to the set and start talking to the camera. Being overly prepared is how I roll and it's always better to have too much to talk about rather than grasping at straws to fill air time.
The Interweave studio is in Fort Collins, CO and it's interesting to go from DC where there are so many buildings packed together, everyone walks everywhere and it's relatively flat to suddenly finding myself in the mountains, driving everywhere and surrounded by wide-open spaces. The staff is wonderful and I always get the feeling when I walk in of being with "my people."
I managed to fit in a bit of play time on this trip and visited The Loopy Ewe (in person is even better than online!), My Sister Knits, a charming little knit shop where I crashed their Knit Night and Fancy Tiger, a knit and fabric shop with a great collection to browse and a generous teaching space. I got to hang out with one of my favorite people - Heather from The Lemonade Shop and visit her studio, see old friends, meet some new ones and have a thoroughly crafty few days. I came home with some new yarns and fabrics in my bag, completely exhausted and ready to start on the next project.
I came back home, unpacked, dusted off my sewing machine, completely ignored the housework that needs to be done and have been hard at work, sewing late into the night. Sewing is soothing for me and working in the dark when everyone is asleep is how I unwind.
A lot of people have asked how I made these bowls I posted on Instagram for teacher gifts and there will be a tutorial on those here on the blog next week. In the meantime, there are 35+ new TanisKnits project bags in my Etsy shop, enjoy!
