Monthly Archives: March 2015

Ep. 012 Knitting Fights Dementia

Posted in Brain health, Crochet, Knitting by

Welcome to Episode 12:  Knitting Fights Age-related Dementia

Brainy Stuff starts at:15:40

Behind the Redwood Curtain starts at:26:55

What we’re learning from our knitting:

Catherine found what she wanted to do with her Great Adirondack Yarn Company’s Well Dressed Sheep (cotton/rayon/metallic in chunky weight)   in the Beach House colorway.   She’s adapting a border design “Cabled Lace”  from Leisure Arts’s 50 Fabulous Borders by Rita Weiss that she found at the Foggy Bottoms Yarn Store in Ferndale.

cowl startcowl and yarn

She also talks about making the Humboldt Squid, mythically known as the Kracken. 

squid

 

Inspired by that project, she finished up a jellyfish she’s been working on for awhile.  jelly jelly 2

 

Both are from Hansi Singh’s Amigurumi Knits .

51AIXiA8edL._SX258_BO1,204,203,200_

Catherine found the largest real jellyfish she’s seen around here recently on one of our beaches.

jelly beach 2

 

Margaret has gone crazy for the Lucci Yarns DK cotton tape yarn in luminescent colors and the Washcloth Wrapped Soaps (washcloth, border, and “ribbon”) created by Stitch Diva Jennifer Hansen who owns Stitch Diva Studios.

close up washloth Multiple washcloths lucci washcloth red

Margaret was wearing her Gallatin Scarf by Kris Basta in Hanelei Hand dyed yarn.

gallatin

 

Brainy Stuff:

Studies are showing that knitting and other similar activities can cut the risk of age related dementia and Alzheimer’s disease although most reports are anecdotal and scientists say more studies need to be done.

You can hear Dr. Yonas Geda on this You Tube explanation.

Central Kentucky University publishes the Successful Aging Resource Guide and Greg Jicha MD and Sarah Tarrort MD discuss similar studies in the 2013 issue on page 6.

Even magazine reading and computer activities seem to help according to this article. 

Behind the Redwood Curtain:  Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Reserve

Located on an estuary, the Humboldt Bay National Wildlife Refuge is a stop on the International Pacific Flyway, which shelters and feeds birds as they migrate.

wildlife 4 wildlife 3 wildlife 2 wildlife

Knitting Tip:

Margaret suggests that on challenging projects, you chart out knitting or crochet instructions either formally (with the “official” symbols) or informally (with your own marks.)

Metacognition and how it helps you knit

Posted in Knitting, Learning by

Welcome to Episode 11

Brainy Stuff starts at:22:40

Behind the Redwood Curtain starts at: 32:05

What we’re learning from our knitting:

Margaret contrasts two scarf patterns –both of them beautiful and well written but one that was her perfect low concentration knitting and the other requiring high concentration.   The one she completed was the free pattern  Gallatin Scarf by Kris Basta  whose company is KrisKrafter.   She used Hanalei Hand Dyed   Merino/bamboo worsted.

gallatin

The scarf pattern that she is saving for another day when she has lots of high concentration time is the Silk Curved Scarf by Iris Schreier which was a Craftsy knit-a-long. Catherine loved the charts on this pattern.

Catherine is swatching (!) for her Meadowlark Shibori Jacket  by Gina Wilde in Alchemy Pagoda and Silk Straw yarns.   And she’s trying out different knitting stitches that will work with her vision of the ideal cowl for the Great Adirondack yarn.      She’s also working on her Sock Yarn Blanket, mitered squares

a free pattern by Shelley Kang, the Heathen Housewife.  She has used leftovers and swapped for scraps including Knit in Color Smooshy, Socks that Rock, Opal,and  Zauberball.

Brainy Thing:   Metacognition

Metacognition is defined as thinking about thinking and when you use what you know about your learning process then you can learn new things more easily — like kitchnering lace or doing intarsia.  Jennifer Livingston wrote about it in this paper and of course, Wikipedia always has something to say on everything including metacognition.

Behind the Redwood Curtain:  The First Street Gallery

1st street

If it’s raining (and it often does here) or you want to take a break from spectacular natural vistas, then Margaret recommends the First Street Gallery in Eureka located on — First Street.  The most recent time she visited she saw two exhibitions: small painting from the Cheech Marin collection,  Chicanitas and Arte para la raza collected by the Royal Chicano Air Force.

chica-announcement-image RCAF-announcement

 

Bay from Boardwalk

Of course, you can’t get far from beautiful vistas.   Across the street is the Eureka boardwalk, along Humboldt Bay.

Eureka board walk

Knitting Tip:

Catherine offers a knitting tip:  when wet blocking your knitting, allow it to soak a full 20 minutes first.

Podcast Business:

As an incentive to join our Ravelry group, we are randomly selecting one of the first 100 members to win a skein of 400 yards of Cephalopod Bugga! sport weight  70/20/10 superwash merino/cashmere/nylon in Fishing Spider Colorway.