Category Archives: Brainy Stuff

Ep. 022 Kinesthetic Learning Mode in Knitting

Posted in Knitting, Learning by

Episode 22:  The Kinesthetic Learning Mode in Knitting and Crochet

Brainy Thing starts:  22:17

Behind the Redwood Curtain starts:  30:45

What we’re learning from our knitting.

With her Fantasy Red Cardi by Katherine Foster (see prior posts) behind her and her Among the Wildflowers by Sasha Ball Rives on hold, Catherine turns to two bits of production knitting.  She is working on Failyn Fox Cowl fox cow progressby Heidi May in Lion Brand Thick and Quck for a friend’s child and the Chain Mail Hood and Cowl offered by the Utah Shakespeare Festival (Chain Mail Techniques).  With a re-envisioned yarn choice (Patons Metallic in Pewter), Catherine is making this  for a local production of Plays in the Park for the play The Unprincess.

Chain Mail Hood pattern by Utah Shakespeare Festival

Chain Mail Hood pattern by Utah Shakespeare Festival

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Margaret talks about Laura Nelkin’s Beaded Waves Cuff and why Margaret sometimes like buying a kit instead of gathering all the elements of a project herself.

Beaded Waves Cuff by Laura Nelkin

Beaded Waves Cuff by Laura Nelkin

waves

Brainy Thing:   Kinesthetic Learning

The last element of the VAK (Visual Auditory Kinesthetic) learning style discussion (but not the end of the topic itself), Margaret shares general and personal experiences of learners who take in information kinesthetically.  She mentions Heather Ordover’s research on Cognitive Anchoring.

Behind the Redwood Curtain

imagesCatherine talks about the Natural Fiber Fair which is held in Arcata, CA.  For more information, click here.

 

Knitting Tip

Margaret shares that designers (Laura Nelkin, for example) and yarn companies often have wonderful tutorials on their sites.

Podcast Business

Incentive for the random chosen winner of the next 100 members of the Ravelry Group.

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Ep. 021 Knitting for Cancer and Other Health Issues

Posted in Brain health, Crochet, Knitting by

Welcome to Episode 21:   Knitting supports Cancer Recovery and other Health Issues

Brainy part starts:  24:05

Behind the Redwood Curtain (Trillium) Starts:  33:35

What We’re Learning from Our Knitting (and Crochet):

Catherine is finishing up the Fantasy Red Cardi designed by Katherine Foster.

completed Fantasy red cardi

completed Fantasy red cardi

She’s also made two hats as part of the North Coast Knittery’s Hats for the Homeless Campaign.   The pattern is The Tyson Hat by Robyn Devine and the yarn is Naturally Nazareth.by Kraemer Yarns.silk wool hat orange hat comparison hat

Catherine is well along on the Failynn Fox Cowl by Heidi May who goes by the Velvet acorn.  She is using Lion Brand Wool Ease Thick and Quick in pumpkin for it.

fox earsfox cow progress

Margaret is continuing her exploration of cotton sock yarns.   This episode she talks about Cascade Fixation using the Fixation Ankle Sock pattern by Dawn Friske or Knitamazoo.   fixation

Margaret also re-crocheted the Quotidian or Flapper Bucket Hat by the Stitch Diva to make it just a little larger to accommodate her Mom’s hair bun.

Quotidian Hat

Quotidian Hat

The Brainy Part:  Knitting to Support Cancer Recovery

Catherine introduces one of the many programs developed as an adjunct to support cancer patients and their families.  The Knit for Life Program was started by Tanya Pariequz.  She also talks about Team Survivor Northwest. 

She mentions Tricoter yarns in Seattle, WA.

Behind the Redwood Curtain:   Trillium

Margaret talks about the beautiful little trillium that bloom in the spring at the base of the redwood trees.

trillium 6

Margaret’s photos of trillium under the redwoods

trillium 7 trillium

Knitting Tip

Margaret shares Edie Eckman’s tip in Connect the Shapes Crochet Motifs about using the principle of the Golden Mean in choosing a pleasing proportion of colors in a multi-color project.

Podcast Business:

The Learn-a-long was fantastic.  Such wonderful projects.   The winner (randomly selected) was:  Lost Surprise who will wine the Donegal Tweed yarn.

Our incentive to join our group continues.   For a randomly selected winner in the next 100 members to join our group, our prize is a skein of Fiesta Boucle..

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Ep. 020 Can your Right Brain help you organize your stash?

Posted in Brainy Stuff, Crochet, Knitting by

Welcome to Episode 20:  Organizing your stash with your Right and Left Brain

What we’re learning from our knitting (and crochet)

Margaret has learned a lot from her Charcoal Multnomah Shawl by Kate Ray including that “old Shale” and “Feather and Fan” are different patterns reported by Northern Lace.   There are also at least seven variations of feather and fan according to Angel Fire.  Margaret liked Mariann Nahl’s “Fast and Easy continental Knit and Purl” video.

Charcoal Sunshine Multnomah

Charcoal Sunshine Multnomah

multnomah

Catherine noticed that her tension for her fourth “Misty Rose” dishcloth by Kim Cameron was much looser and therefore a full one inch larger than her first.  Misty rose

She got it back down to the original size when she started focusing again on dishcloth #5.  She is also working on “Among the Wildflowers” by Sasha Ball Rives.   Northcoast Knittery has worked up this pattern in a number of different yarns shown here.

Brainy Thing:  Can your Right Brain help you organize your stash?

Margaret revisits the Right and Left Brain theory and mentions the neuroscientist Jill Bolte Taylor whose Ted Talk chronicles her experience of having a stroke in the left side of her brain.  She also talks about Corothy Lehmkuhl’s and Dolores Cotter Lamping’s book Organizing for the Creative Person which offers understanding of different styles of right-brain dominant and left-brain dominant people.

Behind the Redwood Curtain

Catherine discusses the Humboldt Marten, a weasel that controls rats and mice, but that is severely diminished in numbers.

Humboldt Marten

Humboldt Marten

Knitting Tip:

We correct our previous tip that using larger needles will make a stretchier cast-on when using the long tail cast on (Thank you, Paula, from Knitting Pipeline).   Catherine offers the tip that if you know you’re going to have a stressful day, you might want to begin it with a few minutes of knitting to reap the calming effects.

Podcast business

The Learn-along ends August 1.   The randomly selected prize will be three skeins of Studio Donegal , a real Irish Donegal tweed, 88 yards each in a dk weight.  donnegal

The next incentive prize for joining our Ravelry group for members 301 to 400 is a skein of Fiesta Rayon Boucle yarn in the Catalina colorway.  The 240 yards are enough to make an airy summer wrap.

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Fiesta Rayon boucle Catalina colorway

Ep. 019 Growing Brain Cells with Physical Activity

Posted in Brain anatomy & physiology, Brain Function, Crochet, Knitting by

Welcome to Episode 19: How physical activity grow brain cells.

Brainy Thing starts at 15:26
Behind the Redwood Curtain starts at 24:13

What We’re Learning from Our Knitting (and Crochet)

The Fantasy Red Cardi is now Catherine’s carry-along knitting although she’s having a little sock knitting withdrawal.  This baby cardigan is by Knitting Kate or Katherine Foster.

Fantasy Red Cardi

Fantasy Red Cardi

The wool is “purple neutral” by Steinbach Woole Strapaz and an identified ball of yarn which is probably from Three Irish Girls.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some of the "charms" in the Dogwood Scarf

Some of the “charms” in the Dogwood Scarf

Catherine is also starting the Dogwood Scarf a Charm Crochet project by Suzann Thompson   She’s using a variety 100% cotton Ti Di by Knit One Crochet Too and leftovers.  She’s ordered a number of plant fiber yarns from Knit Picks to try them out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Margaret is trying our knitting on 12 inch and 9 inch circular needles.   She knit hat (premie size) as a sample to show new knitters one way to finish up a hat.hat2

preemie hat with "folded" top.

preemie hat with “folded” top.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brain Thing:

Dr. Arne May’s research showing juggling makes your brain grow.  Catherine asks could the physical activity of knitting and crochet also make brain cells?

Behind the Redwood Curtain

We talk about clams, clamming and Clam Beach.

Clam Beach, California but no clammers clamming.

Clam Beach, California but no clammers clamming.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Knitting Tip

Margaret suggest trying to enter “Beginner’s Mind” with no expectations and trying tools that challenge you.   She’s trying 12 inch and 9 inch circular needles right now and certainly feels like a beginner.

Podcast Business

The incentive prize, a gift for a randomly selected person out of each 100 people who join the group on Ravelry continues.   Also, the people are jumping into the Learn-along.   The Ravelry Group is here.

Episode 18 Auditory Learning Style and Knitting

Posted in Knitting, Learning by

Brainy Thing Starts at 24.25

Behind the Redwood Curtain starts at 32:55

What We’re Learning from our Knitting.

Margaret is on a quest to find the perfect cotton sock yarn.   In the past she’s used Regia Cotton but it still has a lot of wool content (41%) for her beloved Monkey Socks.     (After a search on Ravelry, it looks like most of the Regia’s Cotton fingering has been discontinued.).

monkeys

Recently, she tried Skacel’s Hi Koo CoBaSi in Carrot and Cream. She made up her own pattern but recommends Nigel Pottle’s Tom and Ethel Socks.

CoBaSi Socks in Carrot and Naturalorange socks 1

Catherine is using the yarn she just frogged (A mystery skein without the ball band but which is probably something from Three Irish Girls) and is using it in the Fantasy Red Cardi  by Knitting Kate (Katherine Foster’s Ravelry Store.)  The contrasting borders are in a “lavender neutral” Steinbach Woole Strapaz.

Fantasy Red Cardi in progress

Fantasy Red Cardi in progress

Brainy Thing

Margaret talks about Auditory Learning preference (the “A” in the VAK learning style) and how it might apply to knitters and crocheters.  She also explains more fully how we all use all senses in our learning.  Links to test out your learning preferences:

http://www.businessballs.com/vaklearningstylestest.htm
http://teachertools.londongt.org/?page=VAK
http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/styles/vak.html
http://easychangeworks.com/articles-nlp/markova-quiz.htm

Behind the Redwood Curtain

Catherine celebrates the California state flower:   The California Poppy.

 

California Poppy

California Poppy

Lots of California Poppies

Lots of California Poppies

California Poppies asleep after sundown in Margaret's yard

California Poppies asleep after sundown in Margaret’s yard

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more information on the California Poppy festival, check here.

Podcast Business

Check out about the Learn-a-long and the incentive prize for new members at the Teaching your Brain to Knit Group on Ravelry.

Self Striping Cankon Hand Dyes in "Lover's to bed' 'tis almost fairy time" colorway. It's a bit brighter than photograph suggests.

Self Striping Canon Hand Dyes in “Lover’s to bed’ ’tis almost fairy time” colorway. It’s a bit brighter than photograph suggests.