October 24, 2024 • 50 mins
Autumn's gentle embrace brings both warmth and wistfulness, a duality that mirrors the journey through age and identity. As the leaves change, so too does our perspective on self-image and creativity. Join me as I share my personal reflections on maintaining authenticity while confronting societal norms. From reconsidering bold hair colors of my younger days to finding solace in knitting and spinning, discover how embracing change is an art in itself. The cozy melancholy of the season isn't just a backdrop; it's a catalyst for reevaluating how we express our true selves and connect with others who share our vision.
Ever thought of taking fashion into your own hands, literally? With Caroline's expert guidance, I ventured into the exhilarating world of sewing to craft my ski wear collection. This isn’t just about making clothes; it's a rebellion against fashion industry norms. Picture ski pants with striking pink accents, crafted from repurposed treasures like a yellow raincoat, and plans for a jacket that speaks volumes in leopard-butterfly print. It's a celebration of sustainability and personal empowerment, proving that the joy of creation is often found in the details of what we make for ourselves.
Our podcast community thrives on support and shared journeys. This space is dedicated to those who find their passions in entrepreneurship and creativity, transforming necessities into genuine desires. By joining us, even for a short while, you contribute to a network that champions authenticity and mutual support. It’s challenging to ask for help, but community contributions are the lifeblood of our podcast’s growth and sustainability. We invite you to be a part of this vibrant communit
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi, how are you?
Are you experiencing lovelyautumn slash fall weather?
I love the sunlight this timeof year, I love absolutely
everything about autumn and it'sjust so cozy.
And although I've said for along time that it doesn't affect
(00:20):
my mood, the last couple ofyears that has changed a little,
with the difference that when Iwas younger I would call that
being melancholic, and it fitsthe mood of the season.
Now that I'm a little bit older, I can get a little bit down.
That seems to happen, and Ireally have to beware that I go
(00:45):
to bed at a right time, drinkenough water, get enough
movement, aka exercise.
And that is kind of where I'mat.
And I just wanted to come inbecause I had recorded an
episode and I have beenstruggling to fix it.
(01:05):
Part of it is gone and I cannotbring myself to re record the
whole thing, and I think that iswhat I mean when I talk about
being a little less energetic.
Yeah, so I've been strugglingto really get some hardcore work
(01:27):
in lately.
Honestly, I've been crafting alot, to be honest, because it
felt like that was what I neededmost.
And just knitting, spinning, alittle bit of weaving yeah,
that's what I've been doing andI just cannot get myself to
(01:52):
rerecord the episode.
So I decided what the heck?
I'm just gonna chat with youand make this one a shorter
episode and just talk aboutwhat's going on, what I've been
doing, and be a little bit morechilled out, and then perhaps in
two weeks, who knows where myenergy, mental happiness level
(02:18):
is at that point.
Luckily, I can still laughabout it all.
Luckily, I can still laughabout it all.
So this is definitely superunscripted.
I'm just sitting in front of mycomputer with my headphones on
and my mic in front of my snoutand also recording video because
(02:38):
I've been trying to get myselfto post on YouTube.
But this is also connected tothat mood, I think.
Whereas how long is that ago,like eight years ago or
something I would haveabsolutely no problem videoing
myself and sharing it.
But it's getting harder andharder and I don't think it's an
(03:03):
ego thing.
I've recently turned 49.
And although I do have somefeelings about my age and how
that looks on me, I don't thinkI really struggle with aging and
(03:23):
things like that in terms ofhaving really low feelings about
what I look like.
I definitely have to do somework around accepting some
things.
I used to have super acne whenI was a teenager acne when I was
(03:50):
a teenager and one of thethings that annoyed me about
that most is that my skin didn'tlook one tone.
Even when that got better, Istill had some blotchy what's
the word blotchy spots, and itwasn't an even tone.
But I also never really used awhole lot of makeup to like
(04:12):
quiet that down.
And now that I'm becoming older, I am getting darker spots in
my face and that is somethingthat I look at every day in the
mirror and I'm not sure about it.
On one hand, I feel like it'sjust part of what's going on and
(04:33):
I'm all about the natural cycleof things, but the other side
of me goes like oh, I kind ofwant to cover that up, and so
sometimes I do, sometimes Idon't.
So that's definitely somethingthat is new and that is
affecting a little bit how Ifeel about showing up on a
(04:55):
camera.
I also feel like I don't reallylook like me.
Okay, this is going to be veryphilosophical and I'll try to
keep it short, but if you feelthe same, let me know.
That could help.
So what's going on is that Ialways identified when I was
(05:19):
younger as alternative a littlebit punk maybe.
As alternative a little bitpunk maybe I was always
windsurfing, snowboarding, thatkind of a thing and my hair was
pink for a long time and then itwas pink.
It wasn't pink anymore and thenI re-dyed it pink when I was in
(05:42):
my 30s I think late 30s and Ireally felt like me again.
But for some reason I have anissue with dyeing it pink again
at this age Because a part of mefeels like fuck this, it's my
life, this is who I am, nothinghas changed.
(06:04):
Like fuck this, it's my life,this is who I am, nothing has
changed.
And a part of me goes like oh,that will just look like I'm
trying too hard to stay young orsomething, instead of stay me.
And it's the same when youthink about wearing certain type
(06:25):
of shoes that connects to thisimage, let's say, black
conference all-stars or vans ordr martin's none of this is
sponsored.
Am I?
I don't really feel like myself.
Is that just because I'mtotally in menopause and I'm
just hormoning all over theplace?
Or is it because I'm letting goof those things because I think
(06:48):
that they don't fit my age andtherefore I don't feel like me.
These are things that I'mthinking about.
I wouldn't say struggle,perhaps a little bit.
And then there's this wholething of me wanting to create a
wardrobe that is very much meand very much very consciously
(07:11):
chosen, picked, made, designed.
All of that.
(07:32):
This is actually what theepisode was about.
That I had recorded earlier, soI'll just tap into it just in
case that I'm able to salvagethe whole thing.
Lately I've been really I'malways saying to myself I should
(07:52):
be more honest, more open andjust voice my opinions, my
actual opinions, because then ifyou agree with me, you're my
person, if you don't, that'sokay and you just don't.
That will work as some sort offilter and that's the way to go,
(08:13):
because if I speak in vanillaterms, that's not who I am and
then I'm probably not reachingmy crowd.
If you know what I mean, I'mprobably not reaching my crowd
if you know what I mean.
But it's also kind ofcomplicated to really say what
you mean, because, yeah, I don'tknow.
(08:34):
Perhaps I look at contentcreators that do voice their
opinion and I think, well,that's a little black and white,
a little harsh, and I haveopinions about that, but then I
do respect them for doing that.
So, yeah, let's just say, okay,let's go back.
(08:55):
And I've been I think the wordis shocked quickly followed by a
little bit annoyed by the factthat so many people in the
knitting, spinning, weaving,fiber arts and crafts world have
(09:18):
so many skills and theycontinue and I'm super
generalizing here.
I am super generalizing andthey continue to buy and make
what they want instead of whatthey need.
And I'm realizing that I'vebeen on this journey for years
(09:40):
now and it's not been.
It's not like super easy.
It takes a lot of time now andit's not been.
It's not like super easy.
It takes a lot of time, effort,choices, deciding, letting go
of things, all of that.
But I'm so a littledisappointed.
I think, honestly, that peoplelike myself do not choose to
(10:05):
make what they need and theychoose to make the next thing
that is hot on Ravelry right nowor on Instagram or whatever.
And I believe you can do both.
You can do both, and why shouldyou?
You might ask, and it would benice if you didn't have to ask,
(10:27):
but you might and then my answerwould be well, the fashion
industry sucks and we all knowit, and we are the group of
people that can, without thatmuch effort, can start today
(10:50):
flipping their life around andtheir choices and doing it
differently.
Instead, what I'm seeing isthat not enough people decide to
stop buying fast fashion andmaking more of what they need,
(11:13):
even when they have the skillsand the stash and the time.
Shawl.
You can also make a t-shirt orsocks, and I do get it.
If you are in this craftingworld and you get this high from
(11:35):
certain materials, certaindesigns, and you go like I'm
just not a sock knitter or Idon't wear wool socks, perhaps
because you don't have them, Iget that, but we need to make a
change.
It is so important that thingschange and I do believe that
(11:59):
change happens really slowly ona personal level and it happens
much faster on a business level,but still, we can make our own
things.
We actually love to make ourown things.
The only thing we need to do isto go over to our wardrobe and
(12:23):
check out what we need and thenstart the whole process that we
are used to, but focus only onthe thing that we need.
So this is what's been on mymind and hopefully I'll get the
other episode out as well, butI'll focus now on how I deal
with that and I'll try to besuper, super honest with you,
(12:47):
because I don't believe in beingcritical about other people
without being critical aboutyourself.
So I hope that helps and you'llforgive me for my little rant
there.
I've been making a bunch ofstuff.
Let me think so I'm the kind ofperson that can go and wants to
(13:16):
go on winter holidays.
In the Netherlands we don'thave mountains, so we have to go
to another country.
We drive to Austria and duringChristmas we spend a week there
with our family and friends andwe eat lots of good food, drink
(13:37):
lots of fun drinks and we have agreat time and we do some
skiing.
Not a lot for me.
I used to be a snowboarder andas a child I did a lot of skiing
and I was very sporty.
But I've always been the typeof person that when the weather
is not great or when I'm tired,I will just cut myself slack.
(13:59):
I don't have to prove anything,I just want to have fun.
I'm that kind of a skier, soI'm skiing, having fun.
I'm very lucky that I can go ona winter holiday holiday In
(14:22):
that thing.
I'm fat and apparently fatskiers don't exist and there's
not a lot of fat skiers outthere actually, and I wonder if
that's because they cannot findtheir outfits or shoes to fit or
all of those things.
Because my God, that ishorrific.
It is really.
Every year is an attack on myself-worth and it's a struggle,
(14:45):
and I don't think a lot ofpeople know what that feels like
, except if you're a fat skieror, for that matter, any fatlete
any sport that you do whereit's hard to find specific
outfits and tools and they justdon't make it for your size,
because apparently fat peopledon't do that or have budget to
(15:07):
buy stuff.
And every year when I come back, I think about starting my own
brand and I'm so fed up with itand I want to send emails to all
the brands and, yeah, it'sgreat, a week holiday and you
return frustrated and stressedno, I'm also rested and all of
(15:28):
that, but it's a returningfrustration.
So I managed to buy an outfitlast year from a German brand
and I bought it through theGerman website because fat
skiers in the Netherlands thatwe don't have mountains, so that
(15:50):
was just not.
That was undoable.
So I went to Germany online notreally and I got myself an
outfit and it was either thesizes were either too small or
too big and there was nothing inbetween, and I went with the
big one and it just kind of felloff my bum and I just didn't
(16:12):
feel good at it.
And I've been used to buyingclothes that I don't feel good
in, which is super sad, but it'sthe truth.
I remember, even as a teenageror in my 20s, going into stores
and being so excited that theyhad a large size section, and
(16:34):
then just anything that wouldfit I would get, and I wouldn't
even think about how it wouldfit or if it was even my style,
or let alone like going to 2024,where I have opinions on how
things are made, what kind ofmaterial, who made it?
Like the whole thing.
(16:56):
And so now I've wiggled myselfinto a corner that is super
complex.
So fat skier needs an outfitthat she feels good in and that
is also as sustainable as shecan get it.
(17:16):
Well, that's a problem, becausethe one that I bought, like all
the ski wear, is plastic.
So, honestly, I went to theplace in my head where I thought
well, in the olden days itwasn't plastic, it was wool.
Can I just make like a wool setof pants and a wool sweater and
(17:40):
just do it that way, and Ireally looked into it but I
decided against it.
And for let me answer why.
Why did I decide against it?
Not necessarily the sweater,because I think that a good
tight knit wool sweater, layered, is great and will do a great
(18:03):
job.
I think you'll need somethingto keep the wind out like a
layer of, but they didn't havethat before.
So layering wool and tightknits would work.
But for pants like they wouldhave to be felt pants and I
managed to.
I have some felt.
(18:24):
But like I'm hardcore with wool, I can wear lopey Icelandic
wool on bare skin and I can dealwith that, even though that my
skin reacts to it.
I can deal with it.
I'm just powerful that way.
But the thought of having thaton my legs, yeah, that didn't
(18:46):
really excite me and that wouldmean that I have to wear more
layers under there as well.
I just didn't see it happeningpractically and I thought my
skill level is not good enoughto figure out how that would
even work, perhaps in the future.
So back to this is turning intoSaskia Skipent's episode, which
(19:10):
is kind of weird, but it's agood example of how I process
these things.
So I have this outfit which istoo large.
It's beige with bright neonorange, which is in theory kind
of a cool color combo, but inpractice I kind of look I'm not
(19:36):
going to talk about myself inthat way I don't look good, I
have to say I don't.
And not looking good is onething, but not feeling good,
that's the next thing, and Idon't want to feel uncomfortable
about myself all day.
So it's not really sustainableto then start to make your own
(19:57):
outfit.
But there's limits to all thethings.
I just don't want to feel lateron.
But for now I just wanted toalso learn the skills to make my
(20:27):
own pants and kind of have abig, big finger to the industry
and just going nobody in theindustry is going to know, but I
will.
I will just flip the bird tothem and say, fuck you, I can
make my own ski pants.
And so I started doing that andthey're coming along quite
(20:48):
nicely.
My sewing teacher, caroline, ishelping me with it.
I'm basically just doing whatshe says and trying to remember.
But that is really hard.
I'm not even sure if I canduplicate it.
I'm trying to remember, to takenotes and then hopefully the
notes will help me to rememberwhat I did.
(21:09):
So it's going well.
It's a black fabric and, yeah,it is definitely going to have
to last a long time, so I madeit quite neutral.
(21:36):
It's black and it has brightpink piping in a V shape on the
lower back, upper butt, I wouldsay, with hidden zips, and for
now that's the only bright thingabout it.
But I have a yellow raincoatfrom my daughter which is way
too small and it has silverstars on it and nobody wants it
because the size is too largefor the design.
(21:56):
The design is more of a kidthing and the size is more of a
early teen thing, and so nobodywanted it and I didn't want to
throw it out.
So I'm going to turn thatraincoat into the snow catchers
that go around your boots, andso underneath the black will be
bright yellow, silver Star snowcatchers made from a raincoat.
(22:21):
I thought that was circular,that was good.
Well, not circular, it's notgoing to go back into the soil,
but at least I've reused thatone for something else and it's
going to last for, hopefully,some years to come.
So I'm not done.
I've got the legs stitchedtogether.
I took out some fabric in theback of the knee and I have some
(22:46):
folded fabric where the knee isso that it essentially sits in
a bent shape.
Always, that's not the word I'mlooking for, but it's kind of
bent, so it's made to move inand what else?
I'm not doing pockets on thefront, so that's going to be
(23:06):
simple.
It has a large flap over thezipper on the front to protect
it from snow coming in and stuff, because I don't have all those
fancy water protected zippers.
It's just basic zippers andthen flaps over them.
I'm also going to make atriangle part on the back and
(23:28):
I'm going to make straps that goover my shoulders so that they
keep up the pants.
Yeah, I don't know what that'scalled at this moment and I'll
listen to this again and I'll goand I'll immediately know what
it is.
Anyway, you can say it out loudand I'll pretend that I hear it
Suspenders, suspenders.
(23:50):
So yeah, that's going to happen.
And then I have some fabricthat's a little bit less basic,
but this will make me feelreally good because it's for the
jacket.
I thought about doing the tightknit sweater and that was the
(24:11):
idea at first, but then Idecided against it because lack
of time, I didn't have the rightyarn, didn't want to buy more
yarn, although I did buy thefabric for this jacket and so I
(24:32):
already bought that.
I've got the same kind offabric.
It's basically soft shellfabric, so it's windproof and
it's also waterproof although Ithink if you fall into a pond
you'll definitely get wet and ithas like a fleece type of
(24:52):
inside and a smooth outside.
So I got black for the pantsand then I got it's kind of a.
I'm looking at it right now.
It's kind of a mix between apanther print panther, no, a
(25:13):
leopard print and a butterflywings.
Weirdly it has black, brown, alittle bit of sage green and
some spots of bright pink, hencethe piping and yellow, more of
an ochery yellow.
So I'll probably be alsoknitting a cowl that matches
(25:45):
with that.
I'm didn't use a pattern for thepants.
I used my own block pattern,for I did a course on writing my
own patterns for pants and twotypes of skirts and a top.
(26:07):
My aim is to always use thosepatterns as a base for
everything I do, because thisway I'll learn much faster and I
won't have to change thepatterns to match my body,
because I already have patternsthat match my body, so that
(26:28):
makes it much more sense, if youknow what I mean.
But for the, what is it?
It's an anorak.
You put it over your head andit doesn't fully open, kind of
the snowboarder type style.
I thought that's going to bewide anyway, so that's going to
(26:50):
be good.
I can use that and not have tofully design a whole thing.
Yeah, it's Merchant and Mills,the Landgate.
That's the pattern that I'musing.
If you want to look that up,I'm going to keep it simple
(27:12):
because the pattern is quitewild, literally, and I'm really
looking forward to that.
I hope I'll finish it all intime.
I think the pants will be fine.
The jacket I'm not fully sure,but they have to be done because
the other jacket that I havereally doesn't match with the
(27:32):
pant.
So, as you can see through thisprocess, there's a lot of
thinking involved, but thisdefinitely wasn't my most
circular, sustainable choice.
It was the best choice that Imade for me.
It was the best choice that Imade for me.
(27:53):
I think it was the best choicefor me and the most important is
that I'm so happy with thisthat I'll be using that for
years.
I typically use my sportinggear until it falls apart.
So I don't change that around alot, and that's just because
it's always been so hard for meto find stuff, so I'm used to
(28:15):
using it for a long time.
I remember it must have beenaround 1920, I bought a
snowboard jacket from the brandBurton and it was so expensive.
I still cannot believe thatthat that was such an expensive
(28:35):
jacket, but I think I wore itfor at least a decade until it
didn't fit anymore.
It was so well made.
The quality was amazing.
For any of the, if you're aFriends fan, phoebe is wearing
the exact same jacket in theepisode where they drive out
(28:57):
with the cab somewhere, and it'sa bright green jacket with
white stripes on the side.
And I loved it Also because atthe time, also because at the
time it was just reallyimportant for me to be seen as a
snowboarder and because I was.
But yeah, it was just part ofwho I was, my identity, and I
(29:21):
loved that jacket so much.
So, yeah, I'll use it for along, long time.
I don't know if, when I'mgetting rid of it, how will I do
it, will I by then know moreabout how to consciously do that
instead of just throwing it inthe trash, but I'll guess that's
(29:43):
what will happen in the end toit because I cannot compost it
or anything to it because Icannot compost it or anything
Not saying that I compost myclothes right now, but I'm
really thinking about thesethings a lot.
What else can I say?
(30:03):
Yeah, it's.
I think what's important isthat you find a way that works
for you.
One of the big points that Imade in the last episode that
might be lost is that I'm makingthese ski pants right now and
they will last me for so long,so I don't have to make ski
pants for a long time now.
(30:23):
And that's the same witheverything.
Making your own wardrobe is notwaking up one day throwing out
everything that you have andgrowing your own flax and cotton
and getting some sheep.
That's not it.
You have a whole wardrobe,probably super full of stuff,
(30:45):
and then when you decide I wantto do things better, then that
wardrobe will go and grow withyou as you go.
So some things will go and alot of things will stay until
they need replacement, and soyou don't have to be constantly
making stuff.
It's just the things that youneed.
(31:06):
And if you do a wardrobe checkevery start of the season, or
even just the warm and thecolder season, depending on
where you live, you'll knowwhat's coming and what you'll
need and you'll have.
If you're a crafter and I knowyou are you'll have time to make
(31:28):
it.
So time is not the thing.
You'll have the materials orthe budget because you are
already doing that.
So why not refocus and justfocus on what's the next thing
that you need that you mighthave bought in the shop, and if
you don't have the skills tomake that, then that could be
(31:53):
another fun thing to do.
So I started taking sewinglessons, but we all know that
everything is.
You can find everything online,and most of the things you can
find for free as well, so payingfor it just makes it go faster.
So, yeah, that's been on mymind.
Let's talk about the otherthings that I'm making and doing
(32:13):
.
I've registered for theLandelijke Spinngrup, which
translates to the NationalSpinning.
It's not a guild, but NationalSpinning Group.
They have a get-togethertogether every year and that is
coming up in the next weekendand it's basically a bunch of
(32:35):
spinsters sitting in a big roomand spinning and there's a bunch
of people that sell materialsand tools and there's going to
be some talks, there's going tobe some workshops, there's going
to be a lottery, and I thinkit's going to be some talks,
there's going to be someworkshops, there's going to be a
lottery, and I think it's goingto be fun.
I don't know anybody there,except for Lisette from
(32:56):
Schapendrack, who's going toalso be selling stuff there, but
I am just yeeting myself intothat group and just see what
happens.
I'll probably meet some peoplethat I already know.
But, um, that's going to beexciting and I'm quite nervous.
Honestly, I'm super nervous.
(33:16):
I um, I'm not a fantasticspinner and I don't need to be
to to be part of that group.
Um, but I've tried a wholebunch of different things and,
as you know, I recently learnedhow to spin flax and turn it
into linen.
I now realize that I have fourdifferent ways that I can spin.
(33:42):
Bought an e-spinner onMarkplatz marketplace a while
ago, which is super convenientto bring, but funnily enough,
I'm going to take my MagikraftSusie Pro that I have.
I'll probably bring her wheeland I have a bunch of spindles
(34:12):
and my tiny Turkish spindle.
So I'll probably bring my tinyTurkish spindle and my Suzy Pro
and I'm going to go there andsee what's up.
So for me, spinning has mostlybeen in the beginning it was
about learning a new craft andenjoying it and learning more
(34:34):
about fiber and how yarns workand all of that.
And then in my consciousjourney of wardrobe making, I
thought the best place thatspinning can have within that is
making socks or making sockyarn, because I love the bright
colored fleeces that you can getor tops or comb tops, but I
(34:59):
will probably never spin thatinto yarn to make a sweater from
, because that's just not thekind of style that I usually
would wear.
But I love bright socks and Ialso think it's totally doable
in terms of amount.
It is asking me to learn enoughto be able to spin thin yarn
(35:24):
that I can three ply and thenhave a sock weight.
Three ply and then have a sockweight, and I just reached that
level.
So that's where I am right now.
And then there's a lot ofdifferent fibers that I can try
out to see what works in termsof natural fibers that are not
(35:44):
plastic, so like mix it withplant fibers or silk or yeah,
things like that.
So I'm excited about doing morespinning sock yarn, but perhaps
I will have my eyes open andsee what other fibers they have
and what tickles my fancy, whichI will immediately talk strict
(36:07):
to myself and call myself backand say, no, no, there's no
tickling fancies.
You'll have to think about whatyou need first.
So what I need is not much.
Honestly, I already have allthe tools, except for one tiny
tool that I'll talk about in asecond.
(36:28):
I don't have that much spinningfiber.
Honestly, the fiber that I havehas been used as learning fiber
to learn how to get where Iwant to be, which obviously
resulted in yarn, but not theyarn that I need it to be.
Most of it is more suitable forhats and cowls and stuff like
(36:53):
that, and I do think thathand-spun yarn makes great gifts
for knitters.
So some of those are on thegift pile.
I do have enough sock yarn for awhile, so, yeah, I don't really
need to do that.
I do use spinning as a calmingtool.
(37:20):
I spin when my mind is too wildto knit, to count, to pay
attention.
So there's going to be somespinning.
So I might as well focus onsock fibers, because it's not a
lot and that's what I'm learningto do well.
So some sock fibers willprobably go with me, and the
(37:44):
small tool that I don't have isa Diz.
It looks like a button with someholes in it and you pull the
fiber through the holes from abat, if I understand correctly,
to turn it into roving, and thenyou can spin from the roving.
I have a carder, I have cardercombs and a drum carder as well,
(38:07):
and from my shop I have quite alot of Icelandic lopey fibers
unspun, but they're really messy, so I have to turn them into
bats and pick out all theoffcuts Actually more useful for
(38:28):
stuffing stuff and for needlefelting, I guess, but I'll try
and give it a go to card somenice bats and then I want to use
a diz for making the roving andthese, this yarn that I will
spin from.
That will match the little bitsand bobs that I still have of
(38:51):
uh let lopey.
I don't have enough anymore,weirdly, to knit a full sweater.
They're all different colorsand that could work, but I want
to make things that I'llactually wear.
So, yeah, I'm getting excitedto blend some of those fibers
into a heathered color thatsuits my palette, and this is a
(39:15):
nice thing to take away fromthis Landelijke Spindag, so I
hope somebody offers it thereand that's something I'll be on
the lookout for.
But mostly I'll be there toconnect with other spinners and
talk to them about what theymake and hopefully inspire them
to make something they need andnot what they want or need.
(39:40):
Not what they want.
Make something they need andwhat they want, because that I
think I need to tattoo thatsomewhere.
Um, I actually already did,honestly, but, um, okay, what
else did I want to talk about?
So the Landlijke Spindach whatelse am I making?
Oh, I'm knitting along on myhusband's Trachtenjacke, which
(40:06):
is a cardigan that matches thelook of when you wear lederhosen
, and he works for a Germanbrand.
That's all I can say.
They have these get togetherswhere they actually wear the
lederhosen, drink beer and stuff, but it's also when we go
(40:27):
skiing.
It's what the people in Austriawear a lot, and not just for
funsies, it's just what theywear because it's super
practical.
But it's also what some peoplewear during Christmas and they
dress up and they dress likethat and since he has lederhosen
, he might as well wear themwhen he can, and that's about
(40:50):
twice a year.
And he really wanted a cardigan, one of those Trachten style
cardigans that go with that, andit's like endless rows of
garter stitch.
I've been working on it for Idon't know at least three months
and a lot.
I've been knitting a lot.
It's a lot of work.
So I'm thinking of knitting alittle pocket so that we can do
(41:11):
a track, put a tracker in there,because everything else that
I've ever knit him he's well,not everything.
He's still got two sweaters,but lots of the smaller things
he's lost and I don't want himto lose this because it was a
lot of work.
So I'll track him with or I'lltrack the.
I don't care where my husbandgoes, I just want to know where
(41:33):
the, where the cardigan is, um.
So yeah, that's been there.
I've been finishing some socksthat are really high up the calf
so I can wear them as ski socks.
They're super messy but superfun.
They're bright yellow, alsowith fun colors, but they don't
(41:57):
even look alike.
They're completely differentboth of them.
But I'm focused on thefunctionality, not on the
perfectionism with those.
I'm just gonna wear thembecause they keep my feet warm,
and I think that is it for now.
That's what I've been workingon.
That's why I've been working onthose things and focusing on
(42:21):
the things that I need or thatmy husband needs.
And, yeah, that's it for now.
I hope that the other episodewill come back.
If not, I've already talked alot about that topic, so it's
fine and we'll move on.
Oh, before I forget, if you goto my website, patternshiftfm,
(42:46):
you'll see a pop-up and I'vedesigned a wall calendar for
2025 so that you can organizeall your festivals and the
Spindage all the things that youwant to go to, but also so that
(43:11):
you can have an overview of thewhole year and that you can
pace yourself and take care ofyourself and not do too much and
immediately see there's toomuch going on in this month.
I need to take a break.
Stuff like that.
It's completely free.
You'll have to take it to yourprint shop, so you'll have to
pay.
If you want it like door size,then it's probably going to cost
(43:34):
you around 30 euros, or perhapsyou can do it at your job and
you can use the smaller ones aswell.
In fact, you can use them forevery project that you're doing,
or every.
If you're planning your podcastepisodes, you can have one for
your podcast episodes and youcan just keep those small,
(43:54):
whatever you like, or use it asa desktop so that you can always
see what day it is.
I hope you like it and I hadfun making it and I thought it
would be nice to share somethinglike that with you, just that
so that you can take time andtake care.
All right, bye.
(44:14):
Also, ps, if you want to do moreof that, if you want to focus
on making the things you needand making them into the things
that you want, that's all thatkind of stuff is going on on in
our community, so you can findthe link in the show notes and
(44:35):
sign up to be part of a group ofpeople that think about these
things and that are all humanand we're not perfect, and
sometimes we do make the nextMCAL from the next designer and
it's all okay.
But it's a journey and we're onthat journey together so we can
(44:57):
help each other and learn fromeach other.
So I'd love to have you there.
There's a journey and we're onthat journey together so we can
help each other and learn fromeach other, so I'd love to have
you there.
There's a whole bunch ofbusiness owners, people that
dream of building a business, sothere's also lots of
information and lots ofconnections to make when it
comes to growing your businessin a similar conscious manner.
So hopefully you'll become amember, because I kind of really
(45:21):
need some new members, becauseI have to pay for all of this
and it is great that things canhappen when people come together
.
So sign up, even if it's justfor a month, just to hang out
for a month with us, that wouldbe nice.
Yeah, this is Editing Saskia,and I've been listening to this
(45:42):
episode and especially this lastbit.
It's something that I startedto think about a little bit.
I've always been really carefulto ask for help because I've
been open to you all.
I uh, um, I have everything Ineed, but I run a business and
(46:07):
this business does need themoney and it does need the money
to, uh, to continue to existand for me to continue to make
these episodes.
Um, members of the community,whether or not you're active,
that is the way to support thispodcast and I do need that
(46:30):
support, um, because, as I said,I need to pay for everything
and I also deserve an incomebecause I do all this work and I
need it as a reminder thatpeople like what I'm doing, that
they get something out of it.
(46:51):
So I'm going to ask you tobecome a member and join us in
our Yevil community.
If you like, you can also justsupport the podcast and there's
a link in the show notes andthen you're just a silent
(47:11):
promoter, supporter of thepodcast.
That can happen as well.
I feel awkward about this, butI need to do it.
I need to say it out loud thatI really could use the support.
So please go over to the shownotes or to patternshiftfm and
(47:32):
find everything you need there,or just contact me through all
the different channels.
That would be amazing.
Thank you so much.
Hi, how are you?
Are you experiencing lovelyautumn slash fall weather?
I love the sunlight this timeof year, I love absolutely
everything about autumn and it'sjust so cozy.
And although I've said for along time that it doesn't affect
(00:20):
my mood, the last couple ofyears that has changed a little,
with the difference that when Iwas younger I would call that
being melancholic, and it fitsthe mood of the season.
Now that I'm a little bit older, I can get a little bit down.
That seems to happen, and Ireally have to beware that I go
(00:45):
to bed at a right time, drinkenough water, get enough
movement, aka exercise.
And that is kind of where I'mat.
And I just wanted to come inbecause I had recorded an
episode and I have beenstruggling to fix it.
(01:05):
Part of it is gone and I cannotbring myself to re record the
whole thing, and I think that iswhat I mean when I talk about
being a little less energetic.
Yeah, so I've been strugglingto really get some hardcore work
(01:27):
in lately.
Honestly, I've been crafting alot, to be honest, because it
felt like that was what I neededmost.
And just knitting, spinning, alittle bit of weaving yeah,
that's what I've been doing andI just cannot get myself to
(01:52):
rerecord the episode.
So I decided what the heck?
I'm just gonna chat with youand make this one a shorter
episode and just talk aboutwhat's going on, what I've been
doing, and be a little bit morechilled out, and then perhaps in
two weeks, who knows where myenergy, mental happiness level
(02:18):
is at that point.
Luckily, I can still laughabout it all.
Luckily, I can still laughabout it all.
So this is definitely superunscripted.
I'm just sitting in front of mycomputer with my headphones on
and my mic in front of my snoutand also recording video because
(02:38):
I've been trying to get myselfto post on YouTube.
But this is also connected tothat mood, I think.
Whereas how long is that ago,like eight years ago or
something I would haveabsolutely no problem videoing
myself and sharing it.
But it's getting harder andharder and I don't think it's an
(03:03):
ego thing.
I've recently turned 49.
And although I do have somefeelings about my age and how
that looks on me, I don't thinkI really struggle with aging and
(03:23):
things like that in terms ofhaving really low feelings about
what I look like.
I definitely have to do somework around accepting some
things.
I used to have super acne whenI was a teenager acne when I was
(03:50):
a teenager and one of thethings that annoyed me about
that most is that my skin didn'tlook one tone.
Even when that got better, Istill had some blotchy what's
the word blotchy spots, and itwasn't an even tone.
But I also never really used awhole lot of makeup to like
(04:12):
quiet that down.
And now that I'm becoming older, I am getting darker spots in
my face and that is somethingthat I look at every day in the
mirror and I'm not sure about it.
On one hand, I feel like it'sjust part of what's going on and
(04:33):
I'm all about the natural cycleof things, but the other side
of me goes like oh, I kind ofwant to cover that up, and so
sometimes I do, sometimes Idon't.
So that's definitely somethingthat is new and that is
affecting a little bit how Ifeel about showing up on a
(04:55):
camera.
I also feel like I don't reallylook like me.
Okay, this is going to be veryphilosophical and I'll try to
keep it short, but if you feelthe same, let me know.
That could help.
So what's going on is that Ialways identified when I was
(05:19):
younger as alternative a littlebit punk maybe.
As alternative a little bitpunk maybe I was always
windsurfing, snowboarding, thatkind of a thing and my hair was
pink for a long time and then itwas pink.
It wasn't pink anymore and thenI re-dyed it pink when I was in
(05:42):
my 30s I think late 30s and Ireally felt like me again.
But for some reason I have anissue with dyeing it pink again
at this age Because a part of mefeels like fuck this, it's my
life, this is who I am, nothinghas changed.
(06:04):
Like fuck this, it's my life,this is who I am, nothing has
changed.
And a part of me goes like oh,that will just look like I'm
trying too hard to stay young orsomething, instead of stay me.
And it's the same when youthink about wearing certain type
(06:25):
of shoes that connects to thisimage, let's say, black
conference all-stars or vans ordr martin's none of this is
sponsored.
Am I?
I don't really feel like myself.
Is that just because I'mtotally in menopause and I'm
just hormoning all over theplace?
Or is it because I'm letting goof those things because I think
(06:48):
that they don't fit my age andtherefore I don't feel like me.
These are things that I'mthinking about.
I wouldn't say struggle,perhaps a little bit.
And then there's this wholething of me wanting to create a
wardrobe that is very much meand very much very consciously
(07:11):
chosen, picked, made, designed.
All of that.
(07:32):
This is actually what theepisode was about.
That I had recorded earlier, soI'll just tap into it just in
case that I'm able to salvagethe whole thing.
Lately I've been really I'malways saying to myself I should
(07:52):
be more honest, more open andjust voice my opinions, my
actual opinions, because then ifyou agree with me, you're my
person, if you don't, that'sokay and you just don't.
That will work as some sort offilter and that's the way to go,
(08:13):
because if I speak in vanillaterms, that's not who I am and
then I'm probably not reachingmy crowd.
If you know what I mean, I'mprobably not reaching my crowd
if you know what I mean.
But it's also kind ofcomplicated to really say what
you mean, because, yeah, I don'tknow.
(08:34):
Perhaps I look at contentcreators that do voice their
opinion and I think, well,that's a little black and white,
a little harsh, and I haveopinions about that, but then I
do respect them for doing that.
So, yeah, let's just say, okay,let's go back.
(08:55):
And I've been I think the wordis shocked quickly followed by a
little bit annoyed by the factthat so many people in the
knitting, spinning, weaving,fiber arts and crafts world have
(09:18):
so many skills and theycontinue and I'm super
generalizing here.
I am super generalizing andthey continue to buy and make
what they want instead of whatthey need.
And I'm realizing that I'vebeen on this journey for years
(09:40):
now and it's not been.
It's not like super easy.
It takes a lot of time now andit's not been.
It's not like super easy.
It takes a lot of time, effort,choices, deciding, letting go
of things, all of that.
But I'm so a littledisappointed.
I think, honestly, that peoplelike myself do not choose to
(10:05):
make what they need and theychoose to make the next thing
that is hot on Ravelry right nowor on Instagram or whatever.
And I believe you can do both.
You can do both, and why shouldyou?
You might ask, and it would benice if you didn't have to ask,
(10:27):
but you might and then my answerwould be well, the fashion
industry sucks and we all knowit, and we are the group of
people that can, without thatmuch effort, can start today
(10:50):
flipping their life around andtheir choices and doing it
differently.
Instead, what I'm seeing isthat not enough people decide to
stop buying fast fashion andmaking more of what they need,
(11:13):
even when they have the skillsand the stash and the time.
Shawl.
You can also make a t-shirt orsocks, and I do get it.
If you are in this craftingworld and you get this high from
(11:35):
certain materials, certaindesigns, and you go like I'm
just not a sock knitter or Idon't wear wool socks, perhaps
because you don't have them, Iget that, but we need to make a
change.
It is so important that thingschange and I do believe that
(11:59):
change happens really slowly ona personal level and it happens
much faster on a business level,but still, we can make our own
things.
We actually love to make ourown things.
The only thing we need to do isto go over to our wardrobe and
(12:23):
check out what we need and thenstart the whole process that we
are used to, but focus only onthe thing that we need.
So this is what's been on mymind and hopefully I'll get the
other episode out as well, butI'll focus now on how I deal
with that and I'll try to besuper, super honest with you,
(12:47):
because I don't believe in beingcritical about other people
without being critical aboutyourself.
So I hope that helps and you'llforgive me for my little rant
there.
I've been making a bunch ofstuff.
Let me think so I'm the kind ofperson that can go and wants to
(13:16):
go on winter holidays.
In the Netherlands we don'thave mountains, so we have to go
to another country.
We drive to Austria and duringChristmas we spend a week there
with our family and friends andwe eat lots of good food, drink
(13:37):
lots of fun drinks and we have agreat time and we do some
skiing.
Not a lot for me.
I used to be a snowboarder andas a child I did a lot of skiing
and I was very sporty.
But I've always been the typeof person that when the weather
is not great or when I'm tired,I will just cut myself slack.
(13:59):
I don't have to prove anything,I just want to have fun.
I'm that kind of a skier, soI'm skiing, having fun.
I'm very lucky that I can go ona winter holiday holiday In
(14:22):
that thing.
I'm fat and apparently fatskiers don't exist and there's
not a lot of fat skiers outthere actually, and I wonder if
that's because they cannot findtheir outfits or shoes to fit or
all of those things.
Because my God, that ishorrific.
It is really.
Every year is an attack on myself-worth and it's a struggle,
(14:45):
and I don't think a lot ofpeople know what that feels like
, except if you're a fat skieror, for that matter, any fatlete
any sport that you do whereit's hard to find specific
outfits and tools and they justdon't make it for your size,
because apparently fat peopledon't do that or have budget to
(15:07):
buy stuff.
And every year when I come back, I think about starting my own
brand and I'm so fed up with itand I want to send emails to all
the brands and, yeah, it'sgreat, a week holiday and you
return frustrated and stressedno, I'm also rested and all of
(15:28):
that, but it's a returningfrustration.
So I managed to buy an outfitlast year from a German brand
and I bought it through theGerman website because fat
skiers in the Netherlands thatwe don't have mountains, so that
(15:50):
was just not.
That was undoable.
So I went to Germany online notreally and I got myself an
outfit and it was either thesizes were either too small or
too big and there was nothing inbetween, and I went with the
big one and it just kind of felloff my bum and I just didn't
(16:12):
feel good at it.
And I've been used to buyingclothes that I don't feel good
in, which is super sad, but it'sthe truth.
I remember, even as a teenageror in my 20s, going into stores
and being so excited that theyhad a large size section, and
(16:34):
then just anything that wouldfit I would get, and I wouldn't
even think about how it wouldfit or if it was even my style,
or let alone like going to 2024,where I have opinions on how
things are made, what kind ofmaterial, who made it?
Like the whole thing.
(16:56):
And so now I've wiggled myselfinto a corner that is super
complex.
So fat skier needs an outfitthat she feels good in and that
is also as sustainable as shecan get it.
(17:16):
Well, that's a problem, becausethe one that I bought, like all
the ski wear, is plastic.
So, honestly, I went to theplace in my head where I thought
well, in the olden days itwasn't plastic, it was wool.
Can I just make like a wool setof pants and a wool sweater and
(17:40):
just do it that way, and Ireally looked into it but I
decided against it.
And for let me answer why.
Why did I decide against it?
Not necessarily the sweater,because I think that a good
tight knit wool sweater, layered, is great and will do a great
(18:03):
job.
I think you'll need somethingto keep the wind out like a
layer of, but they didn't havethat before.
So layering wool and tightknits would work.
But for pants like they wouldhave to be felt pants and I
managed to.
I have some felt.
(18:24):
But like I'm hardcore with wool, I can wear lopey Icelandic
wool on bare skin and I can dealwith that, even though that my
skin reacts to it.
I can deal with it.
I'm just powerful that way.
But the thought of having thaton my legs, yeah, that didn't
(18:46):
really excite me and that wouldmean that I have to wear more
layers under there as well.
I just didn't see it happeningpractically and I thought my
skill level is not good enoughto figure out how that would
even work, perhaps in the future.
So back to this is turning intoSaskia Skipent's episode, which
(19:10):
is kind of weird, but it's agood example of how I process
these things.
So I have this outfit which istoo large.
It's beige with bright neonorange, which is in theory kind
of a cool color combo, but inpractice I kind of look I'm not
(19:36):
going to talk about myself inthat way I don't look good, I
have to say I don't.
And not looking good is onething, but not feeling good,
that's the next thing, and Idon't want to feel uncomfortable
about myself all day.
So it's not really sustainableto then start to make your own
(19:57):
outfit.
But there's limits to all thethings.
I just don't want to feel lateron.
But for now I just wanted toalso learn the skills to make my
(20:27):
own pants and kind of have abig, big finger to the industry
and just going nobody in theindustry is going to know, but I
will.
I will just flip the bird tothem and say, fuck you, I can
make my own ski pants.
And so I started doing that andthey're coming along quite
(20:48):
nicely.
My sewing teacher, caroline, ishelping me with it.
I'm basically just doing whatshe says and trying to remember.
But that is really hard.
I'm not even sure if I canduplicate it.
I'm trying to remember, to takenotes and then hopefully the
notes will help me to rememberwhat I did.
(21:09):
So it's going well.
It's a black fabric and, yeah,it is definitely going to have
to last a long time, so I madeit quite neutral.
(21:36):
It's black and it has brightpink piping in a V shape on the
lower back, upper butt, I wouldsay, with hidden zips, and for
now that's the only bright thingabout it.
But I have a yellow raincoatfrom my daughter which is way
too small and it has silverstars on it and nobody wants it
because the size is too largefor the design.
(21:56):
The design is more of a kidthing and the size is more of a
early teen thing, and so nobodywanted it and I didn't want to
throw it out.
So I'm going to turn thatraincoat into the snow catchers
that go around your boots, andso underneath the black will be
bright yellow, silver Star snowcatchers made from a raincoat.
(22:21):
I thought that was circular,that was good.
Well, not circular, it's notgoing to go back into the soil,
but at least I've reused thatone for something else and it's
going to last for, hopefully,some years to come.
So I'm not done.
I've got the legs stitchedtogether.
I took out some fabric in theback of the knee and I have some
(22:46):
folded fabric where the knee isso that it essentially sits in
a bent shape.
Always, that's not the word I'mlooking for, but it's kind of
bent, so it's made to move inand what else?
I'm not doing pockets on thefront, so that's going to be
(23:06):
simple.
It has a large flap over thezipper on the front to protect
it from snow coming in and stuff, because I don't have all those
fancy water protected zippers.
It's just basic zippers andthen flaps over them.
I'm also going to make atriangle part on the back and
(23:28):
I'm going to make straps that goover my shoulders so that they
keep up the pants.
Yeah, I don't know what that'scalled at this moment and I'll
listen to this again and I'll goand I'll immediately know what
it is.
Anyway, you can say it out loudand I'll pretend that I hear it
Suspenders, suspenders.
(23:50):
So yeah, that's going to happen.
And then I have some fabricthat's a little bit less basic,
but this will make me feelreally good because it's for the
jacket.
I thought about doing the tightknit sweater and that was the
(24:11):
idea at first, but then Idecided against it because lack
of time, I didn't have the rightyarn, didn't want to buy more
yarn, although I did buy thefabric for this jacket and so I
(24:32):
already bought that.
I've got the same kind offabric.
It's basically soft shellfabric, so it's windproof and
it's also waterproof although Ithink if you fall into a pond
you'll definitely get wet and ithas like a fleece type of
(24:52):
inside and a smooth outside.
So I got black for the pantsand then I got it's kind of a.
I'm looking at it right now.
It's kind of a mix between apanther print panther, no, a
(25:13):
leopard print and a butterflywings.
Weirdly it has black, brown, alittle bit of sage green and
some spots of bright pink, hencethe piping and yellow, more of
an ochery yellow.
So I'll probably be alsoknitting a cowl that matches
(25:45):
with that.
I'm didn't use a pattern for thepants.
I used my own block pattern,for I did a course on writing my
own patterns for pants and twotypes of skirts and a top.
(26:07):
My aim is to always use thosepatterns as a base for
everything I do, because thisway I'll learn much faster and I
won't have to change thepatterns to match my body,
because I already have patternsthat match my body, so that
(26:28):
makes it much more sense, if youknow what I mean.
But for the, what is it?
It's an anorak.
You put it over your head andit doesn't fully open, kind of
the snowboarder type style.
I thought that's going to bewide anyway, so that's going to
(26:50):
be good.
I can use that and not have tofully design a whole thing.
Yeah, it's Merchant and Mills,the Landgate.
That's the pattern that I'musing.
If you want to look that up,I'm going to keep it simple
(27:12):
because the pattern is quitewild, literally, and I'm really
looking forward to that.
I hope I'll finish it all intime.
I think the pants will be fine.
The jacket I'm not fully sure,but they have to be done because
the other jacket that I havereally doesn't match with the
(27:32):
pant.
So, as you can see through thisprocess, there's a lot of
thinking involved, but thisdefinitely wasn't my most
circular, sustainable choice.
It was the best choice that Imade for me.
It was the best choice that Imade for me.
(27:53):
I think it was the best choicefor me and the most important is
that I'm so happy with thisthat I'll be using that for
years.
I typically use my sportinggear until it falls apart.
So I don't change that around alot, and that's just because
it's always been so hard for meto find stuff, so I'm used to
(28:15):
using it for a long time.
I remember it must have beenaround 1920, I bought a
snowboard jacket from the brandBurton and it was so expensive.
I still cannot believe thatthat that was such an expensive
(28:35):
jacket, but I think I wore itfor at least a decade until it
didn't fit anymore.
It was so well made.
The quality was amazing.
For any of the, if you're aFriends fan, phoebe is wearing
the exact same jacket in theepisode where they drive out
(28:57):
with the cab somewhere, and it'sa bright green jacket with
white stripes on the side.
And I loved it Also because atthe time, also because at the
time it was just reallyimportant for me to be seen as a
snowboarder and because I was.
But yeah, it was just part ofwho I was, my identity, and I
(29:21):
loved that jacket so much.
So, yeah, I'll use it for along, long time.
I don't know if, when I'mgetting rid of it, how will I do
it, will I by then know moreabout how to consciously do that
instead of just throwing it inthe trash, but I'll guess that's
(29:43):
what will happen in the end toit because I cannot compost it
or anything to it because Icannot compost it or anything
Not saying that I compost myclothes right now, but I'm
really thinking about thesethings a lot.
What else can I say?
(30:03):
Yeah, it's.
I think what's important isthat you find a way that works
for you.
One of the big points that Imade in the last episode that
might be lost is that I'm makingthese ski pants right now and
they will last me for so long,so I don't have to make ski
pants for a long time now.
(30:23):
And that's the same witheverything.
Making your own wardrobe is notwaking up one day throwing out
everything that you have andgrowing your own flax and cotton
and getting some sheep.
That's not it.
You have a whole wardrobe,probably super full of stuff,
(30:45):
and then when you decide I wantto do things better, then that
wardrobe will go and grow withyou as you go.
So some things will go and alot of things will stay until
they need replacement, and soyou don't have to be constantly
making stuff.
It's just the things that youneed.
(31:06):
And if you do a wardrobe checkevery start of the season, or
even just the warm and thecolder season, depending on
where you live, you'll knowwhat's coming and what you'll
need and you'll have.
If you're a crafter and I knowyou are you'll have time to make
(31:28):
it.
So time is not the thing.
You'll have the materials orthe budget because you are
already doing that.
So why not refocus and justfocus on what's the next thing
that you need that you mighthave bought in the shop, and if
you don't have the skills tomake that, then that could be
(31:53):
another fun thing to do.
So I started taking sewinglessons, but we all know that
everything is.
You can find everything online,and most of the things you can
find for free as well, so payingfor it just makes it go faster.
So, yeah, that's been on mymind.
Let's talk about the otherthings that I'm making and doing
(32:13):
.
I've registered for theLandelijke Spinngrup, which
translates to the NationalSpinning.
It's not a guild, but NationalSpinning Group.
They have a get-togethertogether every year and that is
coming up in the next weekendand it's basically a bunch of
(32:35):
spinsters sitting in a big roomand spinning and there's a bunch
of people that sell materialsand tools and there's going to
be some talks, there's going tobe some workshops, there's going
to be a lottery, and I thinkit's going to be some talks,
there's going to be someworkshops, there's going to be a
lottery, and I think it's goingto be fun.
I don't know anybody there,except for Lisette from
(32:56):
Schapendrack, who's going toalso be selling stuff there, but
I am just yeeting myself intothat group and just see what
happens.
I'll probably meet some peoplethat I already know.
But, um, that's going to beexciting and I'm quite nervous.
Honestly, I'm super nervous.
(33:16):
I um, I'm not a fantasticspinner and I don't need to be
to to be part of that group.
Um, but I've tried a wholebunch of different things and,
as you know, I recently learnedhow to spin flax and turn it
into linen.
I now realize that I have fourdifferent ways that I can spin.
(33:42):
Bought an e-spinner onMarkplatz marketplace a while
ago, which is super convenientto bring, but funnily enough,
I'm going to take my MagikraftSusie Pro that I have.
I'll probably bring her wheeland I have a bunch of spindles
(34:12):
and my tiny Turkish spindle.
So I'll probably bring my tinyTurkish spindle and my Suzy Pro
and I'm going to go there andsee what's up.
So for me, spinning has mostlybeen in the beginning it was
about learning a new craft andenjoying it and learning more
(34:34):
about fiber and how yarns workand all of that.
And then in my consciousjourney of wardrobe making, I
thought the best place thatspinning can have within that is
making socks or making sockyarn, because I love the bright
colored fleeces that you can getor tops or comb tops, but I
(34:59):
will probably never spin thatinto yarn to make a sweater from
, because that's just not thekind of style that I usually
would wear.
But I love bright socks and Ialso think it's totally doable
in terms of amount.
It is asking me to learn enoughto be able to spin thin yarn
(35:24):
that I can three ply and thenhave a sock weight.
Three ply and then have a sockweight, and I just reached that
level.
So that's where I am right now.
And then there's a lot ofdifferent fibers that I can try
out to see what works in termsof natural fibers that are not
(35:44):
plastic, so like mix it withplant fibers or silk or yeah,
things like that.
So I'm excited about doing morespinning sock yarn, but perhaps
I will have my eyes open andsee what other fibers they have
and what tickles my fancy, whichI will immediately talk strict
(36:07):
to myself and call myself backand say, no, no, there's no
tickling fancies.
You'll have to think about whatyou need first.
So what I need is not much.
Honestly, I already have allthe tools, except for one tiny
tool that I'll talk about in asecond.
(36:28):
I don't have that much spinningfiber.
Honestly, the fiber that I havehas been used as learning fiber
to learn how to get where Iwant to be, which obviously
resulted in yarn, but not theyarn that I need it to be.
Most of it is more suitable forhats and cowls and stuff like
(36:53):
that, and I do think thathand-spun yarn makes great gifts
for knitters.
So some of those are on thegift pile.
I do have enough sock yarn for awhile, so, yeah, I don't really
need to do that.
I do use spinning as a calmingtool.
(37:20):
I spin when my mind is too wildto knit, to count, to pay
attention.
So there's going to be somespinning.
So I might as well focus onsock fibers, because it's not a
lot and that's what I'm learningto do well.
So some sock fibers willprobably go with me, and the
(37:44):
small tool that I don't have isa Diz.
It looks like a button with someholes in it and you pull the
fiber through the holes from abat, if I understand correctly,
to turn it into roving, and thenyou can spin from the roving.
I have a carder, I have cardercombs and a drum carder as well,
(38:07):
and from my shop I have quite alot of Icelandic lopey fibers
unspun, but they're really messy, so I have to turn them into
bats and pick out all theoffcuts Actually more useful for
(38:28):
stuffing stuff and for needlefelting, I guess, but I'll try
and give it a go to card somenice bats and then I want to use
a diz for making the roving andthese, this yarn that I will
spin from.
That will match the little bitsand bobs that I still have of
(38:51):
uh let lopey.
I don't have enough anymore,weirdly, to knit a full sweater.
They're all different colorsand that could work, but I want
to make things that I'llactually wear.
So, yeah, I'm getting excitedto blend some of those fibers
into a heathered color thatsuits my palette, and this is a
(39:15):
nice thing to take away fromthis Landelijke Spindag, so I
hope somebody offers it thereand that's something I'll be on
the lookout for.
But mostly I'll be there toconnect with other spinners and
talk to them about what theymake and hopefully inspire them
to make something they need andnot what they want or need.
(39:40):
Not what they want.
Make something they need andwhat they want, because that I
think I need to tattoo thatsomewhere.
Um, I actually already did,honestly, but, um, okay, what
else did I want to talk about?
So the Landlijke Spindach whatelse am I making?
Oh, I'm knitting along on myhusband's Trachtenjacke, which
(40:06):
is a cardigan that matches thelook of when you wear lederhosen
, and he works for a Germanbrand.
That's all I can say.
They have these get togetherswhere they actually wear the
lederhosen, drink beer and stuff, but it's also when we go
(40:27):
skiing.
It's what the people in Austriawear a lot, and not just for
funsies, it's just what theywear because it's super
practical.
But it's also what some peoplewear during Christmas and they
dress up and they dress likethat and since he has lederhosen
, he might as well wear themwhen he can, and that's about
(40:50):
twice a year.
And he really wanted a cardigan, one of those Trachten style
cardigans that go with that, andit's like endless rows of
garter stitch.
I've been working on it for Idon't know at least three months
and a lot.
I've been knitting a lot.
It's a lot of work.
So I'm thinking of knitting alittle pocket so that we can do
(41:11):
a track, put a tracker in there,because everything else that
I've ever knit him he's well,not everything.
He's still got two sweaters,but lots of the smaller things
he's lost and I don't want himto lose this because it was a
lot of work.
So I'll track him with or I'lltrack the.
I don't care where my husbandgoes, I just want to know where
(41:33):
the, where the cardigan is, um.
So yeah, that's been there.
I've been finishing some socksthat are really high up the calf
so I can wear them as ski socks.
They're super messy but superfun.
They're bright yellow, alsowith fun colors, but they don't
(41:57):
even look alike.
They're completely differentboth of them.
But I'm focused on thefunctionality, not on the
perfectionism with those.
I'm just gonna wear thembecause they keep my feet warm,
and I think that is it for now.
That's what I've been workingon.
That's why I've been working onthose things and focusing on
(42:21):
the things that I need or thatmy husband needs.
And, yeah, that's it for now.
I hope that the other episodewill come back.
If not, I've already talked alot about that topic, so it's
fine and we'll move on.
Oh, before I forget, if you goto my website, patternshiftfm,
(42:46):
you'll see a pop-up and I'vedesigned a wall calendar for
2025 so that you can organizeall your festivals and the
Spindage all the things that youwant to go to, but also so that
(43:11):
you can have an overview of thewhole year and that you can
pace yourself and take care ofyourself and not do too much and
immediately see there's toomuch going on in this month.
I need to take a break.
Stuff like that.
It's completely free.
You'll have to take it to yourprint shop, so you'll have to
pay.
If you want it like door size,then it's probably going to cost
(43:34):
you around 30 euros, or perhapsyou can do it at your job and
you can use the smaller ones aswell.
In fact, you can use them forevery project that you're doing,
or every.
If you're planning your podcastepisodes, you can have one for
your podcast episodes and youcan just keep those small,
(43:54):
whatever you like, or use it asa desktop so that you can always
see what day it is.
I hope you like it and I hadfun making it and I thought it
would be nice to share somethinglike that with you, just that
so that you can take time andtake care.
All right, bye.
(44:14):
Also, ps, if you want to do moreof that, if you want to focus
on making the things you needand making them into the things
that you want, that's all thatkind of stuff is going on on in
our community, so you can findthe link in the show notes and
(44:35):
sign up to be part of a group ofpeople that think about these
things and that are all humanand we're not perfect, and
sometimes we do make the nextMCAL from the next designer and
it's all okay.
But it's a journey and we're onthat journey together so we can
(44:57):
help each other and learn fromeach other.
So I'd love to have you there.
There's a journey and we're onthat journey together so we can
help each other and learn fromeach other, so I'd love to have
you there.
There's a whole bunch ofbusiness owners, people that
dream of building a business, sothere's also lots of
information and lots ofconnections to make when it
comes to growing your businessin a similar conscious manner.
So hopefully you'll become amember, because I kind of really
(45:21):
need some new members, becauseI have to pay for all of this
and it is great that things canhappen when people come together
.
So sign up, even if it's justfor a month, just to hang out
for a month with us, that wouldbe nice.
Yeah, this is Editing Saskia,and I've been listening to this
(45:42):
episode and especially this lastbit.
It's something that I startedto think about a little bit.
I've always been really carefulto ask for help because I've
been open to you all.
I uh, um, I have everything Ineed, but I run a business and
(46:07):
this business does need themoney and it does need the money
to, uh, to continue to existand for me to continue to make
these episodes.
Um, members of the community,whether or not you're active,
that is the way to support thispodcast and I do need that
(46:30):
support, um, because, as I said,I need to pay for everything
and I also deserve an incomebecause I do all this work and I
need it as a reminder thatpeople like what I'm doing, that
they get something out of it.
(46:51):
So I'm going to ask you tobecome a member and join us in
our Yevil community.
If you like, you can also justsupport the podcast and there's
a link in the show notes andthen you're just a silent
(47:11):
promoter, supporter of thepodcast.
That can happen as well.
I feel awkward about this, butI need to do it.
I need to say it out loud thatI really could use the support.
So please go over to the shownotes or to patternshiftfm and
(47:32):
find everything you need there,or just contact me through all
the different channels.
That would be amazing.
Thank you so much.
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