Fraochknits Ep. 14: Celebrating midsummer and ferns; Downtown Hoodie; RainbowKAL23; Soldotna Crop
A very warm welcome to episode 14 of the Fraoch Knits podcast.
In this episode I look at two FOs and a Wip in the knitting section and talk about the rainbowkal23; and I discuss Irish traditions surrounding midsummer and the importance of ferns/bracken in Irish myth and legend at this time of the year. I also talk a little bit about re-wilding and mention Isabella Tree and Charlie Burrell's project at Knepp in Sussex England and Eoghan Daltun's work in rewilding his farm on the Beara peninsula, West Cork (irishrainforest on instagram)
You can track my progress on instagram at fraochknits.
FOs
1. Downtown Hoodie
Tori Yu
tonriknitsnyc on instagram
2. Rainbow socks for the rainbowkal23
Soxploration Socks
Denise De Santis
WIPs
1. Soldotna Crop
Caitlin Hunter
Music from epidemicsound.com
A lovely podcast as always. As a queer knitter your talking about the pridekal and your beautiful rainbow socks truly made me feel welcome on your channel. Thank you for creating a safe place to be.
HI @justabook3961 - I am absolutely delighted that you have been made to feel welcome here - only right and proper that you should be. And thanks for your lovely comment about the podcast:) The rainbow socks were such an uplifting project and in my favourite yarn ullcentrum which although 100 per cent wool (with no nylon) is proving to be hardwearing enough at this gauge to survive the wear and tear that socks get. Happy knitting:)
I so enjoy your podcasts….knitting content and all the lovely stories and lore. Thanks for sharing your beautiful country with us through pictures. My youngest granddaughter was born on June 21st. What fun it will be to tell her some of the Irish lore about summer solstice when she’s older. Enjoy your summer and when this becomes a chore (podcasting) just take care of yourself and don’t do it. I personally would hate if you didn’t selfishly but would absolutely understand. Hugs💞
Thank you so much for your lovely comment!! And thanks for the support:) Enjoy celebrating the solstice with your grandaughter!
I was just thinking yesterday that I was missing your podcast and this morning here you are! I love your hoodie, and I just cast on a cardigan using red and gold colors like the woo you just got. I attended a lecture here in Southern California by Isabella Tree about her book Rewilding. I am a firm believer in the movement. I was one of the first in my neighborhood to rip out my lawn and replace it with all native plants, and many have now followed my example after seeing how beautiful it can be. Also how much water is saved during our drought! I always enjoy your lesson on Irish folklore and history. It's perfect to sit and knit to. Thanks for another great podcast. 🙂
Carina, thanks so much for your lovely comment. You're really lucky to have attended a lecture by Isabella Tree - her rewilding project is so inspiring. Great to have a garden to practise rewilding even it on a small scale. Glad you enjoyed the video- thanks for watching!
Hi A'ine! So glad to see you my Irish friend! Yes this is the busiest time of the year. I'm drinking lemon balm water also on ice...fresh from my Garden! As always your knitting is fantastic. I hope your shoulder continues to get better. I'm working in the barn so I must go and beat the heat of the day. Blessings to you! Diane from Claremont SD USA
Diane, lovely to hear from you again:) And lovely to hear you are also enjoying the benefits of the lemon balm: Shoulder nearly healed now thanks. Happy barn work and knitting:)
Thanks for another splendid podcast, Áine. You've always got such great knitting, stories and lore to share and I am grateful that you do. I've kind of lost my knitting mojo since holidays and moving house but I'm feeling more and more inspired by your Downtown Hoodie... In our new home, we have a long back garden and we've decided to rewild a lot of it. I'm very excited by the notion as well. Cheers on finding your phone!
Ann, sorry I'm sorry it's taken me so long to reply! I'm thrilled that you've been inspired to knit the downtown Hoodie - I really love mine and have been wearing it since I made it. Hope you're settling into your new home well:)
Thank you for the information on Bracken it brought back many memories of the fun we had hiding, making camps etc in the Bracken. Many an adder or wasp nest sent us running. I lived on the edge of Ashdown Forest as a child. I'm not far from Knepp and it is on my list to visit soon. The sadness from the way some people treat others and our wonderful earth. We have left the edge of our town garden overgrown I love sitting down in the garden and the feeling of a little piece of wildness. Thank you for your podcast 🤩
@zenaknittingbeans thanks your for sharing your memories......you were lucky to grow up where you did - and so close to Knepp, what an amazing place and the work they are doing there so uplifting and encouraging. Thanks for watching the podcast!
@@fraochknits book on order too 🙏
Finally found the time to sit down and watch and enjoy in all peace 🙂 Another wonderful episode! Your podcast is a little treasure trove xx
Hi Stamatia - great to hear from you here again and thanks as always for your lovely comments:) Hope you're getting time to sit down and do some knitting......and that you get a chance to get away for a break yourself. Chat soon xxx.
Aine, Thank you so much for your wonderful podcast on midsummer as well as the lovely knits. Can't wait to see the rest of that amazing colourwork you are working on. Amazing the connection to ferns and mythology! In our locality there is a beautiful temperate rainforest - called Sea Acres ( very unusual for the area) . Have a glorious summer... We have had a bitter winter here on the coast..( really minimum 1 C to about 19 C.. that is cold for us)
Hi and thanks for your lovely comments! Nearly finished the colourwork top now and can't wait to show it off in the next video:) Had to make a few modifications but it's not a long knit so I don't mind too much. Thanks for watching and happy knitting:)
Hello from Australia 🇦🇺 Thank you for a wonderful channel . I love listening to your Irish folklore history and beautiful scenes of Ireland 🇮🇪. Your Soldotna looks lovely too❤. I knitted a Soldotna recently and it was a fairly easy pattern and enjoyed the process. Am now knitting Alpine Bloom by Boyland Knitworks another great pattern. Thanks again 😊
Hi @bronnieo3258 thanks for your lovely comments - I'm delighted you're enjoying the channel. I'm very tempted to knit the Alpine Bloom next also - I can't resist a Caitlin Hunter pattern: Nearly finished the soldotna now - as you say a quick and relatively straightforward knit.
Thank you for a very enjoyable podcast - all the yarn inspo and the myths and stories you research and explain so beautifully 🙏🧶💥🙏🌈
Thank you! Really glad you enjoyed it:) Happy knitting!
Your socks (and all this podcast's projects) are just amazing! thanks so much for sharing the PRIDE message! really means a lot
Hi Sam - thank you! Very happy to support the pride celebrations and awareness raising for tolerance and inclusiveness and equal rights for all members of society Thank you for organising the KAL - it was a great idea and I had great fun knitting the socks - my son has asked me to knit him a pair which I look forward to. Keep up the great work on your channel- I'm enjoying all your videos.
It looks like there be will cooler temperatures for you this week! Thanks for another lovely podcast. Your Soldotna is absolutely beautiful. Gorgeous colors!
Hi Cathy - great to hear from you again! Yes our weather has been pretty mixed recently - we're down to 12 degrees today and wall to wall rain..... I'm really loving knitting the soldotna - nearly finished now and can't wait to wear it.
Really enjoyed another episode from you. Your sweater is so nice. Great hearing about the ferns. Over here in the west of Scotland the bracken is in full bloom. Love this time of year over here. Thank you 🏴
HI Christine, great to hear from you. Glad you enjoyed the video. It really is a fabulous time of the year although weather has deteriorated here over the last two weeks - possibly same in Scotland - cool and rainy most of the time now. Oh well at least we got a few weeks of summer in June:)
Totally love your podcast, knitting, folk lore, everything. thank you!
Thanks a million Thomasina - so lovely to get the positive feedback. Thanks for watching!
Great podcast, as always! I’m all for a good knit and rewilding the land❣️🌿🍓🧶
Hi Debbie - thanks for your lovely comment:) Yes knitting and rewilding are keeping me sane these days. I feel lucky to have time to devote to both. Happy knitting:)
So happy I found you!
Thanks for watching! Delighted you like the channel:)
I’m delighted to have come across your podcast 😊 even though it was for the knitting content initially I’m fascinated by the other topics you talk about. Here in Wales we have many folk legends. The fern is fascinating! I loved your choice of yarns,colours and patterns, especially your Soldotna.
HI Ann, and delighted you found the channel....great to hear form Wales. Hoping to be passing through there at the end of August for a short break away, seeing family who live in north Wales and doing some walking and camping. Soldotna nearly off the needles now - such a great pattern and the combination of the silk mohair with the merino singles is the softest thing I've ever knit. Can't wait to wear it:)
Everything... just everything is soooo good. I always learn so much from you. Your aesthetic is so compatible to mine. Thank you for sharing your life and knowledge and crafts with us.
Thanks so much for watching - glad you're enjoying the channel!
Thank you for another interesting chat, Aine. Greetings from New Zealand midwinter! We all live in such an interesting world, where there are commonalities and difference. My understanding of bracken is deepened from just seeing it as an annoying weed growing next to my fountain (I'll look for gold later!),. Here gorse flowers twice a year and it's a noxious weed although people do make scent etc from its flowers. And we think of heather as a romantic purple plant although it also is an uninvited guest on the central plateau where it chokes the natives. Maori and early explorers used to survive on bracken root although it might be a different species from yours. I love your purple, pink and green so far, delicious. I'm thinking of casting on the kilim shawl by Catherine Salter Bayer - i really need a stash buster! May your videos not be a burden, I'm always pleased to see them pop up, I've been there from the beginning!❤
Robyn, what lovely comments and observations -so lovely to hear your feedback and viewpoint from New Zealand. I love that the Maori people survived on bracken root - I never realised it was known as an ingredient for making a love potion in this part of the world - it must have been valued all over. It's great to hear similar stories from the other side of the world. Enjoy your stashbuster - I think I need one of those now:)
Lovely to see you, Áine! We also have a St John’s Eve bonfire in our wee local village. 🔥🧡
Hi Susan - lovely to hear from you and about your bonfire - it's such a gorgeous tradition. Doesn't feel too much like midsummer anymore with the wind and the rain but at least we still have the long hours of daylight. As always thanks for watching and for your support:)
aine, another lovely video. don’t be disheartened - what you said was lovely, inclusive, normal ☀️
Jane, thanks so much for your support and reassurance - I really appreciate it. And glad you enjoyed the video:) Here's to an inclusive and queer-friendly world!
Lovely to see your work which I loved especially the colours in your colour work & I too love the wool you used. Yes I love Eyeries Alihies & Dursey the walks & views there are amazing . Slán
Susan, lovely to hear from you - and glad you enjoyed the podcast. Soldotna is nearly finished and a visit to Beara is long over due.....hope you're enjoying the summer -in between the showers:)
Another great episode, thank you! I really like the hoodie. Not surprised there are Irish rainforests, or that ancient/unusual vegetation grows there--apparently there are alpine flowering plants growing in the Burren, so….
Thank you! And yes you're right about the Burren it's a very special place for wildflowers.
Wonderful listening to you as always, your sonata is beautiful, & my daughter just saw your hoodie & would like one too! & turns out, the humble fern is quite a plant 🙏🧶
Hi Simone - delighted that your daughter and you have been inspired by the Downtown Hoodie - it's such a great simple design -I've hardly taken mine off since it's been off the needles:)
I really enjoy your Irish stories and how you are keeping the lore alive. Especially the language. Your color work sweater is lovely. I’m glad you found a beautiful amethyst color to match.
Hi @mainlandcreative I'm delighted you enjoyed the video - thanks for watching. Soldotna crop nearly finished and ready for wearing. Can't wait:)
Your hoodie is beautiful. Looking forward to seeing your colour work sweater completed. Another great history lesson. Always interesting. Thank you 🇨🇦
HI Colleen, thanks for your lovely comments. I'm wearing the hoodie every day at the moment - temperatures are back down to 12 degrees celcius here - I even have the central heating on at home today:) Nearly finished the soldotna crop which I hope to be sharing very soon in another video. Thanks again:)
@@fraochknits that is cool weather for July. Right now in Ontario Canada we are in a heat wave for the past 5 days. Temps have been 32C feeling like 40 with the humidity. Enjoy the rest of your summer. Looking forward to your next podcast. 🇨🇦