Ep 90- Tornados and Moms

~Welcome/ Intro/ Thanks!
~Sponsors
  -Amazon
  -Audible
  -Bar-Maids
~Contest
April Winner: Stitchr
May Contest: Make May Flowers! Either plant flowers in your garden or craft flowers using your stash yarn and post photos on the Ravelry page! I want the page to explode with flowers!
~Sweater Forecast
The weather is beautiful! Mid 60s up to 80s this weekend!! Still chilly at night, so keep your sweater handy!
~Crafting
I finally blocked Cassidy! We'll see how long it takes me to seam it now...  I also knitted Aaron a hat, and have started on a second one! Really basic, good mindless knitting!
~CampKIP recap
Mellow, wonderful!  Got to experience my first tornado, (didn't actually get to see it but got to hide in a tornado shelter for a little bit!) and got to see friends!
~Events
Mother Earth News Fair! So excited! Also, probably be going to Black Sheep Gathering!
~Sales
-Little Knits Super Spring Sale!
-KnitPicks Mother's Day Needle Sale!
~Tip Of the Week
Be a member of your community!  I've had some amazing opportunities come my way without looking for them, just because I know people! Get out there!
~Worth It
HappyGoLucky Sock yarn! 460 yards, $20, 75/25 Merino and Nylon! Super soft, colors beautiful, no knots and not splitty!  Totally worth it!
~Contact Me!
Email: cleverroue (at) gmail (dot) com
Ravelry: Roue
Twitter: RachelRoue
Please leave an iTunes review!

Ep 71- Aaaaaaaaaand DONE!

~Welcome/ Intro/ Thanks!
~ Sponsors:
Audible and Bar-Maids
~ Sweater Forecast:
Mid 70s first part of the week, low 60 and rain for later part!
~Knitting/ Spinning:
The wedding shawl is DONE!!!!!!!!

It is currently blocking!! OMG YAY!  The BFF socks are coming along, and so has my Tour de Fleece spinning! (except for today) I've spun every day! And I've still got time today!!  Finally, I will be casting on another Daybreak Shawl, this one for Amy!  She is making one, and we are going to trade!

~Free Entertainment:

The Complete Guide to Everything Podcast! Thanks for the recommendation Jackie! You are awesome!

~Garden:

OMG I caged my tomatoes!  YUM!

~ Sales:

Knitpicks is having their book sale! Books are 40% off!!!

Also, JoAnn has all their summer stuff (like lawn chairs, beach towels etc) on sale for 75% off! Summer has barely started and they are already selling it off!!

~How I Saved the Week:

Bartering for my hairstyling for the wedding and haircuts for Aaron! My stylist is a new spinner and a knitter so I am trading fiber and spinning lessons!! Yay!

~ DIY

Mustard Trout

1 1/2 T whole grain mustard

2 T olive oil

1 T lemon juice

3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

4 fresh basil leaves, shredded

salt and pepper to taste

mix the ingredients, then use to marinate some fish. I used 2 filets about the size of the palm of my hand each.  Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 20 mins.  Wrap in foil topped with an onion slice, cook over bbq for 10 mins (skin side down) and serve with rice and salad with honey mustard dressing! YUM! Sauce would also be tasty on chicken or mushrooms!

~Worth It!

How To Make Soap Without Burning Your Face Off by Raleigh Briggs, Microcosm Publishing

$3.00, 12 pages, all hand written and illustrated! Once again, this is amazingly beautiful and really full of useful information!  A total of 8 recipes (2 basic with 6 add ons), all the processes and safety info you need and step by step instructions! For $3, you really can't beat it!  Totally worth it!
~Contact Info:
Email: cleverroue (at) gmail (dot) com
Ravelry: Roue
Twitter: Roue0824
Leave a donation or an iTunes review!

Episode 17- Secondhand, not second best

~Welcome/ Intro/ Thank yous
~ May Sponsor:
 Laura's Organics is donating a jar of her amazing hand cream to our contest winner for the  month!
~Contest: 
LAL!  Teach yourself or learn something new that will help you save money, then share your new skill on the Ravelry Group page!  If you would like help finding info, ask on the group page, and if you have an answer, please share! There may be a bonus prize for someone who offers awesome help!

~ Knitting:
I finished the Monkey Socks!  And better yet, I finished them in time for Mother's day!  I've also almost finished the bumbling podcaster socks, because I couldn't knit the monkeys when I was around my mom, and I hung out with her a lot this week!
~Spinning:
nothing to report because I was so busy knitting the monkeys!
~Free Entertainment:
Heaven Series by Mur Lafferty.  You can find this and many other titles on Podiobooks.com!
~Sales!
Tips for using Craigslist.org
- Don't buy without seeing photos
- Don't be afraid to ask a lot of questions
- Haggle!
- Browse the free listings often!
- Check other cities besides your own
- Never give out your credit card info or write a check
- When selling, ask for more than you want
- When selling, if you get a lot of responses quickly, delete post, and repost later with different photos and description and ask for more money!
- Use proper grammar and post photos!
- For safety, try not to go to someone's house or let people into your house unless you have someone with you, and NEVER list your address on the site.
~Tip of the Week:
Take advantage of your friends and family!  Please not in a mean way, but remember that your friends and family know, and are probably willing to share their skills with you!  If there is something you want to learn, ask someone you know because if they are anything like my friends, they probably want to help you in any way they can!
~How I Saved the Week!
I went to an awesome secondhand store, sold some old clothes and got some new ones!  Yay for new clothes, and especially yay for super cheap new clothes!
~Worth It:
The Knitting Answer Book by Margaret Radcliffe
Pros:
- Small and portable- easily stuffed in a purse or knitting bag.
- Book is well laid out in an easy to understand way
- Gives lots of options for some techniques, like cast on and bind off, and tells you the best way to use them.
- Most techniques described also have pictures, and the pictures use 2 colors when needed to make it more clear
- There really are answers to almost every knitting question!
Cons:
- There are a few answers that I couldn't find
- Some answers seem to be more opinionated, like the author chose her preferred method for doing something rather than give all the options
- For a few advanced questions or techniques, she seemed to give vague answers, like she assumed that if you are doing something that challenging, then you should be able to figure it out.
Overall: Worth it!
~Contact Info:
Email me!
Twitter: Roue0824
Ravelry: Roue

Tip # 7: Shop the Stash

I know it might sound really obvious, but if you've ever knitted anything before, likely you have at least some kind of stash. Even if you aren't a "stasher" (do those people exist?) I'm sure you have leftover odds and ends from other projects. You can turn those leftover bits into awesome projects! If you only have tiny bits, those could become stripes in hats or scarves! If you have a little more, make small projects! Dishcloths, coffee cup cozies, and small toys are all fun and satisfying projects that can be finished quickly with only a small amount of yarn! (The turtle in the photo only used about 40 yards of stash yarn!) If you have yarn you bought a long time ago, and your tastes have changed since you got it, set up a trade! See if there is someone out there that wants the yarn you have, and has the yarn you want! If they don't have what you want, maybe you could sell them the yarn you have to finance the yarn you want! (It doesn't count as buying new stash if you paid for it with old stash). There are tons of ways you can use up your old stash (which has already been paid for)! Get creative! Set up a reward system for yourself! For example: You won't buy any new yarn until you have used up at least x amount of your stash. Then you still get to buy new yarn, but you are also using stash yarn! I promise that even though you don't think you have anything to knit in your stash, if you get really desperate, you'll find something to do with your stash!

Tip # 2: Bartering!

Ok, since it is now technically 12:09am in my time zone, it is a new day, and therefore, you get a new tip! Tip # 2: barter! I know that the taxman doesn’t approve, but you have a skill, and other people have skills. Maybe you could work out something with your hairstylist or a local restaurant! (These are things I have done in the past, or am currently doing). I am a licensed massage therapist, and right now I have trades with a local cafe where I get free food, I am working off several hours of free tattoo work, I do regular trades with my hairstylist, and I just brought up the subject of a trade to the guy who is teaching my acrobatics class! People who have skills are going to be interested in your skills! Don’t be discouraged if someone says no, because there will always be someone who says yes! The best tips I can offer in this situation are these: stay local. Chain companies can not give you free product in exchange for a knitted hat. However, your local yarn shop might be willing to give you some yarn if you knit up a test pattern for them! Or maybe you could work out some cleaning work in exchange for getting your house painted! Do you do great design work? Maybe you could create an ad flyer and get free swag in exchange! We as a culture have gotten away from bartering, and it is really something we should all try to get back to! Technically, according to the IRS and all those super awesome fun people, we aren’t supposed to barter unless we assign a monetary value for our received services and/or goods, and then pay taxes on it, but sshhh. I won’t tell if you don’t.