Crafternoon Tea with Grannyg

What’s this? two podcasts in one week??? Well this is a special edition where I was very lucky to meet with Rob and Andy Poad from Majacraft and to get a sneak peek of the much anticipated new wheel, the Aura.

Apologies for the slight echo in my side of the interview, I was being a bit tricksy beyond my capabilities

Now, the competition, yes I realised after editing that we were a little vague about how to win the majacraft combs. Well you don’t have to do anything special just leave a comment in todays post saying “Please give those combs to me granny!

I forgot to put a closing date on the comp – lets say until the next episode goes up you can enter!

**competition now closed**

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Intro

Welcome new people, great to have a new face over at Granny’s for a cup of tea. Come join in the conversation in the Ravelry forum,comment on the blog or click here to email Granny. This week is a tribute episode for ANZAC day, discusses the ANZAC biscuit recipe and the differences between Australia and New Zealand’s celebrations of the day.

Crafting this week

Mittens have gone backwards, casted on something else. Busy with other priorities rather than crafting, treasury work for the committee, committee meetings, interviews and early nights. A bit of silk spinning. Went to Home By Christmas, a New Zealand film about a WWII soldier and his family. Granny really enjoyed seeing the 1940s period knitwear, there’s a few tasters in the trailer, and she was delighted to see the knitters were credited. Genny’s not sure if it will be released overseas, watch the IMDB release dates for updates.

Interview with Jenny Poore

Founding member of the New Zealand Spinning, Weaving and Wool Craft Society, forerunner of Creative Fibre. Jenny worked with her husband Phillip to develop the sought after spinning wheels: Pipy Crafts.

In the Tins

Special In the Tins interview with Mary-Helen, WittyKnitter on Ravelry. Genny and Mary-Helen explain ANZAC day which is the Australian and New Zealand war memorial day run by the Returned and Services Association in New Zealand and the Returned and Services League in Australia. ANZAC biscuits were sent from New Zealand Australia to the troops as they kept for a long time and didn’t go off. There is always debate about whether they should crisp or chewy. Genny and Mary-Helen debate the difference between High Grade and Standard flour, from my research is seems that High Grade has a lot more sugars and sodium but protein is very similar.

ANZAC Biscuit Recipe

1 cup of plain flour

1 cup of rolled oats

1 cup of sugar

¾ cup of desiccated coconut

1 Tablespoon of golden syrup or treacle or molasses or (imitation) maple syrup

125 grams of butter or margarine

1 ½ teaspoons of bicarbonate soda

2 Tablespoons of boiling water

Mix flour, sugar and coconut together. Melt butter and golden syrup together over a gentle heat. Dissolve bicarb in boiling water, stir into the syrup and pour it over the dry ingredients, stirring till well mixed. Heaped teaspoons, about 5cm apart to allow. Bake in a moderately slow oven (160 degrees Celsius / 325 degrees Fahrenheit) for 20min.

Conclusion

Next week the episode will come out on 1 or 2 May with the Majacraft Aura wheel episode.

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Intro

Thank you to the regular listeners and participants in the Ravelry forum and comments on the blog or click here to email.

Crafting this week

Pretty much finished sewing the two tops but with lots more patterns to work off. Knitting mittens is going well, made one pair but will redo the thumb. Spinning hasn’t happened this week.

Service Announcement

Outdoor Knit Crew is working on It’s a Tree, a knitting grafitti project outside Craft 2.0. Please go to the blog to get involved in knitting flowers or leaves for the installation.

What’s on your nightstand Granny?

Sweater Quest

My Year of Knitting Dangerously , by Adrienne Martini who sets herself a quest of knitting an Alice Starmore designed fair-isle sweater in one year. Genny really likes Martini’s writing style and her honesty about her own life and Starmore. Adrienne ended up knitting Mary Tudor, you can see her finished sweater on her blog and her ravelry project page. Genny thinks it’s a jolly good read and is very ‘now’. Go forth and read, my friends!

Interview with Agnes Hauptli

Agnes Hauptli who she met at the Creative Fibre Festival. Agnes mentioned Bonnie Inoye as her inspirational person.

In the Tins Live

She couldn’t decide what to make so ran a Ravelry poll but ended up with a 2-2 draw of Ginger Nuts and Dutch Apple Cake. Genny went with Ginger Nuts from the Edmond’s Cooking Book. She explains their New Zealand history, here’s the commercial example’s website. The cake tins that Genny uses are Chicago Metallic, they should have the Bundy Eagle on them, do they Granny? She wonders whether she should have used molasses instead of golden syrup, as the commercial ones are a lot darker and richer than homemade. Genny found the crumb nice, ginger flavour full mouth but not overpowering. She’s very happy with them.

Ginger Nuts Recipe

XXX

Conclusion

Next weekend Genny will have a special guest for ANZAC day.

Apologies to Agnes as I still managed to mispronounce her name all through the podcast, I’d been spelling it incorrectly which lead me astray. It really is pronounced phonetically!

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Intro

Welcome new listeners, please say hi on the Ravelry board and the blog. Granny had a big road trip to Whangarei to the Creative Fibre Festival, thanks to those who came and said hello.

Whangerei Creative Fibre Festival

Tried flax weaving at a course at the festival, enjoyed learning the new technique and the exchange with the teacher Mandy Sunlight. Genny discusses the organisational style of the festival with preferring shorter events rather than three full days with only one event each. On Saturday Granny went shopping, bought fibre, a CF badge, a spindle and yarn. Sunday, Granny went to a Pat Old and Jenny Poore lecture on possum fibre harvesting. Genny explains that possums are a pest in New Zealand as they predate on our native flora and fauna, there are no mammal predators in New Zealand. G discusses the fashion show of which she thought about five were stand out but was disappointed that the lining on her piece wasn’t up to scratch as she thinks she would have a good chance. She wonders what is the purpose of a fashion parade for the CF community? Do the people in CF get what ‘fashion’ is? Is creating wearable garments similar to what you can buy in the shops? Genny thinks fashion has to be forward thinking, challenging, taking changes, challenging boundaries and at a higher level than what is out there. Please participate in the discussion.

Crafting this week

Pas de Valse is done, just needs to be blocked. Granny tried to start the Citron but hasn’t got there yet. But she has started Jayshree’s mittens, first mitten up to the thumb. Genny explains how she does stranded knitting. This week G will do some spinning and the neverending sewing projects.

Interview with Nicola Bota from Ashfords

Granny talks to Nicola Bota who is the Australasian Sales Manager for Ashfords who met at the Majacraft camp. She is taking over the Ashford store in Ashburton and will work on making it more education focused space and events like retreats. Granny and Nicola discuss US fibre festivals like Rhinebeck and Maryland Sheep and Wool.

In the Tins

Genny makes apple cake, which is not a normal part of her repertoire, she usually makes apple pie, apple muffins and apple pudding with sponge on top of stewed apples. She didn’t have much luck with the recipe books to hand and ended up turning to Nigella Lawson’s for the ‘Apple and Walnut Cake’ inHow to Be a Domestic Goddess.

She found the cake 7/10 moist as the cake was firm with chopped apple throughout. 6/7 on the fineness scale. The flavours of apple, raisin and cinnamon were lovely even without walnut oil or walnuts.

Apple and Walnut Cake Recipe
XXX

What’s on your nightstand Granny?

Doe Arnot’s Spinning Camelid Fibre is the perfect book for alpaca spinners. The book is predominantly written for the New Zealand market but is still great for international readers. She covers spinning in detail, an overview on natural dyeing and using the finished yarn in different crafts. The book will be available from Creative Fibre, go buy it!

Conclusion

Come by the Ravelry board and the blog. If you’d like links or to get in contact with me click here to email

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Intro

New listeners please come and contribute to the chatter on the Ravelry board and the blog. Genny’s Easter weekend was very busy, enjoyed grandmothering, learn to knit class and spinning at the Easter show.

Crafting last two weeks

Reasonable progress on the Pas de Valse, working on the sleeves.
Spun at the Creative Fibre/Alpaca booth at the Auckland Royal Easter Show. Bought an alpaca fleece at the show, needs to be processed. No sewing progress. This coming weekend is the Creative Fibre Festival in Whangerei.

Tech points

Genny has been trying to get the best quality audio from her phone interviews. She’s been trying out different systems and internet companies but no luck.

Interview with Jenny

Granny talks to Jenny Ellwood-Wade of Cuesta Alpacas at the Easter Show using an iPhone & dongle so don’t mind the background noises.. Jenny is getting woven alpaca products out into the market by weaving for herself and other alpaca farmers. The main organisation for alpaca farmers is the Alpaca Association of New Zealand.One of the big issues is the availability of mills in New Zealand that can process small amounts of fibre, larger processors are Quality Yarns in Milton and Tai Tapu Wool Carders & Spinners, Ag Research in Lincoln also does some. Boutique mills are preferred by alpaca farmers there are two in New Zealand, Mess Mill in the Hawke’s Bay and Riverdale Fibre Mill in the Waikato. Jenny gives a huge plug for Creative Fibre as where she learnt all her alpaca knowledge, go join!

In the Tins

Genny and Jasmine try a cheesecake that isn’t really one as it has no cheese, in the book they were called Wesh cheesecakes. It has three layers; pastry, jam and sponge. She found the recipe in A Second Helping: More from Ladies, a Plate and the pastry from Home Baking: The Artful Mix of Flour and Traditions from Around the World and their website is Hot Sour Salty Sweet.
Rough Puff Pastry Recipe
XXX

Welsh Cheesecake Recipe

Granny wonders if they are in any other recipe books

Conclusion

A short episode, there will be another short one next week from Whangarei. Genny encourages anybody attending the Creative Fibre Festival to come up and introduce themselves.

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