An update
Yarn Spinner
by
4M ago
Greetings!  It's been too long since I updated this blog...I've had a hard time keeping up.  Here are some details about things that I've done, umm, in the last few months!  The Manitoba Craft Museum and Library has put the Accessibility for Pattern Makers and Users event online for anyone who might be interested in viewing it. (Bonus, you can knit or spin or whatever while watching the talk!)  I've been doing some occasional blog posts for Winnipeg Sews, too.  This is a great local sewing studio where both my kids have had successful sewing lessons...culmina ..read more
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Accessibility for Pattern Makers and Users
Yarn Spinner
by
7M ago
 On Wednesday, August 23rd, at 6pm at the Manitoba Craft Museum and Library in Winnipeg, I am teaching about low vision accessible patterns, accessibility and how to make patterns more accessible.  This workshop is for knitting and crochet designers (and anyone who writes instructions for makers) as well as for those who are seeking more accessible and inclusive patterns.  There is no “one size fits all” but there are so many ways to be more inclusive.  Come explore this topic with me!  Check out my downloadable patterns and other writing at: http://www.joanneseiff ..read more
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Keeping it clean: summer edition
Yarn Spinner
by
9M ago
 Years, ago, I wrote an article about how hard it was to keep my kids' bedroom cool in the summer when we had to shut the windows...their bedroom at the time was near a bus stop. Folks leaving nearby bars and waiting for the bus on a summer evening would smoke cigarettes, talk and sing, and even smoke pot.  They didn't look up 20 feet to see the open bedroom windows, and of course, it was always after kids go to bed.  This was one of a series of articles I wrote about air quality and pollution.  Nothing has improved in Winnipeg in the past few years, either ..read more
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Catching up
Yarn Spinner
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1y ago
Since the day I started this blog, long ago, I have never let it sit so many months without updates...but it felt like I could never quite get enough time to come back and visit. Everyday things I love fell by the wayside over the last few months, and I am only now getting them back.  The first big news is that by the end of February, we finally had our new kitchen.  The one where we had to gut the old kitchen entirely, put in a structural beam, get a lot of plumbing and frozen pipes fixed, etc.  This bread would be unremarkable, except we went many months without homemade brea ..read more
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No more bandwidth?
Yarn Spinner
by
1y ago
You may wonder where I've been.  The answer would be, umm, completely overwhelmed with moving and all it entails!  Also, the “new” house needs quite a bit more work, so we are living in a construction zone.  Not a noisy "disrupt the neighbours" or 24 hour highway construction zone, but the kind that slowly and steadily has now lasted a year and now, in this phase, involves a lot of demolition.  Here is a shot of our kitchen, halfway through being gutted, a couple days ago.  Note the ugly ancient carpet that was found under the island, (why?!) and our dog in the shot ..read more
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Summer on the move
Yarn Spinner
by
1y ago
It turns out that moving twins, a dog, and a household about a mile is a huge undertaking.  About 13 years ago, I documented our move to Canada on this blog, and I wrote a lot about it.  It involved a continent's drive, two bird dogs, a lot of boxes and plants, a moving van, my professor and me.  I've since learned that moves with tweens can be, umm, more complicated than that one. The short story behind this is that our beautiful old house, featured in many blog posts, got damaged.  This issue continued to cause a lot of friction for us, along with a dead tree hanging over ..read more
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New Pattern! Veecardi McStrippit
Yarn Spinner
by
1y ago
  After a long incubation period, I introduce you to...Veecardi McStrippit, my new design! This textured cardigan pattern is knit in seven pieces and is available in 7 sizes, from 33-53". There is also a Low Vision Accessible version available.  Check it out on Ravelry, Payhip (both of these sites have a Low Vision option) and coming soon...on Lovecrafts (no Low Vision option there, the platform doesn't support it). To celebrate this new design and the start of school summer vacation here, I'm also having a sale.  Get 20% off all my designs on Ravelry or Payhip ..read more
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Update from springtime
Yarn Spinner
by
1y ago
Dear blog readers, I am not sure how many of you are still out there!  Some friends may still visit?  It's hard to tell --I used to receive lots of comments and make conversation on every post.  Now?  Nothing.  Hard to tell...So here are some updates from my world... I made an unfortunate knitting project choice back in March.  One of my twins asked for a gray sweater and I agreed to knit it during our most gray, long, wet, puddle filled and flooded time of year.  True, the yarn is Polwarth wool so lovely and soft.  It will make a nice dress sweater. I f ..read more
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Some Wednesdays are Thursday, instead
Yarn Spinner
by
2y ago
I spent hours this week with this office view, looking at a work in progress but not having time to write up the pattern.  Instead?  A wonderful (unexpected) but brief analysis/editing job about breastfeeding and healthcare.  I also spent many hours on a job on a tight deadline that I pushed myself on--and then, that fell through.  I planned to work on this sweater design and shoot a photo but then my iPad broke! (It fell, a kid accident, unfortunate, no one's fault...) Two trips to the fix-it shop later, the broken charger port is fixed and camera restored.  WHEW ..read more
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Housekeeping and hibernation
Yarn Spinner
by
2y ago
It seems a little like we've been in an endless loop of very cold days (Think: -30C/-25F, for many days in a row) and then there is a little warm up and a big snowfall.  It's great for the drought Manitoba has had, but it's also been somewhat hard to get through.  I find it hard to exercise when the air is so cold and the sidewalks aren't plowed...and both have been a recurring theme this year. Some of my hibernation time has been spent on housekeeping.  I realized that some of my older knitting patterns, available for download on Lovecrafts.com, Ravelry and Payhip...were stil ..read more
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