Episode 53 – really not for kids

Stitchcraft Podcast

Spring has sprung and we’re here for it.

In this episode, Aislinn was enjoying a modified Bee’s Knees with homemade violet simple syrup replacing the honey syrup. Inspired by BlackForager on Instagram, she gathered the violets from her yard to make a beautifully pH-sensitive syrup! Top tip: make it with distilled water to ensure your normal tap water doesn’t destroy the chemical necessary for the color-changing beauty of the violet’s natural pigment. Maranda had a new-to-her cider from Sociable Cider Works, Tandem Tap Pineapple Freewheeler.

With the return of days warm enough to be outdoors for hours, we extolled the virtues of Black Girl Sunscreen (available at Target, naturally), and that rash guards are socially acceptable at the beach these days.

Our WIPs were wide and varied this time. Aislinn has expanded from knitting to more cooking (weird, given that it’s getting warmer, but whatevs). She’s been making a cashew-based tikka masala sauce from the Spice Cravings blog which is so tasty even her aggressively meatatarian husband likes it. She is also knotting a Vaara top by Sachiko Burgin from Pom Pom Quarterly Spring 2016 in discontinued yarn (again, naturally): Inappropriate by Drew Emborsky in the colorway Hostile Takeover. The end of Aislinn’s WIP section devolved into a crass story about our family, hence the “really not for kids” title.

Maranda is working on building up her plant collection for the Underground Plant Trade. You can check your local neighborhood or mutual aid org to see if there is one near you.

Gold stars went to the pedestrian-only areas in our towns. In Iowa City, the part of Linn St north of downtown has been blocked off again for the summer, and we hope that stays permanent. In Minneapolis, George Floyd Square remains a pedestrian-only memorial and community area, and again, we hope that stays permanent. Maranda also gave a gold star to Art Buddies, a program where she connected with local kids who like doing art. She finally got to meet her penpal Art Buddy and they had a great time hating on group photos.