Episode 152 is particularly packed with exciting content from across the globe! Our feature interview is with the Canadian fibre artists Charlene and Debbie from Periwinkle Laine. They tell stories of human relationships and capture nature’s beauty through the wonderful art of rug hooking. On top of that, Madeleine has prepared an exciting travel vlog covering our Pura Vida Knitting Retreats, which we just finished hosting in Costa Rica! And in Under Construction, we have two new projects to show you, including a jumper that I’m designing myself.
Periwinkle Lane
While we were in Prince Edward Island, Canada, we filmed an interview with Charlene and Debbie, the founders of Periwinkle Laine which has become a hub for the PEI rug hooking community. They offer a wide range of rug hooking supplies and organize regular pop up events, workshops and rug hooking retreats. Debbie and Charlene have also produced award-winning rug designs featured in different rug shows and books.
Debbie was an oil painter. Charlene is a lifelong rug hooker who taught Debbie to hook, and together, they teach the craft to others in a very comprehensive way, and their own works are so stunning, they deserve to be in a museum!
Charlene and Debbie also offer bespoke heirloom pieces, where they help customers design their family memories into a rug. During our tour of the house, they showed us one recent example: A long rug depicting a grandmother and grandchild walking hand-in-hand down an old railroad track.
Finding Periwinkle Laine
- Website: periwinklelaine.ca
- Instagram: @periwinkle_rug_hooking
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Under Construction
Andrea's Made-up Smocked Design
My new project is inspired by the yarn itself—Rowan Kid Silk Haze. I’m holding two strands together to create an elegant top, perfect for a cool summer evening out. The bright aqua color reminds me of the Costa Rican sea, and I fell in love with it instantly. I want this top to have a soft, flowy feel, almost like a blouse, with a deep V-neckline, large puffy ¾-length sleeves, a fitted waist, and decorative details on the hem and cuffs. I will also add smocking to the 2×2 rib around the hem.
There’s a variation of smocking on 2×2 ribbing where, instead of sewing the inner knit stitches together, you sew the outer knit stitches. This method affects the gauge more but creates a more pronounced and decorative pattern. I think it looks even prettier because the knit columns end up with a slight twist! I plan to use this second version around the hem and cuffs of my design, so I made the 2×2 ribbing slightly wider than I needed.
I started knitting from the bottom up and in the round. I wanted a very deep V-neckline, so I began shaping it even before casting off for the underarm. Later, I’ll decide on the edging—maybe an i-cord or something that slightly reduces the depth of the V. The sleeves will be a modified drop shoulder, full and drapey. It’s a bit tricky to describe exactly how they’ll look, so I’ve drawn a little diagram to show you what I have in mind.
Varde Rundfeld - Fiancé Sweater
Recently, Madeleine decided to knit her fiancé, Ryan, a colorwork yoke sweater. Together with Ryan, she chose the Varde Rundfeld by Rauma designs, because both of them liked the design and Madeleine really wanted to knit with their Rauma Finullgarn yarn. The sweater is knitted bottom-up and in the round, so Madeleine started with a provisional cast-on to work the colourwork yoke section first. But once she knit the yoke, she realized that the bright blue she fell in love with does not go well with the light beige in the colourwork section…
After much deliberation (and some minutes of internal kicking and screaming), she has decided to swap the bright blue for navy. To avoid undoing the entire yoke, Madeleine will try cutting open the lower section of the colourwork and putting those stitches on hold. Then, she will make a new provisional cast-on, knit up in the navy blue yarn, and graft the new lower body of the yoke together with the old upper section of the yoke. Let’s hope she’s successful!
Madeleine's Fern Sweater
For our trip to Costa Rica, Madeleine decided to leave Ryan’s sweater in Germany. Since it required major adjustments, she knew there wouldn’t be time to work on it during the retreats. Instead, she brought some Knitting For Olive yarn with her to knit the Fern sweater.
Pura Vida Knitting Retreats - Travel Vlog
Hosting our first knitting retreats was a huge learning experience for us. Costa Rica was absolutely amazing, and the Parador Resort we stayed at couldn’t have been better—it went beyond all our expectations. While the planning was stressful at times, once everyone arrived, it was such an incredible experience!
We had the most wonderful, diverse, and interesting group of people. Madeleine and I loved spending time with them and getting to know them. We also filmed a lot during the retreats and put together a 20-minute collage so you can get a feel for what it was like.
When it came to the workshops and knitting sessions, we wanted to include short interviews with a variety of participants so each interview would have a different perspective. One of these interviews was with Jane and Emma, a mother and daughter who live in separate states and joined our retreat together for a mother-daughter holiday. During the interview, Jane talks about one of the embroidery projects from Claudia’s workshops and also recalls a special moment with a Blue Morpho butterfly that landed on her leg during the jungle tour… Of course, we caught that on camera too!
There were many places to knit or embroider around the hotel. One afternoon, Madeleine came across some knitters practicing their embroidery by the pool. On the top left, you can see Romney working on her Monarcha sweater. The knitwear designer, Claudia Quintanilla, who we partnered up with for these retreats, gave two workshops, centered around her Luna de Plata Top and Monarcha Sweater. She also gave an introduction to the special Pura Vida Knitting Retreat design and a small class on Sashiko embroidery. And as a fun bonus, I offered an optional workshop on after-thought smocking, in which our participants learnt to smock on a 2×2 rib without changing the gauge.
One of the biggest highlights was the guided tour through Manuel Antonio National Park. I wasn’t sure how popular it would be, but everyone absolutely loved it! Since the animals move freely and their behavior is unpredictable, the tour guides had to remain flexible in what they showed us. They were very knowledgeable about the various species that inhabit the park, from monkeys to birds to tiny, glistening insects. Finally, we celebrated our last evening together with a Gala dinner and fun Salsa class!
What we are wearing
Andrea is wearing her Instant Crush by Joji Locatelli during the interview and her April Cardigan by PetiteKnit on the couch. Madeleine is wearing her Audrey in Unst by Gudrun Johnston on the couch.
Credits
- J. S. Bach, The Well Tempered Klavier, Prelude No. 3 in C-Sharp major, BWV 848, performed by Kimiko Ishizaka, Creative Commons Attribution 3.0
- Through the Woodlands, performed by Métis Fiddler Quartet, from the album North West Voyage, released on 25.04.2012, ℗ 2012 Métis Fiddler Quartet Productions
- Canyon Breeze performed by Montana Skies, used under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License.
- Montana Skies, Malagueana Live, used under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License
