Making Podcast Woolful Podcast

Episode 45: Angie Lenoir and Stephanie Stotts – Family farms, friendship, yarn stories and Kismet Fiber Works

January 6, 2016

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Sponsor:  Fancy Tiger Crafts is a special yarn, fabric and notions shop based out of Denver Colorado. This inspired place is owned and operated by self proclaimed fiber nerds, Jaime Jennings and Amber Corcoran…two women who’s hope and journey have allowed them to share their knowledge, adventures and passion in fiber, and this is reflected in their beautiful shop as well as their endeavors in creating their own farm yarn Heirloom. Fancy Tiger Crafts is one of my favorite places to shop online for fabric, patterns and yarn, and I recently attended one of their craft nights and it’s even better in person. I’ve just began cutting out the Fen pattern and excited about their #fancykal that just started which you can find more info about on their blog. And make sure to mark your calendars for January 21st, where Fancy Tiger is hosting Superstar Knit Night with guests Laura Nelkin, Romi Hill, Miriam Felton, Jill Draper, Anne Weil and Lorilee Beltman. Grab your project and come hang out with knit with all these amazing fiber folk. Make sure to visit Fancy Tiger Crafts in person and online at fancytigercrafts.com and on Instagram @fancytigercrafts.

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Fiber folk: You know I love yarn with a story. There are so many facets of these stories…where it came from, who raised the fiber animals, who spun the yarn, dyed it, designs with it and so on. But what makes a yarn story even more exciting and the knit more satisfying, is the impact these yarns have. Angie Lenoir and Stephanie Stotts are two friends who created a fiber company which grew into focusing on creating yarns with a story and a mission. You can find Angie and Stephanie at kismetfiberworks.com and on Instagram @kismetfiberworks.

On January 15-17th Kismet Fiber Works will be at Vogue Knitting Live in New York City at the Yarn Culture booth #713. And a special surprise, several of the Tajik women who spin the Pamiri yarn will be flying from their home in Tajikistan to New York City to attend Vogue Knitting and meet those who attend the event. I would encourage anyone who is near NYC or plans to visit, to stop by on Sunday from 10-2 and welcome them and to show your love and support of what they’re doing.

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Sponsor: Feel Good Yarn Co, the creator of SilverSpun yarn. This incredible cotton and silver blend yarn is produced using only American sourced fibers and is spun by the folks at North Carolina State University. Aside from it’s beautiful texture and stitch definition, SilverSpun yarn has some pretty amazing therapeutic and thermal properties because of it’s unique silver content, which you can hear more about in episode 33. They’ve introduced two new products, a colored version of their flagship product, the sport weight SilverSpun yarn and a new fingering weight version of the SilverSpun…perfect for socks, shawls and other knits. I recently knit Gudrun Johnston’s Hermaness hat in the SilverSpun and am in love with the soft and sturdy fabric. Make sure to visit feelgoodyarnco.com for more information and to buy this very special yarn.

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Woolful Knit-a-long: And if you’ve seen the latest issue of Taproot, Shelter, then you know of the most recent pattern from Carrie Bostick Hoge, the Portland Pullover, designed in Brooklyn Tweed’s Shelter yarn. I’m in love with the elegant yoke of this design, and it’s neckline. So much so that I started the next Woolful knit along featuring the Portland Pullover. I’ve just received my yarn and began swatching. You can find more details here. And if you don’t already subscribe to Taproot, visit taprootmag.com to subscribe or grab the latest issue Shelter which is where you can find this pattern.

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Man on the Street: For this week’s “Man on the Street” I asked the question, “What fiber skills or techniques do you hope to tackle this year?”. We had some great answers from Sonja (@atreebytheriver), Kristi (@kristi_sweetkm), Amy (@urban_farm_wife), Beatrice (@threadandladle), Maria (@ninja.chickens), and Barb (@stixandstring).

Giveaway: The winner of last week’s giveaway is Jenifer, you’ve won a 2 year subscription to Taproot magazine. Congratulations! 

This week’s giveaway is sponsored by Kismet Fiber Works and they’re giving away a skein of their Pamiri Cashgora yarn. To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on today’s episode’s blog post.

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Music by Jónsi.

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95 Comments

  • Reply Erin January 6, 2016 at 4:49 pm

    Ooooo, such pretty yarn!

  • Reply Charlaine January 6, 2016 at 5:03 pm

    Beautiful yarn!

  • Reply mary m January 6, 2016 at 5:04 pm

    What an amazing story, and beautiful yarn.

  • Reply ElaineChicago January 6, 2016 at 5:19 pm

    Gorgeous yarn, so squishy I’m sure!

  • Reply olivia January 6, 2016 at 5:33 pm

    beautiful yarn!

  • Reply Susan January 6, 2016 at 5:35 pm

    Another gorgeous yarn discovery that I’d love to try!

  • Reply Dana January 6, 2016 at 5:42 pm

    Thanks for another lovely podcast, and thanks for the chance to win Kismet yarn, I’ve been wanting to try it!

  • Reply craftyone January 6, 2016 at 6:14 pm

    Good small business by a farmer and a chef.

  • Reply Caitlin January 6, 2016 at 7:45 pm

    What beautiful yarn!

  • Reply Brittany January 6, 2016 at 9:05 pm

    Such beautiful yarn and a lovely story too!

  • Reply Ady Grafovna January 7, 2016 at 2:03 am

    LOVED this story!

  • Reply yael sages January 7, 2016 at 2:49 am

    I love your podcast! So inspiring and interesting! Thank you<3
    I would love to hear an episode about something crochet related as im not a knitter but a crochet addict 🙂

  • Reply Nicki N January 7, 2016 at 3:55 am

    I’ve never heard of cashgora before, fascinating.

  • Reply hd January 7, 2016 at 4:43 am

    Beautiful yarn! Thanks for another great episode!

  • Reply Erica January 7, 2016 at 5:15 am

    Such an inspiring story. I would love to get my hands on some of this yarn!

  • Reply BriAnn January 7, 2016 at 5:55 am

    Great yarn story!

  • Reply Margaret January 7, 2016 at 7:52 am

    Enjoyed the episode. I always love to hear how various yarn makers and dyers and designers start out. So inspiring! Thanks!

  • Reply Tommi T. January 7, 2016 at 7:57 am

    Thanks for another great episode. What a cool story!

  • Reply Savannagal January 7, 2016 at 8:07 am

    Thanks so much for a great interview and for turning me on to this beautiful yarn. I’ve subscribed to their mailing list and can’t wait to get my hands on a few skeins. The colors are vibrant and the yarn looks so rustic and inviting.

  • Reply Kristin January 7, 2016 at 8:19 am

    You can’t go wrong with Kismet!

  • Reply Anjie January 7, 2016 at 9:27 am

    What a lovely story, it makes the yarn even more beautiful

  • Reply Natalie January 7, 2016 at 10:58 am

    Gorgeous yarn! I also wanted to let you know how much I also enjoyed your personal blog post this past week. It’s so comforting to know that other women struggle in the background of their creative small businesses, and your story was so inspiring. Thank you for sharing, I hope you continue to do so! And keep up the excellent work with the podcasts – they’re wonderful and inspiring, like you. Thank you!

    Natalie
    @oystersandpearls
    @maidensouth_

  • Reply Tonya Densley January 7, 2016 at 12:39 pm

    I have heard of Kismet Fiber before but after hearing their story on your podcast and hearing what they are involved in, I definitely have to take a trip to their shop! The yarn sounds wonderful!

  • Reply Arlin January 7, 2016 at 1:06 pm

    Thank you for this. I love Kismet yarns and it’s amazing to know the story behind them.

  • Reply IrishPogue (Rav and IG) January 7, 2016 at 1:32 pm

    The deep friendship these 2 talented women share is incredibly touching. A beautiful podcast, thanks tons!

  • Reply Melanie January 7, 2016 at 1:52 pm

    Loved learning about the friendship between these 2 and how they came up with the name of their company. The story shared about how her son didn’t question he could start his own business based on seeing mom’s influence warmed my heart! Thank you for yet another wonderful podcast episode 🙂

  • Reply Tera January 7, 2016 at 2:53 pm

    What an amazing story behind Kismet Fiber Work’s yarn! I had no idea. Thanks as always for the podcast.

  • Reply Anita January 7, 2016 at 4:30 pm

    I would love to try the cashgora wool. This was a great interview and fascinating to hear about Kismet Yarn.

  • Reply Marina Gvozdeva January 7, 2016 at 4:42 pm

    What a great story! I was very impressed that these ladies are helping ladies in Tajikistan! I’ve got a lot of friends from Tajikistan living here in Australia and they are saying that the economy is not getting anywhere and everybody leaving either overseas or just to Russia mainly to work in the construction or cleaning. Great Job!

  • Reply Kristina January 7, 2016 at 7:26 pm

    Great episode, loved hearing the story behind Kismet!

  • Reply Bowen Gibson January 7, 2016 at 10:15 pm

    I am so inspired by how people started their fiber journey. Thank you for sharing their stories!

  • Reply annette January 8, 2016 at 7:23 am

    Such a rich episode! Lovely yarn too.

  • Reply Katie Schippers January 8, 2016 at 8:30 am

    I really loved this episode! Thank you for highlighting what all these ladies, a world apart, are accomplishing together

  • Reply Karen Rarich January 8, 2016 at 10:25 am

    Great episode. I will definitely check out kismet fiber at vogue knitting live next week.

  • Reply Michele January 8, 2016 at 12:31 pm

    Very informative episode. I enjoy hearing the stories behind various yarns.

  • Reply stixandstring January 8, 2016 at 12:43 pm

    Another wonderful episode, Ashley! I enjoyed listening during my hefty commute into LA this morning! As always – so enlightening and inspiring! What a wonderful community we fiber folks are! I love that Maria (ninja.chickens) and I were both included in this week’s MOTS responses with my response being around her beautiful shawl pattern Drekin, that she released on Jan. 1. Rather serendipitous! Hoping the next response I offer sounds a bit more ‘awake and rested’… 😉 xo Barb

  • Reply Sheree January 8, 2016 at 12:46 pm

    Just finished listening to this week’s podcast. Great stories, wonderful women. I was especially intrigued by their different yarn lines, supporting local resources and helping women in countries with more difficult economic situations. Keep up the great work! I love your podcasts.

  • Reply Neza January 8, 2016 at 1:42 pm

    Great story of the Kismet Fiber Works, it’s lovely to hear how they’re connected and inspire each other.

  • Reply Claudia January 8, 2016 at 6:22 pm

    There’s so much to love about Kismet. I really support their vision and ethics, and hey, that cashgora sounds amazing!

  • Reply Sandra January 8, 2016 at 6:50 pm

    Thank you for another great episode! I love yarn & knitting – it’s exciting to hear that yarn is making a difference around the world in such an awesome way. I’d love to win their beautiful yarn so I can give it a whirl on my needles!
    Many happy stitches,
    Sandra (haveyarnwillfly on Rav)

  • Reply Claire January 8, 2016 at 7:09 pm

    Loved listening in on this conversation between friends. I loved the part about the women each spinning a skein, making a hat and wearing it. What a great way to learn, improve and have fun along the way

  • Reply Kim Roelofs January 9, 2016 at 1:16 am

    Thank you for this lovely episode! I normally only buy yarn from European sheep that is produced in Europe (which is where I live) due to environmental reasons, but this episode made me realise that it can also be a good thing to shop a little bit farther away from home and support people in other parts of the world 🙂

  • Reply Lea Dietzel January 9, 2016 at 2:37 am

    Such a beautiful story, and I love the idea about empowering women in the 3 world through meaningful work

  • Reply Debbie January 9, 2016 at 5:02 am

    Amazing super fun journey! Thank you so much for sharing it!

  • Reply Marlana January 9, 2016 at 5:36 am

    What a wonderful story! I would love to try the yarn.

  • Reply Vicki Lynch January 9, 2016 at 6:30 am

    The yarn knit up looks wonderful! I enjoyed hearing about how Kismet came to be.

  • Reply Ramona January 9, 2016 at 7:36 am

    I never miss an episode. Your voice is so soothing. Thanks for all the hard work that goes into the podcast. I got a spindle for Christmas so I will be following your adventure this year with great interest.

  • Reply Toni T. January 9, 2016 at 9:01 am

    I really loved this weeks podcast. I was very interested and impressed with the work of Kismet, particularly with the women’s cooperative in Tajikistan., as I used to work near that area of the world. I currently work in Bosnia and the stories on this weeks podcast struck some similarities with those I have seen in Bosnia, where women have used their skills in finer arts to create a way of life and find healing from trauma experienced during the war. I would recommend checking out the group Udrezene in Bosnia as they are an amazing group of women who knit and create in this way.

  • Reply Carrie Proulx January 9, 2016 at 9:08 am

    Thank you for sharing another inspiring episode! So many amazing Fiber Folk, I want to participate in their monthly head to toe campaign, super way to experience their different fibers. Looking forward to an exciting year of your podcasts.

  • Reply Karen Brown January 9, 2016 at 9:54 am

    What a wonderful way to start the new year. I am so inspired to go out and achieve my fiber dreams in the coming year!
    Thank you for the inspiration.

  • Reply Julia de Boer January 9, 2016 at 11:29 am

    I loved hearing about the people who spin their yarn, and their little spin-hat-wear competition! So lovely 🙂

  • Reply Rain January 9, 2016 at 11:34 am

    Love Stephanie and Angie’s vision! And the Pamiri Cashgora yarn sounds amazing! Would love to win!!

  • Reply Christine Cox January 9, 2016 at 12:13 pm

    This was such a beautiful story! Love the involvement of Kismet with the Tajikistan women’s co-op. I am a new listener and am completely hooked (no pun intended) on your podcast. Thanks for bringing us these amazing tales!

  • Reply asteride January 9, 2016 at 3:10 pm

    Thank you so much! Is great to know more about Kismet!

  • Reply Ellie January 9, 2016 at 6:06 pm

    I can’t wait to go check out Kismet’s yarn. The stories behind their business are inspiring!

  • Reply amber January 9, 2016 at 8:12 pm

    This is such an inspiring story! Love your podcast!

  • Reply Ashlee Klemm January 9, 2016 at 8:23 pm

    Wonderful episode, you and the kismet ladies are an inspiration!

  • Reply Julia January 9, 2016 at 8:42 pm

    So nice to hear about women helping each other, it really does raise the quality of life for everyone in an area when the women are involved in the economy. Thanks!

  • Reply Traci January 9, 2016 at 8:53 pm

    Another great podcast. Several things piqued my interest. Re-vamping my five year old hobby business that has been on hold the last three months. That it may be time to make a serious plan for fiber goats, not just dreaming about it. Finishing my first sweater (barn sweater, Taproot!) so I can start another. And checking out what brioche knitting is. Among others.

  • Reply Megan January 10, 2016 at 5:40 am

    Wonderful episode! Such an inspiring story!

  • Reply kelly January 10, 2016 at 4:16 pm

    very inspiring…thank-you for the opportunity to create with this beautiful yarn!

  • Reply Jamie Dear January 10, 2016 at 4:32 pm

    Seriously inspiring again!

  • Reply Kristina Kephart January 10, 2016 at 5:17 pm

    I love yarn with a storied backbone to it!

  • Reply Hillary January 10, 2016 at 6:00 pm

    I loved listening to the story of how Kismet was born, and hopped over to their website. The Pamiri Yarn looks so awesome, I love knitting gifts with yarn that has a great story to go with it.

  • Reply Ines January 10, 2016 at 10:24 pm

    I’m finally catching up with your podcasts, and dreaming of casting on Portland Pullover which looks like the perfect winter project.

  • Reply Vikki January 11, 2016 at 4:07 am

    Another great episode. Thank you. I loved hearing about two friends starting a business together. It’s sweet and inspiring.

  • Reply DelightedHands January 11, 2016 at 5:06 am

    I was touched by the work that is helping the women be self- supporting. If only it would work here, too.

  • Reply HeiM January 11, 2016 at 6:19 am

    Very interesting, as always – thank you.

  • Reply Judy January 11, 2016 at 8:36 am

    Lovely podcast. Kudos to the Kismet team. Besides supporting US local yarn, I am encouraged to hear about their partnership with the women in Tajikistan. Empowering women in areas of the world where life is so difficult is a wonderful project… changing the world one fiber at a time. Kudos to all….

  • Reply Elaine January 11, 2016 at 1:47 pm

    Thanks for another great, informative interview!

  • Reply monica January 11, 2016 at 7:49 pm

    Inspiring story and beautiful yarn!

  • Reply Sheryl January 11, 2016 at 8:31 pm

    This is one of my favorite podcasts. And this week, it was so interesting listening to the owners of Fancy Tiger Crafts – loved them on CreativeBug!!

  • Reply Isha Kuhns January 12, 2016 at 12:31 am

    Gorgeous yarn!

  • Reply Tina Limpert January 12, 2016 at 8:12 am

    I really enjoyed listening to the genesis of Kismet Fibers. A truly engaging podcast! I’d love to knit up something in their yarn.

  • Reply LuisaM January 12, 2016 at 4:30 pm

    Always great stories, congratulations!

  • Reply Stephanie L January 13, 2016 at 2:04 pm

    Great episode–thanks!

  • Reply Caileigh January 13, 2016 at 4:23 pm

    Such an inspiring episode, thank you!

  • Reply Mary F. January 13, 2016 at 4:57 pm

    Great podcast! Very inspiring!

  • Reply Melissa Mazzeo January 14, 2016 at 5:40 am

    The head to toe idea rocks!!!

  • Reply Kathy January 14, 2016 at 11:01 am

    I so enjoyed listening to the story of how Kismet Yarn Co developed and am so happy that they will be at VKL this weekend! I will make a point of stopping by and saying hi. And squishing their yarn!

  • Reply Kathy January 14, 2016 at 6:30 pm

    This was a feel-good, inspiring episode. Thanks.

  • Reply Lulu January 15, 2016 at 9:52 am

    Love your podcast, it keeps me company while I find some time to knit in peace.

  • Reply Sarah January 15, 2016 at 12:12 pm

    Really enjoying listening to the podcast. Thank you!

  • Reply Melissa H. January 16, 2016 at 7:42 am

    I always leave the Woolful Podcast inspired and determined! Thank you for this !

  • Reply ikkinlala January 16, 2016 at 7:56 am

    What a great story! I wish I was closer to New York.

  • Reply michelle January 16, 2016 at 10:32 am

    love the stories behind the yarn!

  • Reply Johanna January 16, 2016 at 9:48 pm

    Marry a boy and find your in-laws have a herd of alpaca and just don’t know what to do with all that fiber?
    I think I had a dream like that once.
    XD

  • Reply LIly January 17, 2016 at 8:01 pm

    Beautiful yarn! I really enjoy listening to your podcasts!

  • Reply Danielle January 17, 2016 at 9:08 pm

    Such a gorgeous yarn!

  • Reply Meagan January 18, 2016 at 7:57 am

    Beautiful yarn, wonderful interview, thank you.

  • Reply sophie January 19, 2016 at 10:35 am

    new year // new yarn obsession!

  • Reply teegan January 19, 2016 at 12:09 pm

    gorgeous 🙂

  • Reply Allie January 19, 2016 at 6:39 pm

    What a wonderful story around how American entrepreneurs are helping women across the world accomplish similar goals!

  • Reply Katherine T. Howard January 20, 2016 at 8:18 am

    Great podcast as usual. I’m sorry I missed Kismet Fiber Works at VKL last weekend. I was only able to go on Saturday and only for an afternoon which is really not enough time for a show like that. And I missed the Tajik women demonstrating their craft entirely. I’ll be on the lookout for their yarn in the future.

  • Reply Carol January 21, 2016 at 12:09 am

    What a lovely story from angie and Stephanie, I’m now on the lookout for their yarn

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