Things We’re Doing Besides Knitting & Crocheting: How We’re Ringing in Fall!

Here in the marketing department at Lion Brand, we talk a lot about knitting and crocheting and yarn and magic loops and swatches and yarn weights (we know our DK from our super bulky) and and and … bottom line is that we’re all experts in one way or another when it comes yarn. We can talk about it all day — and we do! You may however be surprised to know that we’re also fairly well-rounded with an excess of interests, hobbies and obsessions that go beyond the hooks and needles.

We thought you might enjoy a peek into our inner worlds. Have fun and please share some of your own personal interests outside of knitting and crocheting in the comments below.

Danielle – I love experimenting with toy digital cameras that mimic analog lomography (vibrant, saturated colors, heavy vignetting, etc) and I often have a few different toy cameras on the go at any given time. Living in Brooklyn provides a constant source of inspiration and material to shoot. For the past couple years I’ve really appreciated my Minimo, a 3.2 megapixel, double exposure toy camera that has a tiny screen which lets you control the double exposure as you shoot. It’s a brilliant little device. Lomography is as much a philosophy as it is a photographic image style – I try to follow the “Ten Golden Rules” and almost always have a tiny toy camera in my pocket or purse.

Lorena – Fall is here and I’m finally getting excited about movies again — here come the Oscar contenders! First on my list was Steve Jobs. It was a fantastic, humanizing portrayal of a man who’s become an icon. I’m a big Aaron Sorkin fan (he wrote the script), so in keeping with the theme, I also revisited one of my favorite Sorkin-penned movies, The Social Network. To round out my binge-watching, I also picked up the last season of Mad Men on DVD to complete my collection. While it’s still beautiful out, I’m thinking ahead to snowy days inside when I can knit and watch all my favorite shows!

Ilana – Last month I wrote about planning some trips to see the changing leaves.  Over the last few weeks I made those trips including  Upstate New York and the Catskills.  I went apple picking for the first time.  Although it was still not the height of the leaf peeping season, it turned out to be more beautiful because there was green left on the trees and the leaves had not yet fallen.  In past years I always tried to hit the so-called height and either didn’t time it just right or the weekend I set aside was rainy.  It was a good lesson.  Don’t wait for perfect because imperfection is sometimes better and because perfect never really happens.

Brandyce – I went back to the Brooklyn Museum earlier in the month to check out the “Rise of the Sneaker Culture” exhibit. The exhibit has now ended, but I enjoyed it because purchasing the hottest new sneakers used to be a hobby of mine when I was a teenager. It was fun to see the how something so simple and necessary like sneakers has really influenced sports, pop culture, and fashion. I’ve also been enjoying some quaint restaurants in my neighborhood and leisurely strolls through Prospect Park, trying to capture some nice fall foliage.

Zoe – I’ve been working on miniatures for the holidays, like this little felt moth: guaranteed not to eat your handmade sweaters and blankets! Artwork makes a uniquely thoughtful gift, but it can be expensive and galleries are often intimidating places to shop. That’s why many galleries hold annual miniatures exhibitions, where tiny artworks are available at affordable prices. This type of exhibition is a great place to shop for that impossible-to-buy-for person on your list, or to start your own collection!

Margaux – I went to the opening of the Brooklyn Flea + Smorgasburg Market which just moved to its winter location at Industry City, an huge innovation and manufacturing district on the waterfront in Brooklyn. It’s an amazing concentration of arts, craft foods, designers and artisans’ goods. You could definitely spend a whole day there without seeing everything!

I also checked out Arts Gowanus where 300 artists opened their studio to the public. It’s so nice to see  the “behind the scene” and get to see artists at work.

Also, I’m going to Philadelphia next weekend for a quick getaway and would love to hear about tips and good addresses if you know the city!

Shira – I don’t know what it is about cold weather but besides knitting all I want to do is cook!  I keep on thinking of new things I want to make but one of my favorite things is soup!  I find that making soup is so easy, and let me tell you I used to think it hard and then my sister-in-law introduced me to this amazing thing called an Immersion Blender!  Best invention ever! The other day I wanted mushroom soup and then bing, bang, boom oula Mushroom Soup.

My recipe is really simple:

• 1 onion
• Cremini mushrooms (that’s what I used but you can use any type of mushroom)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Vegetable broth

The immersion blender purees it, but you can keep it in chunks. I would love to hear what you are cooking up!