Tag: Knoontime Knitting

  • U Is For… Upholstery!

    U Is For… Upholstery!

    \"2015-04-24Yes, I know. It\’s an ugly chair.  I, however, happen to like it.  It belonged to my great-grandfather and is in serious need of re-upholstering, but because of its construction that\’s not inexpensive.  For one thing, the pegs that hold the armrest in place are broken and the glue holding them in place is congealed and hardened.  Never fear, I have the missing piece in a safe space.

    What you can\’t see is that when I inherited the chair, my cat at the time took a serious dislike to it – I can\’t see why; what\’s not to love about brown and yellow plaid? – and scratched the back left side to bits.  I finally got him to stop but the damage was done.

    When we moved, my husband and partner both said, get rid of the Ugli Chair.  But I can\’t.  I love it.  It wants to be loved, it wants to make people happy.  It wants a place in the home.  And it\’s damnably comfortable.  And let\’s face it – when you\’re sitting IN the Ugli Chair, you can\’t SEE the Ugli Chair anymore.  Problem solved, right?

    And in the meantime, until it can be refinished into a less… baby shit brown and pancake sort of color scheme, we\’re plotting to design a soft, brown, washable afghan that can be draped artfully over it so it at least looks intentional in the library and not like a \”Dear God, what is that?\”

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What furniture do you have that you can\’t bear to part with, even if it\’s no longer the height of fashion?

  • S Is For… Soapmaking!

    S Is For… Soapmaking!

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    Soap.  We all use it.   But do we really understand what it is?

    Most, if not all, of the stuff we buy at the grocery store or fancy upscale shops isn\’t soap, it\’s detergent – or, if you\’re lucky, it might just be glycerin, which is a part of the soapmaking process but still not actual soap.  Soap is made when you add lye to fat and it saponifies, the chemical reaction that results in soap.  Far from producing the harsh bars of yesteryear, today\’s craft soapmakers can make a variety of fine products that nourish the skin instead of stripping it of its natural oils.

    The bars above are a simple, basic soap that can then be grated down and mixed with more water, as well as other additives like essential oils, herbs, flowers, and fruits, to create French milled soap.  Made by \”cold process,\” they contain pork fat (lard), olive oil (pomace), coconut oil, and lye.  C\’est fini.  That\’s all.  The great thing about these bars is that if you have sensitive skin, as I do, it doesn\’t irritate it (unless you have a specific allergy or intolerance for the ingredients themselves.

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What kinds of body cleansers do you like?

     

  • R Is For… Rubbings!

    R Is For… Rubbings!

    \"R\"Grave rubbings is a hobby common in genealogy.  People interested in their family history sometimes make rubbings of their ancestors\’ grave markers as a way of preserving it as art.  I don\’t know where most of my ancestors are buried, so that\’s not something I\’ve been able to do with my genealogical research; however, that doesn\’t mean it\’s not something that is a satisfying way to spend an afternoon.

    Some friends and I went to the memorial at Tippecanoe Battlefield, not far from Lafayette, Indiana.  Many of the graves had gorgeous stone carvings and we took a box of crayons specifically saved for this purpose.  We wandered the graveyard for about three hours, looking for designs and my friend\’s ancestors.  It was sobering to know that so many people died there, but we came home with some beautiful reminders of our trip.  Sadly, when researching for this post, I couldn\’t find the file where I stored them, so clearly I need to do some more filing.  But the memory of the day, and spending time with a friend who herself has now passed on, is bright in my mind.

    I found an interesting article in Family Tree Magazine that details how to make grave rubbings, if you\’re not familiar with the practice.  As I said, I keep a special box of crayons (one of the deluxe ones with all the colors, I might add) for the purpose.  It\’s even got bold writing on the lid, \”for rubbings only.\”

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    Where might you go to make some rubbings?

  • Q Is For… Quilling!

    Q Is For… Quilling!

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    One art I\’d like to try someday is quilling.  This is an art that uses small strips of paper, wound to various tightness, to create a three-dimensional art.  When I was a child, I remember seeing ones that were usually monochromatic, usually white.  I don\’t know if that\’s because it was in vogue at the time or if that particular area of California just had artists that liked working in plain colors; but when I did some research for my post, I found some amazing, inspiring images.  Take a look.

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    I love how simple this star is, and how it cycles through the colors of the rainbow.

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    I love peacocks!  This one is incredible – look at the level of detail!  The height of the pieces differs depending on whether it\’s the branch or the bird, too.  Such complexity!

    I found a detailed YouTube channel that has classes in quilling for free, here.  You can see all the different kinds of designs possible and maybe get inspired to try it yourself!

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What art calls to you, that you haven\’t tried yet?

  • O Is For… Ojos de Dios!

    O Is For… Ojos de Dios!

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    Ojos de Dios is translated from the Spanish as, \”Eyes of God.\”  First worked by the coastal South American indigenous peoples the Huichol, they are a  combination between a prayer, hope, and protection.  They became popular in the States during the 1970\’s during the resurgence of the Arts and Crafts revival.  As a Wiccan, I see them as a lovely way to intentionalize my craft and to make something tangible out of a wish.

    This one was made from a continuous yarn and woven with differing weaves (which is why you can see the dowel in the center at different points on the diamond).  I bought the dowel at the hardware store, sanded it, and then painted a combination stain and varnish on it to darken it and preserve the wood.  Tip:  if you decide to do that, let the finished wood sit for at least a week so the fumes dissipate and any stickiness is gone.  It was pretty pungent to work on the next day.

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    For what would you make an ojo?  New job? Writing project? Love?

     

  • N Is For… Needlepoint!

    N Is For… Needlepoint!

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    This is one of the earliest pieces I\’ve worked in needlepoint.  It\’s comparatively early in my stitching career, since I did it when I was sixteen to seventeen; it took me about eighteen months in total.  It was, at the time, my most ambitious piece.  Sadly, it was damaged by the recipient when it was removed from the frame and returned to me; however, the fine folks at North Shore Needleworks were able to help me start the repairs (which is why their tape is around the edges, stopping the canvas from unraveling).  It\’s incredibly difficult to age-match colors, let me tell you; but North Shore helped me do so in a way that will look good in the final design.

    This piece is characterized by long floats, where the yarn is brought several inches across the canvas.  This is to simulate the difference in texture between the water, the objects in the picture, and the sky.  Most of the stitching is just satin stitch, which made it a pretty easy piece and certainly something a beginner can work.  It was originally from a kit, though I no longer recall the company\’s name that produced it.  I like it because it reminds me of Coyote Point near San Mateo (it\’s actually in San Mateo County, though not the city itself).

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What crafts did you do as a child that make you nostalgic?  Or, if you weren\’t into crafting, what places did you visit?

  • M Is For… Macrame!

    M Is For… Macrame!

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    Remember macrame? No? I do. It was the go-to fiber art of the early 80\’s. Man, folks made everything from plant hangers, like the one I made above, to wall art, rugs, belts, covers for jugs, jewelry, vests, and anything else they could think of.  You used to find the macrame cording at the craft store, but I haven\’t seen any in a long time.  (If you have a source, please tell me in the comments as I\’d love to make something again.)

    I made two plant hangers and a few other things; the plant hangers are the only things I still own.  This one is the larger of the two and is made with a light green and white cord in a simple square knot.  I mastered square knots and half-square knots, (which I keep trying to spell as \”nots,\”), but didn\’t advance beyond that because the drawings, at the time, didn\’t make sense.  But knowing what I know now about my 2D to 3D translation difficulties, I\’d like to give it another shot.

    And if you, Dear Reader, are interested in trying your hand at the art, there\’s even an online Macrame School on YouTube.  I swear, what did we do before the internet?  As much as I love my offline activities, I\’m sure grateful for the capacity to make bridges, connections, and share knowledge that the internet has brought us.  Miraculous.

    https://www.youtube.com/user/macrameschool

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What daily activities do you have in your life that have been altered by the internet?

  • L Is For… Lace!

    L Is For… Lace!

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    I\’m doing another dual post today, this time on lace.  I adore lace – doilies make me swoon.  When I was little, I would get those little doilies they give you under coffee cups and color them in.  I know, lace is traditionally white or a single color, (who doesn\’t shiver at the idea of romantic black lace and stockings?).  But me?  I adore color.

    I learned how to do what\’s actually called \”faggoting,\” no lie, and despite the unfortunate name it\’s a lovely technique.  It\’s got the advantage of being super easy to work, too, which is great if you, like me, are a gerbil-brained knitter who doesn\’t want to have to concentrate on long, drawn out lines of instruction and repeat this, yarn over that.  The lace above, for example, is Turkish stitch – it\’s got one – count it, one! – row repeat!  It has a grand total of three – yup, I said three! – stitches:

    Even number of stitches:
    k1, * yo, k2 tog; rep from *, end k1.  Repeat this row.

    C\’est fini.  Just as easy as plain stockinette stitch.  I also like it because when you\’re using an overdyed (or ombre) yarn, like the one in the picture, sometimes the colors all smushed together in plain knitting can look muddy.  Using a faggot stitch can help spread them out and allow the colors to \”pop.\”

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What complicated-looking task do you find surprisingly easy to perform?

  • K Is For… Knitting! Again!

    K Is For… Knitting! Again!

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    I know I did knitting today on the main blog, too, but it bears repeating.  ~grin~  Besides, what if you don\’t, yet, knit?  How do you go from string to art?  It\’s like anything else.  Practice.

    Okay, so how do you know what to practice?

    Well, there are plenty of books and websites out there purporting to be able to teach you how to knit.  If you\’re reading this and nodding along, chances are that you\’ve glanced at them and they meant about as much to you as they did to me – which means, nothing.  Zilch, zip, nada.  I tried to learn to knit from books for almost ten years.  I just couldn\’t make sense of the stuff on the page as it related to the stuff in my hands.

    If this is you, then I have two solutions for you:

    First, find a teacher.  Local yarn shops and big-box stores like Michaels and JoAnns offer classes, as do park districts, senior centers, and adult learning centers.  There are Meetup groups, and knitters even put themselves out on sites like Craig\’s List.  Don\’t overlook your local university – fashion design programs feature knitting, because the designers need to know how to work with knit fabric.  I met my first teacher through my local yarn shop, and she is an adjunct professor at not one but two local universities.

    Second, look online.  YouTube has a wealth of videos on how to do anything from cast on (which is how you get the yarn onto the needle so you can start knitting with it) to complicated stitch patterns, decreases, increases, lace, cables, and all the other foreign-sounding words that are the stock-in-trade of the knitter\’s craft.

    If you haven\’t discovered it yet, Craftsy is a ton of fun to poke around.  They\’ve even got a bunch of free classes, so you can see how you like the learning platform.  Their basics series are good, solid grounding in whatever craft you select; they\’ve got a ton of intermediate (skill building) and advanced classes for you more experienced knitters out there.  You can select classes and add them to your wish-list, and keep your eyes peeled for their sales.  Might be just as addictive as doing the craft itself!

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What suggestions do you have for folks who want to begin a new craft?

  • I Is For… Inkle Weaving

    \"I\"Ever wonder where things like reins for bridles, belts, pet collars, and trim come from?  If they\’re not leather, they\’re most likely woven (though there are many other ways, for example, spool knitting, but I digress).  The type of loom used can vary, but here\’s what I find interesting.

    My weaving instructor, Natalie Boyett of the Chicago Weaving School, (and if you\’re here in the city, or visiting, and have ever thought about maybe learning to weave, go there.  She\’s hands-down one of the best instructors I\’ve ever had), showed me that weaving is one of the oldest textile arts.  Here\’s a brain-bender –  all looms are fundamentally the same:  they are designed to put tension on the warp (the length-wise threads) so that the craftsperson can put the weft (the cross-wise threads) in between them.  In this way, fabric is created.

    So what\’s an inkle loom?  It\’s a small, usually portable, loom that allows you to wind on a continuous warp, which means it can be really, really long.  The weaving surface isn\’t very wide, usually only a few inches, because the idea is to weave narrow fabric.  There\’s an example of one here.

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What would you want to make if you could wave a magic wand and know how to use an inkle loom?

     

  • F Is For… Fancywork

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    Fancywork.  It means fancy needlework or crochet, even tatting, that is decorative.  It was popular during the Victorian era and brought us all sorts of neat things like tatted lace edgings and crochet doilies and such.  For anyone interested in textile arts, fancywork comes up in the lineage of our art even if what we do now is ultra-modern.

    Interweave Press, the popular publisher of many different kinds of textile arts books, magazines, DVDs, and sites (Knitting Daily is inspiring even if you\’re an occasional knitter), re-released the historic needlework collection, Weldon\’s Practical Needlework.  What I found fascinating about the collection is its emphasis on figuring it out oneself.  There\’s a lot of knowledge that\’s assumed, that for modern craftspersons isn\’t necessarily part of the repertoire.

    And then came Jane Sowerby, with Victorian Lace Today.  She looks at several historical sources, including Weldon\’s, and reinterprets them for modern artists.  While the book focuses on knitting, it gives a fascinating look into historical craft and gives modern interpretations that are sure to have you reaching for your needles.

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What historical craft speaks to you, even if its skill isn\’t within reach right at the present moment?

  • E Is For… Embroidery

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    Embroidery.  It was the first textile art I ever learned.  Crewel embroidery is an art with a long history.  The Bayeux Tapestry, in fact, is not a Tapestry, nor woven:  it was, in fact, embroidered.  The Victoria and Albert Museum in England has a fantastic page on the history of English embroidery, here.  Embroidery has a wide history, not just in Europe, with some of the oldest references dating back to China 500 B.C.E.

    I find it relaxing.  I have started to work on my own designs, usually modifying an existing one as from a kit, like the one from the left (which is one of my oldest pieces, and I did not modify it; I think I made it around 1987).  Embroidery artists are able to translate their graphic ideas into needle, thread, and fabric, and do so either from their own original designs or by adapting from paintings and other art.  I find that pretty darned amazing, to be honest.

    I confess, though, that I adore kits.  I find ones that I like, and then it\’s like coloring in designs in a coloring book.  My mind relaxes while my hands are kept busy, and I get to play with color and texture.  While embroidery seems intimidating to the beginner, needlepoint and cross-stitch are both needle arts that similarly have kits and can be done with little to no experience.  If you\’ve a mind to try embroidery, though, give it a shot – I made this piece before I learned anything from another textile artist, and was able to follow the instructions.  Most of the stitches are fairly simple ones; the only more complex bit the French knots (which, in the spirit of full disclosure, I found horridly difficult – so after this kit, I made sure to pick ones that didn\’t require them).

    But for the adventurous artist, and for those of you who are able to translate flat, written instructions and graphics to the three-dimensional world of canvas and thread, the world is your oyster.  There\’s a burgeoning interest in needlework and some amazing books that have come out recently that are sure to delight both the novice and experience needleworker.  My favorite of the new artists is Jane Nicholas, but beware: viewing her site may consume many hours of your time because her art is captivating.  You have been warned.  🙂

    What about you, Dear Reader?
    What classical art catches your fancy?