Simply Crafted Knitting

Adventures in Spinning

 

For the past couple months, I've been spinning, and spinning, and spinning. It started back in July at the Fiber Arts Market at the TKGA/CGOA conference in Oakland. I was happily going from booth to booth looking at yarn and needles, when I wandered into Carolina Homespun's booth. There were bins of gorgeous fiber, a table stocked with beautiful spindles, and an array of spinning wheels (including some more modern ones that I could actually envision in my apartment). I tried to be good...I really did. I focused on the fibers and figured that I'd buy a couple colors to use for felting. Very frugal, I thought. But then a nice person offered to teach me how to use a spindle, and I was hooked.

I ended up leaving with a Bosworth Midi spindle, the book Spin It : Making Yarn from Scratch by Lee Raven, some beautiful Multi-Colored (mostly navy) blend Colonial Top from Ashland Bay, and some New World space-dyed cotton pencil roving (I like the solar flare colorway better – it reminds me of a circus…). Somehow, this purchase wasn't enough; despite my utter lack of spinning experience, I ended up purchasing wool from several other booths as well, including the Village Spinning and Weaving Shop and Angora Cottage. Oh, dear.

You can't tell from the picture, but the spindle is truly lovely, with a rich brown whorl. She is still nameless, but I am very fond of her. I'm not usually one to attribute personalities to inanimate objects, but there's something about my spinning tools that has changed my mind on this front. I don't know why I don't feel the same way about my knitting things -- maybe they are just too familiar, since I've been using them for so long. In contrast, I still really need to concentrate on my spinning and the tools...and I have to say that the spindle is just amazing --  cheerful and soothing at the same time. At some point soon, I may need to get her some friends; I've been eying a couple spindles with larger whorls for bulkier yarns. And maybe a lighter spindle for spinning cotton...

My First Yarn!
As it turned out, the fiber purchases worked out well. After a few tangled attempts, I managed to figure out the motions for spinning with the spindle. I started with about 4 oz. of Colonial Top in navy sprinkled with bits of other colors. My first attempt could most charitably be called a monstrous thick and thin slub yarn; but in the process, I also figured out that I could unspin the worst sections and thin them out. So I actually ended up spinning the yarn once, slipping it onto a knitting needle, and then unspinning and respinning sections until I came out with a yarn that was at least usable.

 

To the Library...
After finishing my first rather lumpy yarn, I really could have used an experienced spinner or two to help with the fine points. But without one readily available, I headed to the library. I checked out a large number of books, and quickly found my favorites: High Whorling: A Spinners Guide to an Old World Skill by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts and Color in Spinning by Deb Menz. I haven't yet, but I definitely plan on adding these two books to my own collection as soon as my budget allows.

...and to Carolina Homespun
Contrary to what you might conclude from its name, Carolina Homespun is located in San Francisco. The shop is way out in the Excelsior/Outer Mission section of the city jam-packed into what was once a regular residential garage. The hours are a bit erratic, since the owner, Morgaine, also sells at a large number of fiber shows. And after seeing the contrast between the shop and the larger space that she had at the FiberArts Market, I can see why. :)  Still, it is wonderful to have a store in the city -- I'm sure that I will be visiting it pretty regularly!

I left the store with an Ashford niddy noddy (love it!), a set of combs (hate them - more on them in my next post), and more fiber, including two beautiful 4 oz. bags of wool from Crosspatch Creations, 4 oz. of soft merino-tencel fiber in a lovely burgundy color, 8 oz. of a variegated green merino/kid mohair blend, and two containers filled with colorful little balls of merino for felting or spinning.

On to Some Color Experiments
Armed with a bit more knowledge and quite a bit more fiber, I began practicing different techniques. These first three were experiments to figure out how the color of the fiber and the method of spinning interact. For all three balls, I started with a variegated blue wool top with strands of other colors blended it. The colors in the singles yarn (on the front right) that I spun from the fiber are definitely less muted and more distinct than those in the 2-ply yarn (on the front left). For the third ball (in back) I experimented by adding strips of brighter blue fiber and simply spinning them in with the original fiber. This definitely results in a stripey yarn, which I then emphasized further by plying it back on itself.

With my next try at color blending, I continued to simply lay the colors next to each other and draft them together, rather than blending them by carding or combing. For these samples, I began with a warm brown fiber from Angora Cottage (see the front ball) and added greens and darker browns to get a yarn that reminds me of a forest floor. 

My First Yarn without Slubs!
The burgundy merino-tencel blend spun up beautifully -- I had to stop a couple times to unspin a section and respin it, but the result was worth it. I have my first yarn with relatively few slubs. Hooray!

Navajo Plying
I like the stripey-barber pole look that the blue and Forest yarns have, but wanted to do something different with the lovely fiber from Crosspatch Creations. I was afraid that regular double-plying wouldn't show off the beautiful colors adequately, and decided to try Navajo plying instead. I've never seen this done, so I am not sure that I'm doing it correctly, but the results seem fine -there are definitely distinct sections of each color. I enjoyed using this method -- sort of like making an exaggerated finger-crochet chain as you spin. It takes a bit of doing to keep the spindle turning at the same time, but once I developed a rhythm, I found it very satisfying.

Next spinning post: Freeform Spinning!

Not Your Usual Knits: Alterknits and Knits with a Twist

Leigh Radford's Alterknits: Imaginative Projects and Creativity Exercises is not what I expected, but I like it. I think I had assumed that the book would take specific knitting techniques and show ways to take them in new directions. Maybe something like The Art of Knitting, enhanced with hand-knitting directions and some patterns. Instead, Alterknits reminds me of Erika Knight's Simple Knits with a Twist: Unique Projects for Creative Knitters, but with more projects that I could see myself doing…or at least using as starting points. Both books encourage creative approaches to knitting and provide an array of imaginative, unusual, and sometimes inspiring knitting patterns. Together, the books also illustrate how different designers using many of the same techniques can achieve very different results!

I tend to look at patterns with an eye for the techniques and how they are used, rather than by colorway (since I will most likely modify that anyway). So I found browsing through both books an interesting experience. Simple Knits with a Twist is organized by color family/style, while the pattern order in Alterknits seems even more random. Certainly not the technique-centered approach used in Loop-d-Loop  and Unexpected Knitting! But still quite enjoyable once I got myself into the mindset that I use when I'm wandering through a thrift shop looking to unearth various treasures.

Patterns with Embellished Knitting
One obvious way to enliven knitting is to add things after the fact – duplicate stitches in contrasting colors, embroidery stitches, threaded ribbons, etc. In Simple Knits, Erika Knight uses duplicate stitch to add more color to some projects such as the Rose Chintz Cushion and the Barcode Dog Coat. The rose cushion and a Beaded and Sequined Muffler also included sewn-on sequins.

Alterknits has a bit more variety. Projects laced with ribbon include the Faux Ruffled Tank with ribbon threaded through a ribbed panel and the very creative Lace-Up Scarf, Shawl and Wrap that has a scarf and shawl that can be laced together to make a larger wrap. Leigh Radford also includes several projects embellished with embroidery: felted PDA Cases, Cardigans for Clark and Lily, and Abstract Cardigan.

I like the idea of using sequins or beads sparingly to emphasize a stitch or design detail on a project, but am not sure I'd want sew them on. I’d much rather knit them in as I go and avoid the finishing later! Leigh Radford does include a Skull Cap with knit-in beads, but I'll probably still reach for Jane Davis' Knitting with Beads when I want inspiration and instructions on adding beads or sequins. The lacing ideas in Alterknits were also quite interesting. I could see adding a faux ruffle with threaded ribbons, and have started wondering how else lacing could be applied – laced cables and gathered sections created by lacing ribbon through purl bumps or eyelets come to mind.

Patterns with Fabric Paint
One Alterknits (Dylan's Baby Blanket and Hat) pattern adds painted dots after the knitting is finished, while a Simple Knits pattern (Painted Felt Cushion) takes the very different approach of painting fabric before cutting it into strips and knitting it.

I can't think of instances where I'd want fabric paint on top of knitting, but painting on dyes might be interesting…sort of like painting yarn, I suppose. I remember reading a Threads article about someone who actually machine knit up fabric, dyed it, unraveled it, and then reknit it into fair isle garments. [Just checked – it was Color Blending by Gillian Bull in the compilation Colorful Knitwear Design.] That method sounds like too much work for me (at least until I break down and get a knitting machine), but a simplified version of just painting on dye might be interesting. Maybe dip dyed hems and sleeves? Or subtle painted-on dye to emphasize design details? Some of Jeung Hwa Park and Mie Iwatsubo's Shibori-felted items combine dye in lovely ways with fabric manipulation and felting.

Erika Knight's technique of painting fabric and then cutting it into strips could also lead to some creative applications.  The pattern recommends painting on felt, but I could see painting on any number of fabrics. I had good luck recently with a knit fabric that I cut in strips and then spun with other fibers, and had been thinking about just knitting the fabric strips without spinning them first. Painting the fabric before cutting it could add all sorts of possibilities…

Patterns with Fabric Pieces
Both books have patterns that combine sections of knitting with sections of woven fabric. One Alterknits pattern – Multilayered Tube Scarf and Shawl – adds a layer of fabric inside a tube of stockinette knitting. Simply changing the fabric could create a whole different look – an intriguing idea! If I made this, I might change the pattern by substituting a more open stitch, to better show off the fabric.

Alterknits (Modern Bustier, Velvet Trimmed Raglan Pullover) and Simple Knits with a Twist (Patched Throw, Denim beanbag) also both have patterns that attach fabric (or ribbon) directly to knitting. These don't appeal to me in the same way, mostly because I love how knitting stretches to fit (with the exception of felted knits, of course!) I suppose there could be cases where sewing on woven fabric or ribbon trims that eliminate knitting's built-in elasticity could be a design feature. Or maybe the knitting could be combined with a commercially knit fabric or one of the new woven ones with stretch. But in general, if I want something not to stretch or to combine stretchy and non-stretchy areas, I'd probably just skip the knitting and sew the whole thing.

Patterns Knit with Non-Traditional Materials
The two books also include a variety of patterns for items knit with materials other than yarn. Leigh Radford provides patterns for a Silver Squares Necklace, a Herringbone Leather Cuff, a Crepe Paper Crown, Mixed Media Pillows, and a Bridgetown T-shirt Rugs. Erika Knight has patterns for a Recycled Plastic Caryall, wire Beaded Napkin Rings, Satin [Ribbon] Boudoir Slippers, Molded Wire Bowls, and a tulle Flower Trimmed Evening Bag.

What a wonderful range of materials in these patterns: metal wire, leather cord, crepe paper, t-shirt strips, plastic bag strips, ribbon, tulle…there are so many possibilities there! Knitting with wire is one of those things that's been on my project list for ages. I've also been wondering what would happen if I knitted with wire and yarn together…could I create a moldable fabric – sort of like those ribbons with wire edges?  And Leigh Radford's crepe paper crown is one of my favorite patterns in Alterknits. It seems wildly impractical – I can see the dye running out and the crown disintegrating if it got wet. But I still find it very appealing! I'll definitely have to try it at some point, maybe embellished with a large crepe paper flower or two.

Patterns for Adventurous Knit Items
Alterknits has several patterns that illustrate how breaking knitting "rules" and moving beyond traditional construction can result in interesting items. The felted Laptop Cases pattern simply turns the work on its side to allow stripes to run vertically and the Abstract Cardigan combines a variety of yarns and gauges. There is also a Unisex Deconstructed Pullover that combines a variety of non-traditional techniques, including exposed seams, asymmetrical stitch and color use. I like the concept, but find Teva Durham's Loop-d-Loop experiments in the same vein much more to my taste. Similarly, I much prefer Teva Durham's Steek Tunic to Erika Knight's Laddered Sweater.

Both Alterknits and Simple Knits with a Twist also include patterns for knit versions of things that aren't usually knit. Alterknits has patterns for a Custom Cushion, a Felted Bulletin Board, Paper Lanterns (very cute, but I'd worry about flammability), a rug knit from strips of T-shirts, and a Screen Door. Simple Knits with a Twist includes patterns for a Retro Poodle Bottle Cover, a Woven Woolen Rug (a rug is a bit much for me, but a felted version as a trivet might be interesting), an Aran Armchair Cover (lovely, but more cable knitting than I would ever have the patience to do), a Hanging Basket Liner for plants, and a Gardener's Kneeler. I like the idea of using knitting where I wouldn't normally think to use it, but I'm not sure any of these ideas are for me. I'll need to keep thinking about where I could add some knitting…

Patterns Using Thrift Store Finds Finally, both books have patterns for repurposing thrift store finds with no hand-knitting required. Simple Knits with a Twist includes a pattern for Customized Cushions, while Alterknits includes a felted Zigzag Sweater Blanket, Recycled Sweater Totes, and a Decoupage Dress Form covered with old yarn labels.

I'm about halfway through a throw made from felted squares of discarded sweaters…maybe these patterns will inspire me to finish!  These patterns also got me thinking about commercially knit wool fabrics, which can also be quite fun to felt. I've found them particularly useful as a way to try out Shibori techniques or to act as a filler when I can't find the right color felted sweater to use in a throw or pillow.

Moving Beyond The Patterns In addition to patterns, Leigh Radford also intersperses Alterknits with "Creativity Exercises" that for the most part focus on topics such as who would you invite to your dream knitting party, what would be dream knitting day, how to host knitting groups where everyone chooses materials from a bag, what you'd take to knit on a desert island, and so on. These are fun to think about, and could certainly get readers out of a rut and encourage creativity. My only quibble is that I would have loved to see other creativity exercises that challenge the reader to think about how they could actually alter the patterns presented in the book.

Twisted Loop Stitch Illustrated

I've gotten a couple of questions for clarification on the Twisted Loop stitch in my Flora neck warmer pattern on Knitty.com, so I figured I'd provide a longer explanation and photos of the steps. The stitch is definitely one of those that is easier to do than to explain!

Twisted Loop Stitch:

1. Knit 1 stitch.

2. Bring the yarn to the front as if to purl. Using whichever hand is easier for you, pinch the yarn about 3 inches (8cm) from the knitting, and bring the yarn to the back of the work as if to knit. You now have a 3-inch loop hanging in front of your knitting.

3. Now you need to keep the loop stable while you twist it. Using whichever hand is easier, hold the base of the loop (where the yarn is closest to the needles) against the right needle. (In the photo, I am using my left thumb.) Use a finger on your other hand to pull the loop away from the knitting (see Photo 1).

4. Use finger in the loop to twist the loop (see Photo 2) around and around in one direction until the loop is so twisted that it starts to twist back on itself.

5. Slip the twisted loop from the tip of your finger onto the right-hand needle (see Photo 3). I use the other fingers on my right hand to tug at the center of the doubled loop at the same time (see Photo 4), but you can also do this as a separate step. The goal is to get the doubled loop to form a short, straight twisted cord (see Photo 5).

Variation:
Each twist creates a new loop, or "stitch," on the knitting needles. In the Flora pattern, you don't need to worry about securing the loops because the next row is a decrease row in which the loops are knit together with the other stitches.

In cases where you don't plan to have a decrease row immediately following a row of twisted loops, add the following step after Step 5 above:

6. K1, Slip the twisted loop over the knit stitch to lock the twist and eliminate the extra "stitch." Continue with step 2 above.

Freeform Knitting and Crochet Classes

I've always been one to try and improve on patterns, recipes, or really anything with instructions. For me, a project always seems much more interesting when I can customize it at least a little bit. So I suppose it was inevitable that I would eventually be drawn to freeform knitting – an entire art form dedicated to creating garments and other items without any patterns at all!

Back in 2003, when Debbie New published Unexpected Knitting, her incredible collection of knitting experiments, I started thinking about ways to apply her techniques. Inspired by her chapters on freeform, scribble lace, and swirl knitting, I knit two freeform ponchos – Cobweb Cape and Wedding Cape. I still love these initial attempts, particularly the way the scribble lace highlights the multi-directional knitting.

I still pore through books looking for new techniques (see tomorrow's post), but most of my recent inspiration has come from a series of freeform classes: Freeform Handbags with Prudence Mapstone at Lacis in Oakland, Beyond Creative Knitting with Valentina Devine at the TKGA conference in Oakland, and more recently, a freeform knitting class at Artfibers.

I'm so happy that I attended these workshops! As a mostly self- and book-taught knitter, I've generally avoided knitting classes. Partly because they seem rather expensive and partly because my anti-authoritarian streak can make it difficult for me to obediently follow along as some gives step by step instructions. I'd much rather jump right in and see what I come up with! But freeform classes have been a wonderful surprise. First, the instructors were so warm and encouraging – how could anyone not enjoy the classes? Then, of course, freeform lends itself to classes with very few rules and no admonishments. Perfect! Finally, the participants in each workshop were part of what made the classes truly wonderful. I met so many interesting (and entertaining!) people with a wide range of experience from adventurous beginners to women who have been freeforming for decades. After these wonderful experiences, I definitely intend to keep looking for workshops. Well, maybe not all workshops, but certainly those for freeform!

Freeform Handbags with Prudence Mapstone
Prudence Mapstone(www.knotjustknitting.com) is an incredibly gifted fiber artist who combines freeform knitting and crochet to make any number of items, including garments and handbags. You can see examples of her work in her online gallery (link) and in the online exhibit "2005: Irish Crochet to Freeform" at Lacis.

I was a bit concerned about taking her class because my experience with crochet has been limited to an occasional edge on a knit sweater. Luckily, I knew enough to embellish freeform knit pieces with reverse crochet, and both Prudence and the other participants in the class were happy to demonstrate bullions and other more complex stitches.

Although I have been experimenting with knit stitches for a while, for some reason it really took this class for me to realize how equally creative one can be with just a couple simple crochet stitches. Actually, the combination of knitting and crochet seems even more impressive -- one of those situations where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

I finished the project I started Prudence's handbag class by by trying out as many of the stitches as I could from her books: Freeform: Serendipitous Design Techniques for Knitting and Crochet, Never Too Many Handbags, and Bullions & Beyond. I also threw in a couple embroidered embellishments (those years of embroidery classes as a kid finally put to some use!). I had initially planned to make a bag, but the three-ring binder that I use to store my circular needles and crochet hooks was just begging for a cover…so the bag will have to be the next project.

My freeform knit and crochet book cover:
 

Beyond Creative Knitting with Valentina Devine
Valentina Devine is another superb fiber artist who combines knitting and crochet. I first read about her in Melanie Falick's 1996 book Knitting in America (also recently republished as America Knits), and remember being quite moved by her knit piece entitled Scream, which she designed as statement about the horrors of WWII. I've had more trouble finding images of Valentina's work online. Some of her patterns are available at LaLanaWools, and there is a brief summary of her work here.

Like Prudence, Valentina is an incredibly warm, enthusiastic teacher. She taught two classes at the TKGA conference – one on freeform straight-sided shapes and one on circular and irregular shapes. I took the second one, and loved it. The two images show two of the techniques she taught: (1) knitting irregular shapes (embellished here with crocheted ruffles and connected with crochet chains) and (2) swirling shapes that grow from a center square.

I've made some progress on the pieces I started in her class. The following WIP will probably be a shawl or cape when finished. At the moment, it's still mostly knit with some small crocheted and embroidered embellishments. Once I have the base pieces complete, I'll embellish away with more of the crochet stitches I learned while completing the book cover.

My freeform WIP:

Freeform Knitting at Artfibers
I also took a freeform class at Artfibers a couple of weeks ago. While the techniques were ones that I had already learned in the previous two classes, the class was still a great deal of fun. By far the best parts of the workshop were the opportunity to knit madly with a large number of Artfibers yarns and the group of amazing knitters who participated. It was definitely a very lively group! And of course I had to follow up with some yarn purchases, including the standard visit to their back room full of scraps and bargains. Ideal for getting small amounts of yarn for freeform projects!

I turned the scrumble that I made in this class into a wildly-colored freeform hat that combined the techniques that I had learned in all three classes. The instructor at Artfibers had encouraged us to start with vivid, contrasting colors that we wouldn't normally choose. After the class, I decided to stick with the color scheme, added more swaths of similar colors using the swirl knitting technique we learned in Valentina Devine's class. Then I finished with some reverse crochet to tie everything together, much as we learned to do in Prudence Mapstone's class.

My freeform (mostly knit) hat:

Online Inspiration
As this entry is getting much too long, I will write another entry later about resources and some of the amazing class participants. In the meantime, you can find more freeform inspiration at the following sites:

Group Exhibitions
In addition to her own gallery, Prudence Mapstone maintains several online exhibitions for freeform enthusiasts, both knitters and crocheters:
If the Hat Fits: http://ifthehatfits.knotjustknitting.com/
A Girl Can Never Have Too Many Handbags: http://handbags.knotjustknitting.com/
ScarfCrazy: http://scarfcrazy.knotjustknitting.com/

International Freeform Crochet
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ffcrochet/
Many of the core members of this group were at Prudence's Handbag class, as well as at the CGOA conference that was held in the same location as the TKGA conference. Their yahoo group, ffcrochet, is a very active one! I tend to lurk on the list…enjoying the conversation, but not saying much. Most of the members focus on crochet, and since I still view myself as a knitting gal who uses crochet for accents, I find the list a bit intimidating. Still, it is a wonderful group of people, and there are several lists of useful resources and many inspiring pictures in the members' photo albums.

Scrumblers Gallery
http://crochet.nu/scrumblersgallery/gallery/index.html)
This is another location with many beautiful examples of freeform crochet.

Felting Pictures, Take 1

Hmm, better late than never, I suppose.

The USB port on my PC is still dead, but the computer is so old that I refuse to get it fixed. Luckily, the Compact Flash adapter is up and working quite well in the PC card slot. I can finally downloaded my pictures (!!) and have edited the July 12 post on felting and shibori to include photos of some of my felting experiments.

I am definitely still planning on retesting the techniques with thinner gauge yarns. More on that later…

Felting and Shibori

I've been in a bit of a felting frenzy recently. I had just seen some amazing examples of Shibori, including some felted examples, at the Artwear exhibit at the Legion of Honor (see my post from June 23). Then the Fall '05 issue of Interweave Knits arrived in the mail with an article on Shibori knitting and patterns for two felted bags (Weekend Getaway Satchel by Marta McCall and Canteen Bag by Rachel Battaglia Nissen), a felted capelet (Felted Floral Capelet by Nicky Epstein), and felted laptop covers (Laptop Cases -- an excerpt from Leigh Radford's upcoming book, Alterknits). What a wealth of inspiration!

Shibori Felting
IWK's Shibori Knitting article is a good overview. It focuses on a couple of artists: Mary Klotz at Forestheart Studio, Mary Hal Davis, Jeung-Hwa Park, Mie Iwatsubo, and Jay Rich.  I'd been interested in Jeung-Hwa Park's work since reading about her when IWK first published a couple photos of her scarves back in their Winter '01/'02 issue, and the subsequent longer profile on her in the March/April '02 issue of Fiberarts. And as I mentioned in an earlier post, i was thrilled to see her work up close at the Artwear exhibit. Fiberarts also had a profile about Mie Iwatsubo in a recent issue. Still, the IWK article does have some new pictures of both artists' work. Plus photos and information on the other artists, whose work I hadn't see before.  According to the article, Forestheart Studio sells shibori knitting kits, but I wasn't able to find them when I looked at their site. I suppose I'll have to contact them when I have more time...

Felting by Hand
Of course after all of this inspiration, I had to try out some felting of my own! I played around with hand felting a knit-in pocket, some swatches with shibori techniques, and other random bits.

Hand felting? Yes, it is most definitely more work than tossing something in the washing machine. Unfortunately, my washing machine is a front-loader, which is very energy and water-efficient, but not ideal for felting. The locking mechanism on the washer door prevents frequent checks to see how something is progressing. Of course, opening the door mid-cycle would probably also cause a small flood; I guess it is just as well that the machine is idiot proof! :}

In any case, while I take larger projects to the laundromat, I resort to hand felting for most smaller projects. Actually, there's something incredibly satisfying about felting a project by hand -- watching and feeling the fabric change completely from a wet, floppy mass to a soft, dense fabric. When I'm experimenting, hand-felting also gives me a great deal of control over the process, even allowing felting of selected areas on a piece.

So...the experiments
The felted pocket is very cool - I was playing around with double-knitting pockets using Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Bulky, and wanted to see what felting would do. Definitely a success, although I realized afterward that next time I could probably just SEW on a pocket and skip the double knitting. I think I'll try a slash-type pocket next...probably with lots of stripes or some other color pattern. Lamb's Pride does felt well -- with a good bit of fuzz, and a definite halo of mohair on the finished piece  but overall, a very nice fabric with no stitch definition remaining.

Classic Elite Lush is still one of my favorite felting yarns, so I tried a few experiments with that as well. There is still a bit of stitch definition left, but the felted fabric's softness more than makes up for it. It it weren't for the washing requirements, this would make a lovely fabric for baby things.

And then on to the shibori knitting experiments... I wanted to dive right in to the shibori techniques, so I pulled out random gauge swatches knit from wool and wool/other animal fiber blends. I tried a couple classic shibori techniques -- sewing lines into the fabric, wrapping twine around peaks of fabric, etc. -- and also tried tying things into the knit fabric. These initial attempts were somewhat successful, particularly the tied-in items and the peaks of fabric. The sewn lines were not as visible, but that was probably at least partly due to the slightly bulky swatch made with boucle yarn. I think I'll try again with a flat fabric with a finer gauge. There's also clearly a benefit to the dying portion of the shibori process, since the contrast between dyed and undyed sections would help draw attention to the techniques. But fabric-dying adds another whole level of mess (not to mention cost!); I think I'll hold off on that until I am satisfied with the way the swatches look with just the felting.

Oh, I do wish I could post pictures of the felting experiments, but the one-and-only USB port on my ancient laptop is now completely dead. So no photos until later this week, after a Compact Flash adapter arrives. Once that workaround is up and running, I'll post some pictures.

 

My Knitting Gallery

Ta da! I have my gallery of recent knitting projects up and running with updated navigation and links.  The gallery includes photos of most of my recent projects (or at least the ones that aren't being published elsewhere), including many of my own designs and a couple adaptations of other people's patterns.

Some of my favorite projects are:

• Sideways-knit baby hats, including Sherlock, Sherpa, and Flower Fairies.
• Freeform swirling capes (Cobweb and Wedding) inspired by Debbie New's book, Unexpected Knitting
• Lace-up Pullover for my sister May (who was nice enough to model many of the knits)

To reach the gallery in the future, use the "My Knitting Gallery" link listed under "My Other Websites" in the right-hand column of this page.

Subduing the Stash

I've been terrible about posting, I know...it takes me a while to establish new habits!  I've also been so focused on knitting recently that I haven't been online much. I had to finish a couple of patterns to submit for consideration for the fall Knitty. And in the process, I somehow ended up with balls of yarn, knitting books, and other random things strewn all over my floor. It was actually starting to look like my bedroom is high school -- so completely covered that the floor was barely visible.

So for the past week, I have been trying to restore some semblance of order to my knitting supplies, as they are by far the greatest contributor to the overall untidiness. The knitting needles and tools were pretty easy...they all had homes, and I simply needed to return them to their places. I stacked the books near the bookcase for filing later (my next project) and then turned to my yarn stash.

I love my stash -- all of the beautiful yarns, the memories of when I added the yarns, the ideas for possible projects that each yarn inspires.  But now that I've really spent some time figuring out what is in it, I have to admit that it is embarrassingly large. And what did I do as I went though it? I came up with a list of yarns that I needed to purchase before I start on one project or another. Really, I think it's an illness, this obsession with yarn.

I've been debating how to organize all the yarn. During my last reorganization, I had settled on sorting larger amounts of yarn by project, and the remaining bits by color. This worked well for a while. Recently, however, it has necessitated pulling out dozens of yarns just to find ones that I can use in a pattern -- that is, yarns that aren't discontinued or one-of-a-kind. (I think I'll use that as  my excuse for spreading little piles of yarn all over my floor during the past couple weeks.)

So I spent the last week patiently weeding through all of the yarns, separating out ones that are still commercially available, sorting any that I could into separate little bags by project, and generally culling down the bags organized by color. Then, in a final spasm of obsessiveness,  I stapled bits of each yarn onto index cards so that I actually know what I have. Of course, if I had less yarn, the cataloging wouldn't be necessary. But with yarn stashed under a table, in two cupboards, in a tray on top of some notebooks, and covering the seat of a squishy armchair, it can be difficult to remember exactly what I have.

Now I'm itching to start a new project -- I found so many wonderful possibilities as I was sorting all of that yarn! Still, I'm trying to resist. I really really need to finish some current projects for my family. I have a cardigan for my mom that is probably hours away from completion (just a bit of crochet on the edges and some loose ends to weave in), a sweater for my dad that needs a couple days of work, and a couple projects for my siblings. So I'll try my best to just look at my newly organized stash for a while now, and hold off for as long as I can before I dig in and start on something new.

Artwear Exhibit at the Legion of Honor

The Sunday before last, I went out to the Legion of Honor to walk around and to see the Artwear Exhibit they have there. The day was absolutely gorgeous, with stunning views of downtown and Marin. I really should make it out there more often. The exhibit was good, but rather small  -- I went through once with a docent who was giving an hourly tour, and then again by myself. Her stories and commentary was interesting, but somehow a bit off. For one thing, she skipped over virtually all of the knit and crochet pieces, which were my main reason for wanting to see the exhibit. Oh well. At least I got to examine them at my own pace I went back around.

Last night, I finally got around to reading the show catalog (Artwear: Fashion and Anti-Fashion by Melissa Leventon). The book is a good summary of the exhibit, as well as an overview of the artwear movement in the US, but I would have liked more detail on some of the artists and their techniques. My favorite artwear/fiber arts books are still The Fiberarts Book of Wearable Art by Katherine Duncan Aimone and Memory on Cloth: Shibori Now by Yoshiko Iwamoto Wada, both of which focus more on the artists.

My favorite pieces in the Artwear catalog are:

• Oaks (1988) by Tim Harding - A large kimono with an amazing landscape created by slashing and fraying multiple layers of fabric. It never occurred to me that reverse applique could be this complex.
  
• (1975) by Dina Knapp - A beautiful quilted red, black, and yellow kimono with interlinking, sinuous strips of crochet winding around the front and back.
  
• Helen's Hat (1985) by Arline Fisch - A wonderful hat made from machine-knit copper wire.
  
• Mermaid Dress (1999) by Genevieve Dion - A stunning dark silk dress created using shibori techniques.
  
• Rain Coat: San Francisco Bay (1999) by Jean Williams Cacicedo - The "rain" refers to pierced holes all over this great purple felted coat. The edges of the coat show dark silhouettes of San Francisco landmarks.
  
• Sit on It (1980) and Headdress II (1975) by Norma Minkowitz - These amazing hats are crocheted using a very thin yarn (I would never have the patience to do anything like them!). My favorite of the two is covered with organic trumpet-like shapes, and has crocheted curls coming down on both sides.
  
• Aflame (2002) by Thomas Horst - Wow. Felting taken to a whole new level! This ball gown is entirely felted, with three-dimensional flame-like tongues covering the entire skirt and popping up from the top of the bodice.
  
• Inspiration of Falling Woods (2000) and Deep, Dark Leaves (1999) by Jeung-Hwa Park - I was delighted to see samples of her felted knit scarves in person. I'd been seeking out pictures of her work ever since I read about her in Interweave Knits a couple years ago. The combination of felting with subtle dyeing is really gorgeous.
  

Now that I've had a chance to read the book, as well as do some quick Google searches on some of the artists, I will definitely need to go back for another look.

Unexpected Knitting

Well, going through The Art of Knitting got me to pull out Debbie New's Unexpected Knitting again. When I started rereading it, I realized that like Teva Durham and Barbara Walker, Debbie New discusses her patterns and knitting techniques in a way that inspires me to adopt her adventurous approach to knitting.

Unexpected Knitting covers a range of techniques, some of which I think she introduced previously in knitting magazines. The book is divided into ten "galleries," each of which introduces a new technique -- swatchless knitting, free form knitting, scribble lace knitting, swirl knitting, sculptural knitting, virtual knitting, cellular automation knitting, ouroborus knitting, labyrinth knitting, and miscellaneous. Each gallery begins with an introduction that includes both examples of Debbie New's own work and her detailed explanation of the technique; she follows with several patterns that demonstrate the technique.

Although the patterns are amazing (if not all necessarily my taste), it is really the pictures of Debbie New's creations and the sections describing each new technique that make the book one of my favorites. I've definitely been inspired by several techniques in the book, most notably scribble lace knitting (which is essentially knitting with stripes of thick and thin yarns on large needles) and swirl knitting (creating sinuous curves and swirls by decreasing or increasing across a row). These two techniques inspired two freeform capes:Cobweb and Wedding.