A productive weekend of Crafting!

So before I open up the boxes I just received full of yarn to knit up for work, I thought I would post a photo of 2 of the things I managed to do over the weekend.

1. Dyed up some old cream yarn to finally have a play with the botanical dyeing skills that I learnt back in September. Onion Skins for Orange, Turmeric for Yellow, Purple Carrots for the Mauve. I also played a little with Alder Cones, but this was not so successful for my first go, so ended up mixing it up a bit with a little Turmeric on some and Purple Carrots on the other. Happy with my first solo go, and eager to do some serious dyeing now.

2. Finished my Yarn Swift that I made at 'Ladies in the Shed' it was made from very cheap pine that was used for packing, so little bit of up cycling for the day. Now I do not have to bother my family! (Whom are all boys, well men now really, and not at all interested in textiley, yarny, crafty stuff)

 

Christmas!

I have been pretty busy, as with everyone else, in the lead up to Christmas. So I thought I would post a quick link to another site I am on.

http://www.redbubble.com/people/betha

I love to take photos, and I love to paint, but no expect on either. However, here are a little combination of both Textiles and Photography that I made for Christmas cards one year..... So that being said.... I hope that this Christmas & New Year brings JOY, HAPPINESS & most of all HOPE for more PEACE and LOVE in 2015 for all!

Blending Board for Spinning

So after my last post, where I purchased some ready blended Rolags, I loved the idea of the blending so much I bought a Blending Board! What a lot of fun these are, and so far I am being pretty conservative with my blends. I can't wait to get my 'groovy' on and really mix it up.

Anyhoo, here is my first blend..... Some Chocolate with a hint of orange through it, in Pure Wool (that was in a specials bag at the http://handweaversandspinnersguildofvictoria.org.au/ - that needed a lot of love as it was getting towards the old felted stage), some Raspberry Merino (mmm, just the thought of raspberries makes me feel good), and some Natural Alpaca.

.... and so the blending begins, this is a lot of fun, and they look so cool when they come off the board.

 

 

 

 Now they are complete, off to the Wheel for my second proper spin with purpose!

 

My singles still need a lot of work, but plying certainly hides the imperfections.... well to me 'the novice' it does.

 

.... and here are my 2 lovely hanks! Now what to do with them? (had I have been able to make some workable singles, I think these colours, with the blending, would have been pretty cool woven, a project for the future perhaps)

 

 

A Novice Spinner

When I was 16 or so, I had a go on a spinning wheel. I thought this is fun and would love to learn, and thought one day! Then 30 years ago while travelling through England, came across an affordable spinning wheel in kit form that I could s...end back home..... and I did just that.

So I had a dabble with it and spun up some very chunky uneven yarn, and managed to knit a back and 1 sleeve of jumper..... then I married and had kids and one day found that some bugs had found my fleece and made it there home.... so into the bin it went. My wheel then made a fine ornament in the house.

So almost 30 years later, I had a play and found it was very squeaky and bits were missing, so off to the spinning hospital!

It is still a little squeaky, if you do not find the sweet spot, but I have managed to spin up some (still chunky and uneven) Alpaca/Merino rolags and made myself a Cowl.... yes I know it has just turned Summer, but it will be great when Winter comes around all too soon.
(By the way the buttons are some of my home made gum tree buttons - so I am feeling very 'River Cottage' today!)

So my early New Years resolution is to really dive in and get the hang of this spinner caper!

A Busy Week!

These are my completed items from 'Ladies in the Shed' this morning. Buttons, a Diz, a 35mm crochet hook..... and a very sore sanded finger ...not all done in one day though, over a few visits!
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ladies-in-the-Shed-Chelsea/352699021553633

Some time ago I came across the knitting tool 'Fix-A-Stitch'. This, I thought, was a brilliant tool and bought a set.

This was some months ago and while I rather not make a mistake, last night I was knitting garter and with 2 strands of y...arn together. Since I knit away without looking I will always find a stitch that has only had one strand knitted in. So I finally got to use the new tool..... and it is 'brilliant'!

Well done to the inventor! Now fixing garter or moss stitch will not be accompanied with words not befitting a lady!

Here is a link to the website.http://www.fixastitch.com/

As mention in my last post, my trip to the 'Ladies in the Shed' resulted in a sore sanded finger.... well what a blessing that had been!

While I am a 'Thrower' (English style, yarn in right hand) this was proving rather annoying as it hit my sore finger every stitch. So time to perfect 'Picking' (Continental style, yarn in left hand). I was shown this some years ago, and thought this would prove faster.... alas a few goes, kept going back to throwing.

So I persisted and am now happy that I am as fast with a knit stitch 'picking' as I am 'throwing' and I am also happy with the tension. Perfecting the 'purl' stitch will have to wait though, as this is still very slow for me.

Interestingly enough the 'World's Faster Knitting' is a Scottish 'Thrower'. http://news.stv.tv/video/1593917786/

Also, after researching Fair-isle knitting, they often use both methods to speed up the colour changing, and this is next on my list to perfect!

 

 

Tryphena Storer

I am flat out working at the moment, so while I am still playing with textiles, sadly they are not for me..... so I will share a little piece I have from my Ancestral collection.

This previously hung in my Nanna's house and I only vaguely ...remember it then. However, I remember my mum getting the framed piece, and removed it and replacing it with a mirror.....which is hanging in my lounge room now.

Seems a little odd, but It was not the right frame for this piece, so I will soon be off to look for a suitably sized and styled frame, so it can get back up on the wall.

This was made by my Great Grandmother, my mum's, mum's, mum. I think it is nice to have something that has come down through the girls in the family, especially as she was just a girl of 12 when it was made. (I do not have a photo of here at 12, pictured here is one looking every bit the young lady that would embroider!)

 

 

 

Quilting

Well I am just back from a crafting long weekend. This was with my sister-in-law and her CCC group (Coffee, Chat, Craft). This was my second time. Last year I had to work so took my work with me and knitted the weekend away, as
I watched in envy, all the other women sewing up a storm! Sewing in the form of Quilting.

I have found over the years that quilter's are a breed of there own, so I opened the door and had a dabble!

Mind you this is not really the first time, I had started a traditional hexagon patchwork quilt years ago, in Blues and Pinks... started while expecting my first child, and when a boy popped out, packed it neatly away. Until I was expecting again a couple of years later. So out is can and more progress was made.... and what did I have... yep another boy... so back into the cupboard it went. 4 years roll on by and expecting again. So out it came and it grew.... but... yes you guessed it another boy.... so back in the cupboard. 18 years on, it is so close to being finished, but not a girly reason in sight to motivate me... so back to being a UFO.

Inspired by last years group I bought myself a 'Jelly Roll' and some 'Fat Quarters'..... and look quilters even have a language of their own... and it does not stop there either, but alas I am a newbie to this so will have to battle on and smile and pretend I know what they are talking about.

So my small purchase sat patiently til this weekend, and now here is my quilt top, inspired by a quick search on 'Jelly Roll' ideas on the net the morning I left. I just have to quilt it and bind the edges now!

So any quilters out there??? Does this pattern have a name?

 

And here is a snippet of my UFO!

 

 

Bohus Stickning

Bohuslan is an area of Sweden I have visited twice over the last 5 years. Having a Swedish sister-in-law helps!

 

Since Scandinavia has such a long tradition in Colour Knitting, it is to be expected that different regions have different designs. So I will focus on Bohus Knitting since I have a connection here.

Bohus Stickning (knitting in Swedish) started in the 1930s and 1940s by one woman’s attempt to provide relief work for local woman during the depression. Her name was Emma Jacobsson.

 

Their designs vary greatly, however my observation over all is that they have rather intricate patterns, yet are generally only 2 colours per row and a max of 3 colours at times. Patterns are often small and repetitious so easy to keep up with.

These Swatches are typical colour work produced during this time, and show very different yet unique styles. Their unique styles are a combination of various designers from the region. After the war, the industry changed as with other countries and the small cottage industries developed and become the produces of fine knitwear and marketed internationally.

 

 

More examples have been digitized on this link:

http://digitaltmuseum.se/things/mnsterritning/S-BM/UM031533/gallery?js=1&query=bohus+stickning&search_context=1&page=2&count=121&pos=42

There is also now a book(in English) to help preserve and spread the word about these unique designs. (Also Pictured). The book is half history with pictures of the garments showing their style and then the later half is garment patterns.

 

What I also love about their designs is that the pattern work is not just on the yoke neck line or all over. Some patterns run vertically along the band of a cardigan, and my favourite on the cowl collar of a jumper!

 

Lastly on my trip last year I visited the Uddavella Museum, and was lucky enough to see some of the garments on display, I took a sneaking photo on my phone of one style I really loved (turned out blurred so karma I guess) … but it is pictured in the book, no pattern, but with the information provided I am sure I can adapt…. you guessed it, one with a cowl collar). This I will not start until next year, but I will post it eventually!

 

 

 

My Completed Icelandic Jumper

So I couldn't wait, I tried out the Icelandic Jumper Pattern Generator.. and I am impressed!. My only criticism is the sleeves, as mature women(when did I get so old?) my arms are not as slender as in my youth so a little snug. I thought to... alter it at the time, but decided against it and wanted to fully review the pattern 'as is' for the largest size. Still fits, and I plan to get loads of use of my new jumper, next Winter..... or should I just plan a trip to Iceland now? (I wish).

I must say after working on the Yarn Art project, using acrylic yarn, it was wonderful to get back to pure wool!

Here is the link to the Pattern Generator again!http://prjonamunstur.wordpress.com/2011/09/14/hello-world/

Knitting through the Ages

It is my hope that traditional hand knitting will be a skill passed down from generation to generation for years to come. However it certainly is not as wide spread a skill these days. Of course, if hand knitting becomes a rarity, commercial knits will continue in the form of jersey, lycra and many other types of fabrics of a knitted construction.

Fortunately, the dying of the art of hand knitting, is far beyond my time on earth, just as knitting has been long before many of my ancestor’s time on earth.

One of the earliest known examples of true knitting was cotton socks with stranded knit color patterns found in Egypt from the end of the first millennium AD. Since the pattern is rather intricate, and they are made from cotton (prone to degrade over time), one would expect that knitting was around much earlier, especially in its most simple one colour form.

 

Cotton socks found in Egypt are some of the earliest knitted pieces. From L to R: Textile Museum, ca. 1000 – 1200 AD; Victorian & Albert Museum, ca. 1100 – 1300 AD; Textile Museum, ca. 1300 AD

Earlier finds, that have the appearance of knitting date back to 300 AD, and are made using a Scandinavian technique call Nålebinding (Needle Binding), this is a great topic for another day!

Yes, knitting has been around for a long time and has been featured in many ways through the ages.

Through Painting and Drawings – Pictured is a painting by Meister Bertram, said to be the oldest depiction of knitting in art (late 14th century), and is in the collection of the Hamburg Kunsthalle Museum.

In Movies and TV – Here are some famous actresses getting to work on their knitting. Audrey Hepburn in ‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’. Edith Bunker (Jean Stapleton) knitting on ‘All In The Family’…. the later may be showing my age, but it was a funny show.

 

Actresses have been known to pass the time on the set behind the scenes knitting too, and recently too! Pictured here is Sarah Jessica Parker.

In print… on Stamps! I love these, not just as the wife of a stamp collector, but as it shows how a country has recognized a past time that has become unique to its own nation.

On a final note, knitting is not just women. Men have had a history with knitting too. Shepherds and fishermen feature in the fully history of knitting, and there are still some men (and known to me) that knit!

So as long as we keep loving knitwear it will prevail, and hopefully the youth of today will be keen to continue to learn the craft!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Much of my time of late has been creating Storybook characters for a 'Yarn Art' Event in our local Community!

Our group including our local community centres, local primary schools, our earth carer's garden and our local aged care residents, have been working towards this goal.
 
I have been working with the primary school my boy's attended and we chose 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar'. Along with out main characters, we have also created, the food the caterpillar eats his way through, and the cocoon. All of these will form a trail from the school past our elderly friends and then onto our local park.

Other school and organisations are recreating, in yarn and other bits, characters from the books; The Rainbow Fish', 'Alice in Wonderland' & 'The Lorax'.

Our event is running through October to Celebrate Seniors Month. Also during October is Children's week, which is when our food trail will be installed. The Children from the primary school will then follow the trail with a special program designed by the teachers, for a bit of fun and learning!

Faroe Islands

It is not easy getting boys these days to wear hand knits, but the boys pictured of the 1950s on Faroe Islands don’t seem to mind!

The Faroese Fisherman have been wearing these jumpers out to sea since the 1900s, and in Faroes, with each design one could recognise the fisherman by his jumper. I guess with harsh island conditions, there is no better way to rug up with wool! The sheep manage the harsh conditions, so it is easy to imagine their ancestors following suit (no pun intended).

Since Forbrydelsen(The Killing), Faroes was put on the map for me and I am sure many others, as the main Character, Sarah Lund, sported the now very famous jumper from Faroe Islands. The jumper was made in and from wool from Faroe Islands, and has the typical Scandinavian Snowflake design.

 

As I have a Swedish sister in-law, I have long been inspired by the stranded colour knitting of Scandinavia, and over the years I have knitted many jumpers and even dresses knitted with the patterns inspired by their counties.

After a couple of knitted garments I dived straight in the deep end with a few Fair-isle and Scandinavian knits, and have not been afraid to tackle these types of patterns, and am surprise by some knitters fears.

So for new knitters, and seasoned ones that have not been game to try it out, here are a few tips; choose a garment with smallish and repetitious designs, only 2 colourways on a given set of patterns or over a few rows, and something knitted in the round, this way you always see the right side of the pattern and it is much easier to follow. If you have not yet worked in the round, stick with the first 2 tips and the purling rows are not too difficult. When knitting loosely carry the yarn across the back, and remember to iron (under a cloth on woollen setting) to set the pattern, and this will also remove any lumps and bumps.

Lastly, here is a great reference book for Scandinavian designs and the book that inspired my knitted tablet cover!

 

 

Natural Dyes!

Yesterday I attended a 'Natural Dyes Workshop' held by the wonderful Samm of Art'n Around!

Now I am super excited to get some pots set up of my own. Will be fun playing with the endless possibilities of colours and textures from my own Garden, and local Green Grocer!

The first 4 photos are the pots simmering, the next 2 are the results, and the last a surprise. The surprise pot will be kept for a month, and then I can see what it holds!

Meanwhile I will have a play with the samples and see what I can create!