Monday, August 29, 2011

It's almost time!

That's right, winter is fast approaching, and you know what that means. SWEATERS! Since this is my first winter with knowing how to knit, I feel like taking a project that will not only be challenging and fulfilling, but also practical and something I'll use. Enter sweater patterns!


I have found quite a few patterns that really speak to me, including this Echo Lake Cardigan and also this Ginza Sportcoat. It's also more than that. I have recently purchased the book Men's Knits by Erika Knight. If you haven't seen this book, I highly recommend it. There's an amazing 1950's style cardigan, knitted with a dark-colored, bulky yarn. It looks so comfortable and amazing. Who can forget the Collegiate Cardigan and the Hand-Dyed Sweater? With so many amazing designs to choose from, it's hard to know where to start! So, I'm putting a call out to all of my readers. What do you suggest? Should I go for a sweater, or opt for the more versatile cardigan? I could see myself making either style, but I haven't made any of them before, so it's hard to pick what I like best.

Help?

Whoops!

Wow, time flies when you're having fun! Things have been so crazy lately and I completely forgot to keep this thing rolling! Partially because some of the things I was working on, I didn't want to be seen until they were completed. Oh well, now that things are slowing down and I'm going to start making a better effort at keeping this thing updated. I'll try to have a new post up later today. We'll see how that goes. ^_^

Thursday, August 4, 2011

The Work Of Days And Hands

Well, not today's work unfortunately. If there is one thing I have learned about myself, it's that I need goals. If I'm trying to learn a type of craft, I will find some ridiculously hard project in that area, and have that be my goal. Now, everything I do up to that point is learning. The ability for me to stay focused enough to learn the history, techniques and nuances comes from the knowledge that if I stick to what I am doing, I will eventually reach my goal. It's a good system for me, and I find that it works just as well for other people as well. Give it a try, and maybe you'll find that things aren't as hard to learn as you once thought they were.

Starting off, I learned how to knit. Now, I don't know about you, but I find knitting to be one of the hardest crafts for me. The entirety of the piece is created in your hands. There are no looms, wheels or other, more sturdy tools to help you achieve the tension needed to create a consistent and beautiful product. That's why my goals for knitting are pretty simple. To make a pair these


Glove - pair of knitted silk gloves, possibly once belonging to Archbishop William Warham (c.1450-1532), New College, Oxford
Now, that's pretty..........extreme. I can't wait to undertake such a challenge. I'll have to do a lot more research on them before I can even begin to think about tackling such an undertaking. It's good to dream though.


Next up is embroidery. I could easily say that I want to embroider the Bayoux Tapestry. I could say that I would make it to scale, and have everything be perfect. But I won't, and I won't because I'm not crazy. Even I know when a dream is out of my grasp. However, there is this.



Now, the pictures above are for a bag. I don't want to make a bag. I want to make a pillow, and embroider this pattern for the entire front of the pillow. I am probably a bit crazy even for this one, but it is still attainable. It will just take a lot of hard work and patience. I think I can do it. Now, I have no clue if this particular pattern is period, but I don't care. It's a personal goal, not a competition goal, so I will be happy when I get done with it. Here's the specs for the original (above picture is a recreation);  linen base with 20/22 threads/cm. The embroidery was done in blue and red silk and flat silver strips that have been gold plated.


Wow, this post is a little wordier than usual! I'll post more of my goals in the future, and until next time

Bless your face

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

This Week In Craft Land

My new workspace! I'm in love
Alrighty, time to show you inquisitive people what's been going on this week! There's quite a few projects that were warped (and finally finished), some great buys to help me later down the road, and some other projects as well! Well, what are you waiting for, come check it out!



Alright, first up, is a sash I wove with silk bamboo. I love how this piece turned out, and this is one I think I'm putting up in my Etsy store. Not sure though. Colors are Black/Burgundy/White. One of my favorite patterns to be sure.

Yeah, I definitely like this sash. The tassels on it are the longest I've done to date, and they're so cool. I will definitely have to make more like this. Although, I'll do different colors to keep it fun and fresh.  ^_^


Next, time for something I've never made before, and as such, makes me extremely proud that I could. I made a bag! And it's one that I sewed together all by myself! Hehe


Speaking of Sewing; I'm making a tunic with the help of Mistress Sine. It's going to be the same fabric as the bag above (in fact the bag is made from the scraps left over from the tunic) and some trim I've made! So, there's the trim I made to go around the collar and (if I calculated take-up correctly) the cuffs of the tunic. 

You can't really see the pattern 100% clearly, but I still really like it. I can't wait until it's on the tunic and ready to be shown off!



Now for something I've wanted for months. Like, around the time I joined the SCA. A ball winder. These little contraptions are amazing, and this makes some projects sooo much easier! Having a huge skein of yarn that I want to do something with is great, but when I need to seperate it out into smaller balls for other projects, things got annoying. This way, I can always have the amount of yarn I need, when I need it! Mwahaha! +_+





Oh, did I mention that I'm spinning? No? Well I am. And it's awesome. I recently recieved some wool/mohair that can be spun, and I'm thuroughly enjoying it. I love the colors, even though Etienne doesn't. hehe. It's a seafoam/peach mix, and I think it's going to make great yarn. Even better, now that I have a ball winder, I can put it into a center pull skein when I'm done spinning it! How awesome is that!?


Temptation Tuesday: Green With Envy

Edit: Oops! I accidentally forgot to hit Publish instead of saving this as a draft. ^_^;; Here it is a few hours late.

Eek! I almost forgot about TT! However, I shall prevail! This week I'm going green with my TT picks. Check them out! All of these items are from my Etsy Treasury list, Green With Envy. To see the rest of my treasury, click here!

If you love handmade leather journals like it do, Kreativlink is the shop for you! I want pretty much everything they have to sell. Man I need to win the lottery. *sigh*


Next is this beautiful lampwork bead keychain thing. I could so see myself using something like this for a Kumihimo weight. Stunning and simple. Check out DaisygatorDesigns for more beautiful items!

Now, now. What do we have here? Something I have decided I am going to make a bazillion of once I get a loom. These woven bags are awesome! Simple, stunning and the effect of a woven bag is hard to beat. Yeah, I am so jealous of The1919 for their woven items.


Finally is something I had to include. Hand-dyed, hand-spun yarn. I ADORE these colors. The teals, greens and sages are perfection. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find where Debland makes their fantastic yarns and........maybe add to my stash some more. Or just drool over their HUGE collection of yarns.