Between Christmas and New Year

I hope everyone had a joyous Christmas full of family, friends, love and hope.

Now we have that lovely time between holidays, when even if we have to work, there's a certain quietness that means we can relax and enjoy ourselves. I've been to the Boxing Day test (day 2), eaten leftovers, sorted out some files and, made some more scarves.

The first has been quite a trial - I was wanting a chequerboard effect with drop stitches in between. Unfortunately, this required too much casting off and on and the drop stitches sort of got lost. Maybe blocking would have helped, but it still wasn't working. I settled for casting on lengthwise, knitting a 3x3 rib then dropping stitches in a Fiobonacci pattern (is that how you spell it?).

I started the second last night and picked a pattern from the Vogue Knitting Stitchionary, the Daisy chain stitch. I've used much larger needles and made everything garter stitch. I quite like the effect and will make a long thin scarf.

Next week will be blocking everything! and getting them ready to sell.

In my image

I've now put a picture of 'me' on my blog. Courtesy of Elaine, one of the HWSG Spinning Certificate students. For her final project she made a series of dolls, each based on a different person involved in the course, to highlight her spinning skills. She did one of me and I'm highly delighted. As I'm usually reluctant to have my picture taken, this is the obvious alternative, navel ring and all!

Inspiration strikes at last

I think I've finally come up with the design for the next scarf. A mixture of dropped stitches and cabling. I quite like it, however, I'm a bit concerned that I won't really know if it has worked until I block it.

Yes, I know, should do a test swatch first, but these are my test swatches!

I also like the handspun, as it changes from cream through to a dusty pink.

Inspiration required

Less a week before Christmas and plans, cleaning, card writing and present buying all in full swing. I'm still in need of inspiration. I'm trying to make a 'pasta' scarf and not having much success. On a long drive today and I think I've got an idea about knitting long strands and at times knitting them together whilst also wrapping around each other. Will try tonight.

Another scarf.

Yes, I've finished yet another scarf. I actually like how this turned out. I was using Cleckheaton Country Silk, which I won as the Patons fastest knitter 2007. I have alot of it!

I have been keeping a work journal to record both times and patterns and general information. This is proving helpful, especially in the area of pricing. However, it is opening a can of worms as it becomes obvious that I need to raise the price of my scarves. I am however, reluctant to go over the $100 mark. It seems like a barrier. I think what I need to do is make one, which I couldn't possibly justify for less and see what happens. Then, if that is successful, slowly creep the prices up. I think this is an ongoing issue for everyone.

A good book from the library

Yesterday was mostly taken up with costuming (Hollywood) my oldest for a party - he's going as a 'Blues Brother' and the 9x5 market planning session. All very interesting, I did, however, have to leave the meeting early, so I will be looking forward to the outcome. It's starting to get really serious, as we realise that we're off to a really good start, but that to make the market work we need to become more professional in the approach and organisation. I am looking forward to working out how I can contribute.

I did however, have a look through a book I finally borrowed from our local library. Aren't libraries wonderful. This particular book has been sitting on the shelf waiting.....I finally decided I'd better have a good look. It is quite beautiful with fabrics that cover different fibres such as silk, linen and synthetics. There's a handmade feel to the fabrics, even though they are commercial. The pictures are beautiful and full of ideas.

I must start another weaving project!

NOTE: 'Fabric' by Suzanne Trocme. Published by Mitchell Beazley, London, 2002.

Another scarf on big needles

I finished another scarf last night. Just using up purple yarn from the stash. Big needles, knit lengthwise. People really like these bright and quick to make scarves.

The next one will be a bit slower, as I'm going to use the camel and wool yarn that I've spun. I want an open overall lace and insert a few areas of folds. That will need some sampling before I get it right, but it should be quite effective.














I have a steering committee meeting for the 9x5 market, where we'll be discussing a marketing strategy. This should be interesting and more importantly, useful. The next step in the development of the market is to get more people there.

A folding red scarf

Just finished knitting the first scarf off the rack! Well it's not quite finished. Went looking for my button tin (a beautiful old tin filled with all sorts of buttons - I love boxes!) and couldn't find it. I want to add a stack of red buttons at each end.

The scarf is knitted lengthwise using some red slubby yarn I had spun. Then I knit three folds - st. st. for a number of rows, then pick up at the beginning - it folds. If you graft the last fold on to the first fold then there's no cast off to spoil the look. This is quick to knit and a nightmare to both pick up the stitches and graft.

I've also taken down the surplus loom, waiting for it to be sold, and now can get to my shelves to start the tidying process. It feels better already, I can at least walk around a bit more. Still an absolute mess!!

'Pasta'...the pictures

I've finally finished the textile pictures inspired by our pasta making day. Probably should make pasta as well! I think they've turned out quite well. In particular the soft felted, machine knit, handspun background.

It's also wonderful to sit in a cafe eating a lovely lunch with a good coffee and play around with ideas. I like to write a journal which is just random thoughts as they occur. Often they help to solve all sorts of problems. Perhaps not quite life changing problems, but usually about everything up to that point! A couple of lovely designs for scarves, and I've started one late last night.

Oh! and there's a book! More later!

Successful market day

At last a really good day at the market. But would you believe, I sold lots of scarves. I've come to the conclusion that to sell the art work, people need to get to know me. I've sold two pieces, one at the market and another to the owner of Woolybutt, both people I know well. So I've just got to perservere. And I sold some yarn!

So for the next month I'll be knitting scarves!

Vogue knitting

Sitting all afternoon in a very quiet gallery surrounded by sculpture, I managed to finish off my wall hangings and do some more of my knitting for myself. Maybe the jumper will be ready for next winter, only the sleeves to go......and fix the mistake in the front panels..... Anyway, I was looking at the old Vogue magazine I was working from and I thought that I should share with you the current issue and one of my favourite pieces.

The asymmetry is great, the fringing is very interesting, though it is added after the knitting is done. The one on the opposite page only has one sleeve and the rest is thrown over the shoulder and pinned to hold.

This would look good over a skirt and perhaps something more interesting with the sleeves. Such a lot to play with.

Knitting pasta!

It's an interesting process taking an unrelated idea - pasta - and turning it into a textile work, but everything has shape, form, colour and texture. It's also fun talking about knitting fettucine, tomato sauce and planning to add in pesto sauce and spiral pasta for the third textile picture.

Being small and simple, I hope they have an impact. I'm almost sad we didn't have a December 3D5S meeting so I can create some more over the Summer. However, I will have to do a 10cm x 10cm challenge for the first meeting of 3D5S next year.

Today I'll be sitting the CSA exhibition 'Bonanza'. Very quiet and I might even take my knitting.

A blast from the past!

I thought I'd just do a slight detour today. In the packing up of our house for floor polishing and painting activities, I came across, yet again, a piece of embroidery which is very important in my development as a textile artist. It is the first time that I designed something all by myself! I must have been in my twenties, yes, I am a late bloomer, and, along with the first jumper, I designed, were the first time that I realised that I could do design.

From there, I joined the Handweavers and Spinners Guild, learnt to spin and found a Certificate in Studio Textiles at the Melbourne College of Textiles, in which I enrolled. This all took place in just a few years. It still took me another 14 years to finish the Certificate which turned into a Diploma of Art at RMIT, but it was the start of the journey.

I still like it and I'm going to finally get this framed and hung in my newly painted and bare walled house.

Fibre Sandwich yarn

I finished my fibre sandwich yarn, started on Saturday. I plyed it with the English Leicester single I had on my bobbin, overtwisting so that I could ply back with another yarn, which turned out to be some white cotton, as I couldn't be bothered spinning some 'S' yarn.

I've still got some more on the bobbin which I think I'll ply with a fine black yarn, handspun this time, and make the black 'knot' over the coloured. I hope this works.

Now I've got to work on getting ready for the certificate presentation for the Spinning Course, and get ready for the market on Sunday. Too much to do!

Fibre Sandwich

Yesterday was a lovely day with the opening of the HWSG Spinning Certificate exhibition. It was great to see the students enjoy the morning and see their work displayed, hopefully well (I helped set it up on Thursday) and celebrate with their family and friends.

The afternoon was spent making a fibre sandwich - salad! We laid out a layer of 'bread' fibre, then a really crazy layer of 'filling', then another layer of 'bread'. This was then divided amongst us and we started spinning it up. I've actually now finished - a first for me at Experimental Spinning. I intend to ply it with my left over English Leicester, but I think I'll spiral it and even then add a binder yarn to really bulk it out.



















Today is about trying to finish this and also finishing the painting of my stall installation, black coathangers and all.

Spaghetti

Our internet connection has slowed to a crawl for the duration of the month, so I've been too annoyed to blog, not only is it slow, but seem to have a habit of timing out. I've had to resort to going to the library to do any serious mail collecting and searching!

Anyway, I've been working on a stand for my scarves and that's progressing well. Need some black paint to finish it off. More tubes have been collected from hubby's brother-in-law, I found some small coat hangers and I'm painting everything black! I'm approaching the stand as if it were a sculpture, with black tubes everywhere. I felt uncomfortable with not having all my scarves out, so I'm trying to create a rack. I'm hoping that will give me enough on the stall to always make a sale!

The first textile picture in the 'Pasta' series is now well on its way, I've only to add a strip of colour and it's well on its way. I want to add a red, green and ??? strips,which should be very striking.

I've started spinning some English Leicester to do the background for the next one and thought I'd find another fleece for the third. Nice to be spinning.

I've also bought the new issue of Vogue Knitting, which has some really interesting ideas in it. I'll expore that further when I have a better internet connection. This has just taken me half an hour to do!

Some more yarn!

Finished the camel yarn and plied it with some brown wool that I had also spun. Needs to be washed properly, but I'm quite happy with it. Unfortunately, I need to scour the yarn, hopefully it doesn't ruin the camel.

I also machine knit the merino I had. Wasn't enough to do a textile picture, but I will felt it to see what happens. It did prompt an idea for a scarf. Machine knit a scarf length, block it and then embellish it with handspun. Could be fun!

Machine Knitting Handspun

Bouncing around my workshop, a little undirected, I felt the urge to spin....problem, all bobbins have something on them. As I want a felt background for my next textile picture series, I decided to felt some leftover English Leicester single (still on bobbin- there is method to my madness) and try and machine knit with it then felt it. It was still quite greasy, so I don't think I scoured it before spinning, only washed it.

It did go through the machine with only one break. I think I need to clean the brushes and make sure I go quite slowly, or, of course, use cleaner wool!

I did felt it, not fully, and I'm quite pleased with the result. Next I'll try the leftover merino for a more serious effort.

I then did manage to spend the rest of the evening spinning camel. I'm spinning a fine slubby yarn and keep changing my mind about whether I'm going to ply with it or not. I do want to then do an upmarket version of my necklet.

'Bonanza'

I finished and delivered my sculpture. I was pretty happy with it, and as it happened, I didn't need a plinth!

The opening is on Saturday and I'll be there, at least for a little while. I've volunteered to sit the exhibition on the 5th December.

Now, I'm wondering what to do next!

Details:

'Bonanza' - CSA members exhibition

Yarra Sculpture Gallery,

Vere St. Collingwood

24th November - 9th December

Pasta making

We had such alot of fun yesterday, making AND eating pasta. I've taken photos and am thinking about how they might make a series of textile pictures. Some obvious answers to that problem, but I'll think about how long thin 'things' can be created and mounted!

We discussed our group entry for the Australian Sheep and Wool show and have an overall guiding concept: World unravelling with the show theme of 'Flora and Fauna'. Now we just have to collect pictures, ideas, anything. I didn't think we'd get this far, but it does work well. It will translate into something positive and interesting.

I also have managed to find my block of wood in the offcuts bin of Danahers', my local hardware store. It's been cut up, stained and one coat of varnish applied. Hopefully it will all be ready by Wednesday.

Knitters' Block

I've really started my latest sculpture. I'm now officially in desperation mode as it has to be finished by Tuesday, when it goes into the Contemporary Sculptor Association members exhibition - 'Bonanza'.

As you can see I've made the blocks and covered most of them with knitting. This part will be finished. I do now need to find a base to stand it on and I need a plinth, which I think I can borrow.

Today is 3D5S and we're making pasta. Am looking forward to this. I'll share photos!

Blocks and new looms

Another day out, helping a friend with their new loom. It was fun and all questions of 'how does this work?" were finally answered when the top was lifted and all was revealed!

I love traditional equipment, even by a relatively big company, like Leclerc. Each has a unique vision of how something should work, revealing something of the maker/user, though the idea is not always clear.

I did manage to finish, what must now be, a first coat on the blocks and I've started the production of their jackets! I'm very happy, but suddenly, very aware of the time deadline of next week!

Anyway, off to have my porridge!

Sculpture start

I haven't any pictures for today, I didn't think small blocks of stain wood (Rosewood stain on pine) was really interesting. But I've started 'Knitter's block'! Hooray, about time. Varnishing will start today.

I've also knitted my first 'necklet', I'll finish it off first before photographing it.

Slow day yesterday, might just be a slow week, after the effort of the last four weeks.

Beautiful Photos!

I did manage to ring Craft Victoria, only to discover that the relevant person is on leave till Thursday. They didn't sound too optimistic about prospects before Christmas, so I sent off an optimistic email saying to the best of my ability: 'but you'll love my stuff!' I did manage to take the photo, which is the best photo to date. I really love it!

I've also started my little one ball 'necklets', which have sold well on my stall and I haven't made any for quite some time.

Now, is the time, however, to get on with my 'Knitters' Block' sculpture for the Contemporary Sculpture Association's members exhibition, due in on the 20th November.

Have you noticed two names, I must be on a roll. All I need now is a really good name for the 'Woven Memory' offshoots....the beautiful photograph.....!

Disappointment and other stories

Disappointment ended my weekend with absolutely no sales from the 9"x5" market. I was really happy with the way the stall looked and the new items I had on, but, I guess a combination of a small crowd and ???? just meant no-one bought anything. I am at a bit of a loss to both explain and know what to do next. I have a few ideas about changing the display again....in particular, finding a way to display all the scarves without taking up table space???, but I just have to hope that after the election and just before Christmas people will spend in December.

The weekend actually started quite well with Saturday being the day that the Spinning Certificate students handed in all their work for assessment. Four of us spent a good, but not onerous part of the day doing this. It was just great and the work is fantastic and the exhibition of work in December will be stunning...and I haven't yet seen all the final pieces. It makes all the hard work worth while, and it is a real disappointment that it won't run next year.

I will show some of the new work that I managed to finish. I'm very happy with my new set of textile pictures. I did receive some very good responses to these and I think I'll just keep going with them, even though I haven't sold any yet.

My next mission is to try Craft Victoria! Wish me luck!

Judging at the Show

I spent yesterday morning judging the woolcraft for the Dandenong Show. I went out there last year and it was delightful and was so again. They managed to double the entries from the last show and the quality also improved with some really good entries, and a few really difficult sections.


The CWA put on morning tea and lunch. Homemade scones, fresh local asparagus, etc. etc. I also had a look around the main craft display, I always love the cake competitions.

It is really surprising that the show exists, being, as I see it, in suburbia. I am wrong, of course, it really borders the city, as do the Whittlesea and now Berwick shows. This years has been diminished a little, as there will be no horses because of the equine flu, but these are well worth go to see.


Judging is always a nerve-wrecking effort, as you really don't want to make a mistake or upset anyone. One of the ideas I've thought about is that I really want to give prizes. I think this encourages the people who have entered, and hopefully, encourages others to enter. So there always is a winner. I'd love to do Dandenong again.




Textile pictures


I am also trying to finish off as many articles for my stall on Sunday. As you can see the textile pictures are coming along. I'm quite happy with them, but they are quite different from the first trio.


I also managed to get my buttons from Buttonmania in the city. It's always a pleasure going in to her shop and browsing through buttons with their expert help. I paid too much for one button, but it is beautiful.


She's having a sale from 26/11/07 till 1/12/07. She sells her buttons on sale BY WEIGHT. Apparently the black go really quickly. If I can I'm going!


NOTES: Dandenong Show. 10th & 11th November, 2007. Showgrounds. Bennet St. Dandenong
http://www.dandyshow.com.au/
Buttonmania. 2/37 Swanston St. Melbourne Vic.

Melbourne Cup weekend at the beach

Images from Phillip Island

A lovely weekend was had by all. We travelled down in the rain, blessed rain! and then the rest of the weekend was fine. Phillip Island is like that, the only certainty is the wind.

We did finish the weekend by going to 'Chill Island', a concert on Churchill Island which headlined Clare Boeditch, Paul Kelly and Gotye. There were four support bands, we only missed one. There was Tin Pan Orange, who I liked, Tumburumba, who are a very energetic and fun drum band playing music such as the Samba, and a band called Hot Little Hands who hadn't got a CD yet and 16yr old boy thought that they were really good, which is actually a pretty good endorsement.

The concert didn't finish till after 9pm and it was FREEZING! Remember the wind I mentioned earlier. A very late drive back, but a lovely weekend.

Remember those moments when you go, 'is that where it is!". I had one of those, I thought I'd lost a bobbin, hardly surprising with the state of my workshop, but there it was, at the beach with some fabulous tops on it that I'd won at the Experimental Birthday party.

I've been wrapping it around a fine cotton core, after very, well nearly very carefully, splitting up the colours. I think it's a great success, though I did have problems deciding what to do when plying. I'm not, I think I'll just set it.

I also managed to finish all the wire work and clean up for the Woven Memories series. So a good weekend for textiles.

AND, we did have a flutter and a win on the Cup!

Experimental Spinning

Picker fluff!

Yesterday was my Experimental Spinning day which I was looking forward to. Being a very busy weekend for the guild, it was a very quiet meeting. We still had fun using the picker and I taught how to spin on a stick, which proved very popular. I have really come to appreciate the joys of spinning on a stick as it can produce a very softly spun, light and fluffy yarn. It is also very gentle and meditative.

I wanted to pick a dyed fleece that I've had for some time and am very happy with the result. The picker is turning out to be a very useful piece of equipment. Traditionally, a picker opens up fleece in preparation for carding. In particular, fleece that might not be in the best condition. However, we've discovered that it does open up fleece nicely, but also mixes up coloured fleece in a random, but still keeping staples discreet. I'm going to spin mine up as it comes and call it 'Picker yarn'. I don't know what I'm going to ply it with, but seeing as I have 200gms, by the time I get round to finishing it, I should have some idea.


Liquorice Allsorts scarf


AND, last night I finally managed to come up with an idea for my liquorice yarn. A combination of dropped stitches and yrn has created an open scarf, which should mean I have enough yarn, but it still relates back to liquorice allsorts, sort of!

We're off to the beach for the rest of the long weekend, finishing and spinning are the orders of the day.

HWSG Exhibition

After a magnificent lunch with friends at '312' in Drummond St. Carlton, and some running around organising my baby boy, I headed off to the HWSG exhibition entitled 'Home Furnishings - to dye for', which is being shown at Steps Gallery in Lygon st. (just down from Trades Hall). I had been looking forward to this as I knew that the work would be good. I came away, however, slightly disappointed and have been wondering exactly why.


There was some terrific work: I particularly liked a picture, I think it was 'Smoke', and a beautiful roll of Curtain Material, which should have had a title, a great teapot cover, and of course, works that I already knew about: particularly, 'Woman in a Mini Skirt' jewellery tree, and the series of 'Bottle carriers'/Hot water bottles both by friends. And thinking about these, I have come to a conclusion about why the overall disappointment.


Usually, the hanging of a guild exhibition is very good and enhances the works, and also gives a cohesiveness to the overall exhibition. I don't think this happened this time. Small works should have had more space in which to shine. These can be treated as works of art and given their own stands. The wall hangings were hung like paintings, each separately, but without any apparent connection to those around it, and why do we insist on putting cushions down low or on the floor! these are also worthy of either hanging or plinths.


Having seen two exhibitions in two days, each, almost at different ends of a spectrum, both suffered from being too practical in nature, losing too much of the art. For me, it suggests that I've moved on from both and I should start seriously thinking about an exhibition of my own.


Anyway, the work in both is well worth seeing, and I might try and catch them again before they finish.

A new graduate show!

Last night was the opening of this years RMIT Diploma of Art graduate exhibition. I have been making a point of going each year. Usually I've known alot of the students, however, there were only a couple that I knew. It is always good to catch up with staff, some of whom are fellow graduates.

It is an interesting exhibition this year with an emphasis on the practical, rather than the pure art works. This probably reflects the changing staff. There was also not a huge amount of weaving, though, the future looks good with apparently some very good weavers still studying.

I did know the winner of the Studio Textiles prize, Lynne Johnstone, who has also been a long part-time student. Her work on display all used rust and she created some beautiful fabrics. I think I saw the germination of this process having dropped into a class where they were experimenting with rust. It's a fascinating process, full of the unexpected.

My other favourite, for its' subversiveness was a young man who screen printed the usual guns, skulls, etc. and then got his mother to make them up into a quilt. An ordinary, simple block quilt!

Alot of beautiful machine knitting and lots of cushions! It's always good to go this show, as I can feel inspired. Some disconcerting news is that next year it will be a Diploma of Textiles, Fashion and Clothing, rather than a Diploma of Art. This may definitely put a more Industry based take on the work and sadly lose the purely artistic.

I did manage to finish knitting my silk scarves, and weave the last woven memory hanging. Lots of work to be done on my textile pictures. The knitting machine should run hot!

Getting to know my knitting machine!

I've had to start a new set of work. This is a bit strange as I haven't finished any of the other works yet. With next week being the week before the market, I will spend that time finishing off what I can, and, hopefully, I'll have a variety of work to add to my market stall.

So I've started working on another set of textile pictures, this time working with the textures and ideas around the 3D5S trip to Melbourne Cemetery. Working in the same way as previously, I'll use the knitting machine to create fabrics and add them to a canvas. I've found a slightly different shape at riot: a long rectangle.

The back fabric is going to be more textured and I'm trying to master Lace knitting on the machine. It's seems just like Tuck knitting but with an extra bit on the machine, that I don't really know what it does! Anyway, I achieved a very nice pattern and will easily be able to do three.

I also would like to use up some handspun scraps. (Is any handspun a scrap!) so I need to use them by weaving them in on the knitting machine. I haven't done this for quite some time, and I'm not sure I'm doing it correctly. It is however, virtually impossible to find any information on this technique, if your own instruction manual feels slightly inadequate! I'll get there, but I must go in search of a really good technical book for my machine!

Silver jewellery & silk scarves

I spent yesterday playing around with Precious Metal Clay in a lovely class full of friends. This clay is moulded just as you would any clay, but when fired parts are obviously melted away and you are left with pure silver.

We all made at least two pieces: a lovely filagree heart or round shape; I made a heart! and, a flat shape with texture, which I turned into a round not quite bead that I'm going to use to add to a very special bookmark for the owner of my borrowed and hopefully soon departing weaving loom.

Over the weekend, I did manage to dye the rest of the silk and wool in red/blue/purple shades. Not actually as striking as the green, but still successful. I have made a start on that scarf. I'm knitting the middle stitches combining with the wool. The edges are silk only, but as an added bonus, instead of knitting straight rows, I've done a couple of short rows so that hopefully it will have a little flounce.

The green scarf I was happy with, in the end. I started by doing a thin angled scarf. (K2tog at the beginning of the row, Increase 1 at the end of the row. Knit back.) I started playing around with this, making a larger end, and finally, I pulled it all out and went back to the original idea.

I

Heavenly silk!

I did manage to cut up enough silk for two scarves.

The first is already dyed with yellow and blue. Some old Supracen dyes from college. Best result I've had for some time.

I've decided to use wool with these two as I think that they need a bit of extra bounce. I have spun some fine (well almost fine!) merino top and for this I plied it together before dyeing. The second I'll keep separate and dye together and only use the wool for the central part of the scarf.

This weekend is 'clean house weekend'. Hopefully, I will be left with a packed sunroom and beautiful house.

Sidetracked again!

I do have a serious addiction to buying magazines. Not your trashy (cheap!) 'woman's magazines' but textile magazines, fashion, various art magazines, design magazines and even music has managed to appear in my collection. I'm also considering resubscribing to Spin-off and Handwoven, having got over being a bit jaded with their repetition and a certain lack of innovation.

A design magazine, 'Lino', that I discovered relatively recently has a new edition out on the shelves. The padlocks are on the front cover, and inside is an article by a couple of weavers. The first weaver had the same basis for some of her work in the 'nature vs nurture' and this is her response.

This is mine from the Old England Sculpture Award. I was quite surprised to see this reference and I loved her other pieces as well.

I've also been trying to knit a scarf with my liquorice allsorts yarn. I thought it would be easy, but it's proving a challenge! This is where I've got to trying 'all sorts' of different stitches to get the right effect. I think I'm happy with this one, except it's a very stiff fabric, so I'll try it on larger, (I'm already on 7.5mm needles)!

Should be cutting up silk fabric!