Comfort spinning

I've been pondering the nature of comfort. 'Food Safari' on SBS (a wonderful food program about real food and real people) were looking at Spanish food and lo and behold there's a Spanish equivalent of rice pudding. My Mum used to make rice pudding (very English) and I loved it. Never made it myself.....now I need to find a recipe...Mum....

Anyway, we find comfort in alot of things. I was given a pair of handknitted socks by a friend (thanks Tammie, they fit), while that was lovely, even better was actually putting them on. There is something very comforting about the feel of socks, even ones I've knitted for myself.

When I don't want to choose what to wear, I put these earings on, put soft black pants and skivvy and my big jumper. It's easy to think of and looks acceptable and very comfortable.

Thinking about this jumper. It's one where I didn't change the pattern, but I did change the yarn. In the original, it was a pretty pink, slightly fluffy.....I did go looking for the pattern, can't find it right now, think it's in a Knitters magazine....I, of course, decided on a much heavier yarn, it does tend to drag, but I like the finished jumper and it is much commented on. It's surprising how much you can change a look by just changing the yarn.

Speaking of yarn, I've just spun some yarn for a group project and started on some yarn that a friend wanted me to spin (She's creating a project where she's buying fibre for friends and asking them to spin it up any way they like. Great idea, happy to be part of it!) Both yarns are wrapped tops around a cotton core. The first is plied with a fine boucle yarn. The second will be plied with another single created in the same way, hopefully finer.

Aaaah, back to spinning, how comforting!

Buttons galore

It's a cold wintry day and I've been out with my umbrella and scarf to my local wool shop to buy more buttons for the fingerless mittens I've been knitting. It puts me in a reflective mood about buttons, and how many of us love to collect buttons.

We almost always have permission to collect buttons..."they'll always come in handy", and, they do. My collection resides in a tin box and there is something very satisfying about poking about through the button box, jar, or, even better, someone elses.

Op shops have wonderful collections, saying as much about the source - the dressmaker, the former shop owner - as well as the people who come to find their own treasures. Some colours can be strangely scarce and finding really large buttons a challenge.

There is also the current trend of lots of young designers using buttons, I'm thinking particularly of the jewellery that is appearing at markets and places like In.cube8tr. I love their creative use of such a simple thing.

I've just remembered this article in an old copy of the magazine 'Piecework', (Nov/Dec 2006). Wouldn't you like these, there is a pattern to make one.

And that reminds me of one of my favourite shops: Buttonmania in the Nicholas Building in the city.

The only drawback with my buttons, is now I have to sew some on!

Teapots

The Biggest Morning Tea at the guild was a great success with the 'Sea of Scarves', the teacosy exhibition, lots of homemade things to eat, lots of people wearing wonderful things they had made and plenty of conversation.

I did manage to score a teapot at the auction. It's quite beautiful and will fit my collection well. I do like to collect handmade teapots. It's always been one of those things 'I'd like to try one-day', though I suspect that that is definitely in the future. The only experience I had of trying to combine textiles and pottery was a very dear friend...I still have the Kaffe Fassett cardigan she made biggest baby when he was born....who was a dedicated knitter and potter, however, never seemed able to combine them at the same time!

I must photograph my teapots, I have some beautiful ones.

Business needs looking at

I delivered my two wrist warmers to In.cube8tr, including this beautiful pair. I'm enjoying making these and I hope they're successful.

Unfortunately, there have been no sales and I need to examine what might be happening. So I've come up with the following:

1. I'm competing with beautifully packaged items, especially the jewellery. Good packaging can encourage gift giving as well as highlighting the product.

2. I need to look at what has actually sold well. The silk scarves keep moving, the tri-scarf has sold quickly, the wrist warmers, despite few sales, have moved well. They're new and I've made only a few.

3. My art weaving needs to find its own home.

Obviously more thinking is required, but I'll work on that for the next change at In.cube8tr.

More wrist warmers

More wristies....these use a technique that I've just learnt (thanks Catherine) of casting on then casting off, which gives the little, or long, dangly thing a cute little twist.

It is all in the twist, as I keep telling people at the moment. Twist holds fibres together, makes them soft or strong and gives them purpose.

One interesting aspect of twist is whether, as you knit, you twist or untwist the yarn. This can be important. For instance, you probably want more twist in the cast-on, cast-off edge, as it will be stronger.

My investigations, so far, have also shown that twisting at the edges makes them neater. I don't know how much this depends on your knitting style. I knit continental, but even that I think I knit oddly. One thing I do know is that if I do a knit stitch, I twist a 'S' plyed yarn.

See, it's all in the twist.

Ceres Community Environment Park

Yesterday was the 3D5S trip to Ceres Community Environment Park. (http://www.ceres.org.au/) What a wonderful place.

There was sculpture all through the gardens, chooks, kids at the African display making bricks and obviously had been playing the drums. There was a mosaic sculpture workshop in progress. A lovely coffee shop and even on the cold wet weekend, plenty of people looking, working, participating in the community that is obviously here.

It made me think quite alot about what I want to do. A workshop in this environment would be, at the least, stimulating with a community of youthful enthusiasm and people searching for new ways of doing things and valuing difference. There are all sorts of groups here from LETS to a Sweat Lodge.

I think I will make more trips here to learn more about what they do, maybe look at their gardens more, the seedsaver group, all sorts.

Flora and Fauna

I have finally got around to sampling for the 3D5S project for the Australian Sheep and Wool Show. I've tried to get a real frilly effect. I've used crochet as you can build a shape as you go, though knitting would have worked now I think about it. Anyway the centre is not quite right.

I'm going to do another, working on that centre piece, making it more uneven both as a whole and at the edges. I still have spikes to try.

Last night I attended the Banyule Council volunteer awards night. Held in the great hall in Heidelberg, which is a fabulous art deco building. The 9"x5" Steering Committee had been nominated for a group award. We sat at a table, listened to Con the Fruiterer (comedian), and applauded the winners, who were an amazing group of volunteers. We talked, planned had lovely wine and food. It's nice to be appreciated.