Mandy Moore's Blog, page 99
April 6, 2012
How Jane Gaugain Drove Franklin Insane: On Interpreting & Modernizing a Vintage Pattern
Clever, and delicious. Just like the man himself.
Franklin, our vintage knits columnist, has once again done us proud with the Pineapple bag pattern in the Spring & Summer issue.
He's written a post on his blog about the joys and challenges of reading vintage patterns.
Written in Franklin's inimitable and hysterical style (although be warned, the language is a little bit salty), it's a fascinating insight into what passed for a set of decent pattern instructions way back when. And the work that Franklin goes through every issue to turn these wonderful antique patterns into a set of instructions we can actually understand.
April 5, 2012
Obsession: this.
the Ko'olau Mountains, Oahu
April 4, 2012
WWW: A lighthouse, a farm, and a prison. All places to knit.
The winners of our contest are Diana and Veronica in California and Jennifer in Minnesota. Thanks to Bagsmith for the prizes!
What a fabulous place to knit.
Friend of Knitty, Shannon Okey, has just announced that she'll be teaching a one-week knitting retreat at Whitehead Light Station, August 31-September 5th this year. The Light Station is a fabulous setting for a workshop, an original restored lighthouse on an island off the coast of Maine.
The course is a designed to be a confidence- and skill-builder for beginner intermediate level knitters. Course participants will learn how to measure themselves and their knitting for optimal fit and precision, examine sizing schematics and how to select appropriate pattern sizes, plus discuss gauge and how patterns really work. This class is best suited for adventurous beginning knitters through intermediate knitters. Course participants will also explore dyeing techniques to create custom-dyed yarn and then create their own dream sweater or other knitted project.
A tour participant.
The Second Vermont Regional Farm to Yarn Tour has just been announced. The tour, taking place the weekend of May 19th & 20th, explores the Green Mountain State with a yarny perspective.
There will be workshops, tours and group sessions providing an insight into the yarn-making process. From sheep sheering to the actual manufacturing of yarn, the entire process will be available for you to be a part of. Saturday the 19th will send you through southern Vermont farms, while Sunday the 20th gives you a glimpse of northern Vermont yarn making. Nearly 20 farms and fiber shops are participating, and it sounds like an excellent way to spend a weekend.
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Knitted & felted! Really!
A fab slideshow of some amazing knitted creations by the UK knitting art group The Materialistics. This exhibition, featuring characters and scenes from children's storybooks, will be visited by the Queen as part of her Golden Jubilee tour.
providing training and paid work
An article about designer and knitter Brandon Mably – Kaffe Fasset's design partner and collaborator – teaching inmates to knit in a UK prison. These classes are part of a larger program, Fine Cell Work, a fascinating enterprise that trains prisoners in skilled, creative needlework, and provides paid work.
Yarn store WEBS has been selected as one of the 20 finalists in the US National Retail Federation's . Congrats!
April 3, 2012
Spinning Tuesdays: Knitting Ideas for Corespun Yarn
But what do you do with it? That is one of the big questions about corespun yarns. Folks love the way they look and love spinning them, but what can you use them for?
For me the obvious answer is knit with them.
I've had a couple of ideas racing around my head lately and I've been swatching.
Here's an easy one, a top down shawl.
Corespun shawl swatch
I used needles much bigger than I would for a millspun yarn of the same wpi or even a smooth yarn of the same wpi. It's crazy light yarn, but looks heavy because of all of the texture, another cool thing about corespun. I'm getting about 30 yards out of each batt I spin and I have 4 batts set aside. I'll have to see how big of a shawl that makes at this gauge.
This next one will take more time. I want to combine corespun into a millspun sweater. The sweater will be smock-ish in feeling – a deep scooped neck , a buttoned bodice just longer than empire, short sleeves, and an open a-line body from the bottom of the bodice to mid-hip. The sweater will be in a neutral a very brown taupe.
The yarn I picked for the base of the sweater is my new Crush Yarn, Shepherd's Wool, a 3-ply merino spun here in Michigan. It's sturdier than most merino yarns I've knits with but soft and squishy.
I'll do some shaping with ribbing, quick and easy!
I'll use the corespun yarn for large patch pockets on the front of the sweater. I want the pockets to be nearly sculptural – wider at the bottom with short rows to make them puffy.
Sweater swatch with corespun
I love the bottom yarn with the swatch, but there's not enough for two big pockets. Maybe I need to run over to my LSS (local spinning store) and see if there's a batt to match.
What are you knitting with your handspun this week?
March 28, 2012
WWW: Cowichan Sweaters, Super Sweaters, Giveaway!
Because we love our readers, we have a bonus for you today! We're giving away three sets of Sajou Eiffel Tower scissors and a wooden tape measure.
Beautiful!
The scissors are a replica of a model that dates from the end of the 19th century, and is a celebration of the construction of the Eiffel Tower at the Universal Exhibition of 1889. They are hand-made in a small French shop.
A fabulous addition to any knitter's toolkit.
The tape measure is reproduction of a traditional small wooden tape measure.
Thanks to BagSmith/Sajou for this fabulous prize. Value is $104/set.
Post a comment by the end of the day Friday March 30th to be entered to win.
Image courtesy Chad Hipolito/The Globe and Mail
The traditional Cowichan sweaters, originated by the Coast Salish peoples of Western Canada, have been recognized by the Canadian government as an object of national historic significance. This article from the Globe and Mail profiles a knitter, May Sam, who has been making these sweaters for decades. This piece from a local newspaper gives more detail and history on the garments.
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A fabulous place to knit!
Check your calendars! The Icelandic knitting magazine Lopi og band has announced the details for the Nordic knitting conference Gavstrik 2012. The conference, with the theme of "Icelandic knitting – past and present", runs August 6-11 this year. This conference is held every year in different a small town or village in the Nordic countries, and this year's event in Iceland promises to be fascinating and engaging. The schedule of events, classes and lectures looks amazing. More information about the event here. Gavstrik is a grassroots organization of knitting professionals and enthusiasts founded over 20 years ago.
I want this sweater!
Super Sweaters! Artist Hanie Mohd decided that the superladies featured in DC Comics universe of Superheroes looked a little cold in some of their outfits, so she designed sweaters for them.
Workers from Toronto Public Library System, an organization in the throes of labor issues, is hosting a knit-in at Toronto's City hall today.
A nice little piece about knitter Loani Prior, who reinvented herself as an internationally recognized expert on tea cozies.
The knitter with some of her work.
Tina Selby of Wales is leading a campaign to knit warm hats for UK military personnel stationed in Afghanistan. She's sent over 5,000 hats (each packaged with a chocolate bar), and expects to ship off another 2,000 for the start of next winter.
March 27, 2012
Spinning Tuesdays: I Have an Art Batt Problem and April's Spinning Plan
I love art batts, both the sexy smooth and the everything but the kitchen sink kinds. As I was going through stash to make my spinning plans I discovered a bunch of Bricolage Fiber Studio batts.
A bunch of batts
Instead of just petting them, I looked at them with the intention of spinning and knitting ideas. I know I want to corespin them.
These I want to make into a shawl:
These for a corespun shawl
This one and another with the same blue I want to incorporate into a mill spun yarn sweater:
An accent for Cascade 220
I am happy with both of those plans and excited to see how it all comes together.
I am also happy with the bigger plan I made for my spinning. I planned just for the month of April, because two months worth seemed over whelming and I found myself writing down impossible plans for May because it seems so far away.
For April deadline spinning I will spin:
Fiber Fiesta for the next issue of Knittyspin
Samples for the Spin Art SAL on SpinDoctor, the rest of the singles yarns
The yarn for the Spunky Eclectic blue shawl I have in my head, worsted spun
Blue shawl swatch
For April non deadline spinning I will:
Practice worsted spinning (for the blue shawl above, also a 2012 spinning goal)
Practice hand carding (from Carol Rhoades Madrona class)
Try dizzing from my drum carder (from Sarah Anderson's Madrona class)
Spin and write a pattern for easy mittens and hats using handspun for holiday gifts
Ponder all the bits for teaching a knitting with handspun class
Spin three things for just spinning
All completely doable. Just figuring it out and writing it down released so much spinning stress for me that I sat down and turned these:
Huckleberry Knits fibers
into this:
Huckleberry Knits yarn
March 23, 2012
Insight into a Knitty Design: The Tootsie Socks
Designer Lara Neel has written a blog post giving some fascinating insight into her design process for the lovely Tootsie socks from our recent Spring & Summer issue.
Tootsie!
Specifically, she talks about the inspiration for the clever afterthought heel
We love this!
Lara provides a fab and very helpful photo tutorial on the construction of the heel.
Very helpful.
If you're interested in knitting this design, I definitely encourage you to check it out.
OnlyLouisehas already completed hers, and they are brilliant!
Love!
March 21, 2012
WWW: "All About Sweaters" radio show, Updating the Cowichan sweaters, Olympic Yarnbomb update
Sweater stories, large and small.
Canada's CBC radio featured an episode of the show "Definitely Not the Opera" all about sweaters. An hour and a half of wonderful radio about the significance of sweaters in the lives of various people around the world…. she interviews a Holocaust survivor whose sweater became a security blanket, she speaks to knitter making sweaters for penguins, and learns about the origins of the iconic Cowichan sweater. Bonus Canadiana points for a discussion about Roch Carrier's famous children's book, The Hockey Sweater and playing Stompin' Tom's song "The Hockey Sweater". Listen to the show on the CBC radio page, or as a Podcast downloadable from iTunes.
Classic yet modern.
Once you've learned about the classic Cowichan sweaters, read this article about a small knitwear design company, West Saanich Woolworks, updating the Cowichan designs through fusing them with Fair Isle techniques. There's some really lovely sweaters available for purchase – I can't wait to see the pattern book that's mentioned!
Cuddly, warm and GIANT!
Her blog has details on the project and a fun time-elapse video of the knitting process, and she's made the pattern/tutorial available for sale on Ravelry.
An update on the Olympic yarnbomb I mentioned last week. Sadly, over the weekend, vandals attacked the installation. The good news is that work has already begun to repair it.
Love this: a university student in the UK has been awarded a bursary to teach primary school children about knitting.
A fun little video interview from the run-up to St. Patrick's Day: a knitting teacher talks to the muggles about Irish knitting on local TV.
A favorite cause of mine: supporting organizations who take care of and rehome dogs and cats… Battersea Dogs and Cats Home has published a pattern for a comfort blanket you can knit for a dog living in a shelter. If you're not in the UK, knit a blanket and donate it to a shelter near you.
March 20, 2012
Spinning Tuesdays: How Do You Plan for Spinning?
I make a lot of plans. I like to plan. I even have a job where I help other people make plans. When I plan and do it right I find I have a whole lot more time to do other things, and I find I work more creatively all around. For me a plan is nothing more than a map of where I want to go, what I want to get done.
What to spin?
I haven't been planning for spinning, so I'm not getting as much done as I'd like to. Part of my problem is that I want my spinning to live in the land of spontaneity, to only spin when I'm moved to spin, 100% inspiration. Nice thought, but that's not how to get lots of things accomplished.
When will have time?
The other part of my problem is what happens when something you love becomes your job. Yes, it is wonderful and I wouldn't trade it for any other job, but it is still work. With work, for me, comes a certain bratty stubbornness on some days that says, "I don't wanna" and a certain amount of procrastination. I know it's silly, but there it is.
I am determined to get get a hold of my spinning and get more done.
So I'm going to plan for my spinning.
Enough fiber to make a yurt
My spinning has two categories right now:
Deadline spinning – spinning for Knittyspin, spinning for this blog, spinning for SpinDoctor, spinning to knit for patterns.
Non-ish Deadline Spinning – spinning for 2012 Goals, practicing things I've learned in classes, holiday gift spinning, spinning for classes I want to teach and general experimenting.
This week I'm going to decide what I'm going to spin for April and May, leaving wiggle room for emergency deadlines and just play spinning.
What will I make?
The what and the date due for Deadline Spinning are pretty much set, but the when is what I need to focus on, giving myself more time than I usually do to spin with intention. All is up for grabs for Non Deadline Spinning, but I need to limit myself here on the what or I'll feel overwhelmed by what is supposed to be relaxing and fun.
It may sound really restricting to plan like this, but for me it's very freeing. I don't constantly have to remember deadlines and I know what my next choices are. Because there are always choices.
Where do I start?
Remember I think about all of this like using a map* on a road trip. I know where I want to get and by when, Deadline Spinning is strictly interstate driving and Non Deadline Spinning is blue highway driving, maybe even some dirt roads. Everything that happens between start and finish is the fun part.
How to you plan to get spinning done?
* I still use maps for everything. I have a GPS, but I argue with it – not enough options and not a big enough picture.
March 14, 2012
WWW: Olympic Yarnbombing, Scholarships for Crafters, and Bees!
How good is this?!
A slideshow of an exceptionally good Olympic-themed Yarnbomb in the UK.
More info about the Mystery Knitter responsible for this masterpiece in an article from the Ottawa Citizen.
Love it!
Less mysterious, but just as wonderful: an elementary school in Fairbanks, Alaska yarnbombed the railings outside their school for an art project. Teacher Paula Brink-Hart has been incorporating knitting into her classes for years, and inspired by a student's presentation about a local yarnbombing, she decided to create an outdoor installation for the school. A group of fourth, fifth and sixth graders created a cozy for the 128ft railing outside the school.
"You are my sunshine"
Beautiful yarn for a very good cause. Three Irish Girls have released a limited edition colorway "You Are My Sunshine" in honor of a customer and friend who lost her baby. In their words, the colorway "symbolizes the storm of emotions felt by families who are impacted by the loss of a baby, with deep grays, violets, greens, and browns that are chased with glimpses of sunshine and the return of bluer skies."
It will be available only until March 15th, so shop soon! 20% of the sales price will be donated to Share, a not-for-profit organization that provides support and resources to families who have lost a baby.
Oh no! Not the bees!
On the nerd's favorite blog, BoingBoing, an entry about a knitter who had to make 50 life-sized bees as part of a commission for an art gallery. Click through to her blog for more amazing photos.
(Please forgive the terrible Nicholas Cage quote; I couldn't resist.)
Great to see the news of the "Beans for Brains" scholarship spreading through the "regular" media. Every year, yarn retailer Jimmy Beans offers a scholarship to young crafters for post-secondary study. Five awards of $2,250 are available for students across the US, provided by Jimmy Beans and other generous sponsors. More information on the program and how to apply here.
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