little idyll

Second Chances

2011-05-22T21:02:00.008-05:00

The Ginkgo Shawl is finished! I'm so happy with the way this actually turned out. This is so light and airy, a perfect shawl for summer. The pattern is Ginkgo Shoulderette Shawl by Maggi Magali. This shawl was a quick knit that I threw on the needles while I was waiting on more yarn to arrive for another project.

The yarn is Three Irish Girls McClellan Fingering in Georgia Peach. I came across this yarn originally because it had won a contest the Yarn Harlot had facilitated. The photo showed beautiful gradations of yellows, oranges and pinks - I ordered it immediately. Well, as you can see, the yarn I received was much more on the pink side, rather than the orange side. To be honest, I was a little dismayed. Pink is not exactly my favorite color and I don't wear it often. After much deliberation, I decided that it should be knit into socks.

Now, I am not a sock knitter (I feel like I say this all the time), but I decided to make an exception for these Kai-Mei socks by Cookie A. Right about the time I was nearly halfway up the foot, I found a hole in the heel of another pair of socks I'd knit. That was the stopping point for me. What's the point of spending all those hours knitting something, just for it to wear down and be ruined?

So, not liking the sock, and not really liking the yarn, this project got buried for about a year and a half. (Which, relatively speaking, is really not that long of a time.) When I came across the Gingko Shawl, I knew it couldn't be any worse. Why not give the yarn a second chance? I figured at least I'd have a small little something to toss around my neck on cool summer nights. It turned out perfectly :)

Commissioned

2011-05-17T12:34:00.015-05:00

Every once in a while, I'll get commissioned for a project. In this case, my friend Katie asked me to make her a set of curtains for her living room. As the project went on, we also ended up decorating her dining room and her kitchen.

Katie has these gorgeous bay windows in the living room of her condo, with so much natural light.*

The fabric we chose was a natural linen. The weft was woven with a slightly slubby yarn**, which creates this beautiful texture when the light passes through it.***

Katie's dining room is very minimalist. Her goal was to fill out the room a little bit, and to add a splash of color. The curtain fabric for the dining room was slightly more neutral in color, but complimented the neutral palette perfectly. This fabric was also less slubby, which works because less texture was desired here, and heavier. Whereas the living room curtains tend to flow (especially when there's a nice spring breeze coming through the open window) the dining room curtains seem to stand at attention. The weight of the fabric also helps them hold their pleats better.

As for that splash of color - Katie decided that a table runner (see previous photo) with matching placemats would be the perfect addition. The napkins are not my work - they are from West Elm - but the mix of greens really works well together.

The final addition to the dining room was this register cover. The paint on top of the register is peeling**** and was quite unsightly. Katie just wanted something to cover it up. The gray duck cloth does serve as a functional piece, but I think it added so much to the room. It's just that last bit of finish, that last detail that brings the whole thing together.

The last thing Katie wanted was to replace her current kitchen window curtain (top photo) and cover up her laundry machine (bottom photo). This fabric was initially intended for another table runner and perhaps more placemats. But when she took the fabric home, she realized the colors matched perfectly to the colors in her countertops, so into the kitchen it went.

Both Katie and her husband were extremely pleased with the work and output, and they were both great to work with. Being commissioned is difficult in the sense that your client has to suspend belief and have enough faith in you that you'll give them what they want. But the result, when successful, is really worth the effort.

* I'm jealous. I live in a basement with ZERO natural light.
** I didn't take a close up of the fabric :(
*** Isn't it so nice to finally see some greenery outside?? :)
**** Typically, Katie keeps a few small citrus trees on the register - including a pink lemon tree. Pink lemons!! I had no idea such a thing existed!

PS - A note on process:

After looking through many home decor catalogs, Katie was inspired by the pleats on some West Elm curtains. The curtain extends above the rod, instead of hanging from it. The rod slides through tabs on the back of the curtain and the pleats are formed in the spaces between the tabs.

I created a curtain backing for each of the curtains, 7 tabs each for the dining and living room, 10 tabs for the kitchen. The tabs for the dining and living room were 2.75" wide, the kitchen tabs were 1.5" wide. All tabs were evenly spaced across the width of the fabric and were sewn 1" below the top of the curtain. The tabs did not lay flat. I sewed them to curve above the fabric, in order to accommodate the diameter of the rod. This allows the front of the curtain to lay flat. The rest of curtain backing was made from a double layer of muslin with a layer of interfacing inbetween, to reinforce the shape of the pleats.

Off Hiatus

2011-05-09T23:33:00.004-05:00

I decided to come back from my year-long crafting (and blogging) vacation.

I have a small pile of FOs that I still need to take photos of, but in the meantime, this is currently on the needles:

Different Lines by Veera Valimaki. So far, this has been such a joy to knit! I love how the white stripes radiate out through these hues, almost like sunshine.

I have never seen an asymmetrical triangle shawl before - it's such a great idea! I can't wait until this one is finished, and I'm already plotting the second (and maybe third) iteration :)

Real Food Challenge

2010-04-06T18:57:00.004-05:00

A few weeks ago I came across the Real Food Challenge, which basically dictates eating unprocessed foods for one month - and I decided to dedicate April to it. In order to gear up towards eating real food, I've slowly been phasing my diet for the past 3 weeks, starting with one meal per day, then two, and for the past six days, I've been at three, plus desserts.

As a note, I'd like to define what "Processed Food" means: it is any processing from the time of the Industrial Revolution on. Therefore, I am eating some "processed" foods (after all, olive oil is processed, but I'm not about to grow an olive tree in my backyard), but it is traditionally processed. This food is nutrient-dense and is generally akin to the food our ancestors ate.

My main interest in doing this was two-fold. First I wanted to see how it would make me feel, how my body would react to eating unprocessed vs processed foods. Will I have more energy? Not be bogged down by a food coma? Second, I'm actually really curious just how hard this is actually going to be, considering that not only am I going up against The Food Industry, but I also work a full-time (sometimes more) job. What works in my favor is that Chicago has a local-food culture, giving me access to some of the key staples.

So far, each day has presented itself with new challenges. First there was the list - what is acceptable and what is not. Already for the past several years I've slowly been eliminating highly-processed food from my diet; and having recently moved into a new apartment meant that my pantry and fridge are mostly empty. Now it's just about finding out what "real food" means within these categories: Grains, Meats, Fruits and Veggies, Dairy, Fats, Sweeteners; and where I'll have the make the biggest changes.

Meats and produce present the least change for me; I already eat grass-fed and pasture raised beef and pork - or at least Whole Foods tells me I do. While I can't always justify the cost of organic fruits and vegetables, I do try to buy local and am planning to split a CSA with a few friends for the summer. The program recommends raw milk and dairy products. However, raw milk is really hard to find and technically illegal, so I've switched to low heat pasteurized and non-homogenized instead. I have sought out raw milk cheeses, and I find both the milk and cheese to be delicious!

Sweeteners are limited to raw honey, sorghum syrup, maple syrup and unrefined cane sugar, all of which are fine by me. As I've told people about this challenge, sugar always comes up - why isn't brown sugar ok? Basically, brown sugar is processed the same way as white, but the molasses have been added back in at the end. In unrefined sugar, the molasses have never been separated.

Fats fall into two categories: Fats to eat raw and fats for cooking. The former is basically olive oil (heat breaks up the vitamin E) and butter, which isn't preferred for cooking because of the residual milk solids. Fats for high heat therefore include ghee (clarified butter), coconut oil, red palm oil and any rendered fat such as lard (from pigs) or tallow (from cows). I've bought ghee, coconut oil and red palm oil and am currently experimenting with each to see how their unique flavors impact what I'm cooking. I've already determined that coconut oil, due to it's residual sweetness, is better for vegetables and probably baking. I've used the other two enough to have an option - yet.

Finally grains. Grains have officially become the bane of my existence. It is easily the category that has been the hardest to transition to for a several reasons. So, white bread, white flour, white rice, instant oatmeal, dried pasta (the list goes on..) are all out. What's in? Any whole grain anything, preferably soured, sprouted or fermented - which therefore removes even the whole wheat bread or pasta I might buy. This basically means that I have to make all my grain food from scratch, a time consuming effort indeed.

In order to mitigate the effect of phytic acid (an anti-nutrient present in whole grains that binds up minerals and other nutrients and prevents your body from absorbing them), whole grains must be either fermented (several days), sprouted (1-2 days) or soaked (overnight) in a slightly acidic solution before they can be cooked, baked or eaten.

But what's exciting is that I've started baking my own bread; Later tonight I plan on starting a sourdough starter, which requires 3-5 days fermentation before I can even use it in the bread recipe, which is another 10 days of fermenting - in other words, it'll be two weeks before I bake my first loaf of sourdough. I bought The Laurel's Kitchen Whole Grain Bread Book which has been a godsend. So far I've baked 4 loaves of bread and I've found that whole wheat breads are a lot harder to get to taste. Either I'm not using enough salt or I just need to reset the expectation for my palette.

The other exciting thing is that all of a sudden, I've discovered all these options that I never knew existed because I've never cooked with whole grains before. It's funny, but I'm almost learning how to cook all over again. Or at least it feels that way because every recipe in this category is new; nothing is tried and true. And while that exploration can be invigorating, it also means I don't really have much to fall back on. If I'm tired because I had a long day at work (such as today) and I don't feel like cooking (again, today), then, well...I can't exactly order take out. I can't just react to being hungry, I have to plan for it. And that, more than anything, is the biggest challenge.

52 in 52

2010-01-24T16:33:00.009-06:00

Last year, instead of setting a New Year's Resolution, I set a craft goal: Complete 52 projects in 52 weeks. What was supposed to average at a project a week turned into a mad dash at the end, averaging 2 projects per week! (Hence the lack of blogging - I was too busy crafting!) In any case, I did finish, on New Year's Eve no less, and it's taken me a few weeks to shoot and gather all the pictures together. Unfortunately, I'm missing photos of 4 pieces (knit dress, sewn t-shirt, sewn pants, knit doggie neckwarmer). The shirt, pants and neckwarmer I gave away before I had the chance to take pictures; the dress is currently a wip towards becoming something else.

Which brings me to my Craft Goals 2010:
1. Use found objects. I'd like to think of this as a euphemism for destashing, but it's more than just that. Over the years, I've collected t-shirts, ripped jeans, half-finished projects, finished projects that don't quite fit right, and manufactured clothing that I've never worn, in addition to a fabric and yarn stash that I struggle to keep under control. I've always started from a blank canvas (i.e. a solid cut of fabric), which is a relatively easy way to create. I think it's much harder to change one thing into something else. The ultimate goal therefore, is to expand my way of thinking and to challenge myself creatively. Since I already have an entire dresser to shop from, I'm excited to see how this is going to pan out.

2. Learn new skills. I want to learn to crochet, spin and possibly weave. This is really the second part of the Creative Challenge. While I assume that I will continue to defer to sewing and knitting, I want to be able to think about yarn and fabric in different ways still. Suj got me the SNB crochet book, so I'm already on my way!

3. Slow down. Enjoy the process. Blog more. :)

Finally, I've finished my first project this year. The mad rush to get 2009 buttoned up burned me out just a little bit and I haven't been making much since the start of the year. I've actually not yet finished my Christmas knitting, these slippers are for my sister.

French Press Felted Slippers, knit in Patons Classic Wool Merino. These were a quick knit, but I have to confess, they weren't my favorite project to work on. I'm just not the biggest fan of felting. The result is super cute however, so I'm tempted to make another pair. After I finish the rest of the Christmas knitting, that is. :)

Cables Galore

2009-09-21T15:33:00.011-05:00

Work has had me so busy lately, I've hardly been able to find the time to do anything else. I finally got through a big presentation Friday, and spent the rest of the weekend happily knitting. So much so, that I bruised my finger from the constant pressure of the needle.

Green Gable is finished.

This pattern was easy to knit but hard to follow. She wasn't wholly clear about the yoke decreases, so after some Rav consultation, I ended up taking from the sleeve on the back decreases, and from the body on the front decreases.

Furthermore, the hood is obviously missing. I really like the way the body fits, but when I knit the hood it ended up being too baggy, too big, too loose, overall just meh. I didn't plan on wearing the hood up much anyway and I though it detracted too much from the pattern on the back. In a rare moment of forethought, I put in a lifeline on the last row before starting the hood - saved me so much time! When I picked back up, I knit 2.5 inches in the established rib for the collar.

I'd also used Cascade Eco Wool for the sweater - love, love, love. The stuff is awesome! It's so warm and cozy. I'm really happy with the fabric it produces - perfect for a sturdy fall sweater or a blanket. I'll definitely have to find another project for this yarn.

And now for something new.

Rosamund's Cardigan, knit in Tahki Yarns Rio, which is the recommended yarn for the project. The yarn is a lovely blend of alpaca, merino and silk - it's a wonderful yarn to have running through your fingers. I love just even holding it. So apparently the squishy softness of it overruled my general dislike for thick/thin yarns.

Although, since the difference in the thick/thin ratio is far less than other yarns I've worked with, I think the Rio will produce a nicely textured fabric. Some of the definition in the cables seems to be getting lost as well - which could also be a function of the reversible cable - I've never knit one otherwise, so I have nothing to compare it to. So we'll see.

How's it supposed to drape?

2009-08-25T00:27:00.003-05:00

Having been a sewer for so many years, it's intuitive to me about how fabric drapes. (It's also quite obvious - the fabric itself is falling off the bolt.) I know what cotton will do versus linen. I also know (that in few cases) all cottons are not created equal. I know how silk differs from rayon or polyester (and how polyesters differ amongst themselves). I know how wool suiting is supposed to behave, and I know that most upholstery fabrics do not make a cute skirt, despite how appealing the fabric print is.

What continues to puzzle me is how yarn drapes. About a month ago, I was told that I do not want to knit a sweater from bamboo yarn, because the fabric will not hold up to the shaping of the sweater. Bamboo is therefore more appropriate for things like shawls. While I'm appreciative of the tip, it also frustrates me. I don't know enough about [plant and protein] fiber to understand what it's going to do before I even do anything with it. I feel that I'm at the point in my knitting career that I'm trying to become smarter about my yarn choices prior to casting on (oh, I should mention that I'm a big substituter - in almost all cases). I'll also swatch long enough to get gauge (which in my case generally means that I've cast on and am swatching as I go. If I'm not at gauge, I'll sooner make adjustments to the pattern than rip out - a terrible habit, I know.), but I won't swatch big enough to actually figure out how the thing will drape. It seems there are too many variables to handknit fabric - if I knit on a 4 versus a 6, gauge will obviously change, and along with it, drape. But certainly there must be basic principles - am I overlooking them as I jump from project to project? Will I ever learn this?

Hello, Kitty

2009-08-21T17:46:00.004-05:00

Every few weeks, I get together with some like-minded crafty friends to hang out and make things. We're all different in our strengths and in what we make, or how we think about making things, so in addition to the camaraderie, we're learning from each other as well. Plus, one of the best parts of Craft Day is actually planning the project to work on.

We'll usually gather at Suj's, so I try to bring something portable. Although I have been known to lug both my sewing machine and my serger along. And my guitar. And dinner ingredients. And beer. (We'll make dinner [and sometimes desert] too - it keeps with the spirit of things.) Several months ago, I starting working on a cross-stitch Hello Kitty wedding pillow for Rima. Aptly, I also finished it at Craft Day.

Rima and I are both tea fanatics - sometimes more appropriately known as water snobs. Sure, some teas are better than others, and proper steeping times and water temperatures can't be wholly overlooked, but it all tastes like garbage if you don't use good water. Therefore, in addition to the pillow I also sent her a few tea tins, which Suj painted. I have no drawing skills whatsoever and Suj didn't have a project planned (very fortuitous for me) so I put her to work. :) She was happy to help and her painting turned out beautifully. Thanks Suj!

So it begins..

2009-08-16T20:46:00.005-05:00

Fall knitting, that is. And just as the summer heat has finally arrived. But it'll start cooling off soon, and I'm excited for it - fall is easily my favorite season.

This summer has been fairly productive for me, I only have a couple summer projects left to finish. Surprisingly, I don't have much in the queue for the fall, so I'm also looking forward to the surprises it'll bring. At least I can say that first up is the Green Gable Hoodie using Cascade Eco Wool in Platinum.

For being such a bulky yarn, the sweater is actually turning out to be quite light. I tried to knit it before in Wool Ease Thick & Quick, which ended up being too bulky and stiff. I hope the Eco Wool will stay drapy but hold up on the hood. In any case, I'll be using it again for something else - it's such a great deal for the yardage.

The mitts are just over halfway done. The right one still obviously needs to be blocked, but I'll wait and do them at the same time. Otherwise, I'm smitten with these mittens - they've turned out a lot better than I'd thought - my sister joked that they were an early birthday present for her and Dad was surprised when I told him they were a handknit. And even the train conductor, who sees me knitting every morning, inquired about them!

These have really been a fun knit so far. There's not been any overwhelming urge to frog or put them on hold; there's a few mistakes, but I'm living with them; and they went up super fast. To that, I have to give credit to the 9" Hiya Hiya circ. Just the fact that I have to use dpns for the cuff, tip and thumb irritates me, because I seriously can't stop raving about that circ. I think it's one of the best things to happen to the knitting world. Ever. I'm even considering knitting socks with it. Seriously. I even bought sock yarn. (Ok, it was one of the Sock Summit Dye for Glory winners, but still.) I'll let know how it goes with the socks.

Knitterly Commuting

2009-08-02T21:48:00.008-05:00

Most of my knitting gets done on the train as I commute between Chicago and suburbs, and I've been fairly adamant about reserving this time specifically for knitting. I honestly believe I wouldn't knit nearly as much otherwise. Last week I also started commuting to Racine, WI, which gives me about 3 hours (roundtrip) of uninterrupted knitting time. Awesome :)

Here are the train knits from the past couple of weeks.

This was a [sweet,-I-just-got-an-internship-so-I'll-celebrate-by-buying-yarn] kind of a project. I normally don't like the color pink and I normally don't like knitting with cotton (the yarn is Berroco Cotton Twist), but I think it was the subtle sheen that's been spun into the yarn that attracted me to it. And what better way to show it off than with a lace shawl? Little Arrowhead Shawl is the pattern, and it was actually quite delightful to knit. The yarn ended up being ok. I don't know if I'd knit with it again. It was a bit splitty, and there were knots in the middle of the skein (and with only 85 yards on the skein in the first place, that quickly becomes annoying). Further, I'd knit a stockinette swatch and was a bit disappointed at how it looked and draped in stockinette. The open lace is far better in showing off the yarn and it drapes well, so I'm happy with the overall result, but still.

I've secretly been wanting to make Saartje's Bootees for some time now. Last month, I'd asked a photographer friend to shoot some of my work, and I'd offer to compensate him in knitting. He'd told me he and his wife were expecting a baby boy, so I thought these would be perfect.

And currently on the needles are the Anemoi Mittens, in Knit Picks Palette, and on the new Hiya Hiya 9" circ. Mostly, I'm excited to be using the circ. I knit the cuff on dpns, which I generally dislike using for an extended period of time anyways, and though I'm only 6 rounds in on the body of the mitt, I'm already loving the circ. It definitely took a little bit getting used to, and especially since I'm knitting with yarn in both hands (which in and of itself takes a bit to get used to), but it's overall easier and much faster than the dpns. So far, no complaints. I'm eager to knit these - we'll see how they turn out.

Sew Busy

2009-07-19T21:31:00.013-05:00

I love making lists. First off, it keeps me from having to actually remember the thing itself, and forcing me to remember simply where I put the list. Secondly, I get a little bit of a thrill when I get to manipulate the list. For example, crossing things off a to-do list, or adding another project to the 'project list.'

I started keeping an excel sheet listing all my projects a few years ago. Looking at it makes me feel like I've actually done something productive with my time. But it also allows me to analyze what I've been working on. So, last year, I made 40 projects. 32 of them were knit and only 4 sewn with 2 'other.' This year I set a goal of 52 projects, averaging one per week. Currently, I'm at 24 and today starts week 30. (But I'm not worried about it. Summer isn't over yet, and I haven't even begun to think about Christmas.) Of those 24, 11 are knit and 10 sewn. A slightly better ratio in my opinion. But I also like that I finally have the time to sew. In any case, here are a few of things I've made so far this year.

First, a few knitted things:

Caroline Cloche by Hannah Ingalls, knit in Silky Wool by Elsebeth Lavold. I loved this project. It was simple and quick, the yarn is really wonderful to work with. Wool/silk blends may just be my new favorite to work with. I've found that they are light and drapy, but still retain structure, and are great to block.

This Drawstring Raglan was also knit in a wool/silk blend, but for this one it was JaggerSpun Zephyr Wool-Silk. The merino in this is incredibly soft, and generally the yarn was good to work with. The only thing that tripped me up on this project was choosing colorways. First it was white, light gray, dark gray, and black. Which would have been fine, but the white isn't exactly white. It's more like winter white. And there would have been nothing wrong with that, if I was working with warm grays. (These are the unfortunate circumstances of ordering yarn online.) So I had actually ended up buying the light beige (mushroom), the blue, and a red instead. However, the red ended up being overpowering, so the dark gray made it back in. Whew. I'm quite happy with the result, but I'm glad it's done.

I finished the Pleated Top last month during my trip to San Fransisco. This was knit in Misti Alpaca Hand Painted Lace. It just doesn't get better than alpaca. Ever. And in a lace weight, it's light enough to wear during the summer.

Ok. Now some of the sewn stuff:

I'd made this dress for my friend Rima's wedding. (Simplicity 2933.) The front yoke used to have beading on it, but I took it to a major cleaning operation, who doesn't give a rat's ass about beads, sequins, belts, or buttons, (It's true. It says so right on the ticket they print out.) so the beading fell off. I haven't bothered to redo it, and I'm not sure I will - I like the dress just fine this way too.

I call this dress "Fields of Grain." This is McCall's 5465. I've actually done this dress out of a sweatshirt fabric as well, and I sleep in it during the winter - so warm and comfy.

I'll wear this to my friend Amy's wedding in August. Since it's a traditional Bengali wedding, there are 3 full days of events. This is for the Bride's dinner Friday night. Saturday - the day of the wedding - all us girls will dress up in saris (!!), and Sunday, for the Groom's Reception, we'll each wear a lehenga, which is just a top and skirt. I'm quite excited for it!

Otherwise, this dress is kind of weird. It's almost like the mod squad goes golfing with George Jetson. I'm glad I have a reason to wear it.

Also, this is Simplicity 2927, which is one of the Project Runway inspired patterns. I think the clothes are cute, but the way they write the fabric requirements is completely ass backwards. Instead of "Look A, Look B" etc., they've broken it down by each element. So, they'll say "For collar, this much. For pockets, that much. And so on." I feel that an experience sewer will know that there will certainly be enough fabric for the pockets and collar both, without having to add the two measured requirements together. I think it then becomes a situation where too much fabric is purchased because the math starts to drive people a little crazy. Bad design.

These were going to be linen drawstring pants. Instead it became this. Not that I mind, I actually really like the way these turned out. These were made using Burda 8488. Burda is probably my favorite pattern company - I especially love their pants patterns. I've made a few pairs, they always fit just right, and I've also found that I've altered different patterns in the same place every time. No surprises on a pants pattern = happy me.

I absolutely fell in love with how light and elegant this cotton was. There was a yard and a half left on the bolt, just enough for a little peasant shirt. This is another Burda pattern, but from the magazine. It's actually an altered version of #121 from the 07.00 issue. That top had come down to just below the bust, I simply lengthened it, adding 7 inches below the waist.

Ok. Phew. That was a lot. See? I've been busy. :)

Swimsuit Cover-Up Contest

2009-07-07T22:45:00.009-05:00

Whew, it's July already! I've been busy - but unfortunately it seems, too busy to take pictures or blog :( I think it's time to make up for some lost time...

I'm an avid reader of several craft blogs, the craftzine blog being one I check almost daily. When they posted a Swimsuit Cover-Up Contest, I thought, 'hey, why not?' First place is a sewing machine, and 3 runners up get a dress form (this is what I'm really pining for - I already have a sewing machine :P). Each contestant is allowed up to 3 entries, I've submitted 2.

I made this jumpsuit on Sunday. This was the perfect excuse to make a jumpsuit as well, because I don't really know when the hell else I would ever wear one.

The fabric is a double stretch jersey, purchased at Vogue Fabrics in Chicago. I've always been a bit weary of stretch knits - my machine had never really like to play nice with them. But the garment design wouldn't allow for a woven (even a slinky silk or satin wouldn't have draped the same way [and besides who wants to wear silk or satin to the beach?]) and so the jersey adventure began.

Surprisingly (and pleasantly so), it wasn't as hard to work with the fabric as I had remembered. There is a shirring detail at the shoulder, which I worked by using elastic thread in my bobbin. (Lock the beginning stitches, sew on the longest stitch length to the end, don't lock the end stitches, pull the elastic to desired length, tie a knot with both threads to secure. Easy.) I think the best part of this whole thing is no buttons, no zippers, no pleats, darts, tucks or fancy fitting - truly an easy breezy summer outfit.

I love, love, love this dress. Probably one of my favorite things I've sewn in a while, and a dress that's already gotten a lot of use. I've worn it to the bar, to run errands, and to work. It's completely universal. The fabric for this dress is just darling. The scenes of children-at-play (also my nickname for the dress) are a perfect embodiment of summertime.

I made this dress on Memorial Day. My good friend and photographer Erica had taken many of the pictures for my portfolio, and in return had wanted to learn to sew. I brought over my machines and while she was busy working on a wrap dress, I'd made this. (Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of her dress.)

So we'll see how the contest goes. If nothing else I still have a couple of cute outfits from it, so I won't complain too much! Also, the photo credit goes to my friend Matt, who shall be thanked with a knitted baby hat and booties, for the son he and his wife are expecting!

15 minutes later..

2009-06-09T18:43:00.008-05:00

So it seems I've abandoned the blog for a while..things have been super busy! The May FOs will get another post, mainly because I still haven't taken pictures yet. (Oops.)

Otherwise, since I'm in hyperproductivity mode, and since many of the projects I've been toiling on have been quite time consuming, I needed a bit of instant gratifiation. I found an instructables post on turning a t-shirt into a necklace or scarf; seeing as I have more t-shirts than I actually know what to do with, 15 minutes later...

Sweet. :)

The Pains of Being a Self Taught Knitter: Back to Basics

2009-05-05T20:41:00.005-05:00

Today I learned how to knit garter stitch.

No, I am not kidding. Garter stitch.

Apparently, I've been knitting backwards (or continental, or eastern uncrossed, or so I've been told) for the past 4 years, which somehow lead me to twist stitches without realizing it. I knit with the left 'leg' of the stitch to the front of the needle. Most knitting books (at least the ones I've seen) show the right leg in front. It's no wonder I've been so mixed up! I had a breakthrough when I realized that I was twisting my stitches in the round, fine. I could handle that information -- I hadn't knit that many things in the round up to that point. But for the past 4 years I've been knitting garter...wrong??

I've always hated knitting garter -- it's painful and slow. Now I know why. I figured it out when I went to weave in ends on a garter border...and, waiiit a minute...those aren't supposed to look like that... (I've clearly also just recently learned how to correctly weave in ends.)

I also learned how to do a proper, right leaning decrease - k2tog. For me, the actions to get the slanted decreases are reversed. I already figured out that ssk meant I could just 'knit 2 together,' but today I learned that k2tog does not mean I can just shove my needle into the stitches from the opposite direction. I actually have to slip, slip, knit. I'd already deciphered some of the knitting code to match the way I knit (ex - tbl means to twist the stitch, even though I have to do it through the front), but k2tog!?!

Yeah. Still not over it. The wine is helping.

Emotionally Ready

2009-04-21T01:35:00.006-05:00

Sunday, on my way to the gym, I caught part of an interview on NPR with a woman who has read every Pulitzer Prize winner for fiction. At the end of the interview, she was asked whether she'll immediately read this year's winner (Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout). She replied that she would probably buy it soon, but only read it if she was emotionally ready for it, as fiction has the ability to connect with our souls and move us emotionally. Similarly, I believe the same can be said for craft. Craft isn't just about making things; it's about communicating to the world what I'm feeling and how I've been inspired.

But it also explains why some projects just get shelved, or why I just don't have the motivation to continue. Despite that I currently have 3 projects on the needles, I cast on another yesterday. The WIPs are unsuitable to knit for the following reasons: Laminaria -- dropped a bunch of stitches and have to retrofit a lifeline. This requires time, patience, diligence, patience, a clear head, patience. Which I have none of at this particular moment. The yarn for the drawstring raglan has been ordered and I'm eagerly awaiting it's arrival. (Final additional color choices where mushroom, ice blue and cinnabar -- color combo inspired by an artist who had decorated a robin's egg with dried flowers - white petals, beige centers - and some kind of flecks of red.)

And then there's the beach dress. That dress has been stressing me out ever since my first attempt at it almost a year ago. Life outside of knitting is currently stressful as it is (end of the semester, graduating in a month, still looking for a job, etc etc) and this was an unfortunate project to take on at this time -- it wasn't alleviating the stress in my life, sadly, only adding to it. I need something that reminds me about the joys of knitting, something that surprises me, something that stirs my emotions positively. Enter Vogue's latest Pleated Top.

Every stage of this project has been an unexpected delight and delightfully unexpected. Paid a long overdue to my LYS on Sunday, to pick up needles. (Somehow I'd found myself with all this lace weight yarn, but no appropriately sized needles with which to knit it.) Nancy greeted me and instantly told me I needed the new issue of Vogue. It's a great issue, by the way, the patterns are truly timeless and versatile. And so I stumbled upon the Pleated Top...and matched it with a skein of Misti Alpaca Hand Painted Lace in Piney Woods.

Normally I don't like variegated yarns, but there was something about this hank that spoke to me, and now that I'm knitting it, it is revealing to me it's secrets, it's undulating rivers of forest floor, flecks of lavender and budding leaves, peaking out from the edge of ponds reflecting a midnight sky, all in lace yarn that is whimsical, feathery and playful, while being, not unlike pine needles themselves, sturdy and resilient.

In other words, this is a gorgeous fabric. I have visions of the finished top dancing around in my head. I haven't knit anything in over two weeks -- arguably one of the longest periods of time I've gone without knitting -- to the point where it was actually a bit awkward to knit at first, which is slightly embarrassing. In any case, this is the project that has restored my faith in knitting, in craft, in wanting to create and communicate with the world. This is the project I needed to change me, emotionally.

DIY Salad

2009-04-16T20:38:00.004-05:00

The Artisan Cellar in the Merchandise Mart is easily my favorite place to eat lunch. It's a small shop and they only do a few things (wine, panini, salad, coffee, cheese, and cured meat), but they do them extraordinarily well. I've been eating there several times a week for 3 years now, and neither the food nor the service ever fail.

Tonight was a build-your-own-salad for dinner kind of a night. In complete homage to the wonderful creations Artisan puts together, this was my salad:

Romaine, clementines, strawberries, figs, and gorgonzola in a citrus vinagrette (fresh squeezed grapefruit, orange, lemon and lime juices, minced jalepeno, a touch of blue agave sweetner [similar in texture to honey] with sunflower oil). Yum.

Little Breakthroughs

2009-04-09T01:46:00.004-05:00

I love little breakthroughs. Little breakthroughs are what makes the world go 'round.

Now, I understand about major breakthroughs in science and technology (and plenty of other fields) that have shaped and shifted our thinking, and in many cases, turned our way of doing things on its head. The difference between a major and a little breakthrough being that major breakthroughs affect a mass population; little breakthroughs affect pretty much me exclusively and happen when I'm trying to learn something new. It's that feeling when something finally 'clicks.'

Yesterday I had not one, but two(!) little breakthroughs on the guitar. First, I learned how to mute strings. My way is to put the side of my strumming hand on the strings to get the click sound. This doesn't always perfectly - if part of my hand misses, I'll get this half-mute, half-open cacophonous mess that requires me to stop and redo. I know some people that mute with their left hand and I have no doubt that in some cases this is probably the preferred method, but for now, the only thing I'm muting with my left hand is the F chord.

My other little breakthrough was that I figured out the "proper" (I use that word loosely. I'm basically teaching myself [with the help of some friends and youtube], so 'proper' could just as easily be substituted with 'way more comfortable.') way of positioning my left hand around the neck. Here's what I figured out: Cognitively, it makes sense to form a chord where your fingers are perpendicular to the strings. Physically, that doesn't work so well. I'm trying to strum a C, trying to figure out why I keep muting certain strings, strumming strumming strumming, and then I shift my fingers from a 90 degree angle to a 45 degree angle. Each string rings clearly! My thumb, which used to push against the back of the neck (as if I was giving a thumbprint biometric), now (the entire length of which, including the fleshy part of my palm) rests parallel to the neck. Brilliant!

I tried it with (fake) F, D, Am. Everything sounds better! And it's far easier to change chords now too, I feel as though my fingers don't have to move as far, for some reason. I tried sliding up and down the neck, also with clearer and faster results. Sweet! I'm now slightly better at the same 5 songs I've been trying to learn for the past 2 weeks -- which makes me think that someday I will get it; I will be able to play to tempo without having to stop at every 4th chord change. Little breakthroughs are little motivations.

Annals of the Beach Dress

2009-03-31T00:27:00.013-05:00

I'm mad at my knitting.

For the past month I've been diligently trying to knit this cute little beach cover up dress thing. So diligently in fact, that I've even refrained from casting on other projects! Although I did start learning how to play the guitar -- which, in the grand scheme of things, I suppose could be likened to casting on. Anyway, I didn't like it after the first few rows, I didn't like it after the first ball, and I don't like it now, 3 balls in and half way done. This is new for me. I typically like the things I'm making and I like making them. So here's why I don't like this one:

1. Don't like the yarn. I initially bought this yarn on impulse. I saw the pattern first, of course, and in a momentary lapse of reason, decided that this yarn would be the yarn for the job. It's what I would call a skinny slug. I've worked with slug before, several times actually, and have always been somewhat disappointed with the way it knits up. But for some reason, I keep buying it. I think it's just one of those yarns that manages to look better on the ball than it does as a fabric. (Which, when I get a chance, I actually want to buy another couple balls of this [in a different colorway] and try to weave a scarf with it -- the woven texture might be more interesting than the knit one, and I've never woven before, so it could be fun first project.)

2. Hate the color. It reminds me of the aftermath of a night of hard drinking. Or letting stomach flu have a romp through your system. You get the idea. Now, this wasn't the only colorway at the shop of course. There was a beautiful, pristine summer white, and an equally lovely taupe brown, the color of wet sand. (Uncoincidentally, those were also the recommended colorways in the magazine -- in a different yarn.) But no. I bought the "beach-y" color, and this whole time I wish I'd bought the white one. And I keep thinking that maybe, just maybe, it will look different if I keep knitting. As if 3 skeins in doesn't let me know. I'm threatening to dye it. Black.

3. The swatch lied. Yes, I actually took the time to swatch. Twice. I'm knitting at 26 sts and 36 rows (approximately -- the slug makes it kind of hard to count) instead of the 22 sts and 28 rows the pattern calls for. I'm also knitting one size bigger than usual, so I'm actually ok, circumference-wise. The problem is the row gauge. Since I'm off 2 rows to the inch, my "dress" is now about 7 inches shorter than where it's supposed to be. So now, it's more like a "tent" and edge happens to fall at the widest part of my hip. Awesome.

I'm at the point where I put the skirt on a holder and knit the sleeves, before joining for a round yoke. Inevitably, since the sleeves are knit flat and the rest in round, I'll get a different gauge for them too (what else could go wrong??). As far as I see it, I have 2 options: [1] block the skirt to see if I can even get remotely close to gauge, and [2] when (ok, if - I'll try to be optimistic) that fails, frog the whole thing down and start over on a larger needle. Or [3] accept that I'll be wearing something that could probably fit a 4 year old. Well, it is for the beach -- coverage is only necessary enough.

Making Stuff

2009-03-24T23:42:00.004-05:00

I knit. I sew. I paint, I needlepoint, and I take photographs. I even built a bookshelf once. I'm not listing this to boast or brag, but I do think it's very clever indeed to have the ability to make stuff.

I feel that the addition of each craft gets easier to figure out, based on knowing that each is simply made up of a few basic parts (with endless manipulations and variations). For example, I began my craft career sewing. All garments are made from some modification of 5 basic pattern pieces -- skirt front and back, bodice front and back, sleeve. Having made enough garments by the time I picked up a pair of knitting needles, I understood shaping, drape, and construction. Knitting itself is made up of 2 stitches -- knit and purl. Photography is just the effect of manipulating light -- aperture, shutter speed, film speed, color temperature. And so on and so forth.

So it's with this building-block, I-can-figure-it-out mentality that I'm going to learn to play the guitar. This is how I see it: per the Craft Yarn Council of America, there are 38 million knitters and crocheters in this country (equivalent to the entire population of Poland). According to a questionable internet source, 65% of Americans know how to play the guitar -- or about 195 million people. If that many people (not accounting for the billions more scattered around the globe) have been able to figure it out, I'm sure I can too. After all, I make stuff. :)

Means Ends; Ends Means

2009-03-12T23:48:00.007-05:00

I first learned to knit my freshman year of college. I didn't have a sewing machine with me, but I needed to craft, so I went to Wal-mart and bought a pair of size 17 needles, a skein of Lion Brand Homespun yarn, and the "I can't believe I'm knitting!" book. At some point, (on like, page 3) I got confused. I then bought the "I taught myself knitting" kit, because after all, two books telling you the same thing is certainly better than one.

I figured out how to cast on. Woot! I think I initially wanted to start out by making a scarf, but had no clue as to how many stitches to cast on, so I ended up casting on the entire length of the needles - 14" worth of cast on stitches. Size 17 needles are bulky and kind of awkward to use in general, but even more so when I was learning.

I learned to knit English. The book told me so. I hated it. It just seemed obnoxiously hard. Unbeknownst to me at the time of course, was that English knitting tends to produce a tighter gauge than Continental. I struggled to get the stitches off the needle, using the tip of my finger against the tip of the needle to give enough force to drag the stitch off. Well, you can imagine that after about a row of this, I had a very sore finger. (Plus I was knitting garter, which, in my opinion, is harder to knit than stockinette because the stitches "face" the wrong direction.) I think I got about halfway through the skein of yarn before I considered it quits, and the project got shelved.

I wrapped the knit part of the [what was now quite evidently more of a shawl than a] scarf around the remainder of the skein and stuck the extra needle through the middle. And so it sat. For 5 years. And got stretched out. But I picked it back up, this time with a determination to finish it. Not even so much to knit for knitting's sake - just to finish it. I ended up buying an extra skein to get the length correct (it being so wide and all) and finished it. One side ended up being a little wider than the other, but who cares? It's done! It actually stayed that way for about another 3 years, until I finally washed it and that evened out the stitches - sigh.

One knitting project down, why not start another? My mother had a bit of yarn (black, of course) left over from some project or another; she passed it off to me, and I cast on again - this time on size 8 needles - much easier! I'm sitting in the kitchen, knitting (or at least making valid attempts to) when my father walks in, glances in my direction and flat out tells me I'm knitting wrong.

Ok.

My grandmother, who was an avid sock knitter, but also a teacher (his teacher in fact), taught his entire 5th grade class to knit. And after all these years, he's managed to retain that information. I guess it's true when they say knitting is like learning to ride a bike - muscle memory never really forgets. He showed me the "proper" way to knit - Continental, of course.

For me, Continental was the gateway drug. It was faster, more intuitive.* It was easier to "pick" the yarn - for both knit and purl stitches - than it was to remember which darned way to wrap it.

Now, I'm not saying there is or isn't a "correct" way to knit. Knitting is the means to the end; as long as the fabric comes out correctly,** then do what makes you happy.

*Which is not to say that Continental didn't have it's pitfalls. For about a year and a half I didn't know the difference between k2tog (knit 2 together) and ssk (slip slip knit). K2tog: yes, ok, put the needle through 2 stitches instead of just one, and knit them, ok. Ssk: it's the exact same thing! Why would I slip them first? And what's with all this "back of the stitch" business? I am putting my needle into the back of the stitch! Of course I later learned, that based on how I knit, I had to put my needle into the front of the stitches in order to k2tog, and that k2tog and ssk are not the same because they slant in different ways. Oh, and about 3 weeks ago, I finally figured out how to properly make left and right slanting increases.

**Increases, decreases, yarn overs (a term that is entirely too vague in most patterns - I prefer the British delineations of yo, yrnd, and yfwd), and knitting in the round were all learned the hard way. I think almost every project I've ever made, save the last 2 or 3, has mistakes in it. Some which actually compromise the integrity of the garment - like socks with twisted rib instead of regular rib, that then won't stay up.

But I'm ok with it. So what? It doesn't prevent me from wearing the things I've made. I have a whole closet-full of lessons learned and I'm proud of each one. What's more, knowing that I still have so much more to learn is what keeps me knitting. Off to go screw something else up!

Clouds, Questions, and Cotton Candy

2009-03-05T18:32:00.017-06:00

A quick update as to what I've been working on:

I finished the Cloud Bolero a week or so ago, but then got too busy to block it, so here it is now, finished and done.

I also finished Blackberry (finally) which was first supposed to be Christmas present, then a birthday present (maybe now an early Mother's Day present?) for Mom. I ended up giving it to her earlier this week, now that the weather is getting nicer and all. Oops.

The Drawstring Raglan is currently hibernating. I'm working with Jagger Spun Zephyr Wool-Silk. I love how this yarn knits up - but the colors are a bit wonky. I bought this yarn online, so I wasn't really sure what I was going to get when it came to colors. Initially, I picked out white, pewter, charcoal, and black. Seems simple enough, right? Not when "white" really means "winter white." Now, winter white is a lovely color, with subtle warm undertones - which unfortunately clash with the coolness of the grays it's supposed to be paired with. I tried to make it work - it didn't. Damn. So now I have 2 dilemmas: 1 - which 3 other colors to buy, to finish the cardigan, and 2 - what to do with 630 yards each of the pewter, charcoal, and black? For the former, I'm thinking either [a] daffodil (light yellow), ice blue, and indigo, or [b] mushroom (light beige), ice blue, and some shade of red. Fortunately, I have the opportunity to change my mind 12 more times, as I'm currently broke and can't afford to buy the yarn right now anyways. As for using up the already purchased colorways - I think a short sleeved pullover would be nice, using the 3 strands knit together. I still have to swatch for gauge, etc., and am on a mad pattern hunt - 630 yards really isn't much.

In the meantime, I've started knitting a beach cover up. This was a project I'd wanted to start last summer, but it quickly got shelved when the yarn decided to tangle itself into an incomprehensible mess. It would simply slide off the ball in chunks at a time.

I figured I could contain that by housing it in an old nylon stocking, which was fine, until I tried to pull from the stocking. What a disaster. Eventually, I rewound all the balls into cakes and let them sit until I was no longer mad at the yarn. I work decidedly better when I'm not angry.

Anyways, so far so good, as far pulling from the ball is concerned. I'm getting used to working with the slug, which no doubt forms an interesting pattern -- one that, upon initial reaction, is slightly reminiscent of the aftermath of eating too much cotton candy then going for a ride on the tilt-a-whirl. I hope this is a temporary condition. I hope that - as with stomach upsets - it'll get better as the day goes on and just work itself out.

And the beat goes on

2009-03-04T23:54:00.010-06:00

It's my last semester at ID. Last of 6. 6 loooooooong semesters. Semesters where it's not uncommon to work over 100 hours a week. Where I've actually clocked in at 6am and clocked out 24 hours later. My longest meeting ever stretched 14 hours; it was for Demo. The second longest, only an hour shorter, was Systems -- I never thought anything could beat a Systems meeting. The longest I've ever slept in one night? 17 hours - 8pm Saturday to 1pm Sunday. Apparently I needed it.

I've lived and breathed by my Google Calendar, and have shared it with many friends. I used to tell them to look there first before asking when I was available to hang out. These are the friends who wouldn't take no for an answer when I said I was too busy - they just kept asking. :)

I've taken thousands of pictures, but wish I'd taken more. And I still don't own a damn point and shoot.

As I'm looking through the pictures in the ID flickr group, I'm overwhelmed with a sense of nostalgia; there is something very... ID about those pictures. Maybe it's the presence of all that food. Maybe it's the miserable gray backdrop that is ID. Maybe it's the clear sense of bonding that occurs because of the misery.

Over the past 3 years, we've cried and fought - as teams and individually (I've personally lost count of my own breakdowns). But we've also laughed. A lot. And at some of the most inane and incomprehensible frivolity that can only be shared by someone who's as sleep deprived as you. We developed a unique sense of camaraderie that I don't think is found in B schools, or law schools, or med schools. We were here to help each other out (You can do that in InDesign?? Why didn't I know that yesterday...). We worked together, ate together, procrastinated together.

Now, as we graduate and are flung about the country to "spread design thinking" (if you've drank the kool-aid) or to simply find a job where we can somehow apply user-centered-ness, (or to move to Canada), I'll be sad to see my friends go. I'm glad to be out; but for all it's worth, I'll miss it.

Hibernating

2009-03-02T23:32:00.011-06:00

I have a terrible habit of starting projects, getting distracted, putting said projects in a drawer, and ignoring them for a year or ten. The worst part is, most of these projects are mostly done. The garment has been cut, stitched together, maybe the lining's even been attached. It is a recognizable piece of clothing, certainly not in the stage where anyone would say "So, what's that gonna be?" Or it's fully knit and just the (eleventy million) ends just need to be woven in. So why do I keep getting derailed? Why do I make a New Year's resolution every year (3 - or is it 4? - years running now) to finish all the projects I've started?

Well, first of all, finishing sucks. I'm a process knitter/stitcher. I love the action of the making itself. I love to hear the whir of needles and to feel the fabric pass through my hands. I love that I can turn a really long piece of string into something other than a tangled mess. And I love that it brings clarity and focus into my life, especially during times of stress. But finishing a garment makes it real. It means that the oddly shaped pieces of fabric I've just put together actually have to fit. And look good. Which it better, after all those hours! This leads to derailment #1: Alterations.

If there is no forethought put into alterations prior to cutting fabric, casting on, or what-have-you, then alterations must be made as you go, on the semi-finished piece. More often than not, this requires ripping of some sort -- seam ripping, ripping down (byebye thousands of stitches...). It is easier to avoid the project by shoving it in a drawer, than to deal with the pain and frustration of trying to fix it, when the making of the thing itself is supposed to alleviate pain and frustration in the first place.

Inevitably, time management and overhead are pretty good derailers as well. Sewing requires overhead, a.k.a. a sewing machine. While that may sound obvious, it's not like I can take a sewing machine with me on the train everyday. When my sister and I are sewing, we officially take over the kitchen, the dining room, and sometimes the living room. Sewing requires time to set up, tear down etc, so for all that effort, there should be a sizable portion of sewing that gets accomplished. Because of this same reason, not much sewing gets done when time is tight. So when winter break is over, I'm generally left with an unfinished project or two - and by the time the summer rolls around, I've planned 14 other things to make.

Sometimes just the sheer thought of finishing sounds horribly boring, boring, boring. Again -- I've already planned the next 3 things before I even start the one I'm working on. Occasionally, by the time it comes to finishing a project, I'm kinda over it. It's practically already done anyways, and I've already cast on something else. This is a weak excuse, but it's true.

I finally came up with a couple solutions to this problem.

1. Be strict. I made a "no more buying yarn" rule - with the exception to purchase only what I need to finish a project (a fair compromise, I think), until I've worked a few projects through to completion and taken one or two more out of hibernation and finished those as well. Then I get to treat myself!

2. Be with friends. Friends motivate, inspire, and encourage. Friends tell you how to fix a disaster. Friends look forward to seeing a final product. Friends bond.

The former requires a lot of self discipline (let's face it, not buying fabric, yarn, needles, or notions is not fun), while the latter often spurs even more ideas (and trips to the fabric store!). But one of the benefits of crafting with friends is that friends often gather in a locale that is not your home -- meaning that you have to select projects to bring and work on. It's easier to finish something when that's the only option you have. So, I will finish all my hibernating projects this year -- with a little help from my friends.

Speak to Me

2009-02-24T01:13:00.009-06:00

The first job I ever had was at a fabric store. For the most part, I cut fabric, put it away, and organized the messes customers left behind. I didn't know it at the time, but I also learned one of the most important lessons in garment making: drape. At the time, I didn't give a damn about drape. I made a skirt once out of bright orange faux suede upholstery -- the real thick stuff, of the car seat variety -- and trimmed the bottom with some ribbon. Well, I still have the ribbon. The skirt? Long gone.

Despite such disasters, I would walk amidst the bolts and bolts of fabric, pulling at their corners, letting the fabric fall over my open palm, examining their patterns, fibers, and yes, drapes. I was inspired by fabric, knowing immediately how to breath life into a flat rectangle and what it's ultimate destiny should be. Sometimes, the fabric itself was beyond inspiration, and I bought it simply because of the way it sounded when I shook it out, or because I liked the way it was cool against my skin. I write this with one particular fabric in mind. At first there is nothing special about it. Apparently, many people had this opinion, as I bought it off one of the discount tables at the store. It's a matte black. A light black really, the matte-ness brings in subtle gray overtones that make it somewhat forgettable. Sort of like the girl at the party you spent 3 hours talking to, but whose name you can't remember. But for years I've spread this fabric out, draped it over my arms and shoulders, twirled, pondered what to make of it. I've rejected pattern after pattern, in fear that the resulting garment won't be "just right."

Sewing requires a certain level of commitment. Once you've made that cut, you're essentially left with wiggle room. Knit fabrics are different however. Knit garments can be ripped out and made into something else. The few times I've done it myself, I've thought of Monet, painting over paintings, just because it was a canvas.

I don't really understand knit fabrics the same way I do woven ones. Sewing is a matter of reduction. It's immediately known what your constraints are. But with knitting, you're creating the fabric, building it row by row, applying shaping and discovering drape as you go. All this made infinitely more difficult by choice of stitch pattern, needle size, yarn weight, fiber content, etc. etc. And while I'm sure some people can run the strands of a hank through their fingers and know how it will knit up, I am not one of those people. Even knitting a swatch won't reveal all the secrets of the fabric -- or maybe I haven't quite learned how to tell.

Paul Rand on a post-it

2009-02-20T21:54:00.002-06:00

"Don't try to be original, just try to be good."

-- Paul Rand

I remember the first time I heard this, I rejected it. How could this be?! I thought this went against everything associated with creativity.

But I couldn't get it out of my head.

I scribbled it on a post-it and stuck in on the wall above my desk. (In pencil no less, just to suggest the non-permanence of it.) I have lots of little quotes and sayings stuck and taped to the wall - humorous, nostalgic, inspirational, whatever.

But the Paul Rand post-it hangs directly in front of me. I look at it everyday. Me vs. Paul Rand on a post-it.

When I first heard this quote, I was still nascent in my design career. I didn't really understand what creativity meant -- it just was. It existed somehow, worked somehow, and couldn't be controlled somehow. (I also think this is true of many companies jumping on the innovation bandwagon -- they want it, but aren't quite sure how to wrangle it. As Caroline and I interview innovation centers across the country, this especially resonates with those still in their fledgling states, who seem to struggle with their footing and defining their project capabilities.)

At some point, I figured out that creativity is nothing more than bringing unrelated ideas together. Epiphany! And creativity doesn't just happen - creativity is work. Hard work. Now I'm starting to think that creativity can be measured. Not it necessarily should be measured, but I think it could be measured. Maybe I'll work on a framework for that. Hmm...

If originality is a byproduct of creativity, then one is left with no choice but to be good. This isn't a function of the chicken-and-egg syndrome. In order to be creative, and therefore original, one must first be good. Being good is understanding constraints -- design without constraints, after all, is art. Being good is being thoughtful and deliberate.

Certainly there are many creative and original works in the world, but if the execution is poor, then what difference does it make? What isn't good doesn't get noticed. Paul Rand is right. Thanks for the advice.

Dye Lots

2009-02-19T23:30:00.006-06:00

Here's a truth about knitting from stash -- you never know what you're gonna get.

So I have this gorgeous, singly ply, peach colored Sylvan Spirit wool/tencel blend in my stash. 360 yards to be exact.

I initially bought it to make socks -- until I remembered, I don't like knitting socks.

I've made 2 pair socks so far, the first pair cuff down, the second toe up. I do greatly prefer knitting toe up to cuff down (you get to do the same thing for the heel as the toe, aesthetically they just look nicer, yardage control, etc) but for some reason, socks to me just seem...well...under appreciated. There is just so much effort, so many stitches and needles, all for something you hide in a shoe and wear once before having to wash it. (Plus I'm seriously craving warm sunny days and flip-flops.) Although I might come around when this fierce winter loosens its grip and I no longer want to have a big fluffy sweater in my lap. Also, I recently found 9" circs from Hiya Hiya, and though I have yet to try them, that may just make things go a little faster. Someday. Maybe. Eventually.

But inbetween now and then are shrugs. The perfect project for 360 yards of peachy yarn.
The pattern: Hew.
A simple little shrug with interesting stitch detail on the sleeves and collar and it would be my first top down raglan. Calls for 300 yards in my size. What's not to love?
Ran out of yarn about 2/3 of the way through. Well. Apparently all 300 yards are not created equal. Considered briefly about buying an extra hank on the company's website, but thought, no...what if I get a different dye lot??? Rrrrrrip.

Since I loved the pattern so much anyways, and since I received an email from my LYS about a sale (sale!!) and since I needed a needle anyways, off to the LYS it was for me. 5, no 6 (just in case) skeins (at 50% off, thankyouverymuch) and a week and a half later, this is the result.

Not bad. I don't much favor variegated yarns, but this one came out nicely, with the subtle hues of ocean ripple blue, and even a slight sheen if caught at the right angle.

Amidst all the ripping and rewinding of the peach stuff, there was also mad Ravelry pattern searching and swatching. Oooh..what if I hold two strands together! Imagine the possibilities! Swatched up with some Rowan Kid Classic in Feather, the stuff is heaven. Pure heaven. The Sylvan Spirit itself knit up kind of stiff, but combining it with Kid Classic completely dissolves all stiffness and produces a kind of soft fluffiness that conjures images of bouncing amidst cumulus clouds floating in a perfectly blue sky.

How apt, then, that the name of pattern is Cloud Bolero.

Alas, perfection is hard to come by in the knitting world, and this is no exception. I only have one skein of Kid Classic. 153 yards. The pattern calls for 200 yards. The one skein I have is left over from a sweater I made 2 and 1/2 years ago. I called 4 shops and only one carries Kid Classic. Oh, and they have one skein left of the colorway I need. I get there, and much to my bitter expectation, the dye lot, is of course, different.

Arriving

2009-02-18T23:46:00.002-06:00

I did it. I finally did it. I'm now officially part of the blogosphere. And I'm a little nervous about it, but not quite sure why. Maybe I liken blogging to jumping into a pool - and I don't know the temperature of the water - but everyone else is splashing around, having a grand 'ol time. Or something. Deep breath.

In any case, I've wanted to blog for some time now, but somehow never found the impetus. Or maybe I just found too many excuses. Either way, being a fairly indecisive person, first it was, well, what to write about? Should I write only about one thing and nothing else? Can I hold myself to this commitment? What to name it? Then, earlier this evening, I arrived on "little idyll." In other words, just a place to put all the little things that make me happy.