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| Image by Annie Bertram |
Sunday, 19 February 2012
Group Exhibition
Relaunched Website!
After a computer incident and finally upgrading to Windows 7, and again with the invaluable help of my personal Code Monkey, Mr. (or should I say DHR?) Pim Volders, it's finally up!
So I decided for a landscape format this time. And know what? I like it... It views much better than portrait on screen, and in case of printing, well it just prints landscape :) the ratio is not a DIN. DIN is great but... I wanted something different ;) I took a vintage,
or perhaps antique? paper size called Antiquarian, and scaled it down proportionally. I think it is a pleasing ratio :) Not yet sure if I will continue to use this ratio, but I will probably switch to landscape for good. I think it is more handy, and I think it has more design possibilities.
All merged together :) I simplified and streamlined as much as possible... as much as I could anyway! Finally integrated Google Analytics into it, we'll see!
Meanwhile in Knitland, I am having the beret test knit by some great ladies.
Esporòfits Mitts was my first pattern, published January 2011. More than a year later the Esporòfits set is finished! When the beret pattern is ready, which should be soon, I will publish it, and I will also publish an eBook with all the patterns of the set (so mitts, cowl and beret). I have been working on it the last few days, and it is all ready, minus whatever adjustments need to be done to the beret pattern, and adding written instructions of the cowl charts. The mitts already had them, and it was requested by one of my testers to do this as well for the beret, so for consistency's sake I guess I will have to do the same for the cowl!
Sigh. I love charts, hehe.
Sneak peek!
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| Beret teaser there! |
I still have an embroidery post pending, be back soon!
Thursday, 16 February 2012
Yarrrrrrrn!
I received a package today. Some vintage yarn, an embroidery hoop, and some old (made in Western Germany!) Prym pressure buttons I found on Ebay Belgium. A shop was selling old stocks, probably from a haberdashery that closed up. I don't actually know how old the yarn is and if it qualifies as vintage. It is discontinued, probably for a long time, and the labels are decidedly vintage-looking. In any case the yarn is 40% angora 60% wool, thin like a light fingering, and very nice. The natural tone is perfect and the red is not too bright, not too dark. It was a good deal and I do have a soft spot for angora (no pun intended).
I got all of the natural yarn they had, but will have a hard time not going back for some more of the red!
I was actually just looking for an embroidery hoop. This one is good and sturdy, but a bit thin. It was a very good deal, but perhaps it is too thin for thicker fabric. Last week I got bitten by the embroidery bug (once every 15 years or thereabouts) and my non-adjustable hoop wasn't cutting it. I am using a thick linen. I will expand about this in another post.
Regarding unemployment, I just today got a letter from the unemployment office as well. I have to go to an info session for a course I inscribed to. If I remember correctly there was a waiting list, I don't actually know what an info session entails. It is for "Graphic techniques" (mainly DTP). We'll see!
I got all of the natural yarn they had, but will have a hard time not going back for some more of the red!
I was actually just looking for an embroidery hoop. This one is good and sturdy, but a bit thin. It was a very good deal, but perhaps it is too thin for thicker fabric. Last week I got bitten by the embroidery bug (once every 15 years or thereabouts) and my non-adjustable hoop wasn't cutting it. I am using a thick linen. I will expand about this in another post.
Regarding unemployment, I just today got a letter from the unemployment office as well. I have to go to an info session for a course I inscribed to. If I remember correctly there was a waiting list, I don't actually know what an info session entails. It is for "Graphic techniques" (mainly DTP). We'll see!
Sunday, 5 February 2012
Website and beret
Yesterday evening I started working on a project I had in the backburner for a very long time: a matching hat for my Esporòfits set, I decided for a beret style.I continued working today, and have the ribbing and the increase/wrapped stitch section done, but then my elbow started giving me grief and I had to stop. It appears I am not as recovered as I thought form my last job...
So I stopped knitting and moved on to redesign my website. I have decided to "merge" knitting and enamelling websites (after a fashion, since I never got to make a knitting website proper) as I mentioned in my previous post. I decided to simplify and streamline everything as much as possible, and I also decided to change to a light palette for my website (right now it is a dark taupe). I have already changed the design of the blog which will be integrated as it was before, this reflects the new colour palette of very light desaturated green and very dark reddish purple and petrol.
I have several pages done and the menu too. Screenshot of my new intro page:
Friday, 3 February 2012
Merging blogs
Today we had our first day of real snow. It has grown dark now, and big flakes are still swirling outside.
I come back from my last day of work. After being unemployed for a few months, which I cannot say was too bad since it gave me plenty of time for knitting and designing, I worked for three weeks at a 3D printing company, in the finishing department. This proved a bit too hard on my joints and, still in my temporary test period, I had to stop. The job and the people were cool and for that I am a little sad, but I am also happy that the pain in my joints and the foreboding of injuries to come have been lifted from my shoulders. My last two days were part-time and I already feel improvement, which is a relief.
On to a new start. I have decided to study, to obtain some certifications that may help me find a job that I will find interesting and that won't be too physically demanding. Meanwhile, I will pursue knitwear design in full. It hasn't worked too badly for me, and I am hopeful.
These last months, enamel and jewellery-making have taken a back seat. I see a trend in my interest, related to the seasons, and I tend to knit more in winter, and enamel more in summer (to the extent that I stop the other activity altogether!). I am not too sure that this is actually related to the weather, since enamelling in summer is much warmer than holding some yarn in your fingers :) but perhaps there is something to it.
I haven't been knitting for that long, just since March 2009 (it really seems like yesterday!) and I still have to break this summer curse. Last years I wasn't too serious about it, but this next summer I will try harder. I do love lighter knits, too. Although I have to say, I am very fond of winter :)
Perhaps, decompartimentalizing (is that a word??) would help. In this spirit, I have decided to merge my blogs, and have just imported all my knitting entries over to this one. I was posting in either one or the other, it appears, and I did not post all that much anyway, so I do not see the point of keeping both. I would merge my websites but... I still haven't made my knitting website. Which is a good thing since I would have to merge them now! So I will simply redesign my website and include everything in it. I hope to work on this this weekend. Deadlines do not agree with me so I will see if I finish :) more likely that I finish if I don't stress over deadlines.
If I am honest there is also another reason why enamel and jewellery-making have fallen to the back-burner. Simply, enamelled jewellery of the kind I make is very difficult to sell. It involves many work hours, costly materials, and why not say it, a lot of knowledge and experience I had to gain after many years of work.
This is not too obvious in the finished work, cheap copies could easily be mass produced in cheaper materials (if only the style was trendy anyway) and most people probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference. At least from internet pictures. I totally understand that and I do not imply that because of my work's intrinsic value people should fall over their feet to buy it. I do it because I like it, and if people don't like it, or don't think it is worth so much, or can't afford it, that's fine. But I do find it more difficult to dedicate myself to it fully because of this. Not least of all because I need to invest a significant amount of resources in materials and tools alone. Knitwear design in this respect is more fulfilling.
I do have another idea that has been lurking at the back of my mind and that I would like to realize at some point, sooner than later. I have dabbled in shawl-pins, gifted most, sold a few, kept a pair. They were just prototypes, and beaded. I would actually like to expand in this idea, perhaps sell them. I would like to include enamel in them, although this is technically difficult (enamelling involves firing at high temperatures which softens the metal, so it would have to be forged after enamelling, which endangers the enamel), I want to try. Cast may be a solution, but this would make the pins too heavy.
I think about stitch markers too. We will see :)
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| The view from my living room window this afternoon |
I come back from my last day of work. After being unemployed for a few months, which I cannot say was too bad since it gave me plenty of time for knitting and designing, I worked for three weeks at a 3D printing company, in the finishing department. This proved a bit too hard on my joints and, still in my temporary test period, I had to stop. The job and the people were cool and for that I am a little sad, but I am also happy that the pain in my joints and the foreboding of injuries to come have been lifted from my shoulders. My last two days were part-time and I already feel improvement, which is a relief.
On to a new start. I have decided to study, to obtain some certifications that may help me find a job that I will find interesting and that won't be too physically demanding. Meanwhile, I will pursue knitwear design in full. It hasn't worked too badly for me, and I am hopeful.
These last months, enamel and jewellery-making have taken a back seat. I see a trend in my interest, related to the seasons, and I tend to knit more in winter, and enamel more in summer (to the extent that I stop the other activity altogether!). I am not too sure that this is actually related to the weather, since enamelling in summer is much warmer than holding some yarn in your fingers :) but perhaps there is something to it.
I haven't been knitting for that long, just since March 2009 (it really seems like yesterday!) and I still have to break this summer curse. Last years I wasn't too serious about it, but this next summer I will try harder. I do love lighter knits, too. Although I have to say, I am very fond of winter :)
Perhaps, decompartimentalizing (is that a word??) would help. In this spirit, I have decided to merge my blogs, and have just imported all my knitting entries over to this one. I was posting in either one or the other, it appears, and I did not post all that much anyway, so I do not see the point of keeping both. I would merge my websites but... I still haven't made my knitting website. Which is a good thing since I would have to merge them now! So I will simply redesign my website and include everything in it. I hope to work on this this weekend. Deadlines do not agree with me so I will see if I finish :) more likely that I finish if I don't stress over deadlines.
If I am honest there is also another reason why enamel and jewellery-making have fallen to the back-burner. Simply, enamelled jewellery of the kind I make is very difficult to sell. It involves many work hours, costly materials, and why not say it, a lot of knowledge and experience I had to gain after many years of work.
This is not too obvious in the finished work, cheap copies could easily be mass produced in cheaper materials (if only the style was trendy anyway) and most people probably wouldn't be able to tell the difference. At least from internet pictures. I totally understand that and I do not imply that because of my work's intrinsic value people should fall over their feet to buy it. I do it because I like it, and if people don't like it, or don't think it is worth so much, or can't afford it, that's fine. But I do find it more difficult to dedicate myself to it fully because of this. Not least of all because I need to invest a significant amount of resources in materials and tools alone. Knitwear design in this respect is more fulfilling.
I do have another idea that has been lurking at the back of my mind and that I would like to realize at some point, sooner than later. I have dabbled in shawl-pins, gifted most, sold a few, kept a pair. They were just prototypes, and beaded. I would actually like to expand in this idea, perhaps sell them. I would like to include enamel in them, although this is technically difficult (enamelling involves firing at high temperatures which softens the metal, so it would have to be forged after enamelling, which endangers the enamel), I want to try. Cast may be a solution, but this would make the pins too heavy.
I think about stitch markers too. We will see :)
Sunday, 29 January 2012
Angora Cheese Cake
Popped a partial cake of Orkney 100% Angora into this tiny cheese bell, I find them to be the cutest things ever, and this little one made me squee when I saw it :)
I am now using it as desk decoration.
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Winter blues
On Monday, I decided to dye a light blue handknit sweater that was a hand-me-down from someone when I was 15 or so. It was knitted by a lady in Hong-Kong, I know that much. I was told it was wool, and it is certainly quite warm. Pastel sky blue with an intarsia scene of a tree, some guys fishing and a fence, in white and navy. I guess it is much what could be considered a slightly ugly 80's sweater, although fortunately quite fitted. It does fit very well, but has been langhishing for decades in a box due to the colour scheme.
I landed a job in a cold wokshop so I decided to dye it. I prepared a dye bath with some yellow and some blue, hoping for teal. After dyeing, which was partly successful, I got some sort of undefined greyish, darkish robin's-egg blue. Wearable. In a cold, dusty workshop. I also think now that this sweater has some synthetic blended it in, it didn't take the dye well, and I see some sort of shininess on the fibers. It is still warm enough. I think the right sleeve is also shorter than the left (both fairly short, probably little-chinese-lady sized, but I am very small in the upper body so the rest fits ok), which is all right since I do dusty work and I wear a light wrist brace on the right arm.
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| Teeswater worsted in front Texere 2 ply at back |
Anyway :) with the leftover dye water I dyed some yarn! I still have about 3 litres worth of (not very saturated) dye bath in plastic bottles, that can perhaps be used at a later date (the bath I used was already partially recycled).I dyed one skein of Teeswater 4-Ply Worsted Wool from Higher Gills Farm that I have been treasuring for a while. It takes the dye beautifully as my experience was when I dyed a pair of my Esporòfits mittens after knitting them (ombré, from dark to light green, seen at right). The yarn is glossy and a bit hairy. I still have about half a skein of natural white, and I may or may not use both the teal-ish and the natural together (note to self: if you do, check for leaks first).
So I just held the unfurled skein as a loop, dipped it in the dye bath quickly, brought it up, and then squeezed well the upper portion while leaving the bottom of the loop in the bath. I kept dipping the lower portion a few times, wrapped the loop carefully in a bowl with the darker loop at the bottom, as a bit of the dye bath, and nuked, then repeated the operation, adding a little bit more blue acid dye to the bowl. The result is a skein that is ombré dyed from the bottom to the top of the loop. The contrast between light and dark is a little more intense than it shows on this picture. Sort of Robin's-egg blue to teal.
Now, I have to admit that I am not a great fan of variegated yarns. I rather dislike quick and strong colour changes such as the yarn I used in this project. It can be seen in the bottom picture, since I overdyed it. In this case it looks sort-of-like camo print, which is a slight redeeming quality, but still, not a fan. I do like subtle changes as in semi-solids. I am not a fan of self-striping either. I love solids. And I love ombré, which of course works best when dyeing after knitting as I did with the mitts (yes I know there are graduated-colour knitting yarns, but the choice is rather small, and sometimes the change is quite sudden).
So, perhaps I will regret having dyed this yarn like I did. Perhaps not. Will depend on the project, I guess, and if I mix it in stripes. We will see. I still love the tones.
I also wound a little (19g) center-pull ball of Texere Pure Lambswool 2ply laceweight and dyed it too. I absolutely love this super fine but still fluffy yarn. I knitted my Lucy's Wreath with it.
After winding it, I realised I should have skeined, duh! but then I thought, let's experiment instead :) I dipped the little ball in the bath briefly, squeezed it, put it in a little bowl with some dye water, nuked it, repeated, put a very tiny bit of black in the bowl, dipped the outside of the ball, nuked... I don't even remember anymore all the abuse. Then I washed it best I could, squeezed well and left it over the heating for a bit before I wound it into a skein to dry. Once dry I wound it again. the colour, a lightly variegated greyish blue-green. I am pleased. Now I have to figure out what can I do with such a small amount of laceweight!
Now, I have to admit that I am not a great fan of variegated yarns. I rather dislike quick and strong colour changes such as the yarn I used in this project. It can be seen in the bottom picture, since I overdyed it. In this case it looks sort-of-like camo print, which is a slight redeeming quality, but still, not a fan. I do like subtle changes as in semi-solids. I am not a fan of self-striping either. I love solids. And I love ombré, which of course works best when dyeing after knitting as I did with the mitts (yes I know there are graduated-colour knitting yarns, but the choice is rather small, and sometimes the change is quite sudden).
So, perhaps I will regret having dyed this yarn like I did. Perhaps not. Will depend on the project, I guess, and if I mix it in stripes. We will see. I still love the tones.
After winding it, I realised I should have skeined, duh! but then I thought, let's experiment instead :) I dipped the little ball in the bath briefly, squeezed it, put it in a little bowl with some dye water, nuked it, repeated, put a very tiny bit of black in the bowl, dipped the outside of the ball, nuked... I don't even remember anymore all the abuse. Then I washed it best I could, squeezed well and left it over the heating for a bit before I wound it into a skein to dry. Once dry I wound it again. the colour, a lightly variegated greyish blue-green. I am pleased. Now I have to figure out what can I do with such a small amount of laceweight!
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
Yarn swift and winder
Being a bit tired of winding hanks of yarn by hand, some time ago I started looking for an umbrella swift and a yarn winder.
I wanted a wooden umbrella swift because I love how they look, to be honest, but they also seem to be sturdy and useful. I prefer to spend a little more money and get a more durable item that performs well, so regarding the wool winder it wasn't at all clear to me which one to go for. I found a couple of great-looking ones, but the cost is a bit prohibitive for me at the moment. I wasn't convinced by the little plastic ones that pop up often either. I am not a fan of plastic moving parts, and I read reports of them wearing off or breaking.
Several weeks ago I found a relatively local source for the umbrella swift (in the NL), and the price + shipping was good. I bought it from stormopzolder.nl/ (here, at the very bottom of the page, as "wolhaspel") and received it promptly. Good service, I recommend it! The swift in particular is a Glimakra, made in Sweden out of birch wood.
There are a couple of wire girdles and the poles are tied with string, for the rest it is entirely and nicely made out of wood.
When I received it, the finish was pretty good, but I still sanded the central parts where the wool would rest with a 600 grit emery paper (this is pretty fine-grained), since very thin wool was still catching slightly on it. I also rubbed a piece of white soap along the wooden parts that have friction to make movement easier.
For a while I did wind by hand out if it, which was already an improvement from having the wool resting on some chair backs. I also tried an improvised nostepinne, out of a tool I use in the jewellery workshop, which admittedly is a little too short. This made nice(r) cakes, at least after trying a few times, but honestly, it was still a pain!
So I continued researching yarn winders, and it wasn't too easy to find reviews. Eventually, scouring German Ebay for "wollwickler", I found an expired (sold) listing for a vintage yarn winder that looked pretty solid: Knittax wollwickler (wool winder). I also found a handful of mentions via Google searches and people seemed to be happy with this item. I found a listing on Ebay.com (from the US) for a reasonable price (including the shipping, more than a plastic winder, a lot less than a modern wooden winder), so I went ahead and bought it.
I received it just today! I am very happy with the construction. It is built around a sturdy cast iron body, with machined gears, other metal moving parts, a wooden handle and cone for the wool (smooth and varnished) which also has rubber ring at its base.
I impatiently put it to the test! first I wound was a skein of 50g of Drops Karisma DK weight (which totally didn't need to be wound but I had just received it this morning and was thus very much at hand!). Next were a couple of partial (less than 50g) hanks of Cascade 220 sport-weight wool. All of them went like a dream.
I wanted a wooden umbrella swift because I love how they look, to be honest, but they also seem to be sturdy and useful. I prefer to spend a little more money and get a more durable item that performs well, so regarding the wool winder it wasn't at all clear to me which one to go for. I found a couple of great-looking ones, but the cost is a bit prohibitive for me at the moment. I wasn't convinced by the little plastic ones that pop up often either. I am not a fan of plastic moving parts, and I read reports of them wearing off or breaking.
Several weeks ago I found a relatively local source for the umbrella swift (in the NL), and the price + shipping was good. I bought it from stormopzolder.nl/ (here, at the very bottom of the page, as "wolhaspel") and received it promptly. Good service, I recommend it! The swift in particular is a Glimakra, made in Sweden out of birch wood.
There are a couple of wire girdles and the poles are tied with string, for the rest it is entirely and nicely made out of wood.
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| Loki needs to inspect everything... |
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| This project is an Ugh |
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| The second (yellow), slightly better |
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| So tedious! |
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| This was epic, 875 yards of Drops Lace yarn. Gah. By the end you can see I got kind of lazy... but I swear it is nicer inside ;P |
I received it just today! I am very happy with the construction. It is built around a sturdy cast iron body, with machined gears, other metal moving parts, a wooden handle and cone for the wool (smooth and varnished) which also has rubber ring at its base.
In fact, there was some sort of lightweight metal swift in the box as well, but missing the clamp for the table, and I am not very interested in it anyway so I put it away in its box.
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| Winding the yarn a few times, then inserting it into the slit. This way you will find the strand for a center pull cake. |
Next was another 50g of Isager Spinni Tweed, which is like a light fingering weight and very sticky yarn (I love the texture of this yarn, but it is so annoying to wind by hand!). This also went well, although there was more resistance. I felt I needed to feed the yarn from the swift somewhat to avoid a cake that was too tensely wound. Here the Spinni Tweed, Karisma, and both Cascade 220 (green and brown cakes).
On to more serious matters, next was a 100gr hank of Marine Silk from Blue Moon Fiber Arts, a heavy hank (the instructions of the winder recommend max. 50gr of yarn) of a slightly slippery, generous fingering wool weight yarn. This most definitely needed help along the way. I found some sort of rhythm that worked well and rather quick. I made a little video:
Once there was less yarn in the swift, it went along easier.
And then I moved along to the last ordeal: 100g of lace-weight, single ply wool, a whopping 1100y. I love this wool! It is Tanhu from Wetterhoff, a Finnish brand. This yarn is temporarily unavailable, and I do hope it comes back in stock soon because it is delicious.
This time I mounted the swift horizontally (and had to clamp it on the cat tree since I couldn't do that on any of my tables!), since this may help the unwinding along, and it did.
Perhaps it would have been best to help the yarn along as well, but I wanted to try not doing so, and the skein ended up a little bit tight, such that it wasn't as easy to remove from the winder once finished. The cone is wide, however, and once out, with the yarn relaxing inwards and a little massage, the cake does not feel particularly tight to me.
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| Tanhu and Marine Silk |
All in all, I am very happy with this team! :) I do recommend this winder, they still pop up now and then on Ebay.
Monday, 2 January 2012
European Online Yarn Shops Directory
This is a non-comprehensive list of European Online Yarn Shops.
At the end of the list, a few Overseas shops are listed, which offer worldwide free shipping or reduced shipping costs.
Under the hyperlink to the shop, you can find the yarn brands each shop offers. This may not be up to date. To search a particular yarn brand within this page, use your browser search (F3, CTLR+F, / etc). To go to shops in a particular country, use the navigation below.
This list is obviously incomplete, and it may not be up to date. Please feel free to suggest shops to be added, report broken links, changes in yarns stocked, etc.
Go to: BE DE DK EE ES FI FR GB (UK) IE NL PT TR /// AU CA US
(these links above are broken right now, I'll be fixing them hopefully sooner rather than later, meanwhile just scroll down ;P)
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BE
http://www.dolcelana.be/
BC Garn, Bergère de France, Drops, Fyberspates, Katia, Lang Yarns, Malabrigo Yarn, Bergère de France, Regia, Rowan, Sirdar, Sublime
http://shop.catherinejanssens.be/
Manos Del Uruguay, Knit Collage, BC Garn, Järbo, Artesano
DE
http://www.wollbox.de/
ALPACA YARN COMPANY, ASLANTRENDS Yarn, BROWN SHEEP Yarn, CARIAD Yarn, CASCADE Yarn, CONJOINED CREATIONS Yarn, CRYSTAL PALACE Yarn, FILCOLANA Garn, FLEECE ARTIST Yarn, HANDMAIDEN Yarn, FYBERSPATES Yarn, GRIGNASCO-MADIL Garn, JOJOLAND Yarn, LACE Garne, LOTUS Yarn, PEACHES & CREME Yarn, PLYMOUTH Yarn, SILKE / BERTAGNA by ARVIER, SIRDAR Yarn, SUBLIME Yarn, SIRDAR & SUBLIME Bücher, TILLI TOMAS Yarn, WETTERHOFF Lace-Garn, ZITRON Garn & Strickhefte, RELLANA, Online & Co., SCHACHENMAYR Garn, SOCKENWOLLE
http://www.woll-sucht.de/
GGH und Colinette, Drops / Garnstudio, Design Club, Noro, Karen Noe,
Mirasol, Araucania, Debbie Bliss, Louisa Harding, Rowan, Zitron, Schoppel, Regia, Opal, Trekking, Kauni, Evilla
http://www.mariannes-opalwolle.de
Zitron, Lang, Malabrigo, Drops Garnstudio, Evilla, Lana Grossa, Opal
http://www.sockenwolle.de/
Opal
http://www.strickstduschon.de/
Lang, Opal, Schachenmayr, Schöller&Stahl, Colinette, Debbie Bliss, Gedifra, Horstia, Islandwolle, Katia, Lang, Noro, Rowan
http://www.knittybitty.de/index.php
Knitpicks, Koigu, South West Trading Company
https://eshop.t-online.de/epages/Store4.sf/?ObjectPath=/Shops/Shop38135
Debbie Bliss, NORO, Handgefärbte Garne (hand dyed yarn), Schoppel, Araucania, Zitron, ProLana, Bremont
http://www.mylys.de
Artesano, Lollipop.yarns, Louet, Malabrigo, Schoppel Wolle, ShibuiKnits, Sublime
http://www.wolle-traub.de/
Traub Wolle
http://www.wollinchen.de/
Harrisville, Hjertegarn, Noro, Ashford, Wollinchen, Sandnes Garn, Zitron
http://www.wollstoff.de/index.php/cat/c60_Wollgarn.html
Wollgarn
DK
http://www.garn.dk
http://karen-noe.dk/
Karen Noe
EE
http://www.hobipunkt.ee/pood/lang-en/5-Yarn
Aade Lõng, Drops, Evilla, Hapsalu shawl / Estonian natural wool yarn, Midara, Novita, Four Seasons Gründl
ES
http://www.tiradelovillo.com/catalogo.php
South West Trading Company, Rowan, Gedifra, Schachenmayr nomotta (Regia), Manos, Artesano, Opal
http://lamaisonbisoux.bigcartel.com/
Abuelita, Wetterhoff, Katia, Kauni, Holst
http://www.xisqueta.cat/
Obrador Xisqueta
FI
http://www.titityy.fi/nettikauppa
Araucania, BC Garn, Fleece Artist, Handu, Kollage, Hemp for Knitting, Natural Dye Studio, Noro, O-Wool, Patons, Peace Fleece, Pirtin kehräämö, Rowan, Schoppel-Wolle, Shibui Knits, South West Trading Company
http://shop.wetterhoff.fi/index.php?id=462&lang=2
Wetterhoff
FR
http://leslaines.com/
Rowan, Noro, Mission Falls, Debbie Bliss, Araucania, Kauni, COPROCA, Gedifra, Regia, Malabrigo, Katia, Namaste Sathi
http://www.albayarns.com // http://www.knitnaturelle.com
BERGERE de France, Debbie Bliss, SIRDAR, Opal, King Cole, Alba Yarns
http://www.toutesenlaine.com/shop-toutesenlaine-home.html
http://www.boutiquedelaine.com/
Kartopu, Ice Yarns
http://www.tricotin.com/
Adriafil, Feza, Knit Picks, Lammy, Ligne Noire, Madame Wombat, Mondial Filati, Noro, Orenbourg, Renaissance Dyeing, Tilli Tomas
Addi, knitpro needles...
GB (UK)
http://www.loveknitting.com/
Debbie Bliss, Hayfield Bonus, Louisa Harding, MillaMia, Noro, Peter Pan, Regia , Rowan, Sirdar, Snuggly, Sublime, Wendy
http://www.newlanarkshop.co.uk/shop.php
New Lanark
http://www.knitwell.co.uk/acatalog/index.html
Sirdar, Patons, Twilleys of Stamford, Hayfield, Wendy, Rowan, Regia, Stylecraft
http://www.kempswoolshop.com/
Jarol, Patons, Rico, Robin, Rowan, Sirdar, Sublime, Stylecraft, Twilleys, Wendy, Woolcraft
http://www.purlescence.co.uk/
Fleece Artist, Cariad Yarn, The Natural Dye Studio, Claudia Hand Painted Yarns, Handmaiden Fine Yarn, Artyarns, Vinnis Colours, Fyberspates
http://www.wightyarns.webeden.co.uk/
Rowan
http://www.first4yarns.com/
Adriafil Yarns, Araucania Yarns, Artesano Yarns,Artist Palette Yarns, Aslan Trends,Bowmont Braf Knitting Yarn,Cariad Yarn,Cascade Yarns,Colinette Yarns, Crystal Palace Mini Mochi,Debbie Bliss Yarns,Dream in Color,Louet Yarns,Madelinetosh,Malabrigo Yarns,Manos del Uruguay Yarns,MillaMia,Nia Handpainted Yarns,Noro Yarns,Opal Sock Yarn,Peaches & Creme,Rowan,Schoppel Wolle - Zauberball Sock Yarn,Sirdar,Sublime Yarns,Twilleys Yarns,Zen Yarn Garden,King Cole
http://www.getknitted.com/
Araucania, Artesano Alpaca, Blue Sky Alpacas, Spud and Chloe, Brown Sheep, Lamb's Pride, Cascade Yarns, Colinette, Debbie Bliss, Filz-it!, Fyberspates, Wool2dye4, King Cole, Knitwitches Yarn, Lorna's Laces, Louisa Harding, Malabrigo, Manos Del Uruguay, Mirasol, Natural Dye Studio, Noro, Opal, Patons, Regia, Rico, Rowan , Sirdar, Sublime, Zitron
http://www.paviyarns.co.uk
Artesano Alpaca Yarns, Bloomsbury Retro Gimp, Cariad Yarns, Cascade Yarns, Crystal Palace , Knitting Yarns, Debbie Bliss Yarns, Feza Knitting Yarns, Filatura di Crosa, Gedifra, Knitglobal Knitting Yarns, Lane Borgosesia Knitting Yarns, Louet North America Yarns, Louisa Harding Yarns, Manos del Uruguay Knitting Yarns, Noro, Rowan Knitting Yarns, RYC Knitting Yarns, Sirdar Knitting Yarns, South West Trading Knitting Yarns, Sublime Knitting Yarns, Teo's Handspun and Hand Dyed Cashmere, Tilli Tomas Knitting Yarns, Trendsetter Yarns, Twilleys Knitting Yarns of Stamford, Zitron Knitting Yarns
http://www.texere.co.uk
Texere Yarns, Artesano, Cygnet, Debbie Bliss, Elle, J C Brett, King Cole, Laines Du Nord, Louisa Harding, Mango Moon, Mirasol, Noro, Sirdar, Sublime, Twilleys, Wendy
http://thewoolshed.co.uk/
Colinette, Rowan, Exotica, Noro, Debbie Bliss, Louisa Harding, Araucania, Artesano , Opal, Gedifra, Scottish yarns, Mirasol, Manos, Garn Studio, Sublime, Twilleys, Adriafil
http://www.greatbritishyarns.co.uk/
Rowan, British Breed Yarns, Coldharbour Mill, Old Maiden Aunt, King Cole, UK Alpaca, Sublime, Knitpicks
http://www.banyantreeyarns.com
Lion Brand
http://www.yarnundyed.com
Yarnundyed
http://www.blackerdesigns.co.uk
organic undyed wool from British sheep
http://www.organicpurewool.co.uk
organic undyed wool from British sheep
http://www.shilasdair-yarns.co.uk
producer of plant-dyed wool in Scotland
http://www.loopknittingshop.com/
Adriafil, Alchemy Yarns, Be Sweet, Berroco, Blue Sky Alpacas, Cascade Yarns, Colinette, Debbie Bliss, Frog Tree, GGH , Habu, Hand Maiden, Hand Jive, High Fibre, Imperial Stock Ranch, Jade Sapphire, Knit Collage, Knitting Goddess, Koigu, Lana Grossa, Lantern Moon, Louisa Harding, Madelinetosh, Malabrigo, Mango Moon, Misti Alpacas , Meunch Yarns, Noro, Opal, Old Maiden Aunt, Ozark Handspun, Peria, Punta Yarns, Rico, Rowan, Schoppel Wolle, Sublime, Tilli Tomas, Wagtail Yarns
http://www.knitwithattitude.com/
Viking of Norway, Du Store Alpakka, Mango Moon Yarns, Mirasol
http://www.hulucrafts.co.uk/
Adriafil, Debbie Bliss Yarn, Fyberspates, Lily Sugar n' Cream, Louisa Harding, Manos Del Uruguay, Noro, Rico Design, Rowan, Sirdar, Sock Yarn, Sublime, The Natural Dye Studio, Twilleys, Zealana Possum Yarn, Opal, Regia, Trekking
http://handmadenestshop.co.uk
Araucania, Artesano, Austermann, Debbie Bliss, Buffalo Gold, Drops, HW Hammand, Fibre Harvest, Fyberspates, JC Rennie, John Arbon, Excelana, Louisa Harding, Malabrigo, Mirasol, Natural Dye Studio, Nest Naturals, Noro, Opal, Rachel John, Rico, Rooster, Rowan, Silk Indian, Skein Queen, Trekking, Wing Mohair, Isle of Auskerry
SMC, Wash + Filz It!, Katia, Sublime, Noro, Stylecraft, Sirdar, Debbie Bliss, Regia, Rico, Twilleys Goldfingering, Twilleys, Patons, Wendy, Rowan
http://www.knittingwoolandyarnshop.co.uk/
Catherine Earnshaw, Bremont, Malabrigo, Cascade Yarns, Fyberspates, MillaMia, Alpaca Dreams, Twilleys of Stamford, GGH Garn, Louisa Harding Collection, Noro Collection, Debbie Bliss Collection, Wendy, The Knitting Shop, Rowan, Araucania Collection, Mirasol collection, Sublime, Zitron, Opal, Schoeller+Stahl
http://nuttyknittingsupplies.co.uk/
Artesano, Cascade, Lang, Malabrigo, Manos Del Uruguay, Opal, Stylecraft
IE
http://www.theyarnroom.com
Artesano, Manos Del Uruguay, Noro, Rowan, Schoppel Wolle, Cushendale Irish Woollen Mills, Regia Designer Sock Yarn, Icelandic Lopi, Opal Sock Yarn, Debbie Bliss, Austermann, Schoeller + Stahl Filzi, Studio Donegal (Kilcarra of Donegal),DMC
http://thisisknit.ie/
BLUE SKY ALPACAS, BROWN SHEEP, DEBBIE BLISS, DUBLIN DYE COMPANY, GAIETY GIRL, KILCARRA ARAN TWEED, LOUISA HARDING, MALABRIGO, MIRASOL, NORO, OPAL, ROWAN, SPUD & CHLOE, SUBLIME, TILLI TOMAS,
TWILLEYS OF STAMFORD, WENDY
NL
http://www.wolhemel.nl/
Drops, Jaggerspun, Malabrigo, Schoppel Wolle
http://www.astridsdutchobsessions.com/scripts/default.asp
(fleece) Zitron, Evilla, Filitaly-Lab, Kauni, Rowan, DebbieBliss, Garnstudio, Gedifra, Lang, Louisa Harding, Noro
http://wolhalla.nl/
Debbie Bliss, Natural Dye Studio, Schoppel, Araucania, Austermann, Chrystal Palace, Colinette, Dream in Color, Lorna's Laces, Natural Dye Studio, Noro, Opal, Regia, Schoeller & Stahl, Schoppel
http://www.craft4you.nl
(fleece), "Wool from Denmark", Scheepjes, Rico
http://www.stormopzolder.nl
Storm in the Attic
http://www.penelopecraft.com
Cascade, Noro, GGH
PT
http://www.crossedcrafts.com/
Debbie Bliss, Katia, Rosários 4, Sirdar, Noro, Schachenmayr nomotta (Regia), Adriafil, BMG Affinitas, Gedifra
http://www.ovelha-negra.com
Artesano, Debbie Bliss, Manos del Uruguay, Noro, Rowan, Phildar, Regia
http://retrosaria.rosapomar.com/
ATELIER ZITRON, DEBBIE BLISS, KATIA, LOPO XAVIER, MALABRIGO, NORO, OBRADOR XISQUETA, ROSA POMAR, ROSáRIOS4, SCHOPPEL WOLLE, SOTAVE
TR
http://www.yarn-paradise.com/
Kartopu, Ice Yarns
OVERSEAS
AU
http://www.theknittery.com/
CA
http://www.make1yarns.com/
free shipping over $50
US
http://www.littleknits.com/
marks low customs price
http://www.yarnandfiber.com/
no shipping charges
Monday, 28 November 2011
Sneak Peek
Project 02 (of 13) is finished :D Sample is knitted, pattern is written and laid out, photoshoot done and editing finished! Without giving more away, a cropping of the final image as a sneak peek:
Molehill
I finally got the chance to snap some pictures of this new shawl pattern I had ready for publication for some weeks! My gorgeous friend Georgina very kindly posed for me :))
It is now available in Ravelry.
Wednesday, 23 November 2011
Underway
Progress is being made! :DPattern 02 is written, sample is knitted and blocked, and a beautiful friend is coming over this Saturday to model it for my pictures. Very exciting! she is just perfect for this sweet character, and very enthusiastic about the project and inspiration for it (this is always nice to hear! :))
This pattern features beading and a little fiddliness, which I think is always nice to make a small project more entertaining! I have decided to shoot some HD videos to accompany these patterns, showing trickier parts etc. Video for pattern 02 is filmed, edited and already uploaded to my new YouTube Channel:
Pattern 01 is underway. This is lace knitted with linen, which gives a whole different look, and also beaded. Pictured is my swatch, but I have decided to use other beads which are on the way to me. Meanwhile the sample is started but on hold.
Pattern 03 is what I am working on right now. This project is a pleasure to knit because of the amazing yarn I am using, plus it has a delightful drape! Truly decadent to knit :)
As you can see in the picture, it features my beloved lacy faggoting stitches, the YOs make it airy, but the ribs created by the decreases still give quite a bit of volume.
These three patterns form the first "chapter" of my project. It is very exciting to have the three of them finished soon. Next is a very ambitious (for me!) pattern, moving beyond accessories... my first garment!
Wednesday, 16 November 2011
Thursday, 10 November 2011
Blogging and big project
I have neglected this blog, so much. In fact I ever only posted a few "new pattern" posts, and my last patterns haven't been announced here anymore either. I will not start doing that now. I should put it in the sidebar or something.
No, let's see. I used to really enjoy "blogging" my activities over at Livejournal, so I could do likewise here.
Additionally... I have a big project. I have been developing the idea for the good part of a year, and I have recently gotten started with it. I have been hesitant to talk about it (and only two people know about it), since I realise that it is gonna take me a long time to finish, and I still am unsure if I will publish patterns as I finish them (I am not too keen on this), if I will publish a few patterns only as teasers until everything is ready, or if I should keep everything between wraps until I have it all ready!
I have nonetheless decided to write a little bit about it here, since this blog is very unknown anyway :)
I don't remember exactly how the idea grew in my mind, but I think it was just an idea for one literary-inspired pattern that grew and grew into a collection of patterns. I am now settled on 13 of them. These are very conceptual patterns, in which the shapes, techniques, look and even the yarn composition, colourways etc play a part. They all form a cohesive collection, and even four of them combine into a set of accessories (I love matching sets!). Naturally it ocurred to me that such a collection of patterns best belonged in a booklet format.
In fact, I would preferably present it into an anthology of the works that inspired them, and perhaps some other content I have in mind. This is... a book. Scary! it is a technically challenging and time-consuming project, at least it is for me! Perhaps a little too ambitious an undertaking at my experience level... but I can be stubborn. And my vision is driving me forward in an irresistible manner, so I must oblige. I must try anyway.
Many years ago, I studied DTP. I am still interested in the subject. I do have a clear vision of the layout, typography and overall design, look and feel of this book, and the work for it is already well underway. It helps me have the overall framework in mind as I go along. A little bit of a control freak? In any case this will allow self-publishing if that is the path I end up taking. I want in any case to offer the patterns individually as PDFs.
All of the designs are already well formed in my mind, many of them to the smallest details. Knitting and designing has started on several of them, swatching for others. I have nearly all the yarn I need, which I have been buying in small (and not so small!) batches for the last months.
This is so exciting!
A few swatches. This is for the set of accessories I mentioned earlier. I will allow myself to say, it is a set of fingerless mittens, hat, shawl and "overmittens". The set thus could be worn when it starts to get chilly, fingerless gloves and the shawl draped loosely, and also dress it up for winter with a warm hat and overmittens, and the generous shawl more closely wrapped around the neck. How does that sound?
I have started projects in Ravelry for these patterns as I go along. By now, though, I will only post detail pictures and some notes useful to me (I find keeping these notes in Ravelry to be extremely useful mysefl!), and they have been numbered by their order of appearance.
No, let's see. I used to really enjoy "blogging" my activities over at Livejournal, so I could do likewise here.
Additionally... I have a big project. I have been developing the idea for the good part of a year, and I have recently gotten started with it. I have been hesitant to talk about it (and only two people know about it), since I realise that it is gonna take me a long time to finish, and I still am unsure if I will publish patterns as I finish them (I am not too keen on this), if I will publish a few patterns only as teasers until everything is ready, or if I should keep everything between wraps until I have it all ready!
I have nonetheless decided to write a little bit about it here, since this blog is very unknown anyway :)
I don't remember exactly how the idea grew in my mind, but I think it was just an idea for one literary-inspired pattern that grew and grew into a collection of patterns. I am now settled on 13 of them. These are very conceptual patterns, in which the shapes, techniques, look and even the yarn composition, colourways etc play a part. They all form a cohesive collection, and even four of them combine into a set of accessories (I love matching sets!). Naturally it ocurred to me that such a collection of patterns best belonged in a booklet format.
Many years ago, I studied DTP. I am still interested in the subject. I do have a clear vision of the layout, typography and overall design, look and feel of this book, and the work for it is already well underway. It helps me have the overall framework in mind as I go along. A little bit of a control freak? In any case this will allow self-publishing if that is the path I end up taking. I want in any case to offer the patterns individually as PDFs.
This is so exciting!
A few swatches. This is for the set of accessories I mentioned earlier. I will allow myself to say, it is a set of fingerless mittens, hat, shawl and "overmittens". The set thus could be worn when it starts to get chilly, fingerless gloves and the shawl draped loosely, and also dress it up for winter with a warm hat and overmittens, and the generous shawl more closely wrapped around the neck. How does that sound?I have started projects in Ravelry for these patterns as I go along. By now, though, I will only post detail pictures and some notes useful to me (I find keeping these notes in Ravelry to be extremely useful mysefl!), and they have been numbered by their order of appearance.
Wednesday, 7 September 2011
Black Series, for "Heavy Metal" expo, NovaBelgica Art Gallery, 30 Sep - 6 Nov 2011
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For the last weeks, with vacation breaks and other interruptions, I have been working on a little collection for a local exhibition here in Belgium.
I am very excited about this because of the theme and title, which is open to interpretation as if referring to the material or the music - both two of my great passions.
When I first heard about it I just had to ask Tim (gallery owner, whose blacksmith and sculpture work I really admire) to please let me participate! which he kindly did.
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For this series I wanted to keep the work hours down and the pieces affordable, so I omitted more elaborate hand-fabricated settings. This also allowed me to produce more pieces in a relatively short time which I think kept the entire series quite consistent. I really, really enjoyed making these, most of all -no susprise there- the enamel work.
At the end of the day... I wonder why I have not made more pieces in this style, since it is actually the kind of stuff I like to wear the most :) this should be remedied and I think I will continue the series in the future.
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I worked with a very oily mix on several pieces (for example Skull III, V, VII, X), which invites to paint more spontaneously, almost like with watercolour, and also allows a fluid line for symbols (Venus Sigil, Diabolical Sigil I), but then poses challenges when it comes to evaporating the oil and firing. I should make tests in the future with more volatile oils, but I am afraid the fluidity will also be affected.
A second or third fire with a mix heavier on the pigment helped achieve a little more detail here and there. I don't think any of the pieces has more than 4 fires (after the initial opaque base of black, which adds 2 to 4 more fires) which must be a record for me :)
For other pieces (for example Skull IV, IX) I worked exclusively with a thicker mix, and I could achieve quite a bit of detail and subtler shadings.
I also experimented with white conté crayons (Chalk Skull, Diabolical Sigil II). I wanted to achieve a chalk graffiti effect, and the white conté crayon worked prefectly. I found three different fragments of crayon in my old school bag, and one of them worked much better than the others. I hope I can find this sort of crayon again in the future if I feel like using it again, although I think its use is limited. In my rather brief investigation as to the composition of the crayons, it may mainly be kaolin clay and wax.
I worked over a matte ground surface, then fired, and to my surprise the colour was fixed to the enamel, and kept part of its gritty texture.
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For the necklace parts, I chose sterling silver patinated black and black glass to keep it monochrome, a combination I had already used for TBC II (which I will probably also show in the exhibition, together with TBC III, 2010). A few pieces have onyx substituting for black glass, and/or grey and black banded marble/jasper.
For a few smaller pieces I used only copper and non-precious metal chains to keep costs down.
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