While I wait for Blogger to decide to upload my photos, some blogs I've enjoyed reading/looking at lately:
Cyber sewing pal, Viva, found this blog and certainly its super to see some bits of yumminess, especially like the Celtic knot, family portrait project looks interesting too!
I LOVE this post in particular! I can't wait to buy my own Embellisher! Certainly Allie has some confidence to try this! Check out the demin/lace project she embarked using her Embellisher on a shirt!
And I LOVE this blogger! she's captured the feeling exactly! that of the almost inevitable disappointment as you knit your way expensively through a pattern to disover it either looks nothing like the pattern OR doesn't fit OR both!!
Just for sure usefulness and good sewing sense, I love reading The Secret Pocket and hemming trousers article in particular given that I have in the past made a LOT of (boys) trousers and always did find it frustrating to catch a ripple at the inseam - grrr!
OUCH! Poor Val! but how heroic to continue and buy further supplies of yummy fabric!! Hope the trip to dentist wasn't too expensive, I mean painful! The collage of photo's of the quilts are super, do be sure to click to enlarge and enjoy those on the bottom row!!
Cyber sewing pal Butterfly has been busy baking! YUMMINESS in lots of BAGS! and spotted, too, she's cut into those vintage goodies and made her own placemats - they look really SUPER and I bet they sell well!!
Monday, 10 March 2008
Creative Textiles
Unfortunately blogger is still not letting me upload photos! Looks like its not just me as Debs reports similar problems! I'll try again later as I have quite a lot of yumminess to screech about!
In the meantime, heres what we did today at Creative Textiles!
I thought the colour theme was enough to get all screechy about and start diving for cover and heaving into cushions (heavily embroidered and richly patterned, of course!) but PATTERN - our newest theme .. thud thud THUDDD .. say no more!
We've moved on now to Design Style: Design Sources for Pattern
We decided that "pattern" is basically anything that isn't plain.
now.
had we STOPPED there. had we SETTLED for that. had we swiftly moved on. would have been alright! but no. we've to look at the definition of pattern which falls, I'm told, into broadly 4 categories:
Reminded, slightly, of the old scrapbooks we used to fill as children - cut up scraps torn from Mother's magazines and glued - we had books filled with inspiration drawn from colour, texture and pattern compiled in a style that in itself could be described as organic, structured and planned there's certainly something rather determined about this gathering of yumminess!
Books. two. I many hundreds! too. Lots of books - interesting that several of the super knits for house and home, throws blankets etc, had marvellous examples of "pattern" but, of course, rather different when compiling ones OWN selection to demonstrate understanding!
Several ladies got rather excited about design possibilities for inspired work in textiles and had horrid panicky moment as tried to imagine HOW to transform a decaying tumbling brick wall into something worthy of hanging ON my wall! (apparently am not to panic - yet - that will all be revealed in next phase! and feel somewhat reassured!).
Our homework for this week is to record some examples of pattern from each of the areas and discover which appeal to me and why and decide if some are more suited to textiles than others. We are to chooseone example and create a sample to reflect the featuresof that pattern, eg textured knitting/crochet, patchwork, quilting, stitching etc.
Well.
I've done half of MINE already!
In one magazine have cut out about 145 Structured and Planned kitchen themed photographs with linear designs and stripes and neat orderliness about them - thus establishing clearly what appeals to me - easy to say : its NEAT and ORDERLY! Oh dear, fear another grey and black wardrobe moment coming on ..
Next to me, Kim, our resident fling it all at ME and I'll show you how to use it ALL on one piece measuring 3" square, heaped, piled, layered, slashed and STILL managing to look like it all means something (unlike my 12" square with a few bits of something neatly coiled and stacked in a row looking rather as though missing half the class) demonstrates wonderfully how diverse we each are! in our approaches and in what we present as our findings/samples! Peggy commented how marvellous is must be to have such freedom and confidence to go for it! and happily (for me) reported similar tendancies to the grey/black wardrobe, all paint pots sitting neatly in a colour co-ordinated line holding hands nicely, syndrome! at least I'm not alone!
Whilst there is no pressure, beyond that we make up ourselves, amongst the group, there is a nagging feeling that somehow the expectation is that the level of work produced is higher rather than lower end, possibly due to half the group being fantastically CLEVER/CREATIVE! I mean having done the first year already! I need to remind myself that for half of us, we're newbies coming in with no prior learning and that the other half have the benefit of that past year. Overall its GOOD to have a mix, as we certainly benefit from seeing the recorded journalling examples and some of the advanced techniques that have been furthered from their original workings (and can't WAIT to be a 2nd year myself next year! except with MY luck all the new newbies will be creative whizzos like Kim anyway! bah!).
Any rumblings of pressure and stress due to the course are quickly put aside by our tutor, however, who is sew laid back is almost horizontal (except can't quite go fully horizontal on account of all the piled boxes and bags surrounding) and we're reminded this course is for our LEISURE and our PLEASURE and no one is to feel unduly STRESSED or PRESSURED!
See? what happens? when blogger refuses to show my photo's? it all comes out verbally instead. Late readers will be able to skim speed-reading manner and skip TO the delightful photo's soon (I hope!).
In the meantime, heres what we did today at Creative Textiles!
I thought the colour theme was enough to get all screechy about and start diving for cover and heaving into cushions (heavily embroidered and richly patterned, of course!) but PATTERN - our newest theme .. thud thud THUDDD .. say no more!
We've moved on now to Design Style: Design Sources for Pattern
We decided that "pattern" is basically anything that isn't plain.
now.
had we STOPPED there. had we SETTLED for that. had we swiftly moved on. would have been alright! but no. we've to look at the definition of pattern which falls, I'm told, into broadly 4 categories:
- Natural/Organic
- Structural
- Planned
- and Combination
Reminded, slightly, of the old scrapbooks we used to fill as children - cut up scraps torn from Mother's magazines and glued - we had books filled with inspiration drawn from colour, texture and pattern compiled in a style that in itself could be described as organic, structured and planned there's certainly something rather determined about this gathering of yumminess!
Books. two. I many hundreds! too. Lots of books - interesting that several of the super knits for house and home, throws blankets etc, had marvellous examples of "pattern" but, of course, rather different when compiling ones OWN selection to demonstrate understanding!
Several ladies got rather excited about design possibilities for inspired work in textiles and had horrid panicky moment as tried to imagine HOW to transform a decaying tumbling brick wall into something worthy of hanging ON my wall! (apparently am not to panic - yet - that will all be revealed in next phase! and feel somewhat reassured!).
Our homework for this week is to record some examples of pattern from each of the areas and discover which appeal to me and why and decide if some are more suited to textiles than others. We are to chooseone example and create a sample to reflect the featuresof that pattern, eg textured knitting/crochet, patchwork, quilting, stitching etc.
Well.
I've done half of MINE already!
In one magazine have cut out about 145 Structured and Planned kitchen themed photographs with linear designs and stripes and neat orderliness about them - thus establishing clearly what appeals to me - easy to say : its NEAT and ORDERLY! Oh dear, fear another grey and black wardrobe moment coming on ..
Next to me, Kim, our resident fling it all at ME and I'll show you how to use it ALL on one piece measuring 3" square, heaped, piled, layered, slashed and STILL managing to look like it all means something (unlike my 12" square with a few bits of something neatly coiled and stacked in a row looking rather as though missing half the class) demonstrates wonderfully how diverse we each are! in our approaches and in what we present as our findings/samples! Peggy commented how marvellous is must be to have such freedom and confidence to go for it! and happily (for me) reported similar tendancies to the grey/black wardrobe, all paint pots sitting neatly in a colour co-ordinated line holding hands nicely, syndrome! at least I'm not alone!
Whilst there is no pressure, beyond that we make up ourselves, amongst the group, there is a nagging feeling that somehow the expectation is that the level of work produced is higher rather than lower end, possibly due to half the group being fantastically CLEVER/CREATIVE! I mean having done the first year already! I need to remind myself that for half of us, we're newbies coming in with no prior learning and that the other half have the benefit of that past year. Overall its GOOD to have a mix, as we certainly benefit from seeing the recorded journalling examples and some of the advanced techniques that have been furthered from their original workings (and can't WAIT to be a 2nd year myself next year! except with MY luck all the new newbies will be creative whizzos like Kim anyway! bah!).
Any rumblings of pressure and stress due to the course are quickly put aside by our tutor, however, who is sew laid back is almost horizontal (except can't quite go fully horizontal on account of all the piled boxes and bags surrounding) and we're reminded this course is for our LEISURE and our PLEASURE and no one is to feel unduly STRESSED or PRESSURED!
See? what happens? when blogger refuses to show my photo's? it all comes out verbally instead. Late readers will be able to skim speed-reading manner and skip TO the delightful photo's soon (I hope!).
Sunday, 9 March 2008
No pictures!
Well I've tried for half an hour or sew to upload photo's and apparently there is a problem!
Never mind, I'll try again tomorrow!
Never mind, I'll try again tomorrow!
Monday, 3 March 2008
Library Books! (and knitting mags)
I was lucky enough to get hold of a copy of 25 beaded knits beautiful designs in stylish colours, Debbie Abrahams last week from my local library and a super book this is too! I think I'll splash out and buy a copy, perhaps at the forthcoming sewing show! I quite fancy the "Bubbly Knitting Bag" on page 15 as this will be an opportunity for me to thoroughly frighten myself with COLOUR!! but I think I'll also do the "Scrooge Wrist-Warmers" on page 92 as I can be less terrified of CABLES while still trying out a few different techniques.
The other book I've got is Stitch'n bitch The Knitters Handbook, Debbie Stoller, and this is a good read too. I've decided that books will be on my shopping list for the show this year, if anyone has any recommendations knitty or otherwise, do please share details!
This months Simply Knitting magazine has a rather nice toe-up sock pattern in it which can be downloaded free too - I've not done a toe up and quite fancy saving this for a future project.
The other book I've got is Stitch'n bitch The Knitters Handbook, Debbie Stoller, and this is a good read too. I've decided that books will be on my shopping list for the show this year, if anyone has any recommendations knitty or otherwise, do please share details!
This months Simply Knitting magazine has a rather nice toe-up sock pattern in it which can be downloaded free too - I've not done a toe up and quite fancy saving this for a future project.
10 Blog Nominations!
Thanks Val for including me in one of your nominations for blogs "which bring you inspiration and make you appreciate the blogosphere ! ".
I thoroughly enjoy the whole atmosphere of bloglife and have learned SEW much and been SEW inspired at the same time with not just creative information but technical and other stuff too - I can't imagine internet life without blogs!!
Since learning about readers and how to subscribe I've been much more efficient and regular in my blog-reading and have quite an extensive list of those I look forward to reading and viewing and following on a regular basis, my ten nominations are:-
Annies Crazy World
Butterflies Giftshop
In a minute ago
The Secret Pocket
MagStitch
My recycled bags
Terry Ross Designs
Make do and mend
Embroidery overlaps
Allies in stitches
I just enjoy reading them for the yumminess within and for the practical help on techniques as well as inspiration!!
I thoroughly enjoy the whole atmosphere of bloglife and have learned SEW much and been SEW inspired at the same time with not just creative information but technical and other stuff too - I can't imagine internet life without blogs!!
Since learning about readers and how to subscribe I've been much more efficient and regular in my blog-reading and have quite an extensive list of those I look forward to reading and viewing and following on a regular basis, my ten nominations are:-
Annies Crazy World
Butterflies Giftshop
In a minute ago
The Secret Pocket
MagStitch
My recycled bags
Terry Ross Designs
Make do and mend
Embroidery overlaps
Allies in stitches
I just enjoy reading them for the yumminess within and for the practical help on techniques as well as inspiration!!
Creative Textiles
Bit of relief today from the tedium I mean learning of colour with some KNITTING!
Sarah brought in boxes of colour themed bags of yarn and we all dipped in to select some to knit samples for our section on exploring colour!
I've opted for safety of green, red and purple! but did rather cast an envious eye on neighbouring Kim's yummy SCRUMMY reds, oranges and hot pinks and yellows!! Interestingly she knitted her swatches on HUGE needles and plans to weave colours in between - I expect she'll end up with something glorious and we'll all be jealous!! I'm afraid mine is uniform neat stripes of colour however I'm quite pleased as I've learned a neat way of weaving in a new colour and of losing the tail end of the previous colour which I expect I shall have forgotten about by tomorrow!!
A delicious cushion packed with different knitting techniques for decorative effects provided inspiration for those most in need (me!) and I was interested to find out you can knit pintucks! Having spent the week experimenting with pintucks on the sewing machine and stitching them down in alternate waves for visual interestI was interested in learning how this is affected with yarn and needles! (quite easily, as it happens!).
We have to complete our paperwork and are instructed to do our homework as its likely the Centre Manager will be checking up on our tutor, I mean us! As we don't want to get Sarah into trouble we've promised to do this for next Monday!
In preparation for our main piece of work I casually mentioned a leaning toward a landscape! and one of our class kindly brought in their piece and all the project work and files for it to share! I was amazed at how effective Jackie's piece was and I'm completely overwhelmed now at the thought of all that creativity and rather wish I'd mentioned how I'd always wanted to knit a cabled cushion cover!! (or a tea pot cosy!) gulp! I might have to discover a sudden interest in a tree and stick to that! (at least with brown not being officially ON the colour wheel I could add ANY shade of green!?). (OR I could do a seascape? all BLUE? and call it miles from nowhere?).
HOMEWORK for this week will be to knit some colour samples and complete the paperwork!
Sarah brought in boxes of colour themed bags of yarn and we all dipped in to select some to knit samples for our section on exploring colour!
I've opted for safety of green, red and purple! but did rather cast an envious eye on neighbouring Kim's yummy SCRUMMY reds, oranges and hot pinks and yellows!! Interestingly she knitted her swatches on HUGE needles and plans to weave colours in between - I expect she'll end up with something glorious and we'll all be jealous!! I'm afraid mine is uniform neat stripes of colour however I'm quite pleased as I've learned a neat way of weaving in a new colour and of losing the tail end of the previous colour which I expect I shall have forgotten about by tomorrow!!
A delicious cushion packed with different knitting techniques for decorative effects provided inspiration for those most in need (me!) and I was interested to find out you can knit pintucks! Having spent the week experimenting with pintucks on the sewing machine and stitching them down in alternate waves for visual interestI was interested in learning how this is affected with yarn and needles! (quite easily, as it happens!).
We have to complete our paperwork and are instructed to do our homework as its likely the Centre Manager will be checking up on our tutor, I mean us! As we don't want to get Sarah into trouble we've promised to do this for next Monday!
In preparation for our main piece of work I casually mentioned a leaning toward a landscape! and one of our class kindly brought in their piece and all the project work and files for it to share! I was amazed at how effective Jackie's piece was and I'm completely overwhelmed now at the thought of all that creativity and rather wish I'd mentioned how I'd always wanted to knit a cabled cushion cover!! (or a tea pot cosy!) gulp! I might have to discover a sudden interest in a tree and stick to that! (at least with brown not being officially ON the colour wheel I could add ANY shade of green!?). (OR I could do a seascape? all BLUE? and call it miles from nowhere?).
HOMEWORK for this week will be to knit some colour samples and complete the paperwork!
Birthday celebrations!
Sadly on Saturday I was unable to convince the family to visit Warwick for the Ravely day - instead we went to the RAF Museum. The lads enjoyed it, no.1.son whose birthday we were celebrating in particular! (I basically spent most of the day hoping it was the end! or at least that we could sit down! I was rather brave about it and managed to effect an air of excitement in most of the right places and all in all I would recommend this as a place to visit - provided, of course, you are a boy!)
something. interesting. (must have been. 4 shots were taken of "it". unless, of course, my son forgot temporarily how to operate my camera! Did I say he filled up both his AND mine with shots?)
For an additional charge you could take part in a flight simulation - here they are after flying with the Red Arrows .. .. (I had 4 mins of sitting down and didn't have to adjust my face into one of complete excitement!)
Here I am managing to effect a look of complete happiness! (I'm joking, of course, I did make a marvellous effort on the day and it was all worth it for our son to thoroughly enjoy the visit).
dh and no.2.son study one of the exhibits, we enjoyed lunch there too at one of their cafes and made a day of it.
His birthday is actually TODAY! Happy Birthday, Andrew! 15yrs today! Tonight we will go for a meal and later when he returns from school he will have his cards/presents! His Dad has baked a cake especially!
something. interesting. (must have been. 4 shots were taken of "it". unless, of course, my son forgot temporarily how to operate my camera! Did I say he filled up both his AND mine with shots?)
For an additional charge you could take part in a flight simulation - here they are after flying with the Red Arrows .. .. (I had 4 mins of sitting down and didn't have to adjust my face into one of complete excitement!)
Here I am managing to effect a look of complete happiness! (I'm joking, of course, I did make a marvellous effort on the day and it was all worth it for our son to thoroughly enjoy the visit).
dh and no.2.son study one of the exhibits, we enjoyed lunch there too at one of their cafes and made a day of it.
His birthday is actually TODAY! Happy Birthday, Andrew! 15yrs today! Tonight we will go for a meal and later when he returns from school he will have his cards/presents! His Dad has baked a cake especially!
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