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Welcome to my knitting--no, fiber arts--no, artisan blog.
Other knitting blogs inspired me to start a knitting blog. But I also crochet, weave, and make jewelry, and I'm just learning
to make cheese. So I guess that makes this an artisan blog.
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Tuesday, March 29, 2005
The Metalsmith is In!
The Cambridge Center for Adult Education offers a beginning jewelry class, and for a good long time (more than two years, I think) I've been trying to get into it. But whenever I try to register,
the class is always full. Last year I got into one offered by another adult ed center, but the teacher wasn't very good. Well,
basically she couldn't teach. Anyway, I learned a little, but I don't have much to show for it.
A couple of months ago I went to the CCAE site and tried to register for Beginning Jewelry, and I got in! A few days later,
someone called from CCAE to say that the class was already full when I'd registered, but she'd put me on the waiting list
if I wanted, so I did that. I figured I'd never get into the class for this session, but being on the waiting list might give
me an edge for getting in for the next session.
So yesterday someone from CCAE called and said someone had dropped the class and it starts that evening and did I want in.
Naturally I said yes.
Well, Laurie Savage is a really good teacher. I learned more last night in two hours than I learned in all the classes
last year at the other place. We'll be doing some bezel setting with fairly large stones, and I'm hoping that in the advanced
beginner or the intermediate class I'll be able to make a pair of earrings like these Biedermeier ones I saw on eBay:
Biedermeier earrings, 1/2" diameter, gold with garnet stone
The materials kit is really extensive. We have copper and brass to practice on, sheets of silver, silver wire, bezel wire,
half-round sterling for a bracelet, cabochon stones, earring and pin backs, saw blades (3 dozen, and I broke 2 last night),
solder, drill bits, sandpaper, and a Scotchbrite pad. Here's the loot:
Materials packet for Beginning Jewelry
Last night we practiced sawing shapes from one of the copper practice sheets:
I'm already thinking about what to do with the bezel-set stone. Possibly it could go on the bracelet, or possibly it could
be a pendant.
link
Monday, March 28, 2005
Adventures in Felting
I have the 15" Mac G4 PowerBook with the backlit keyboard (the reason for the 15" rather than the 12").
Now Conrad has one, too. How do we tell them apart? I'm going to decorate mine with some kind of beaded thing, I think, but
originally I thought we could each have a different cover on the lid, and there might be something available commercially.
So I googled something like "powerbook cover" and among other sites, I hit Rebeka Martin's. She's done a felted cover for her 12" PowerBook, and Conrad liked it, so I figured this would be a good way to make a dent
in the stash. He picked out his colors (navy, purple, and red), and I recalculated the pattern and knitted one. Last night
I threw it in the washing machine with some towels.
Did you know that not all wool felts? Superwash wool doesn't felt, of course, but none of this was superwash wool. Basically,
the navy and some of the red felted, but the purple and the red from a different ball didn't felt. I kept letting the machine
agitate while I waited in vain for the red and purple to felt, and by the time I gave up, the whole thing was much too small
(and too stiff, really) for a 15" PowerBook cover. So now what I have is basically a tote bag once I cut off the unfelted
flap and add a shoulder strap. Yeesh.
The Felting Disaster
So now I've ordered some Paton's Classic Wool, which I know felts, and when it arrives, I can try again.
link
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Nothin' But a T Shirt Knit Along
My first knit along is with nonaKnits, where the group is knitting Alison Hansel's Nothin' but a T shirt. This is a free pattern on the Mag knits site.
The start date is April 1. I have no idea what the end date is, because I've never done one of these before. I'm guessing
a month should do it. It'll be interesting to see how long it actually takes.
The pattern calls for Rowan Calmer, which is a heavy-worsted-weight cotton with some acrylic for elasticity. It's pretty expensive:
about $11 a ball. Enough yarn for this little t-shirt would run about $75. I have so much stuff waiting to be finished that
I can't really justify starting something new, and my stash is big enough that I have to work pretty hard to justify starting
something that doesn't make a dent in the stash. Fortunately, awhile ago I got 10 balls of Classic Elite Spotlight
at half price ($25). This color is "Morning Mist," which I keep wanting to call "lavender mist," but I suspect the Jackson
Pollack estate has a copyright on that phrase.
Classic Elite Spotlight in Morning Mist
Spotlight is 100% cotton that knits to 18 stitches and 28 rows on 4.5 mm (US 7) needles, both according to the label
and according to my swatch. This is just about the right weight for the T-shirt: Calmer knits to 19 stitches and 28 rows.
The t-shirt is fitted, and I'm between sizes (the pattern includes sizes 34 and 36, but I'm more of a 35, which makes a bit
of a difference in a fitted top), so the slight difference in stitch gauge should make the thing fit fine if I follow the
directions for the 34.
Naturally, I'll also be not following the pattern: I won't be using contrasting neck and sleeve bands, and I won't
be putting a word on the front. First of all, I'd need more yarn, and second of all, it's just not my style. Also, I won't
be knitting the thing flat. I can't bear to have to go back and finish any more than I have to, and seaming something that
has knitted-in hems is not my idea of a good time, plus it just never looks quite right. So I'll be knitting in the round
(on dpns for the sleeves) and just sewing the shoulders and setting in the sleeves at the end.
link
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