January 13, 2013

  • OMG its almost February!

    Does anyone have one of these staring them in the face?  Ha, I’ve got 3 of them and corners where stuff is stashed and tucked away.  I’m soooo gonna try and improve on my project filing.  It’s just so easy to start something and then toss it in a basket then start something else and throw it in until I’ve got quite a mix of stuff going on and none of it done.  Althought there are 3 hats that are done except for the seaming up part and working in ends part.  Work has kicked in so much that it like – get up, get ready, go to work, come home, go to bed, repeat.  Over and over and over.  Not that I’m complaining but its easy to have small projects going that you can pick up and work a round or two on it without any due date on it and then put it aside to work on it later.  Eventually it will get done.  I just keep wanting to try out new techniques which has me with all these projects around.  Got a basket by my desk one on the dresser and two at each end of the bed that I can just dig something out and get with it.  Index cards and notes in ziploc bags help keep me on track of what I was doing and where I was at.  Hopefully I’ll have something finished that I can take a picture of soon.  Or just unfinished object pictures.  Also, started doing journaling to keep track of ideas that are swiming around in my head.  I treated myself to a handmade velum journal that I got at this new store here that has local artists that sell their stuff on consignment.  The journal has got this velum paper that is like tracing paper and so cool for jotting ideas, sketches etc.  It is bound with linen cloth for the outter fabric and handmarbled paper on the inside and a bright orange silk cord for the page marker.  It is sooooo coool.  Its small enought to carry around.  The girl that made it did such a nice job and its on the top of my list of favorite things laughing

    Another thing I did last year in nov. and dec. was to take a hand quilting class thru the citys park and recreation center.  Wasn’t sure how I’d like it but have always wanted to try it and learn about it and I’m so glad I took it.  The teacher is such a dear woman and she it 90 years old stunned.  It’s a bunch of women and I’m the only guy at the moment and what a hoot these chicks are.  I started out taking the class on mondays then missed one of the classes and had to take a make up one on thurs and boy where those gals fun so I decided to switch to thursday nites, LOL.  At first I had trouble staying in my seat and doing what she instructed me to do because I wanted to see what eveyone else was working on and what inspiration there was to see.  Some of the ladys just show up and don’t even quilt at all.  Some will just show up to knit, embroider or crochet and they are all just working away.  Ha, one day the teacher Edith was on me big time to get stitchin and finish what I was working on before class ended and she just sat there staring at me like I could read her mind-like boy you’d better get hot on that quilting and get it done.  Ha, so I shut up and got stitching and did what she told me to do and look what happened.  I ended up with a block done in grandmothers flower garden and now I’m working on what I think is called, rail fence.  That is the four blocks that are 4 sections each and then you sew those together so they are going in different directions.  So when I’m done joining the one block together I’ll join it with the others in that pic to make the whole block.  In the class what you end up with is a sampler quilt that is made up of 6 blocks.  The cool thing about it is that you don’t need a sewing machine.  Its all done by hand – HOW COOL IS THAT!  They told me where I can go and buy fabric etc.  But honestly I got what I needed at the thrift store.  I’m just not going to buy new fabric to make a quilt and not going to pay much for it either since I’m just cutting it up anyway.  So I’ve been going by the thrift store and snaggin up fabrics as I see them for like 99 cent to 2 dollars.  I decided that is going to be my limit for that sort of thing and I’ll see where it takes me.  It’ll be my quilt experiment.  So now I got to sign up for the next class and continue on.  One of the ladys I’ve met who is the aunt of one of my customers has been taking the class for 10 years, WOW!

    So that has been added to the mixed bag of stuff I’ve been working on lately.  Where is the much needed craft space continueum……………….. 

Comments (3)

  • That journaling idea for keeping track of knitting design ideas is a great one. I have a small, pretty, spiral bound book that I use for that. It’s not handmade, but I can’t afford that.

    Keeping track of what I’m knitting and actually finishing projects is tough to do. The unfinished ones tend to pile up unless you keep track, and I need a better way to keep track.

    Part of the problem is that I don’t do one project at a time. I like to have a fairly complicated project to do at home because I like projects that are complicated sometimes. Or else something that’s too big to carry around.

    I also have an afghan in progress at the moment. It’s entrelac, and the way I do them is to decide on a color scheme, and keep an eye out for special yarn for it. Whenever I see something neat that looks like it will go with what I’ve already got, I buy a ball or two and do another row of diamonds. It usually takes me about a year to find all the yarns and knit them in between other things. I wind up with an incredible throw that I wouldn’t have been able to afford all at once, and they make great presents.

    And then I like to have a small, simple project (like socks) to carry around with me. Since I don’t have a car anymore, I ride the bus, which means I’m not driving, so I can use the time to knit. Sometimes, I stop at a fast food place for a chicken sandwich, and it’s nice to sit for a few minutes and knit before I leave. It’s probably better for my digestion to sit and relax for a minute or two after eating.

    So, I tend to have several projects going at once. And after a while, it’s easy to set something aside and then later forget about it.

  • @lostarts - : ) the journaling thing I think is an attempt at keeping my thoughts organized, LOL.  Still haven’t been able to bring myself to start jotting, scribbling, etc on the new clean pages, so just stuffing the bits of paper that I’ve found with ideas on them into the jouranal, LOL.  But its all a process right.  Ha, my address book is the same way I tear off the address from the envelope and either tape or jam it into the appropriate alphabetized page.  Kinda looks like a scrap book its self.  Those ideas for entrelac are great!  Thanks for sharing : ).  What a great way to not have to full tilt commit and still get going on a project, SWEET!  I got the sock bug and its a great project to tote around and I can stuff it into my small work station at work and pic it out to work on between appts.  I’ve got a pair going that has been in a grocery bag for a year now.  I took that class from the LYS and the teacher was great.  I just didn’t get them done and have got them both done except for the kitchner stitch at the toes and I don’t want to do it by myself.  I’d rather have her show me (just learn better that way).  So hopefully when it warms up I’ll be in the mood to go and have her show me.  Since it’s been colder and more dreary I just want to come home have a cup of tea and call it a day.  Oh, my favorite type of socks to knit are those spiral ribbed tube socks in a stout wool.  I’ve made them and then people see them and I gift em away.  So making a pair for me self is on the list of things to do as well  : )

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