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Spill Guts Here. It's gotta go somewhere, know what I mean? Can you stand it?
purls before swine
Geek Knitting
West Indian Parade
West Indian Parade
Dog/Cat Wrestling
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2.20.2002
Been getting emails lately asking how to make PomPoms, Here:
Tassels, PomPoms and Fringe Still not feeling like spilling beans. Have a feeling that won't last too much longer, but there you go. 2.19.2002
Jeezus, it's nice sometimes to just keep your mouth shut for a few days.
2.15.2002
Working on a knit/purl diagonal pattern with cables to post here, made a hat with it yesterday, and it's deliciously hard to decipher. Pirco (mitten/glitten maker extraordinaire) told me she saw for sale at a street vendor on 7th avenue (one avenue away from my shop) an almost exact copy of my CatHat, only with braids for ties, and no crown shaping. Holy SHit, People! WHy can't you get your inspiration from a little farther afield? The CatHat is so last year, anyway!
With a great deal of deliberation, I've decided to stop custom orders, and work on more complex knitting for awhile, pieces that are too difficult for the average bear to copy. To be clear, if a pattern or stitch is posted here, anyone is welcome to use it for personal use, not commercial use. On a more positive note, and only a day late:  Make your own custom Candy Heart. 2.14.2002
Raw Knitting: knitting still on, or just off the needle. Mostly what I'll be posting here, due to impatience, and also by the time the piece has been washed and blocked, it's on the way to the shop.
Variations on a theme: stripes, different decrease slant angles, and a larger size is the second version of the tile stitch pattern I've been messing with this week. Made these three squares this am (scanned then pieced together, oh, the magic of Photoshop). Will get a solid black/dk blue crocheted edge around the perimeter, about 1.5" wide. Also this am completed 3 more sets of 7g machine knitted fingerless merino/cashmere mitts. Color mixes were: very dark purple, black and steel grey, Light red, dark red and magenta, and yellow lambswool with lighter yellow kid mohair. 2.11.2002
Fashion Week (Fall 2002) is in full force here in NYC, and it's always a blast to see what other designers are doing. At Style.com , you can check out the Pierrot show, which is mostly knitwear, with some very interesting pieces.
I'm meeting with some local sewing talent this am to get spring things made for the shop. Embroidered cottons and silks. Then coming home to play with my new serger. The thing I don't get about it, is how do you lock the ends of a seam so they don't unravel? Anybody know? There is no provision for reverse sewing. Mixing colors of thread make for a very pretty seam. Had a spectacular weekend , and now my shop needs to be restocked bigtime! Got to get to work! 2.08.2002
Testing comments feature...hmm, seems to! Feel free to add your 2 cents.....
2.07.2002
Not 100% yet, but I am going to work today anyway, despite the rain and sore throat. Circular knitting class is starting tonight, and it's going to be fun.
Got another 2 feet or so on the Random Old Balls scarf I started yesterday. I want to teach a class on this technique, it's so cool. I used to HATE entrelac and similar techniques because you can't whip through them, you are constantly picking up stitches and casting them off again, but for some reason this is appealing to me. I've been working alot lately with Feather and Fan shaping, and this is just another version. Scanner is refusing to work today, and the sink in the kitchen decided to start leaking heavily last night. *Deep Sigh* (that's for you, Markie) Doggie drank my huge barrel-o-coffee this am after I put it down to go into the studio for more colors. Hope caffiene isn't too dangerous for dogs. Had alot of milk in it, and no sugar. Now he's chasing his tail. Will I ever not have so many time-sink distractions?(no pun intended) I'm hoping to get an intern from FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology here in NYC) to help around the shop and with production. That should free up some time to work in the studio. 2.06.2002
Home with flu. Have been knitting alot. Happy to say I finally spent the 3 minutes it takes to hook up my scanner! Here is the days work so far, a portion of a yard and about a quarter long: The Random Old Balls scarf.
Can you tell I hate being sick? But it's also nice to hang with Doggie all day. He's a total optimist, all the time. He played wildly with the small black cat in the backyard this morning, and I was glad to watch it. 2.04.2002
Yesterday, I played hooky from the shop. M & I spent the entire day at the Philip Glass birthday celebration at Carnegie Hall. Oh, how can I describe the feeling and ultimate luxury of listening to incredible live music for hours in a hall with brilliant acoustics. You need to hear a saxaphone quartet. It's exquisite. (Rascher Quartet) My favorite piece was a collaboration he did with Ravi Shankar, called "Passages". Waves of gorgeous sound washed over us. It was a small orchestra. We also heard one of the best baritones around, Gregory Purnhagen. I was very happy that he sang 2 pieces from "Monsters of Grace", one of my favorite operas of all time, not to mention the awe-inspiring 3D animation that goes with it. (Music only this time)
Of course, we were thrilled to also hear/see the rock stars of the classical world, the Kronos Quartet. M collected an autograph from Mr. Glass during intermission, and I'm going to frame it for him. After the first concert, we had about an hour and a half before the second one started, so we ate sushi, and shopped at the excellent Japanese book store on 49th street off of 5th avenue. I got a knitting/sewing magazine, and also saw a very funny Japanese book about finger knitting, with projects, etc. This is how I figured out how to knit at a very early age (5 or 6), and was shocked and amused to see that grown-ups consider this to be a viable way to do it. Honey, buy a pair of needles! What a beautiful day it was. Today, I'm knitting cashmere bodices in small 2 color patterns, and sewing on silk crepe skirts. These are pretty time consuming, as I'm knitting the bodice front and back on machine (7g), then crocheting the shoulder pieces, crocheting the whole thing together, then washing and finishing the cashmere. Only then can the skirt be attached. Hope to have 2 done by wednesday....Also hooking up the scanner today, so a new batch photos of my work will be posted soon. 2.01.2002
Have been thinking alot about commerce, obviously because of the talks going on here in NYC right now, and the protests about them. SOmeone defaced a Starbucks and a Gap store yesterday. I think it's simple, if no-one shopped there, they would go away. But they do. In large numbers. And why is that so reprehensible? I have heard rumors about Gaps use of chinese sweatshops. Why isn't that more publicized? Why is it so important to make stupidly cheap garments and sell billions of them?
I'm on the entire other end of this spectrum. One of a kinds. I've had people actually come in and tell me they can get a knitted hat at Old navy for $12, so why should they pay more for one in my shop. Oh people, PLEASE go get your hats at Old Navy. Go straight there, don't stop to tell me about it. Valentines day...a manufactured holiday..yet I have hearts and rhinestones in my window too. Just to counteract the treacle: Here's a broken heart for you to knit. I need more coffee today. Ok, I'm cranky, too. |
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