You might have noticed: things have changed. It was time to shake things up. So much of what the blog used to be now happens on Ravelry, but I still want to keep talking about creative projects. So here it is. I will still of course be talking about knitting and weaving, about color, and now about crochet, and sewing (!!) and also about adding freelancing to my life.
First up, how my knitting hates me.
In the fall, I put aside the gorgeous Vogue vest I was working on to make a series of hats, using the Easy peasy charity hat pattern, that I donated to folks who were driving into areas hit by Hurricane Sandy to hand out supplies. The Red Cross and other charities had said there was no need for clothing. I do understand that they did not want people's worn-out summer clothes, but what was heard on site was that people were cold. The hats were grabbed up. Then I decided I would power through the Elizabeth cardigan by Cecily Glowik MacDonald. Done. When I tried to go back to the vest, uhuh. I dropped stitches. Repeatedly. Made mistakes on the simple cable. Repeatedly. I have lost track of the number of times I restarted the chart area of the back of the vest. Honestly. I think it is in the double digits. I do not think there is anything particularly hard about that charted area. It is just that all my knitting fu disappears, and I stumble around making careless mistakes. So that went into a time out.
Then I (re)learned how to crochet, started the Painted vest, and have lost track of the number of times I have ripped that out. Which, considering I am making it in Noro Silk Garden, means the yarn is looking a bit, well, sad. I started it again this weekend and realized while I was at knit group that I had twisted it at some point. This project has become a sort of Zen thing -- I crochet, I take it out, I crochet, I take it out.
So where has all my obsessively creative energy gone? Two places: sewing and starting a new freelancing gig.
I was taught to sew when I was very young. My mother made her clothes, our clothes, the curtains in the house. She considered it a basic skill. I found it horrendously frustrating, and sewing projects always turned into screaming fits and tears. Repeatedly. For years. Then, when I was graduating from high school, my parents suddenly said to me that graduation came along with a gift, and what did I want? I remember it as an odd interaction -- I am not sure why they seemed uncertain. I guess they really didn't know what to get me, since it sure as hell was not going to be a car (we were not that sort of family). I still remember how surprised I was. Apparently I hadn't thought of a graduation gift at all. So I looked at them, and thought about going off into the world (ok, I was going off to college, but still) and what I would need off in that world and I said "I think I'd like a sewing machine." To this day, I remember the stunned looks on their faces. And I got a sewing machine.
I still have it. The most basic Sears Kenmore sewing machine being sold in 1971. And ya know what? After cleaning and oiling it, it works just fine. So when a friend decided she was going to learn to sew, and that I was going to be her coach, I dragged it out and discovered that -- around all that frustration and angst -- I really had learned to sew. My friend has had the very good fortune of being taught to sew at the Stitch Lab in Austin and after a very short time has been making tops, pants, aprons -- basically whatever she wants. So of course I have gotten into it too, and given my native propensities, I have been studying about how to fit pants (oy), how to sew with knits and now, how to sew with sheers. So far I have tried a couple of tops and several pairs of pants. I have one wearable top and a pair of sort of wearable pants. But I keep trying. Instead of being frustrating, each project feels more like an experiment, a skill builder. I am experimenting with muslin and cheap fabric, but of course, stashing of nice stuff has been happening too.
And on another front, since apparently I don't have enough to do, despite my new title at the top of this page, I have started a moonlighting/freelancing indexing service. I write back-of-the-book indexes. Want an index? You have come to the right place. My extremely talented friend KB created a logo for me:
With a book/not-a-book logo. We didn't want anything very traditional or obvious. Isn't it cool? And by the way, KB also creates some lovely original handknits. You should check out her Etsy store. Orignal designs of hats, scarves, etc. She is playing with double knits these days. So check out
So what is next?
- I want to find a summer knitting project with the cobalt blue Lavold Hempathy yarn I have.
- I want to talk about setting up a freelancing business. I also need to market myself to find some work. This is a moonlighting operation -- I am keeping my day job!
- I am experimenting with sewing a sheer fabric into a cover up that will let me wear sleeveless things in the San Antonio heat.
Pics to come.
Adventures to come.
If you have any suggestions about a summer top with Hempathy, tell me about it in a comment.
A colleague at work says that the logo also looks like a check mark, which implied to her that you would be very precise with your indexing. Go figure, another positive view of the book not book!
Posted by: Kawanna | April 01, 2013 at 09:35 PM