Posted by kidneurotic on June 7th, 2009 — Posted in embroidery
In my life, there is no more passionate, painful or productive relationship than the one that I have with with my hot glue gun. While I have a content and happy marriage with a human male, my glue gun and I are drawn together and fight one another like Buttercup and Westley. While I have never entered into a sham marriage with superglue or PVA, there are certainly times that I would be happy to throw the smoking gun off a cliff!
While the use of hot glue is almost limitless and provides immense creative freedom, the hoodoo that makes it work seems to be contingent on me providing a sacrifice of seared flesh. For days after gluing anything, my fingers and hands seem to be covered in bandaids - which reinforces the sensible nature of the ‘hot glue gun licence’ that is available for year three students at my school. It would seem that while I am legally allowed to drive a ton of speeding metal on the state’s roads, art teachers universally suggest I am not up to the demands of adhesive licencing that other people achieving when they are 8.
One of the productive aspects of burning my lower arms and is below. It is a flour tin made to avoid the use of the boring plastic containers from the supermarket or their cousin the [invariably explosive when dropped] glass cannisters. It was made from a big coffee tin scavenged from work, hessian strapping and some cross stitched cotton floss. Handy links:
Stitchpoint has a clever text cross stitch generator.
Posted by kidneurotic on April 19th, 2009 — Posted in kntting, WIP
After a perilous journey over land and sea, from a teetering pile of washing, on a ironing board in the suburbs to a workplace near the city - what would an explorer find? [Or more to the point - in a malnourished flickr account on the wired …]
Perhaps some pretty, arbitralily placed descreases in inky 12 ply? [Or an overexposed snap of a sleeve?]
Or some half folded clothes? [Which show that the creator has an naughtily inquisitive hound with a whiteish coat?]
What about a reluctant model who says that he can’t fit his head through the neck hole? [Taking a picture in St Kilda means that you are either a narc or a mark. I don’t know which is more alarming.]
Or perhaps laid out in all its dog hair bespangled glory - proof that a process knitter can produce a product!
I present to you - Tom’s jumper!
After nearly 2 years of knitting I have finally finished knitting my uncle a jumper. Admittedly, most of this period was spent in an ornery hiatus looking for my copy of “Knitting without Tears” [which still manages to evades capture] but this was otherwise a very quick knit. 12ply wool and a lack of pattern or need to purl meant that this was something that could be knit in any situation where my hands could be left to do what they want and my brain could be otherwise engaged.
I am very pleased with my efforts to finish, even tho it has taken so long, but the actual product is not what I have envisaged [which was, of course, “The Perfect Jumper That Would Fit the Surprised Recipient Perfectly Despite the lack of Measurement in its Creation’ TM]. Although there are a few random yarn overs that have appeared [as it the burly wool had a poorly constrained need to burst into delicate lace] and the neck is a trifle snug, the most alarming development is that the upper half is … funny looking. Not wrong or poorly made, just funny looking.
I think it is something about how the yoke gasps its way toward the neck in odd bursts of contraction, or maybe it is something about how the white streak [inserted because I hadn’t enough ink wool] gives an odd halo to the wearer - like there is salvation to be found from modelling beside a ute.
I am now making Stefanie Japel’s Raglan from the Top Down, which is making pleasant progress and which has the extra benefit of allowing me to try it on periodically to make sure the damn thing still fits [in whatever scoliotic definition of ‘fit’ I am using to keep my mind assured of the worth of this endeavour.] i enjoy knitting in the round, as I am rubbish at purling, but this does have a few consequences. I am hoping to make this a cardigan, which would mean that I would need to … steek it.
As this particular topic scares me unduly, I treated it like all knitting issues that I need remedied but leave me quaking in my boots - I airily mentioned that I was going to do it to my mother in law. This exchange goes like this:
Moi: I am casting on this scarf which involves purling 3 and then making 3 on that stitch - how on earth would someone complete that kind of abomination?
MIL: Oh that is easy - just go like this, and then this and then done.
And it is always done. Dropped stitches, picked up. Kitchener joins, no problem. Cabling worries, revented while watching the news. But in this instance - no …
MIL: What have you got there?
Moi: Just a cardigan that I am making.
SIL: But you are knitting all the way around. How will you make it a cardigan?
MIL: Oh you steek it. I have never done that, it sounds a bit scary.
Moi: [poorly restrained squeak in recognition of dreams collapsing]
Perhaps having a sister in law be an onlooker is the cause all this trouble, but in any event, it is a case of “In-laws not as omniscient in fibre arts as advertised. Would not ebay with again.” I am hoping that this will be remedied before I finish my waistband, because I would have to expand on Yarn Harlot’s example and be epically blotto before I could wilfully cut something I had knit!
I have slowly got back into the idea of swapping - and I am pleased as getting mail surprises never fails to thrill me. This is for a brooch swap:
The wool is hand felted and the plum colour in the middle is hand dyed wool roving. It was lovely to make, and I hope my swapee enjoys it.
These are for a redwork penny square swap:
The sewing for anything like this is always pretty simple, once the agonising task of having to settle on something is finished. My big problem is that I found that my Matryoshka is a little uneven, and I couldn’t get her eyes right. She looks like she is smugly asleep!
I suppose I am the only person in the blogosphere who hasn’t talked about the horrific fires we have had here in Victoria. I just feel that I can’t say anything that can help anyone to understand or make sense of such a tragedy, as I think my sentiments would probably be inadequate. What I would do is suggest that people donate to The Red Cross who are working tirelessly to help people in a hellish situation. There are a number of other blog promoted efforts and I hope that people will assist where they can. My brave uncle is cutting fire containment lines in his bulldozer on one side of the
Posted by kidneurotic on November 26th, 2008 — Posted in sewing, shopping, etsy
Although I sold very little in the market of last weekend, there is (as there always is) a little metallic sheen to the cumulus - that I will finally have something that I made to put in my etsy store. I have never sold anything I have made on etsy, and hope this will be put to bed soon as I feel like I am missing out on some great warm and fuzzy experience of crafters throughout the world.
Here are the some photos of said unsold totes - it is remarkable how much natural lighting improves a photo and how much a bike tote can look like it is suffering from some kind of jaundice.
The owl tote is less sallow, but the detail of the button eyes is lost.
In house news, we are still unpacking, but things are starting to come together and I am becoming more comfortable with the prospect of owning a house. We put up knife racks last night and it was the first time I have ever been allowed to put something on the wall with a fastener other than blue tack [and my conscientious tenant parents didn’t exactly encourage that either] so this was a moment of minor triumph for me. I had the same odd guilt that I had when I first drove a car by myself after getting my licence, but my husband assures me that people who are their own landlords can do things that normal landlords wouldn’t allow. I have some unresolved worries about whether putting some screws and a magnetic Ikea knife rack onto the kitchen wall may constitute the ‘changes of a substantial nature to the property’ that we are not supposed to undertake without consulting the Commonwealth Bank of Australia … I also put up the darling little measuring spoon set I bought at Douglas and Hope ages before we had even started looking for a house. It looks so neat in its spot, that I am reluctant to use it for mensuration!
Posted by kidneurotic on November 23rd, 2008 — Posted in shopping
Sunday
Cloudy. Scattered showers. Winds southwesterly averaging up to 50 km/h decreasing to 20 to 35 km/h later in the evening
Min 11 Max 17
There is always going to be a first time you do something, and Sunday 23.11.08 [or 11.23.08 for the transatlantic set] is going to be my first market. It is a Craft Cartel initiative to tie in with the Bicycle Film Festival which is being held in M Town at the moment. I am quite looking forward to it, especially after the last few months of tumult with house buying and moving, but the weather is looking especially welcoming.
Oh Melbourne - everyone knows the agreement is that it rains on Melbourne Cup Day [or failing that Oaks Day] so that underdressed, implausibly high heeled, drunken young women learn the folly of their ways - NOT WHEN SENSIBLE BIRKENSTOCK SHOED WOMEN WANT TO HAWK THEIR WARES!
Apart from the looming deluge, my principal concern is that I don’t have enough bike related merch for aforementioned hawking. I am linocutting some cards, and making some bike themed bags and pouches, but as we have juuuust finished moving I haven’t done anything.
Lawdy, no!
I have been working away at it in the spare time I have, mostly lunches at work and so forth - but trying to combine lunch and white fabric was never going to succeed. Coffee - my wondrous love and bitter nemesis, splashed onto one section!!
I don’t know how I haven’t discovered flickr gazing before - it seems to fulfil all the criteria I need to engage with it -
Enormous time sink
Looking at beautiful things
Learning new skills [although I use the word learn in a VERY loose fashion]
Important source of time sinking
More time on the intarwebs
You bet your boots that my time doesn’t waste itself
Inspiration
Massive time sink
I have yet to figure out how to make mosaics - but when I do figure it out, there will be mosaics ahoy! There are some beautiful photos on flickr [none of them belong to me!] and moreover some delectable crafty pictures.*
Kim [from trueup, which I read with a kind of glinting eyed fervour more often associated with people who have just found a way to guarantee their way to eternal afterlife ] has developed a cute challenge -
Your assignment, if you choose to accept it: go through your stash (or the internet, if your stash is not hearty enough) and find a tossed, one-way, and two-way repeat in each category: geometric, floral, and novelty. That’s nine different fabrics. If you post about it on your blog (don’t know how exciting that would be to your readers, but I’d love it!) please let me know in the comments.
I will post next time after I have had a chance to pull out the maps drawers.
*[Flickr gazing is second only to time wasted on youtube, which leads to me find of the week - NERDs ‘Everybody Nose‘. This has inspired me on a might one woman army crusade against cocaine.I didn’t realise that the scant precious time I spend out of a night [anyone else in danger of being picked up by Cinderella’s punkin truck at 10.30pm ??] was being wasted when trying to go to the loo only to have time wasting females taking up the cubicles WHEN THEY DON’T EVEN NEED TO GO! Oh gentle reader, when I figured out that party going women who could stay out much longer than me were using up all the bathroom space and they probably don’t even have any urine in their bodies - I was beside myself! How very dare they?
Mostly, tho, I have just been bopping along to the song. ^_^]
Satin stitch is one of those mysterious creatures that demands a level of attention and a kind of burnt offering hedge magic that I don’t have. However, my flaky stitches are getting a little smoother and a little more even, so perhaps the whole practice makes perfect adage has a little truth to it. Here are my satin stitched tree trunks - in an awful state of needing ironing!
And here is some more iron needing work [some of you may notice I talk big about using the iron whenever I want, but when Ben is home I am a little wary, as he might start wanting to get me to engage it on actual clothes!].
Handsome eh? I like the yellow most of all - it reminds me of the Reg MombassaMambo landscapes. I will have to think up a suitably loony trunk.
Posted by kidneurotic on June 11th, 2008 — Posted in sewing, etsy, applique
I have been remiss in my sewing education, as I have tried applique - found it too difficult and ignored it. However, after seeing appliquers like syko -
[ her latest quilt on her blog as it is adorable] and so many others on flickr [check out this link to a great selection ] it seems unreasonable to write it off.
This is my most successful attempt to date, and I have used the freezer paper method.
They are some leaves on a windy day. The photo is not great - as the leaves pop from the white background quite well .
I sewed the applique section into some gorgeous Japanese fabric [thank you Cosmo Textiles] and voila! A scarf!
I am rather pleased with my result. I am experimenting with adding more complex embroidery than running stitch, but results are yet to be photographed.l
Posted by kidneurotic on June 9th, 2008 — Posted in swap, fabric
So I have lost ANOTHER swap in the post - [this is getting ridiculous, and I am concerned that it is all mail I am sending from work]. So I have made another up for a rainbow swap on swapbot.
My continuing love of kanzashi is complemented by my continuing inabiity to get it to work nicely.
This is the result. To much ironing and flattening! Too much hot glue gun! I hope my swapee likes it - it is not as nice as the little rainbow pouch I had made for the first one - but hopefully the other little goodies will ameliorate it [is there nothing that rainbow toe socks can’t ameliorate? ].
My favourite find of this week is True Up | All Fabric, All the time. It is so wonderful to see so much beautfiul fabric, and such a variety!
Posted by kidneurotic on May 26th, 2008 — Posted in sewing, etsy
So I am doing a little sewing again [for a swap that was lost in the mail], and have made a little gothloli head adornment - a very over flashed photo - but I am reasonably pleased with how it turned out. The attachment is just a hair clip because I couldn’t attached ribbons in a way that I liked!
The beads took the longest time, as I sewed rather than glued them on and the light in my house is wretched.
As soon as I get through all my exams, I am going to start sewing properly again - it is too sad not too.
Handy links:
].
