Yarn Over, Pull Through

Peace and Aloha to Michael Jackson

I know this is WAY off topic, but I just had to post something about Michael's passing.  What a fabulous, consummate, performer and lover of HUMANKIND he was!

Despite all the controversy, in the end, all I can say is that he will be terribly missed.  Here's a video of a rehearsal he did for his Dangerous tour of my favorite Michael Jackson song of all time, Human Nature. 

Four Seasons - 2009 Freeform Challenge

Hot of that press, it's finally here - the International Freeform Fiberarts Guild's latest challenge in book form, called Four Seasons.

52 freeform artists, including yours truly, participated in this challenge to use freeform fiberart to interpret the 4 seasons.  Myra Wood did an excellent job in putting the book together.  All the proceeds from the sale of the book will go to the Global Fund for Women.

You can preview the book to see a sample of the wonderful artwork.  You can also see the entire exhibit online.  Enjoy!!

How I Made the "Rainy Season" Purse

As promised, I'm going to describe how I made the "rainy season" purse which appears in the 2009 International Freeform Fiberarts online exhibit.

Yarn Selection

Of course, you can't do freeform without the right yarn, and I knew I wanted a variety of yarns in this one (as opposed to the "summer" purse that is made from one yarn only).  And like most fiber artists, I have a pretty big yarn stash, so that was the first place I looked. 

I knew I wanted shades of gray along with green to represent the Ko'olau Mountains, my inspiration for the purse, during the rainy season.  Most of the yarns were in my stash, but I bought a skein of fluffy "Baby Alpaca Brush" by Plymouth Yarns to represent the clouds which are almost always enveloping the mountain peaks. 

Interestingly enough, I ended up not using the yarn I bought and several others, which often happens in these freeform projects.  You have an ideal of how you want the piece to look, but it often turns out looking a lot different than your initial conception.  But as long as I like the end result, I don't mind.

Scrumbling

The next step was to start making the small pieces that I would eventually sew together to form the flap.  This isn't technically scrumbling, but more "organic patchwork," a term coined by celebrated freeform crochet fiber artist, James Walters (see the "scrumbling" link). 

Using this technique, I created a number of small pieces, selecting stitches based on the yarn I was using.  If the yarn was smooth, I created textured stitches like the bullion stitch (that's the dark green stitch at the bottom of the purse flap).  If the yarn was more textured, I made simple shapes, like circles and squares, letting the yarn speak for itself.

It's always good to have a good stitch dictionary like the Harmony Guides (out of print unfortunately) or The Crochet Stitch Bible so you're not racking your brain trying to figure out which stitches to use.

Putting the Pieces Together

Once I had what I thought was enough small pieces from which to create a purse flap, I laid them all out (see previous photo) and started playing with them, trying to create a pleasing configuration.  But try as I might, I just couldn't get all the pieces to fit together in a way that "felt right." So I let it go for a day or two. 

When I tried again, I realized I didn't need to use all the pieces.  If a took a way a couple of them, I came up with a design that I really liked. 

The next challenge was to sew the individual pieces together.  I usually pick up what look like the two easiest pieces to join and sew them together using either a mattress stitch or an overcast stitch.  I didn't do it on this purse, but sometimes I will use a shiny yarn to sew some pieces together and let that be another element of the design.

Creating the Purse Body

Once the flap was done, I crocheted a simple body using a smooth, dark gray yarn, in a single crochet  stitch, making sure the body was wide enough for the flap to rest on.  Then I sewed the flap to the purse body, then sewed the purse's side seams together, using the overcast stitch, right sides facing.  Then I turned the purse inside out so the right sides were on the outside. 

I plan to line the purse eventually.  I even created a template or pattern for the lining by outlining the body and flap of the purse on taped together printer paper, then adding a seam allowance of about 1/2 inch all the way around the template. 

I've tried sewing a lining onto the body of a purse before I sewed its side seams together.  I didn't like the effect it created, so I will probably create the lining first, sewing the side seams together, folding the flap seam allowance under, then hand stitching the whole thing onto the finished purse.  The purse body has to be inside out to do it this way, then turned right sides out after the lining is in.  But, before I do that, I'll also probably add some interfacing to the flap strengthen it.

Hope all that made sense.  Let me know if you have questions.

Yes, I have been crocheting, but ....

... not writing much about it these days (those YouTube videos sure are handy when you're in a writing slump).

New Freeform Online Exhibit

But I had to come out of writer hibernation to let you know that the International Freeform Fiberarts Guild has a new online show featuring the work of many of its members, including yours truly!          

The theme this year is "Four Seasons."  We were asked to create pieces using any kind of fiber art to represent the four seasons.  Some artists did a piece for each season; others concentrated on one season; still others did two or more.  Since Hawaii only has two seasons, I chose to do two small handbags representing the rainy season and summer.

I'm really pleased with the gray and green rainy season purse, probably because I used a variety of yarns in the flap.  The summer purse is ok, and I debated whether I should make another one, but just didn't get around to doing it. 

In any event, please check out the exhibit to see all of the wonderful creations.

A Confession

Ok, let me get this off my chest.  I have mostly been knitting for the past few months.  I have mentioned in several posts that I am working on the Barbara Walker (nope, no relation) Learn-to-Knit Afghan, thinking it would help me learn a few more knitting skills for the few times that I pick up the needles.  And I have to say, I've learned a lot and am now not quite so intimidated by the intricate patterns I see in all those knitting mags.

Then I decided  it would be a gift for an upcoming celebration (don't want to say too much until it's sent) and realized I'd better get cracking and finish it.  So I am down to the last three of 63 blocks after which I will put a crochet border around all of them, sew the blocks together, crochet a border around the whole thing, machine wash and dry it (ain't acrylic great!!), and then send it off.  Once I do, I'll post photos of the completed afghan.

Until Next Time ...

Next post, I'll talk about how I created the rainy season purse.

Prudence Mapstone's "A Scrumble A Week" Blog

For you freeform fiber arts enthusiasts, I just learned of a new blog by Master Freeformer, Prudence Mapstone of Australia.  She has decided to create a scrumble for each week of 2009.  They are absolutely beautiful and inspiring.  She includes information about how she is making them, so the site is instructional as well.  Please click the LINK to see what I mean.  And be sure to click on each image which gives you a full-screen view of all the intricate details!

Coral, Crochet and Hyperbolic Geometry

I seem to be in a video frame of mind these days.  Not writing very much about crochet.  But I do want to keep posting on a somewhat regular basis.

So here's another great video that I came across on the international freeform fiber crochet forum (thanks, Pirk! about science writer Margaret Wertheim's crochet coral reef project.  I put it in the "freeform" category since the crocheted coral reefs use many freeform techniques in their creation.  Enjoy!  (Sorry that some of the screen is cut off; only way to fit it on the blog).

Extreme Crochet -- Don't Try This At Home!

I found this video in one of my crochet forums.  At first I couldn't figure out what she was doing; but then I realized, omg!, she's crocheting with her body! 

The artist is Inga Dawn Hamilton, and I just discovered she's a member of the International Freeform Crochet forum on Yahoo.  Be sure to check out her website to see some magnificent crochet.

A cute, crochet murder mystery

I just finished reading "Hooked on Murder" by Betty Hechtman (scroll down the sidebar on the right to my book list).  It is the cutest (can't think of a better word) little book!  Not only is the murder mystery convincing (it took me until chapter 20 to figure out "who done it"), it also revolves around the life of a delightful, if a bit eccentric, crochet "sit and stitch" group that meets at a bookstore.

Not quite romantic suspense (there are no love scenes --- shucks!), the protagonist does have a love interest, and I like the fact that she is close to my age and has a point of view that I can definitely relate to.  This doesn't mean younger readers won't get a kick out of it 

A real treat is that the author includes a crochet pattern and a scrumptious recipe at the end of the book.

So if you're looking for a "light" read that will have you chuckling throughout because the crochet world it presents is so familiar, then I highly recommend it.  If you decide to read it, let me know what you  think.

The Pink Project

I wanted to tell everyone about a wonderful project that is being spearheaded by Prudence Mapstone, Australian freeform fiber artist extraordinaire.  It's called The Pink Project.  The inspiration came to Prudence as a result of having participated in the International Freeform Crochet Guild's Coat of Many Scrumbles in which members from around the world sent freeform "scrumbles" to Prudence who then created a magnificent coat, shawl and umbrella.  The articles were exhibited at the 2005 (I think) Crochet Guild of America Knit and Crochet Show.

The goal of The Pink Project is for members to create "pink" scrumbles" which Prudence has volunteered (with some help) to assemble into handbags, scarves, cushions, etc.  Over 200 members participated in creating the most incredible scrumbles you've ever seen. 

First round bidding has already begun.  The highest starting price will be posted next to each item on Wednesday, March 4, 2009.  Then bidding will commence in earnest and will run until midnight, Australian Eastern Standard time on Monday, March 9, 2009.  100% of the proceeds will go to breast cancer research.

Please take some time to check them out at The Pink Project auction blog.  And if you see something you like, consider bidding on it.  I've already placed a bid on an incredible book cover that I hope I win. 

Fabulous Crocheted Artwork

I couldn't think of any other description of Todd Paschall's crocheted pieces than art.  If you haven't seen his  work (and that of his students) yet, then you are in for a treat.  Todd A. Paschall  has developed a unique crochet technique that allows him to reproduce photos in crochet with amazing accuracy and detail. 

I ran across Todd's work a few years ago and swore that I would learn how to do this technique.  But life must have gotten in the way because I never did.  Then, thanks to Ravelry, I rediscovered Todd and was blown away by his Obama projects.  His work is so unique, I just had to feature him on my blog.

Todd tells me that his sister taught him how to crochet when he was 17 years old.   He found it relaxing and enjoyed crocheting while watching TV.  "Nothing fancy," he says.  "Just sc and swatches," which helped him get consistent stitches and even swatches.

Instead of crocheting the usual scarves or sweaters, Todd wanted to do something different.  After crocheting a king-size, solid-color "quilt" to give to his mother one Christmas, he started crocheting swatches that incorporated a single design element -- a peace sign, a three-dimensional "A," and a rainbow. Todd continued to crochet, and also got married, and had two girls.  It was the birth of his son that inspired the photography-based crochet pieces.  After developing the program that creates the pattern, Todd was off and running. 

You can see his results and his students' work at Todd's website.  He has included free patterns that you  can download to experiment with this technique.  All you need to know is single crochet and how to add a new color.  There are also videos that teach you the crochet basics. 

I was surprised to see how fast he's able to create these crocheted photos.  I'm looking forward to trying one out and will post my results here.