tova

My second Tova, made with lightweight organic cotton.  Jenny's patterns are wonderful to sew.  Did you see her patterns are now available as a PDF?    They are worth every penny.  I wear these shirts over and over, and just want to make more.  Maybe a Tova dress will be next.

I've been thinking about garments and wardrobe and style quite a bit lately... I finally started a pinterest page to make a visual map of my ideas.  I had been resisting the site for some time, but I'm finding it very satisfying to slowly grow a visual collage of my ideas.  It makes concrete what before was just a feeling; seeing it as a whole is illuminating.

I was totally shocked to see how much I am drawn to pinks/lavenders/pale blues combined with my beloved neutrals.  What?  But there it is on the screen, as evidence.  So much so, that I am considering making and buying things I would not have considered before.  And though I still like this Tova shirt, I find I am not really in love with the color of the fabric anymore, one I used to consider a good basic for me.

Anyway, its interesting to see anything in a new light, no?

ps i am elenalgold on pinterest. x.

for little noel

Here's a wee thing I made back in December for a coworker expecting a baby boy between Christmas and New Year's. (They named him Noel, sweet no?)  Such a tiny knit, but then so was the babe; it fit his first few months til he started filling out his rolls and outgrew it.  Caitlin generously gave me perfect buttons from her stash to enhance the literary vibe I was going for, since Noel's Papa works at the library.  Loosely based off this pattern.  I loved the yarn, soft as a worn sweatshirt, machine washable, and makes a denim-y, tweedy fabric that is so cute on little ones.  It's made from 100% recycled fibers! 

jaime, lenore

 

 
*top 2 photos weavings by Jaime Rugh*
*bottom 3 photos of artist Lenore Tawney*  

Top 2 photos show the beginning of my collection of weavings by Jaime.  I remember being so happy to discover her blog and learn more about Jaime's creative process this past winter.  I find her approach to art making really inspiring.  Of course, I couldn't believe my luck when I won an amazing giveaway package from her, which included the weaving in the top photo.  That began our correspondence which includes Charlie's sweater, dear cards, emails, bits of ribbon and toy stop signs, and the tiny tree weaving (2nd photo) which is especially dear to me.  

All this new weaving in my life reminded me of an artist that was a huge inspiration for me when I first learned to knit.  I was studying at an arts program in Chicago and discovered the work of Lenore Tawney right as I was making my very first piece of knitting, a misshapen swatch of lumpy grey wool I took all over Chicago and referred to as "my pelt."  I was very moved by Tawney's hanging works and, lacking a loom but armed with one pair of size 8 bamboo straight needles, set off to teach myself any and every stitch possible so I could make my own hanging fiber sculptures.  

I figured out first how to knit lace, then distort it so I could make fabric with giant ragged holes.  I made a huge 8 foot piece suspended from the ceiling, a kind of net. I created several hanging pieces inspired by Tawney's using an odd double knitting technique to swallow up objects in the textured stitches: sea glass, stones, paper, and whole eggshells.

I had no interest whatsoever in making clothes.  It makes me laugh now.  

But I was very free with it, and fearless.  I had no idea what gauge was, and no concern for perfect even stitches.  (Though after knitting such large pieces by the end of that semester my stitch quality was really good.)

Lenore Tawney was amazing.  I've been inspired all over again by Jaime and Lenore, so I signed up to take a weaving class!  Here's to being fearless.  xx.