Knot Knecessarily Known Knitting

I've written a little bit about exhibiting knit and crochet . One of the reasons quilting is taken seriously as an art form is that quilters exhibit their work. They also keep records. If a scholar wants to research the connection between a quilt pattern and a particular group of people in a particular time and place, there is the possibility they can do so. Even if a quilt is in poor condition, non-quilters recognize its value. They appreciate that time and skill were involved in its creation. But if you have ever crawled the aisles of a second-hand store such as Goodwill, you will see that non-knitters and non-crocheters do not always recognize the value of the work. It is not uncommon to find a crocheted afghan languishing in a second-hand store. Not all of these are great works of art, but they are the result of time and skill. Very often they are a physical manifestation of love. Keeping records of what we've made and exhibiting those items as works of fiber art are th...

In addition to being involved with both knitting guilds in Atlanta -- and occasionally one in Maryland -- I'm also a member of Textile Appreciation Society of Atlanta. If the guilds are the artists, then TASA members are the patrons. I love attending their quarterly events just to see what everyone is wearing! This quarter's event was an excursion to a pair of wonderful textile exhibits at The Ernest G. Welch School of Art and Design Gallery at Georgia State University . Yes, this in downtown Atlanta. I took MARTA to the Five Points Station. If you exit towards Peachtree Street, just cross the street and walk a couple short blocks north towards Woodruff Park. Turn right and walk west a couple blocks on Edgewood Avenue. The gallery is on the corner of Peachtree Center Avenue SE and Gilmer Street SE. They both sort of intersect Edgewood Avenue at one of those strange multi-street intersections that seem to be too common in Atlanta. You'll notice the gallery off to the right...

On my recent trip to the West Coast I took two projects -- the handspun swirl jacket, and the Carolyn jacket. I did do quite of bit of knitting. In fact, I did enough that I ran out of yarn for the swirl. And since it was handspun, I couldn't make more until I got home. With the Carolyn jacket I didn't have any knitting with me. Rather, I had worked two side panels and was ready both to sew in the side panels and to hem the jacket. I'm not sure how long the Carolyn jacket has been in my stash -- probably four or five years. I purchased it at one of the early North Georgia Knitting Guild annual auctions. The jacket begins with a beautiful fully-lined but unfinished kinomo-style bodice. It lays over the torso in almost the same way as a liturgical vestment or tabbard, since the sides are unseamed. The instructions recommend doing some gauge swatches. After getting the proper numbers, you are directed to cast on ribbing and work back and forth for the cuffs, work the sleeves...

Ok, I really did not mean to get wrapped up in how many different ways there are to create a spiral in pattern. In my defense, I did mention the perfectionism at the start. After many tries, I have here a pattern that I am willing to post. And many, many comments to go with it. There are several ways to start a center. I hadn't realized how many. The example in natural uses a 7st center. The very first row is in seed st. Unfortunately, the seed st is somewhat obscured by the increases in the second round. Another variant (at right, in magenta), uses an 8 st center. The first row is all knit, and the seed st is not established until the increase round. Both of these beginnings involve merely wrapping the yarn around a knitting needle and then threading the loose end back through with a tapestry needle. This makes a beginning that looks exactly the same as an ending -- i.e. an end bit of yarn runs through all the loose loops and pulls them together into one tight little bind. Last ti...

I'm a recovering perfectionist. After admitting the problem -- and really, it IS difficult to admit that striving for the very best in everything is a fault -- I've tried to focus this energy into specific projects. Perfectionism is a really bad thing in relationships. Thus, I keep it out of my marriage and instead put it into my knitting practice. My intention in the coming weeks is to post pictures and notes of my assorted knitting experiments. Like any artistic endeavor, some things work brilliantly as planned, some don't, some are better for not having worked as planned, and some lead to other paths and other places not yet imagined. In keeping with the holiday season, I recently knitted a Christmas stocking to contribute to the charity knitting at the North Georgia Knitting Guild . These will be given to a local hospital so that the babies born during the holiday season go home in a stocking instead of in a blanket. My contribution is the stocking you see in today'...