The matching scarf.
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As the weather (yes, I'm a little fixated on the weather at the moment aren't I) gets colder, I feel I have let both my children down immeasurably in the winter clothes department. No hand knits for Max. Pia will be out of a lot of her hand knits made by other people fairly soon, and I haven't planned ahead far enough to be equipped. I have just ordered this Hanne Falkenberg kit, though, which may save the day partially till she grows into the Peapod jacket. We have a major sock crisis - I'm extremely picky about socks. Max lives in Gap socks. Which is/was fine when I was travelling regularly and could stock up, but the next travel for anyone in the family to Gap is June. I'm not into superhero socks, or socks with stuff enblazened on them. I want plain red, grey and navy socks.....not having much luck. Pia is currently wearing socks which are more like toe warmers. I just forgot to buy her socks. So when I went looking, I thought it would be quite easy to find some simple plain grey socks and plain white socks. But apparently all girls wear is pink socks. Which, lets face it, don't really go with anything in her wardrobe. Here's a call out to Collete Dinnigan though - I buy a bit of her Enfant range. I justify the cost against the amount I make by hand for Pia, and her sizing is excellent, we've had tremendous wear out what we have so far, and her colours are brilliant. But what I would give for her to do a sock line in a thin lightweight knit to match her clothes......I want the chocolate brown colour she does in socks for girls, I want the deep plum colours, the dusty pink, and some nice deep charcoals. I want these, and these: both types I bought last time I was overseas but which are now either too big for right now for Pia or too small for Max. I even thought about the extreme measure of buying plain white socks and dying them (I'm betting Martha is laughing along with me now) but it's the sock weight thing I'm having trouble finding in this country - this country of fine merino and cotton production which cannot make a decent lightweight fine cotton knit child's sock.
I think that was far too many words on socks. So to change the subject, I am making a little swing jacket for Pia for winter. I'm using the wool/cashmere I got in Melbourne - so soft it hurts to stop fondling holding it, and a big red splotch pattern fabric by Ian Falconer for Andover to line it with. It ties at the front with a gross grain ribbon. And it has irresistable little gathers along the front neck edge. And a lot of hand sewn hemming. And it is, oh so very cute.
I loved everyone's comments about the painting a few posts ago - if anyone is interested in the kneecaps drawing, I uploaded it to Flickr.
Posted at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
It's wet, grey, drizzle weather not that dissimilar to a typical London autumn day. I feel right at home, except the heating isn't on. A day for handmade socks, tracksuit pants, and gentle sewing of hems by hand, followed by some knitting, perhaps some cups of coffee thrown in along the way. Today's Vessel Wednesday is utilitarian. A very cheap small timber bowl from Ikea which sits beside me on my desk. It holds simple gocco printed tags on linen (I use bookbinding linen tape) that I dip into whenever I'm needing a tag. I love them sitting there in a bowl - kind of like biscotti, only linen. I took about 100 photos today trying to get some that weren't grainy - the light in the house is making everything grainy. And then I gave into the grain, and if that is how the light is, I shouldn't try and manipulate it to be something other than what it really is.
Posted at 01:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Remember my other child? The boy child? The one who seems to endlessly need his bottom wiped and can only walk along the street if he's tripping over me or the stroller? The one who has such beautiful observations like 'why can't I feel the ball world rolling around in the sky?' and 'mummy do you have angry eyebrows now? let me see, show me!'. This is the child I imagined I would spend afternoons and mornings doing craft, painting, drawing, etc with. And the same child who really doesn't like doing much of that organised activity at home. Happy to do it at daycare. Not so happy at home. I have to accept he will do things when he wants to, and we have everything there ready to go if he ever asks.....and I have to admit, I'd much rather he did it at daycare where they can clean it all up. Not a politically correct mother thing to say. But, there you go. See, particularly when it comes to painting, when Max gets the paints out, it usually descends into a fairly colourful full body experience. It starts out all nice and lovely, and then somewhere I turn my back for even a split second, and he's stripped off naked, and is rapidly covering himself with paint. He has a penchant for green paint in particular. Usually followed by a fairly gleeful romp through the house. Fabulous. I'm hoping he doesn't do the naked strip at daycare. I'm sure they would have told me if he does.....wouldn't they? And I have to admit I am a little shocked when Max does ask to do any drawing or painting at home. And even more surprised when I see what he draws now. I have a lovely 'man walking through a tunnel, with knee caps' pencil drawing I love - partly because of his detail in both the neck and the kneecaps which were very important to his story, and partly because I had not seen him draw a true person before. I feel rather ashamed to say that. Like somehow I forgot to foster that side of him - which couldn't be further from the truth. But it's a reflection on how little we see of his artwork that it surprises me.
And I love the red train above, which has a coal truck behind it and fire which goes woooshhh!!! (there is even a woooshhh!!! line which you can just see at the bottom of the two circles which are windows). For most people it's a pretty basic painting, and I know kids doing far more elaborate things at the age of 4, but to me it says much, much more. So much so I went out and had it framed.
And then he got the blue paint out.
And then the green came out.....
And you know where that led.
Posted at 09:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (22)
I have that slightly euphoric feeling of having completed something small, yet terribly significant. And to celebrate I'm only going to show a snippet, a mere peak at what will come which is terribly unfair because you really can't share in my euphoria. I could have shown the whole front, but the truth is it needs pressing and steaming, and, really, it needs a back and two sleeves to make a whole and be seen on a suitable model (the button is just for show, I'm waiting for something very special). What you are currently looking at is the left shoulder, where the fold comes across and is secured with a timber button. Subtle shaping through all lines of the fold give it shape and definition, and the whole fold, neck and hemline are asymetric. As a flat piece it looks fabulous even in it's unpressed state. As a worn piece I think it will fall with grace. I think potato will look great mashed in it. And vegemite will blend well with the colouring. This Habu thing. I am in love. I love the blending of fibres, of textures, of colours, I love the freedom to create, to shape, and to experiment. I just love. Full stop.
Posted at 08:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
When I was a wee child, back in the days when surburban shopping centres had haberdashery shops, and small family owned fabric shops were common, we used to frequent one fabric store on our weekly visits to one shopping centre. It wasn't by any means a fabulous fabric shop, but it had a decent range, patterns and sewing things. It also had wide low skirtings that were like seats to my brother and I, and they wound their way through the shop, a little bit like a road system.
They also had a large selection of old timber cones for winding thread onto. My brother and I would spend a decent amount of time in there stacking and moulding these cones into elaborate skyscrapers and then knocking them down. Because they were old and worn, they had a beautiful tactile quality to them - heavy, used, smooth. I had forgotton about these cones until I went through ordering yarn for Sumidity at the beginning of the year. Some of Habu's yarns need to be wound onto timber cones and then wound back onto cardboard cones.
The process - lets call it a ritual - of winding the thread once, and then again, is all that I hold dear about the japanese aesthetic: the complete love and respect for an object or process and it's path of travel into our everyday lives. To many of us it would probably seem to be an over complication to wind twice, but the respect these people have for the fineness of the thread and the end result of the cone/ball/skein is pretty impressive. I think that's why I am loving using their yarn so much. It seems a little like a ritual - to take respect and reverence for the craft you are practising by using good quality materials that have been prepared with care, so that in turn you prepare with care.
It may have seemed at first read that the idea of using sewing thread weight yarn to knit a jumper for a baby while time strapped was possibly a Rather Silly Idea. But in fact it's really quite ok. I am using two threads - one each of merino and ramie and 2.75mm needles and it's coming along quite nicely when I have the chance to knit. It has a great drape, is a reasonably open weave without being overly so, and is quite soft. I knit up the front which has all the shaping and detail work to it, and realised I had completely miscalculated a major part: something I had known since about half way through but needed to see the front as a whole to see exactly where I needed to modify it. I am using the first front as a sample swatch really. I'm now nearing the end of the second front, and the back and sleeves wont take long at all. I really want to get this piece off the needles so I can show what the shaping is and how it works.
There seems to be a bit of a Habu thing going on out there at the moment - Colourknits has done a great scarf and has also set up a flickr group for Habu lovers. I still have some stainless steel cones (amongst other pieces)to knit up, and this drapey shawl is great.
Posted at 09:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
Sometimes there are just enough hours to squeeze in some little extras into my day, or my week. Those little extras which involve some more screenprinting, this time with some charcoal paint which Max helped to mix and was very proud of being a part of this process. He said it looked very pretty. I would definetely agree
Those little extras which give some time to explore piles of fabric, play, pile, play, photograph before indulging in pattern drafting, pinning, cutting and pinning again ready for sewing. This pile? This pile is new linen, printed above, some squirrel fabric from Superbuzzy, grey grossgrain ribbon, wool, some D+G wool pinstripe (not really seen), and some charcoal jersey knit on top.
Those little extra moments of time you manage to find when new books arrive and you need, desperately, to sit down and read them and start making. I LOVE the one on the top. I have already yellow sticky noted it.
That was this week. This weekend is about relaxing with friends away from children and husbands, with a lot of knitting around me, good food, and a full night's sleep.
Posted at 08:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (13)
Nothing like "stuffing latex rubber condoms with hard boiled eggs" for achieving a nice form. 'Tis amazing what information you uncover about things you've bought in the name of Vessel Wednesday.
The Egg Vase sits atop D+G wool pinstripe fabric (only the best) which is being sewn into a reverse kimono top, and dark charcoal grossgrain ribbon which will also be used on the reverse kimono top. It's been a week of cutting patterns and pinning, in that ever decreasing hope the pins will sew themselves up. I love cutting fabric - with the little frisson of excitement that comes from a fear of messing it all up and never being able to rectify it. I have a pile. I am working my way through it. I am spurred on by those who bought, and ordered, linen dresses this week (oh how the heart sings! Thankyou).
Posted at 02:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
DRESS-001 SOLD
Natural 100% linen Top and bottom trim with hand screen printed Floral Squiggle in red (top) and white (bottom). Apron style dress with two ribbon ties at the back (detail below).
Size: 6months - 18months. On a 6mo old baby this will be a big oversized dress. On an 18mo old baby this will be a top. The ties at the back allow room for adjustment.
Cost: $45(aus) + $8(aus) postage and packing. Paypal only.
DRESS-002 SOLD
Natural 100% linen Top and White 100% linen bottom trim with hand screen printed Floral
Squiggle in white (1 repeat on top) and white (3 repeats on bottom). Apron style dress with two
ribbon ties at the back.
Size: 6months - 18months. On
a 6mo old baby this will be a big oversized dress. On an 18mo old baby
this will be a top. The ties at the back allow room for adjustment.
Cost: $45(aus) + $8(aus) postage and packing. Paypal only.
DRESS-003 SOLD
White 100% linen Top and Natural 100% linen bottom trim with hand screen printed Floral
Squiggle in white (1 repeat on top) and white (1 repeat on bottom). Apron style dress with two
ribbon ties at the back.
Size: 6months - 18months. On
a 6mo old baby this will be a big oversized dress. On an 18mo old baby
this will be a top. The ties at the back allow room for adjustment.
Cost: $45(aus) + $8(aus) postage and packing. Paypal only.
For more information on the process and details, see here. Additional photos at flickr.
Email for enquiries: sixandahalfstitchesATgmailDOTcom.
Posted at 08:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (27)