Stones & Wool

I recently discovered Nuno emagazine by Elizabeth Abernathy. I couldn't resist buying the first issue. The photography, styling, and projects are gorgeous and inspiring. And the bonus is that she uses reclaimed materials for her projects.

I was quite intrigued by this stones & felt project.

This is definitely a "slow crafting" project, requiring meticulous hand sewing, but the resulting combo of wool felt and stones is so worth it! After encasing my stones in wool, I ended up sewing them together into this amorphous object.

I'd like to revisit this technique and try making some jewelry, which is what Elizabeth did with her project in "Nuno".

I highly recommend checking out her blog and e-magazines...get ready to be inspired!

Prototype

New Friend

I made a new friend...

Casting On

Well, once I got the yarn all spun and washed, I just couldn't wait any longer to cast-on for knitting my Traditional Danish Tie-Shawl.  The yarn is subtly striping the way I'd hoped, and I'm liking the way the charcoal stripes are looking.

My absolute favorite knitting is with my own handspun.

New Laptop Sleeve

Last year I made this groovy laptop case for my computer, using one of my favorite patchwork techniques of mosaicing together small scraps of wool.  I loved how it turned out, but it was just a tad too small for my PowerBook. 

Thanks to generous & thoughtful friends, I was recently able to upgrade my computing to this  MacBook.

Sleeker in design and trimmer than the old PowerBook, it fits the sleeve perfectly, gliding in and out with ease.

Luv.

Re:Boutique Grand Opening

SCRAP's Re:Boutique shop will be having it's grand opening later this month. The shop features handmade items crafted from recycled materials. I'm selling Green Gin's fingerless Mitts for Musing, and small plush Pocket Buns. For those of you readers who live in the Portland, Oregon area, SCRAP is a most excellent resource for recycled craft materials. Come on down and check it out. I hear there will be a Thai food cart in the parking lot!

http://www.scrapaction.org

The Wheel Goes 'Round & 'Round

 

•  I've been taking advantage of this winter's recent inclemency by sitting near the wood stove with my spinning wheel. Last week I spun up this hand-painted BFL top in Lord of the Mountain colorway I bought at last year's Black Sheep Gathering from Crown Mountain. I love, love, love Crown Mountain fibers. The hanks are soft and a joy to spin, barely needing pre-drafting. Each bump of fiber is like a mini-painted masterpiece. I wanted to stretch this top to make as much yarn as I could from it, so I spun it up in a fine singles (fine as I can make, anyway!) using the top as-is (no splitting or dividing). 

 I delved into my substantial stash of naturally dyed fiber (all of those experiments add up!) and pulled these, which somewhat matched the colors in the Crown Mountain top. I spun a singles using long stretches of each color, one after the other, hoping to create a yarn that will have some subtle striping when knit up.

I love how the finished yarn looks. I find that "barber pole" yarn is a beautiful object in itself. As far as knitting it up, it tends to give a tweedy appearance, blending the colors even more. Next time I'll try to spin my singles even thinner, and go for a triple chain-ply, which will keep the colors rather more separated.

My plan for this yarn is to knit a tradition Danish tie-shawl. I've been wanting to make one for ages; I'm attracted to the way the shawl wraps around and ties at the waist, making it practical (& cozy!) for daily use when working around the house. 

I'll be adding in some stripes with this charcoal grey recycled yarn. I've got a huge hankerin' to cast on NOW, but I'm trying to hold off until I make more progress on a top-down sweater I'm working on (my first full-on sweater!). It's been so chilly this winter, that I've been mighty inspired to knit up plenty of warm coziness. I just hope I get them finished in time to give them a bit of wear before the cold weather leaves!

In Progress

A Tardy Arrival to the New Year

Welcome!

I'm finally sewing something special for myself. This is a soon-to-be appliqued sleeve for a hemp-hoodie-wrap-thingie. Mmmm...my favorite color: brown!

I've been exploring new directions with my plush-making.

...as well as continuing production with some tried-and-trues (the ever-lovin' Mitts for Musing).

Some things work better if they sit around for awhile, partially made, waiting for their true final forms to be revealed.

Louie sez "Mrrrrow". (He's my cuddle muse).

Upcoming Green Grin Shows

I'll be participating in three craft shows this season: November 20th, Saturday, 10am-6pm SCRAP's Annual Holiday Bazaar 2915 NE MLK Blvd.(at Stanton), PDX November 28, Sunday, 11am-5pm GIVE Handmade Sale Left Bank Annex 101 N. Weidler, PDX

December 19th, Sunday, 11am-5pm Handmade NW's Formal Holiday Artisan's Fair The Acadian Ballroom 1829 NE Alberta St., PDX All of the shows are free of charge, and there will be live music and food available. Good times! I'm super excited to unveil my latest Green Grin-ness and get out & interact with the world. Sure, I have tons of cute, cuddly friends with me in the studio, but it's just not the same as smiling and laughing with real humans. I have the grooviest new business cards/labels, thanks to the lovely and talented Fran. We've more exciting projects in the works...stay tuned...

I'll have the largest collection of Mitts for Musing that I've ever had at one time! (they'll go fast!...)

Random cuteness, of course.

It's always hard to know when to stop creating and when to start packing everything up for the show...