Monday 10 November 2014

A Hand-Picked Cotton Post


Since today is the second, or "cotton" anniversary of this blog, I thought I'd pick out and write about some off-beat ways to work with cotton for this post. For instance, it appears it's possible to make yarn out of drugstore cotton balls (the pure cotton ones, not the synthetic kind), using wire hair brushes, rubber bands, and a couple of old CDs or DVDs. Let me know how that works for you.





It's possible to make art yarn like that depicted above out of yarn reclaimed from old cotton sweaters.






The video above explains how to make twine from scraps of cotton fabric.





I've previously covered creating and working with t-shirt yarn. This blog post will tell you how to make cotton fabric yarn such such as that shown above by cutting a sheet into a continuous strip.





If making yarn your own yarn isn't your thing, you can whip up a nice summer top using a scarf and some crochet cotton. This yoke and trim is crocheted, but could easily be knit instead.





If you have any old cotton sweaters lying about that you no longer care to wear, they can be put to other good uses. You can make baby washcloths like those above from an old cotton sweater.





Cotton sweaters can also be made into summer handbags, such as the one above.





Here's another style of upcycled sweater bag.





Or you could make a simple shoulder bag like this one. I don't have a source or a tutorial for this one, but it should be possible to replicate it from the picture.

Two Years of Knitting Damage


Today is the second anniversary of The Knitting Needle and the Damage Done. Are you surprised that I've kept at it this long? You are? You would, you say, describe your reaction as beyond "surprised" and verging on "stunned"? Hey, I promise you you're not so much so as I am. In November 2012 I launched this blog almost on impulse, with less thought than what I would normally put into a shoe purchase, wildly underestimating how much time and effort it would take as I am far too prone to do, and yet... I put in the time, and here I am two years later, still posting away. And I suppose at bottom the main reason I have done so is because I find the work involved in maintaining this site and its accompanying Facebook page to be a lot of fun. Researching knitting history and technique is fascinating. Scrolling through photos showing the full spectrum of what can be done with two sticks and string is an unending source of awe and hysteria. And being able to air my snark on the latest offerings of knitwear design to an actual, voluntary audience is the best thing ever. To put what this site has meant to me in a better context for you, I will say that this past year hasn't been a good or happy one for me. My mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, the tenant of the basement apartment of my house made a sudden and unexpected departure, leaving behind a sizable rental arrears and a disgustingly filthy, garbage-filled, and damaged apartment, I wasn't able to get much freelance editing work, the lack of both rental and professional income in turn created serious financial difficulties for me, there were some even more personal and painful factors at work, and the chronic fatigue issues I've had for years made all of the above that much harder to cope with. Looking back, I see that, after my mother's seeming recovery (and the fact that Toronto will be getting a new, sober, law-abiding, and hopefully competent mayor December 1st), authoring this blog has been one of the few good things about this year, lending it a structure and focus and reliably providing me with enjoyment and gratification and hope for the future during a time when those things were in very short supply.

While I intend to keep enjoying this site for what it is, I am hoping the coming year will see more of a rise in traffic than this year has. As of its first anniversary, this blog was getting a little less than a thousand visits daily, which wasn't bad for a year-old site. Then I cut back my posting schedule from daily to three times a week. While I knew this would mean some decrease in site visits, I hoped it wouldn't mean more than, say, a 10% drop in traffic, but this proved to be overly optimistic. My daily traffic was immediately cut in half, and stayed in the 400s, or even below that, for a full nine months. There were disheartening times last spring when it dropped to not much over 200. Since September I've seen a steady surge of growth and at present traffic is only a little below what it was a year ago. Here's hoping this year sees an actual gain in traffic. It will help that the Facebook page for this site has done encouragingly well this year. As of November 10th, 2013, it had 1,089 likes. It now has over 3,700, which means my efforts at directing traffic from there to this blog have been correspondingly more fruitful.

As this anniversary approached and I measured the blog's progress by comparing metrics, I also gave some thought to how my attitude towards knitting has changed over the past two years, and with it my approach to this blog. I'm definitely steering away from the "crazy knitter" shtick that informs so much of the conversation about knitting on the net. Perhaps I've just seen too many of them, but all those photo memes about how big the stash is/how many unfinished projects are lying around the house/how we pissed off our spouses and spent the kids' college funds or retirement funds on yarn seem so tiresome and unfunny to me now. I never really was a crazy knitter with a huge stash and umpteen works-in-progress, and my own approach to knitting has become even more disciplined over time. I now try to take a needs-based approach to project planning. This means that I begin my project planning by identifying a need. I'll say to myself, "I could use a sweater to go with a skirt I own that doesn't work with anything else in my closet," or "My slippers are worn out and I need new ones," or, "A friend or family member is pregnant and I want to make a gift for the baby," and then seek out the perfect patterns for those purposes, as opposed to my project start point being, "OOOOH THAT PATTERN IS SO BEAUTIFUL I MUST MAKE IT FOR THE SHEER LOVE OF MAKING IT," which as often as not tends to lead to my making something that gets little or no use because it doesn't work for the intended recipient's figure and/or lifestyle.

My other resolves are that I will only work on one thing at a time, that I will make a concerted effort to whittle down my (not terribly large) existing stash to about half its current size, and that I will only buy yarn specifically for a project I intend to knit in the very near future. I've bought just three lots of yarn and one extra skein this past year, and, aside from whatever yarn was left over, that yarn has all been knitted into its intended form. Believe it or not, I actually went to the Spinrite summer sale in August armed with the yarn specifications for three upcoming projects and did not buy any yarn, even though there was a pile of bargain-priced sequined teal mohair laceweight calling my name, because I had no immediate use for that mohair and could not find any yarn that was right for any of the three projects I was planning on making. The purpose of these rules is much less about saving money than it is about preventing waste. I have better and more immediate uses for my money and my storage space than stockpiling yarn for an indefinite length of time. I want to make sure everything I knit suits a purpose and gets used. And I hate the feeling that I get from seeing unused yarn and unfinished projects lying about — it fusses me and makes me feel perpetually inadequate and behind schedule, which is not what knitting should be about.

I don't think this blog has ever really been about the crazy knitter shtick, but my shift in attitude has been apparent on its Facebook page, where these days you are more likely to see things like runway knitwear, project ideas, technical tips, and links to interesting patterns or helpful tutorials than crazy knitter-type memes. Facebook inadvertently helped me improve the quality of the page by changing their algorithms so that I, along with all other Facebook users, found that postings from pages I had liked disappeared from my newsfeed (unless I made a point of clicking like on everything I liked, and who can be bothered doing that?), so that I was forced to seek out my own unique shares instead of just sharing from other knitting Facebook pages. And a pox on Facebook for deliberately making their site less usable for everyone in an effort to force page managers like me to spend money on boosting their posts, but it has been a good thing for all the Facebook knitting pages, because we were all passing around the same memes like they were so many strains of the flu, and there's little reward for our readers in visiting different knitting pages if they all feature pretty much the same shares. Another change that I've made to the Facebook page is the inauguration of "Menday", which means that on Mondays I post some things that are specifically selected for their possible interest to the male knitter. I was hoping to attract more male readers and also to do my bit to make the knitting scene more gender inclusive, but Menday has been well-received by my female readers as well. After all, we women knitters have men in our lives to knit for (significant others as well as male family members and friends), and it can be hard to find menswear patterns that have some style. I'm now thinking of instituting some other theme days, like, say, vintage knitting on Thursdays (since there's an existing Throwback Thursday internet custom), runway looks on Friday ("Fashion Friday"), and home decor stuff on Saturday, because many of us are at home being all domestic on that day. Having such focal points helps me find better quality shares and makes the contents of the page more balanced.

There have not been too many changes to this blog itself this past year (I did add an FAQ), and I don't at present plan on changing much in the year to come. I would like to keep more strictly to my three-times-a-week posting schedule, as I know I've missed a number of days in the past year. I'd also like to bring a more technical perspective to my knitting reviews, but that will probably be a gradual change as I work on becoming a more technically accomplished knitter myself. Otherwise, as always, I am open to suggestions from my readers.

And too, I'd like to ask that if you enjoy this site, that you help ensure its continued existence by helping to spread the word about it. Please pass along links to the blog and to posts that you especially like, not only directly to your knitting friends, but also to a more general audience on whatever other social media platforms and community websites you use, and on your own blog if you have one.

And let's look forward to another year of snark-filled knitting reviews, bizarre knitting fables, selections of theme patterns, fun videos, and other weird and wonderful knitting-related items, shall we?

Friday 7 November 2014

Nudinits



Check out this stop animation video, Nudinits, for some anatomically correct knitting. This videe takes us into the village of the Nudinits, who "are the quirky inhabitants of Woolly Bush, a village bursting with Britishness and bare bottoms". Nudinits also has a Facebook page, which is also, as you might expect, very cheeky.

Wednesday 5 November 2014

Spotlight on..... Designer Svetlana Gordon


A few weeks ago I came across this photo on Pinterest and posted it to this blog's Facebook page. I'm sure you won't be surprised to read it attracted quite a lot of attention (350 likes, 170 shares, 44 comments), because the coat is an undeniably stunning piece of design. When I tracked down the source of the picture, it proved to be the work of designer Svetlana Gordon, also known as Tashashu. When I looked at the patterns Gordon has listed for sale on Ravelry (and sorry to disappoint but this pattern for this coat isn't among them), I made two discoveries: I had already featured one of her other designs on Facebook; and all the rest of her work was on par with this coat. In this post, let's have a look at some examples of Svetlana Gordon's wonderful work.





This is the Blue Willow Shawl. The pattern is available for $5.00(USD). Many of Svetlana Gordon's designs have a unique blend of modern edge and a wealth of rich detail. Most contemporary design is simpler than this.





The Murano Scarf, which is like stained glass translated into yarn. The pattern is available for $5(USD).





It seems Svetlana can't design even a simple pumpkin decorative piece without turning it into something eye catchingly special. This Decorative Pumpkin pattern is available for $2(USD) and comes with optional crocheted spider instructions.





This "house coat" is from Gordon's Facebook page. I'd be more inclined to turn this into an afghan than a coat, but that street scene is too charmingly rendered for words.





Adorable cabled mini-dress, also from Gordon's Facebook page.





This Morocco Coat is simpler and more practical and wearable than the coats above, but still very striking.





This lovely jacket design uses Gordon's Autumn Leaves stitch, the instructions for which are for sale on Ravelry for $4(USD).

You can see more of Svetlana Gordon's work in her store on Ravelry and on her Facebook page, and she has an online store. You won't regret any time you take to check out her work as, though I've focused only on her knitwear design in this post, she also works in fabric and leather, and all her work is quite amazing. After looking at all of Gordon's work while researching this post, I can only say she is insanely talented, and definitely ranks among the very best of the designers I've come across in two years of writing this blog.

Monday 3 November 2014

Interweave Knits Winter 2014: A Review


Interweave has published the Winter 2014 issue of Interweave Knits. Let's have a look at it, shall we?





The Fall River Cowl has a nice texture and sits well.





The Quivira Coat. This is a classic Aran coat and the texture is good, but the shaping could do with a little work, such as raising the dropped shoulders and shaping the ribbed neckband so that it sits better.





The Moraine Jacket. I like this one, though I think I'd replace that tied belt with a leather one, or perhaps add a metal buckle to a knitted belt.





The Muir Wrap. I'm not taken with the colours used here, but this is one visually striking wrap.





The Hudson Wrap. This looks too much like an afghan to work as a wrap, but I will say it is quite a nice afghan.





The Bear Lake Cowl. Love the texture of the piece, but not the way it sits. This is one of those "flat tire hung around the neck" cowls.





The Ozark Wrap. Nice piece, but again it's too much like a blanket to work as apparel.





The Tanawha Wrap. This one is just small enough to work as an oversized wrap. Interesting texture and nice colour.






The Zuni Cardigan. Good design. The shawl collar sits well (a lot of shawl collars don't), and the colourwork is subtle and interesting. I wouldn't include the tie belt, though, and I'd advise against knitted tie belts for most people. It's a difficult look to pull off. It isn't even doing this professional model any favours. Waist shaping is a much safer bet.





The Bozeman Hat. Nice slouchy tam in a beautiful colour.





The Trapper Cowl. Very cleverly done knitted tartan pattern.





The Ice Rink Pullover. Love this one. The shape, texture, and cowl neckline are all very well done and make the sweater both comfortable and comely.





The Kittery Point Cardigan. Very pretty new take on the fair isle cardigan.





The Siobhan Blouse. I like this design but would replace the tassel with another cable device. Including the tassel makes this look like something Lady Mary Crawley of Downton Abbey would wear in order to save herself the trouble of actually having to rise from her seat in order to ring for her maid Anna when she wants her hair combed.





The Cocoa Cardigan. Lovely simple cardigan with some distinctive detailing.





The Quadrille Pullover. Nice little pullover with terrific latticed cabled texture. I don't think the choice of a three quarter sleeve length is working that well here, but they are easily lengthened.





Pearl Lake Mitts. Very cute fingerless mitts.





The Caterpillar Cowl. This lace edged cowl has that sad flat tire look when it's worn single, but it looks ever so pretty when worn doubled.





The Modest Pullover. Nice simple pullover, though I think there are better yarn choices for this design. I'd go with a flecked rather than a variegated yarn.





The Wind at Your Back Pullover. This one has good lines and good texture.





The Matalina Pullover. Love this one. The texture's attractive and interesting and as you can see this sweater is unusually flattering for a cabled sweater.

Friday 31 October 2014

Mother and Urnie Knitting Things



This video from It's Alive, a late night horror show webcast based in Pittsburgh, PA, Mother has some unwelcome news for Urnie. She's late. Fifty-six years late, to be precise.

Wednesday 29 October 2014

The Knitwear of Oscar de la Renta


As those of you who read my knitting magazine reviews may have noticed, I won't generally include the names of the knitwear designers whose patterns appear in them. My main reason for not doing so is that I think it would make my negative reviews too much like a personal attack on the designer. It would also mean my snark about their work would come up on Google searches for their names. So I keep the reviews focused on the merits of the specific item in question, and only name the designer when I think she or he is especially deserving of praise. But although my practice of not naming designers has become a policy with a carefully considered rationale, it wasn't originally so. No, when I first began writing reviews nearly two years ago, I didn't name the designers in them because I never thought of doing so. I'm not one to care much about name designers and labels. For me, it's all about the design, about looking at patterns on a case by case basis. And it seems like a reasonable approach to me because while there are exceptionally talented designers out there who turn out a very consistent body of work, many are hit or miss, and all of them are capable of laying an egg sometimes. I also don't think the famous designers are necessarily the best designers, because much of the most stunning work I've seen in the course of research and writing for this site was by some relatively unknown designers I stumbled across on Ravelry. This agnosticism regarding prestige designer names is an integral part of my entire approach to crafting. As I wrote in this March 2013 post, "The Mount Everest of Knitting Patterns", my belief is that when one makes one's own clothes one needs to be one's own designer, to make patterns one's servant and not one's master. It's so important when crafting anything to make an effort to maintain a certain critical distance from all outside design influences in order to make sound decisions about what will work and to guard against being overcome by slavish adherence to someone else's design and rules because as good as those may be, they weren't, after all, tailor made for you.

All of the above preamble is intended as an aside to explain why, when Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo, known professionally as the designer Oscar de la Renta, died of cancer on October 20th, 2014 at the age of 82, it didn't make much of an impression on me. I certainly knew who he was and realized that he was considered legendary, but I wasn't that familiar with his work. And it was only after seeing all the Oscar de la Renta tributes on the websites and webpages I follow to keep myself somewhat informed about what's going on in the knitting and fashion scene that it occurred to me that I perhaps ought to do an Oscar de la Renta post myself. It took one image Google of the words "Oscar de la Renta" to make me decide that perhaps I also ought to reconsider my indifference towards name designers; that I ought to at least take the time to occasionally look at their work as a whole in order to gauge its general calibre and character. As I scrolled through images of Oscar de la Renta designs, dozens of beautiful confections were followed by dozens more. There is a reason why de la Renta dressed so many movie stars, royal and political figures including many American first ladies that he became a living legend: he was past master of elegantly and distinctively simple design. He is probably best known for his evening gowns, though as his long career progressed he diversified into bridal wear, home furnishings, and fragrances, but he also designed knitwear. And this post will feature a selection of his knitwear design. I've opted not to include any of the Vogue Knitting-published de la Renta patterns that are on Ravelry. They're all nice, but none of them really stands out to me. Instead I have included a selection of photos of the knitwear design that bears his name for your inspiration and replication.





Navy sweater and skirt set offering us an updated take on the polka dot fabric. I think those circles have been created by stitching beads in circles, and possibly cutting out the centre of the circle. The skirt seems to be self-lined while the sweater shows us glimpses of the blouse beneath it.





Beautifully shaped and detailed knitted dress. I love the kick pleats in the front and back, which are a great way to add interest and movement without making the silhouette too full.






This design is one of those that I could never wear but that gets my creative juices flowing, because the idea of those silver rose outlines against pale pink is one I would love to see translated into various handknit patterns.





I love this use of gradient colourwork, which is fresh and spring-like.





Many Oscar de la Renta designs have such a timeless quality. This sweater evokes the forties and probably could have been worn back then without looking at all out of place, but at the same time it looks very current.





Another good use of gradient colour, combined with great shaping.





Love this piece, which looks comfortable and casual enough to wear with jeans but has such incredible style at the same time.





I can't even quite tell what's going on with this design of this little cardigan, and how it is made. It seems to be knitted of some chiffon fibre and decorated with chiffon roses. I find the concept of a sheer cardigan with a textured decorative overlay around the neck to be an intriguing one that I would love to see interpreted by other skilled designers and knitters.





Something that I noticed about Oscar de la Renta's designs when I was researching this post is that wonderful sweater and dress pairings were very common among his offerings. Everything about this pairing is perfect, from its lines to its colour combination.





A beautiful lace cardigan over a coordinating dress.





Ever thought of embroidering a sweater to go with a favourite dress?