Feral Knitter

Another Year Older anda Deeper....

The mystery of life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced.
        ~Aart van der Leeuw

Yesterday was my birthday, and I was a total princess about it! I love it when I can declare a Birthday Weekend--let's keep the party going is my motto. My dear family treated me well--I'm the proud owner of a Heifer sheep, a pair of earrings, and 8 matching cloth napkins (our napkins reflect our motley collection of dishes: no more than any 3 matching and without holes). We enjoyed a drive down iconic Highway 1 north of San Francisco on a sunny day--you could come to believe in eternal life gazing out over the ocean... and Gingko spotted 3 T-shirts for the Abandoned T-Shirt Project.

Because I am now officially a year older, I have made a few resolutions:

1. Join Twitter. 
    Done! @FeralJanine I haven't yet done any formatting or put up my photo, but I've sent my first Tweet, complete with typo.

2. Draw for 15 minutes every day.

3. Do yoga for 15 minutes every day.

4. Learn the functions on my phone, my iPod, and my camera. I'm so tired of having these miracles of modern electronics and not knowing how to use them. Plus, what is more aging than gray hair? Saying, "oh, I just don't know how to [fill in the blank]." Competence is sexy!

Hand/Eye Magazine

... creativity is a by-product of mastery of the sort that is cultivated through long practice.
    ~ Matthew Crawford, Shop Class as Soulcraft

Recently I learned about a new magazine--Hand/Eye--that looked promising. Their mission statement begins: "HAND/EYE is an independent, international publication which explores the nexus between design and development, culture and commerce, art and craft, and environment and ethics. HAND/EYE’s goal is to engender intelligent debate among artisans, exporters, designers, artists, wholesalers and importers, retailers, and consumers so that all may make smart, ethical, and inspired decisions about their activities."

The publication, which is available in print format as an 32-page publication a bit larger than a road atlas or online, is filled with lovely images. Like most advertisement-free magazines, Hand/Eye is not inexpensive ($10 per issue), but if you are passionate about larger issues of craft I can guarantee that you will like it! Although you can access most articles online, I must admit that I prefer the print version--those of you who know me will not be surprised by this. The first issue, with an emphasis on Africa, is filled with lovely images:

 

From Mali Maestro, in Hand/Eye issue 1

The Hand/Eye website has a very thorough article by Michele Whiplinger about dyeing with indigo--I've got my supplies and am now (finally!) beginning to spin for the Fair Isle from Scratch project. Summer is the time to set up a dye pot outside and create some blues.

Post-Knitting Camp Report

If you are as much of a fan of Elizabeth Zimmermann and Meg Swansen as I am, you will recognize the place signs in the photo: EZ lived in Babcock, Wisconsin, and Meg lives in Pittsville.

Yes, I was on my way to Knitting Camp when I took this photo--the sun was shining the entire week, the temperature was moderate, and the humidity low. The drive from Kansas City to central Wisconsin with my friends Greg and Marilyn was quite enjoyable (except for the flat tire on the freeway near Madison).

This year's camp was one of the best--it sped past in a blur of fried food and flashing needles. (Our traditional Wisconsin Fish Fry Friday at Sceeter and Otis' in Hewitt was a chance to order every fried "appetizer" on the menu: fried cheese curds, fried jalapeno poppers, fried cheese munchers, fried macaroni & cheese.)

It's hard to summarize camp--seeing the marvelous work people have done during the year in the show and tell sessions; having a chance to ask Meg questions; laughing during the contest (this year was Recycled Knits--which provoked some pretty wacky entries as well as some quite lovely ones).

A recently discovered EZ sweater that proved to be flattering to many figures (this will be published some time in the future):

 

Meg's very lovely interpretation of a classic Swedish design, which will appear in the next Wool Gathering:

All too soon it was time to say goodbye.

 

I've got a mile-long list of things I want to knit next....

Off to Knitting Camp Again

Yes, the years roll around with their regular markers: Christmas, summer solstice, birthdays, Fourth of July. And, of course, Meg Swansens' Knitting Camp! The airport shuttle picks me up today for the unintuitive itinerary. I fly to Kansas City to meet up with Marilyn van Keppel; from there, we drive north to Iowa City to meet Greg at Fae Ridge Farm, the first of our attempts to perk up the economy. Having spent the night in Iowa to gather our energy, we will set off to visit The Fold and Susan's Fiber Shop, not technically "on the way" to camp in Marshfield, Wisconsin, but we are right-brained fiberists, not left-brain mileagle calculators.

On Thursday evening camp begins with a casual dinner when we get to meet up with friends old and new.

Full report when I return!

P.S. Don't forget the Abandoned T-Shirt Project! (Click the link on the sidebar for more details and an update on my progress.)

Starry Night Progress

Making progress on Starry Night.

For years now we've planned to get patio furniture--and by "years," I mean 17 years! But we never think about it until the sales are done and the snow blowers have arrived in the hardware stores. This year, I suddenly happened upon the perfect table (on sale!) for our small patio--but only 1 chair. Wait--there were 6 still available at one other East Bay store. We were there at the break of day, hoping that no undeserving shopper had snapped them up before us. Slowly, slowly we are turning our backyard into a refuge.

Happy Fourth of July!