Sarah’s patterns are easy to knit but need a chunk of time to assemble. These three animals used almost an entire bag of polyfill (I chose not to stuff them with wool, as the panda was really quite big and I wondered if the wool might get a bit felted over time).
The last time I knit patterns from this book, there were mental notes about what I might do differently next time. Did I remember them? Of course not.. but this time I’m writing it down.
Knitted Wild Animals by Sarah Keen
Leave 8″ long tails at the cast on and bind off edges to seam your pieces together.
If you have difficulty identifying the cast on and bind off edges, tie a bow on the cast on tail to help you remember which is which.
Tie sets of arms, legs, horns… everything that’s knit in twos and keep them together until the seaming begins
Consider knitting pieces in the round on double pointed needles (the shorter, the better). The legs, arms and horns could have been knit in the round for the giraffe, elephant and panda. The body sections for the panda and elephant could be, too. Just put markers in between the 2 pieces so your increase and decrease points are easy to identify.
So, there! Now, have you knit patterns from this book? I’d love to hear your tips about what worked for you.
Huzzah for the fine board members and volunteers of the Common Cod Fiber Guild! Not only did they hold another fantastic Ignite Craft Boston in January, but their video recordings are up!
Here’s my 5 minutes of quick enlightenment on the different ways to quilt a sandwich.
In celebration of Boston Design Week, I had the pleasure of visiting the Morse Study Room to view selections from the Print and Drawings Collection. Meghan Melvin, Sharf Curator for Design, selected a variety of ephemera that represent the stories and secrets of furniture design, textile and fashion, banking service, graphic art and even interior design for cars. I could have listened to Meghan talk for hours! Hopefully she did not sense my internal pandemonium as I forced myself to leave after the 30 minute tour. Tiny fireworks sparked ideas, evolving into whirling thoughts which eventually I distilled into four categories:
The ephemera of my design process
The challenges of conserving such an enormous range of objects and untangling their mysteries
The opportunities to research new project inspiration in museum collections
How digital design will change future ephemera: Will historians’ and curators’ work become easier or more difficult as our creative process and presentations transfer from physical to digital representation?
Historic New England encourages people to contribute supporting documentation and tools for their collection that reflects New England life. Perhaps the things we create should be documented more clearly? Should cleaning up after a finished design or quilt take on a different meaning?
When Janet invited us when the Rowan yarn rep stopped by in February, I had no idea I would fall for their new bulky weight ribbon yarn called Cotton Lustre. When Jess first showed the ball of ribbon yarn, we were all a bit “Eh.” When she showed us the knit swatch, we all said “Ah.”
The first bags of Cotton Lustre arrived without the pattern books, so it was time to take matters into my own hands. Thus, with 2 skeins of Lustre, I whipped up any airy kerchief in a lace mesh pattern, which I share here with you!
The stars have entire armies of people dedicated to telling them how fabulous they are every day of their lives. You have a mirror. Get in front of it and be your own publicist, darling.
This fabulous quote from Tom Fitzgerald and Lorenzo Marquez’s giggle read, “Everyone wants to be me or do me” could be a motto for many.
As I sit on sides of the Lincoln Center Plaza, watching young stylists, models, photographers grasp a bit of that Fashion Week feeling, considering their quest for fame and fortune, it seems a bit preposterous. On the other hand, how many other people are their own worst enemy?
You are fabulous dahling. Go out and share that brilliance with the world!
