Something Finished, Something New

I love to learn new things and to try different techniques, and my head is spilling over with ideas and future projects, which means that I’m pretty easily distracted, although I prefer to think that I have an inquiring mind. I always have a number of different projects going on all at once, and an even greater number of UFOs that may or may not become finished products. Every now and then, though, I do finish a project, which gives me great satisfaction. Last weekend I finished two projects. Firstly, a hand embroidered piece that was shipped off to an amazing person overseas (I will publish an image later), and secondly, the knitted and crocheted wrist warmers that I started working on in January. Now I’m off to work on an art doll and the Franka wall quilt. – Or so I thought.

This week I’ve continued decluttering my home – a Herculean task – and found a bag of gorgeous yarn that I’ve been saving. So, there I went again, off in another direction, and I started knitting a slipover for myself. Well, my excuse is that it’s all part of the decluttering process. I need to find a good place to store the yarn, and what storage is better than actually finishing and wearing it?

Another thing I unearthed in my decluttering frenzy was an apron pattern by Meg McElwee of Sew Liberated, which I bought a couple of years ago. This project has been on and off my mind since then, while my old apron has slowly deteriorated. I also found the fabrics that I’d put aside for the apron and figured that the best storage for them would be the place where I store my apron. So I started cutting out the pattern pieces.

In conclusion, the situation now is that I finished two projects and started four new. It’s pretty normal for me, I guess. It will take some time to finish them, but I have faith in these projects. I don’t think they’ll end up in the UFO-bin. I’ll keep you posted on my progress.

 Finished wrist warmers. Knitted base, crocheted flounces. 

Based on a pattern in Solveig Hisdal’s Dikt i maskor.

 

 Doll in progress. The fabric has been dyed and the pattern pieces are ready for sewing.

 Slipover in progress. Yarn: Freedom Spirit by Twilleys of Stamford

 Apron in progress. Fabric: my granddad’s old table cloth. 

The apron is reversible, so the other side will be something less Christmasy.

 Franka in progress. I started defining the pattern elements on the printout. 

This project will be a challenge, but I like that.

The coolest way to dye

Det kommer bara mer och mer snö i Helsingfors. Nu är 1/4 av mitt köksfönster täckt av snö. Min utsikt när jag sätter mig ner vid köksbordet är alltså en aning begränsad. Men visst är det vackert! Utedekorationerna jag köpte på Ekenäs julmarknad på lördagen för en vecka sedan kommer till sin rätt i det här vädret.

Eftersom det inte verkar bli någon brist på snö i första taget, bestämde jag mig för att göra ett till experiment med snöfärgning. Den här gången blandade jag två olika färger (magenta och ultramarin) och det blev ett ganska coolt resultat. Skrålla ner så får du se en jämförelse mellan de två experimenten. Är inte det här bokstavligen det coolaste sättet att färga tyg på?

Jag har också sytt en liten tavla åt en kär vän i Edinburgh, som jag hoppas hinner fram till jul. Jag vill att hon ska vara den första som ser tavlan, så jag erbjuder bara en liten tjuvtitt här på bloggen. Det var ursprungligen meningen att tavlan skulle se helt annorlunda ut (se UFO nr 3), men jag fick det inte att funka, så jag bytte plan. Den skotska poeten Liz Lochhead säger i dikten A Giveaway

if the rhythm's not right, it's not right,
it's simple
you've got to cut and cut and cut.
Rewrite.

Så jag tänkte om och nu är jag tillfreds.

På tal om UFO:n... UFO nr 1 blev faktiskt ett FO (Finished Object) och har fått ett nytt hem! Skrålla ner så får du hälsa på henne.


The coolest way to dye

We're getting more and more snow in Helsinki. At the momet 1/4 of my kichen window is covererd in snow. My view when I sit down at the kitchen table is therefore slightly limited. But it's oh, so pretty! The decorations I bought at the Ekenäs Christmas market on Saturday a week ago are really looking their best in this weather.

Since it doesn't seem to be any shortage on snow for a while, I decided to do another experiment with snow-resist dyeing. This time I mixed two different colours (magenta and ultramarine) and the result was really cool. Scroll down and you'll see a comparison between the two experiments. Isn't this quite literally the coolest way to dye?

I've also made a small quilt for a dear friend in Edinburgh, which I hope will reach her in time for Christmas. I want her to be the first person who sees the quilt, so I'm only offering a sneak peek on my blog. I originally planned this quilt in a completely different way (see UFO No. 3), but it just didn't work for me, so I changed my plan. The Scottish poet Liz Lochhead writes in her poem A Giveaway:

if the rhythm's not right, it's not right,
it's simple
you've got to cut and cut and cut.
Rewrite.

So I rethought it, and now I'm at peace.

Speaking of UFOs... UFO No.1 actually became a FO (Finished Object) and has got a new home! Do scroll down and say hello to her.

Vy från mitt köksfönster

View from my kitchen window

Snöklädd dekoration från Ekenäs

Snow-clad decoration from Ekenäs

Snöfärgning - coola mönster

Snow-resist dyeing - cool patterns

Glimt av tavlan jag skickade till Skottland

A glimpse of the quilt I sent to Scotland

Dockan som flyttade till Sverige

The doll that moved to Sweden

Får jag lov att presentera...

min nyaste docka, som jag har tänkt ska vara mitt paradnummer på Kvinnornas julmässa om knappt två veckor. Jag gillar att jobba i 3D, och dockor är ett kul projekt om man vill testa olika designtekniker. Dockornas kroppar baserar sig på dockkonstnären Patti Medaris Culeas mönster, men kläder och accessoarer fantiserar jag ihop själv. Det tar ibland ganska länge att få alla bitar på plats, för jag är noga med att alla detaljer ska kännas rätt för just den dockan. Jag grubblade länge över vad den här damen skulle ha i händerna innan jag kom på att hon skulle hålla en nyckel. Om åskådaren är som jag, så börjar hon eller han undra vart nyckeln leder, och då bildas det en berättelse kring dockan. Det gillar jag. 


May I introduce...

my latest doll, which is going to be my main show piece at the Womens's Christmas Fair in less than 2 weeks' time. I like working in 3D, and a doll is a fun project for trying out different design techniques. The doll's body is based on the doll artist Patti Medaris Culea's patterns, but clothes and accessories are fruits of my own imagination. Sometimes it takes quite a while to get all the pieces in place, because I want every detail to feel right for the doll in question. I was contemplating what this lady should hold in her hands for a long time before I decided that she was going to hold a key. If the viewer is anything like me, she or he will wonder what the key leads to, and then a story starts to unfold. I like that.

Tjuvtitt

Mamma och jag ska delta i Kvinnornas julmässa (2-6.12) här i Helsingfors i år igen. Det är nu tredje året som vi är där och säljer våra alster. Mamma säljer pulsvärmare (hon intervjuades av ÖT nyligen; klicka på de små pilarna för fler bilder) och andra stickade accessoarer och jag har lite av varje, både stickat och sytt. Hoppas jag. Som vanligt är jag ute i sista minuten. Det är två veckor sedan mitt senaste blogginlägg och under den tiden har jag försökt färdigställa mina julmässa-UFO:n (pulsvärmare med pärlor) och komma lite längre på en konstdocka som jag hoppas kunna sälja. I går målade jag dockans ansikte (ett av de moment jag fruktar mest och gillar bäst) och sydde hennes korsettliv. I dag har jag tillverkat sandaler och pulsvärmare. Bara limmet torkar på sandalerna kan jag börja plocka ihop de olika delarna. Just nu ligger armar, ben, kropp och huvud utspridda på olika ställen på mitt skrivbord...

Skrålla ner för en tjuvtitt på några av de saker jag kommer att erbjuda på julmässan.



Sneak peek

My mum and I will be at the Women's Christmas Fair (2-6 December) in Helsinki again this year. This is the third year we go there to sell our handmade stuff. Mum sells wrist warmers (she was interviewed by a local newspaper recently; click on the little arrows to see more images) and other knitted accessories, and I have a little of this and that, both knitted and sewn. I hope. As usual I started at the very last minute. It's been two weeks since my last blog post, and during that time I've tried to finish some of my Christmas fair-UFOs (beaded wrist warmers) and make some progress on an art doll that I'm hoping to sell. Yesterday I painted her face (one of the stages that I fear most and like best) and constructed her bodice. Today I've constructed her shoes and wrist warmers. As soon as the glue dries on the shoes, I will be able to put together the different parts. At the moment her arms, legs, body and head are scattered all over my desk...

Below is a sneak peek of some of the things I will offer at the fair.

 Dockans pulsvärmare och sandaler - Dolly's wrist warmers and shoes

Pulsvärmare med pärlor - Beaded wrist warmers