After a busy few weeks, time for some gentle knitting. Firstly off the needles my second herringbone rib sock. The first sock was finished last November!
They really shouldn't have taken as long as they did, though I managed to lose them in the abyss that is the spare room, which is my excuse and I'm sticking to it. If I hadn't had such a long break whilst making these, I'm sure I would have found them much easier. The pattern is well written and relatively straightforward, however it took me a while to get the herringbone rib pattern memorised. And then by the time I'd remembered it, I then put the half-finished socks away for months and months, so that by the time I looked at them again, I had forgotten the pattern!
Because of this there are a few holes, or shall we say - personal design touches? But as they are for me, I really don't mind. Next on the needles is another project for me. I'd read some great reviews of The Gentle Art of Knitting by Jane Brocket, and I also enjoy reading her yarnstorm blog, so I treated myself to the book. After admiring the many lovely patterns, I've picked the simple squishy slouchy hat to start, using some Patons Moorland Tweed DK that my mum gave to me.
The pattern is nice and simple, perfect knitting whilst watching the TV. And the yarn is quite pretty, with flecks of colour throughout. I wonder if I can get my hat finished for my holiday?
The first unit in UWA is about Ancient Greece. Athens in classical times was a dominant power. It led the way in arts, learning and philosophy. Unfortunately visual arts from this period are not very well preserved. We have examples of architecture, pottery and sculpture; but paintings, textiles and wood carvings have not survived. Much of our knowledge is dependent on written sources and Roman copies.
Here are 5 facts that I didn't know about Ancient Greece:- The columns in the Parthenon are not equally spaced or perfectly straight. The architects used optical refinements to compensate how our eyes view the structure from the hillside.
The Parthenon, Acropolis, Athens, Greece c.447-432 BC- Inside the Parthenon was a huge sculpture of Athena created by Phidias. Records describe it as being made from gold and ivory, reaching forty feet tall. It was occasionally taken outside the building for festivities!
- Although we see the statues as plain marble or brass, they would have been colourfully painted. Copper inlays were used on the lips and nipples, silver as eyelashes and glass inlaid for eyes.
Detail of the Delphi Charioteer c.470 BC
- A statue of Aphrodite of Cnidus by Praxiteles is thought to be the very first life-size nude female sculpture in Greek culture. Her coy posture, concealing her groin with her hand, created an image of a the female nude that was to continue for centuries in Western art.
- The word 'barbarian' comes from Ancient Greek. To Greek ears anyone who didn't speak the same language apparently made a bar, bar sound (probably like our blah, blah today) and was therefore given the term a barbarian!
My research so far has been from A World History of Art by Hugh Honour and John Flemming, Greek Art by John Boardman, and a trip to the Burrell collection to see some pieces firsthand. One of my favourite pieces at the Burrell was a jug for pouring wine, with grazing deer circling round. It is amazing to think that this has survived whole.
Due to an IT hiccup, brain ache and a couple of photos sneaking into the wrong folder, I'd completely forgotten all about this yarn bombing I seen last September in Davie Village Community Gardens, Vancouver.
This yarn bombing had obviously survived the elements! This lovely knitted wall is apparently the work of Jessica Glesby. Yesterday whilst wasting my time (I mean being 'creative') on Craftster, I saw a new addition to this very garden from WooWork. Raining cats and dogs quite literally!
In between all this internet browsing I have finished reading one of my Christmas books ...isms: Understanding Art. As someone with aspirations to next study art history, this is a fantastic book. This book does not pretend to be ultimate art history resource. Each movement is given a 2 page spread with a definition, key words, artists and key pieces associated to each isms. A great book to go back to time and time again. I'll admit there were quite a few isms that I wasn't aware of!
Today we went off on an adventure to Edinburgh. It really is a beautiful city, though the east coast wind can certainly make it feel chilly! It's nice to see that seagulls are just as cheeky that side of the country!
First stop was TEXTiles a exhibition of work from the Edinburgh based Frayed Edges textile group. All the pieces shown were inspired by words. These varied from novels, poems, children's books and folk stories. From the book a piece of string is a wonderful thing, Sara Macaulay created a knitted hammock full of fun characters lazing around. Despite them not having features on their faces, personalities are shown through posture and costume. The knitting was very textural with natural colours. And just who wouldn't want to wear trousers on their head?
Jennie Louden took Wizards by Alfred Noyes, to create not one but two pieces. Three delightful wizard puppets and very organic growing felt with sprouting bulbs and flowers. This smelt wonderful! 
A Nigerian folktale about mankinds greed inspired Nathalie Cortada to use commonly discarded items. Carrier bags are turned into crochet strips spilling out of a takeaway carton. It is amazing the power of advertising, as we found ourselves trying to work out from which shops the bags originally came from!
Philippa Johnston took the poem The Panic Bird by Robert Phillips to create a powerful and frightening creature. Tin wings spread out and wires surround. Its beak could certainly rip off strips.
After a hearty lunch at Henderson's, we went across the city to the Dovecot studios for Taking time: Craft and the slow revolution. A direct response to our fast paced, want now, society. Over printed polyester shirts by Becky Earley hang alongside stone drawings by Sue Lawty. And an interactive piece by Shane Waltener and Cheryl McChesney Jones encourages the viewer to knit, crochet, knot and create an addition to Garland # 21.
Things have been quiet on the blog front of late, I was busy finishing my work for the hand embroidery network exhibition. Must now get back on track with my OCA work! Remember my lovely jumper I'm knitting? I had a terrible incident where my circular needles broke, and am still awaiting a replacement. Fortunately the accident happened whilst I was at Stitch 'n' Bitch, and Gillian very kindly came to my rescue and saved my stitches. I'm sure if I was at home I would have just cried and ripped it all out, to start all over! Will my jumper get finished in time for winter? I am now working on a secret cross stitch instead (shhhh!!! details to follow I promise!).A bargain bookstore has opened in town, which has forced (!) me to buy a book on International Arts and Crafts. Some gorgeous images in this book, especially by Lindsay P Butterfield and Charles Voysey. I found a company that produces Arts and Crafts wallpapers, if only we lived in an old property, they would be just perfect!
One of my latest ebay spends is the delightful book Embroidery techniques from East & West by Munni Srivastava. Embroidery is combined with quilting, and heavily flavoured by Indian influences. The colours are bold and the embroidery is rich in texture. This is certainly a great book to look through and feel inspired! From this book I decided to have a try at Shisha embroidery (mirror work). Not having tiny mirrors to hand did not deter me, I made some shiny circles from a drinks can (If you are trying this at home, mind your fingers!!!!!). I filled the background with some stitches commonly used in Indian work. 
I must be having an Indian themed week, as yesterday my order arrived from fibrecrafts. One of the many things I ordered (they have an amazing selection) was a hank of recycled sari yarn. I am not quite sure what I am going to do with it, but at the moment I am happy admiring its beauty!
As a proud owner of two guinea pigs, when I brought some pastel pencils and wondered what to draw, the answer was obvious...
This I should point out is not one of my beasts (they wouldn't pose!) but one from a book. The marks of the pastel pencils remind me a little of Quentin Blake (he who illustrated Roald Dahl books).
I have also just finished reading The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier. This is a fictional book based on the The Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries. It tells the tale of a rather amorous painter who is asked to design a set of tapestries for a wealthy nobleman, and the Belgian weaver family who set about creating the pieces. The author describes the weaving process perfectly with great attention to period detail.
For my textiles 1 I am at the 'manipulating fabric' project. Before I start this properly, I decided to have a play around experimenting with different techniques on some white cotton. I used the wonderful resource book 'The Art of Manipulating Fabric' by Colette Wolff. I particularly liked the furrowing samples, and how the fabric flows; rather than be constrained by stitches.
During the week I picked up, at a charity shop, the book 'How to make an American Quilt' by Whitney Otto, for the bargain price of 50p. I must be the only person in the world who hasn't seen the film. It was the perfect read for a rainy Saturday afternoon. The book tells the stories of the attendants
of a quilting circle, and each chapter is interspaced
with quilting instructions in the style of one of the attendees
. The story draws on the similarities between quilt making, life and love.
I spent the bank holiday at the lovely Stirling Castle. Currently the palace is being restored and a series of seven medieval tapesties commisioned to adorn the palace. The tapestries are to be replicas of The Hunt of the Unicorn. The weaving is being split between West Dean Studios and a purpose built building within the castle grounds. I would certainly recommend a visit to see the weaving in action. Especially at 1pm, as the weavers stop to talk about the project (you are not allowed to disturb them at other times!). This is a fascinating process, and watching the pace of the weaving really makes you appreciate the dedication and the enormous quanitity of hours needed to create such works. This visit has spurred me on to sign up to a tapestry course later in the year... so watch this space!
I have just finished reading (and admiring the gorgeous pictures) Off the Wall - Wonderful Wall Coverings of the Twentieth Century by Lena Lencek & Gideon Bosker. There are great variety of wallpaper designs covered here - kistch, quirky, abstract - all with a generous side serving of Americana. As someone who lives in a wallpaper-free home, this made me crave some vintage wallpaper. Although the tales of creepy crawlies feeding off homemade wheat flour wallpaper paste gives me the heebie jeebies!
Yesterday I attended the Creative Stitches show at the SECC. I saw a lot of inspiring works, met some very talented people and had to resist the temptation to spend far too much money! I brought World Textiles: a visual guide to traditional techniques book that I had been lusting after. I attended a Lucet workshop, and brought an advanced luceting pack - I do like a traditional viking craft! I saw the wonderful work from the National Needlework Archive's Poetry in Stitches 2 exhibition. This has made me start thinking of a poem that I could interpret through stitch... the deadline isn't till 2011! And finally I got to see the fantastic Shaun the Sheep Great British Pic-Knit!
They really shouldn't have taken as long as they did, though I managed to lose them in the abyss that is the spare room, which is my excuse and I'm sticking to it. If I hadn't had such a long break whilst making these, I'm sure I would have found them much easier. The pattern is well written and relatively straightforward, however it took me a while to get the herringbone rib pattern memorised. And then by the time I'd remembered it, I then put the half-finished socks away for months and months, so that by the time I looked at them again, I had forgotten the pattern!
Because of this there are a few holes, or shall we say - personal design touches? But as they are for me, I really don't mind. Next on the needles is another project for me. I'd read some great reviews of The Gentle Art of Knitting by Jane Brocket, and I also enjoy reading her yarnstorm blog, so I treated myself to the book. After admiring the many lovely patterns, I've picked the simple squishy slouchy hat to start, using some Patons Moorland Tweed DK that my mum gave to me.
The pattern is nice and simple, perfect knitting whilst watching the TV. And the yarn is quite pretty, with flecks of colour throughout. I wonder if I can get my hat finished for my holiday?
