Cornflower

Recycling

    Following on from yesterday's talk of recycling pullovers, here's a very early Cornflower post (probably read by around three people at the time it appeared) which is partly about turning an old sweater into a bag. I followed the instructions given in an ancient copy of Country Living, and here they are for anyone who wants to have a go:

First, felt your woollen jumper by washing on a hot cycle. Turn it inside out and sew up both armholes. Use the bottom edge of the jumper as the bag opening and sew across the top of the garment under the neckline. Cut off the arms and excess from the neck area and turn the right way out. Line with satin. Turn an arm inside out and sew 3cm in from each side seam. Trim close to the seams and turn both tubes the right way out to form two handles. Cut to required length and hand sew them to the outside of the bag [I fixed mine to the inside, between bag and lining]. Add decorative detail such as beads or a brooch - I used some of the offcuts to make leaves/petals which I stitched on and embellished with french knots.

    This was fun to do and rather quicker than the other one in that post (second, chunkier version here) which was knitted from scratch and then felted (pattern in this book).

Unravelling

     A bit of a clear-out yesterday threw up an old (bought) sweater of Mr. C's. Made from a tweedy wool (yes, it's pure wool again!) it's showing its age both in terms of wear and tear and style. Although the picture makes it look grey, in fact its base colour is a very attractive dark mossy green, but that's the back and sleeves - the front is a sort of chequerboard of equally muted and toning colours, very à la mode in its day but not so great now.

    Once, ages ago, Mr. C. was wearing the jumper on a plane when the man sitting next to him exclaimed "that's my sweater you've got on!". It turned out he was the designer.

    But what to do with the old thing (that is the garment, not Mr. C.)? I have the urge to unravel it and use the wool to knit something else. What's more, I've found a tutorial to show me how to go about taking it apart (I love the bit about the little thread!). My husband, of course, thinks I'm mad, but we'll see.

    Also on knitting, I saw this picture of Ernest Shackleton in the paper and I noted his sweater. I can't decide whether the yoke is garter stitch or moss stitch, but it bears a resemblance to Jared Flood's Cobblestone Pullover, don't you think? And if knitting sweaters isn't enough for you, how about making some of these?

Pantries, pianos and pretty things

    Some links today to things interesting, sad and inspiring.

Over at The Runcible Bin, Mrs. Lear is talking about pantries (you should see my pantry - no, really you shouldn't as it needs a proper sort out and is not a pretty sight just now, so perhaps I should get that book!).

Today sees the closure of Britain's last piano factory - how times have changed from the days when pianos were almost as ubiquitous as televisions are now. If you are at all interested in piano music (or in Paris) I thoroughly recommend T. E. Carhart's The Piano Shop on the Left Bank (and Dark Puss, you'll be pleased to know that I was playing the other day, and the Poulenc was fairly respectable).

Lastly, while flicking through an old magazine yesterday I found an article about this treasure-house of trimmings, ribbons, buttons and other pretty things, and I know there are a lot of us who enjoy a virtual browse of this kind!

Searching the collections

 

       The V&A website now includes a comprehensive collection search facility by which you can access one million object records. Click here to find it, and then refine your search as you wish - I put in 'cornflower' and all these came up (and coincidentally, the bottom right hand picture on that page is the late 18th. century version of our dinner service and I'd never realised those were cornflowers).

I'd better put a warning here, though: visit these collections at your own risk as serious time-wasting can result; just look at the knitting pages, for example, or textiles...

At the garden gate

     We are regular visitors to Edinburgh's Royal Botanic Gardens, and have watched with interest as their John Hope Gateway building has been constructed over the last two years or so. It is now open and we've been to take a look.

The building houses exhibition areas (the Wych Elm exhibition is full of beautiful things), audio-visual displays, a shop with outdoor plant sales area, and we're looking forward to trying the restaurant, reached by a rather striking spiral staircase:

 

The exterior includes a large terrace, and I love the use of stone and wood:

 
While in time there will be a biodiversity garden next to the building, for now there is a wild flower meadow featuring ....

Happy feet

     I was taking stock of my 'wips' today and was fairly pleased that there were only four of them (other knitters - who shall be nameless - have typically rather more than that, it seems).

    But a few crafty rows or rounds this afternoon has produced a finished pair of socks, so we are now down to three! Not that they have taken me any time at all - the first sock appeared here no longer ago than the 25th. of March 2008! Its pair was cast on a week or so later, but blame the thin mountain air of Switzerland for I got no further than the cuff on a week's holiday in Zermatt (and I was not skiing) and for no particular reason, progress since then has been slow.

   I had already made two of these socks (the prototype and the first in the yarn proper) so when I posted the pattern it did represent a pair, albeit made with different materials. But now the second blue one is done and I tried them on yesterday afternoon and didn't want to take them off as they fit so well (I am a size 4, but it's quite easy to make them bigger) and they are very comfy.

   Click on that link above and you'll find all the details, should you wish them, and if you make the socks yourself, I hope your feet will be very happy in them!

Les souvenirs de Lewis

    More souvenirs of Lewis, this time a mug made at Borgh Pottery - perfect for my mid-morning coffee as it's just the right size, weight and feel in the hand. (Fussy? Moi?).

It is a family joke that wherever we go I seek out potteries and bring back something made in them, but then I use all these pieces and love them, and they remind me of my travels in a very meaningful way.

   The mussel shells I found on the beach were so perfectly shaded in their purpley-blues and greys that a few had to find their way into my pocket, but they just go with the mug, don't you think?

Tapestries and tweeds

 

     On show at An Lanntair, the Stornoway Arts Centre when I was there the other day was this exhibition of miniature tapestries, all sketches or samples for larger pieces, (some by famous names whose work I saw here in Edinburgh last year).

Also on display was this locally made quilt or wall-hanging:

an unusual but attractive use for tweed.

Harris Tweed - 2

    Snippets of tweed! Coasters - currently in use on my desk, among other places - and a heart which I might scent with lavender oil and hang in the linen cupboard, or I could dangle it from the arm of Monty Mouse, in which case I'd see it all the time!
    You might like to have a look at this clip of tweed on the catwalk, or this article about the show, or visit the industry's main website. The future looks exciting, whether for the traditional colours and patterns or the innovative new designs, in interiors as well as clothes.

Harris Tweed - 1

The raw material! This little fellow is hand-reared and responds to a call.

 

The work in progress - all 1400 plus warp threads are tied individually by hand.

 

A close-up of the twill on the loom. It is checked throughout the weaving process for any thread breakages.

 

And the man himself: Mr. John MacLean of Garynahine Harris Tweed who very kindly welcomed us into his weaving shed and took the time to explain the whole tweed-making process to us, even letting us have a go on the loom (so a tiny area of that cloth was made by me!). These are his lambs, by the way, as he is a crofter as well as a weaver.

Mr. MacLean sells to Savile Row, but his tweed is also available through a local co-operative, where a bouquet of tweed flowers [see the end of that article] was recently made for Her Majesty the Queen.

(More of the finished product later).

In print

    Thanks to Rosie for the link to the video of printmaker Angie Lewin working on her Winter Spey design - look here.
I've had the All things considered blog in the sidebar for a while, but here's Angie's website proper, and here's her forthcoming book, Garden Wisdom. (One to add to the wishlist, I think!).

Zewing - 3

   Harriet's second project from Zakka Sewing is this sweet little linen bag. Made with the same fabrics as the potholder, this time she used her great-grandmother's antique sewing machine  - considerably faster than doing it by hand, and a lot of fun.

     So far, that book has proved to be a good investment in that we now have a very keen young seamstress who is happy to plan, cut, pin and stitch for hours on end, and that at a point where the novelty of the summer holidays might just be beginning to wear off a bit!

Lavender's blue

 
    My lavender is about ready to be cut and dried, and I'd hoped to get some in today before the rain came, but alas!
With lots to do at the moment I might not get round to making more of these for a while (I have last year's 'crop' to use), but I recommend them as a quick, straightforward project if you have a spare hour or two.

Zewing - 2

    Well, the first project from Zakka Sewing is complete. Made by Harriet with just a little guidance from me, this is her potholder:

Here's the front.

  This is all hand sewn, and follows the spirit of the book's instructions rather than the letter. The dogs fabric is linen/cotton, while the composition of the pale blue stuff is unknown (we went easy on the ironing just in case of any man-made content, but it looks pretty cottony).
   All the appliquéd detail is from scraps of the front and back fabrics or ribbons I'd salvaged from the handles of carrier bags (East and Joules, if I remember correctly) - I knew they would come in handy some time!

This is the back, with single dog applied and ribbon to match the front - the bottom edge has been deliberately left not stitched down.

Harriet really enjoyed making this and is keen to move on to the next item - there are several she has her eye on.

This has been a fun introduction to sewing for a novice, and something to inspire her rather more experienced but by no means expert mother, too!

Zewing

    This is the book I was waiting for the other day, Zakka Sewing by Therese Laskey and Chika Mori. I had seen it on various sites and thought its mix of simplicity and Japanese style looked appealing, and with a daughter keen to start sewing, this seemed just the thing for us.
According to the book, "zakka" means " 'household goods' referring specifically to hand-sewn items for domestic use ..." so examples of the projects included are the excellent squirrel tea cosy on the cover, a linen basket, bags, coasters, an apron, a cushion - you get the idea.

    As I write this, Harriet is about half way through making an appliquéd potholder (pictures soon, I hope), and I have plans to hide any less-than-acceptable book covers in a version of this:

We've bought material specially for the purpose, but neither John Lewis nor our local fabric shop had a very inspiring range of the linens and cottons the book recommends. Does anyone know of a good online source of these? - often it is only very small quantities which are required so offcuts and remnants would be fine, but a wider selection of quality linen would be a useful resource.