superneedle's knitting adventures

Knitting the unknittable

[click on image to see larger in a new window]:

Currently working on a series of [overly] complicated prototypes for a designer's show in mid-February. Trying to come up with stitch patterns and textures reminiscent of traditional arans but with an unusual twist. One simple way is to explore the possibilties offered by photographic collage. It's an interesting approach for the simple fact you can potentially create the 'unknittable' - and hopefully something not seen before.

Doing it digitally in photoshop also means you can produce a hundred swatches in the time it would take to knit just one...

As an added bonus the images could also be used to digitally print fabric....silk chiffon with a knitted print anyone?

Return

I'll be back very soon....watch this space.

Update

Stressed, tired, and working like a dog but it's very satisfying. No posts for a while. Have to go cut some more [complicated] patterns now...

Surprise

Look what arrived in this morning's post, all the way from Australia:

And of course, a gratuitous shot of the contents:

I also loved the way my Back-tack pal labelled and colour co-ordinated everything - the attention to detail did not go unnoticed, nor did the sense of humour behind it. I have already begun to scheme and plot as to what to do with the contents.  Thanks also to my back-tacker for the moleskine sketchbook. They just happen to be my favourite - I have dozens of them. Watch this space...

Progress...of sorts

Just to prove I actually do attempt some knitting every now and again, I make this small offering to the Knit-Gods:

It's a baby blanket [or soon will be] in Rowan's Cotton Glace, for a colleague who is giving birth to a bouncimg baby boy in July. Gertrude, my knitting assistant [a.k.a the Garter Carriage, if you have no idea what I'm rambling about, check out Sonja's excellent article here] is chugging away on my electronic machine...slowly....veeerrrry slowly. Even on a machine, this kind of knitting isn't much faster than knitting by hand. In theory, you can set up the Garter Carriage and go away and do something completely different, whilst the machine gets on with things and creates a beautiful textured fabric and then waits patiently for you to return when it has knit the required number of rows. The reality is slightly different. There have been myriad dropped stitches, frayed yarn and carriage jams due to Gertrude being a temperamental beast when confronted with inelastic plant fibres. It also seems that all Cotton Glace is not created equal - The green is comparatively softer, but seems to have been dyed unevenly having a slightly striped effect when knitted up. Needless to say, Gertrude loves this yarn, and hates the orange which is quite hard and much more shiny due to having been more tightly spun. Dropped stitches everywhere with this yarn. Nevertheless, I intend to persevere. Watch this space.

I also had the opportunity recently to induct a new member into my gang of knitting machines. The LK150 is classed as a hobby machine, due to it being made of plastic and being relatively cheap.  It's a mid-gauge machine and is intended to knit yarns in the Double Knitting and Aran category. Despite having used all kinds of knitting machines for years, the tension settings on it have me stumped. Does anyone have any info to share on tension settings [both carriage and tension mast]?  I haven't had much time to experiment yet, so if someone could offer a shortcut I would be most grateful.

Randomness part 2

Well, it's certainly been an interesting few weeks...I turned 30, I moved house and am now in the midst of trying to set up in business with a friend with whom I've worked for several years.  It's proving to be much harder than first expected but also strangely satisfying (and more than just a little scary).  I guess anything worth having needs to be worked for...

And finally, for my back-tack lurker....(sorry for the delay, I only just noticed you left me a message in the comments section)

what is your favorite fruit?
a bit boring, but it's a toss-up between either an apple or a kiwifruit.

what is your favorite shape? (could be 3d or 2d)
"organic" shapes generally, but circular/spherical or rectangular with rounded corners. 

who is your style icon?
ok, this is tough.  I need more time, let me think...in no particular order: Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Marc Jacobs, Miuccia Prada, Francis Bacon, Helmut Lang, Paul Rand, Richard May, Stella McCartney.  There are probably a million more but these are the ones that spring to mind when pushed to give an answer.

what is the most indespensible item in any self respecting craftster's kit?
indispensable craft items for me are scissors, tape measure and needles.

are there any colours you particuarly dislike?
whilst I can't think offhand of any colour I particularly hate, I do generally prefer muted/"off"/weird colours.  The photographs in the current Prada women's ad campaign are a good example of the kind of colours I mean.

where were you born?
I was born in a place called Ashington in the north of England.  But now I live in London.

Welcome Back

It's good to have you back Kim, Rowan is not the same without you.  Can we have more soon, please?

Images and garment designs copyright Kim Hargreaves

Obsession

Ever get obsessed by something?  A person? a place? a colour?  It happens to me all the time, especially when it comes to colour.  Currently, I'm obsessing over anything and everything BLUE.  It seems as though, for me at least, next summer will be all about blue - in all shades.

But then again, nobody said you had to stick with a single obsession, did they?  Multiple obsessions are good, we like multiple obsessions.  Speaking of which, let's not forget green.  Probably my ultimate favourite if I was limited to only one colour for the rest of my days.

A selection of green/grey/cream samples in development for a small
interiors/homewear project I'm working on at the moment

You might also get obsessed by a technique, it happens to me often.  For me at the moment it's lace/openwork/crochet. I want to take it and knock some of the 'delicateness' [is that a real word?] out of it.  First idea that occurred was to crank up the gauge.   Those are 6mm circulars with some Phildar ETE attached.  Don't like the yarn.  Come to think of it, this green doesn't do much for me either...