New Knitting Book

Hot off the presses, we just received "A Knitting Wrapsody" by Kristin Omdahl. There are patterns for lacy scarves and shawls and an openwork tunic to drape over an evening dress. There are skirts and shrugs with cables, lace and ruffles.  A CD is included to explain the stitches.

If you are reasonably good at knitting, please treat yourself to the goodies you'll find in this book.

A book like this makes me a little sad that I'm not a better knitter. (I crochet, but - shh - don't tell the knitters.)

Happy crafting, Kathi

Lion Brand Yarn has gone Spring with their patterns. The tote seems to be the right size for multiple tasks and could be carried anywhere.

The shawls look comfortable for slowly warming weather or to toss over your shoulders on a cool-ish evening.

Need to work up something quick before Easter? You might want to start at http://www.lionbrand.com/.

I also took a quick tour of http://www.crochetpatterncentral.com/. I typed "Easter" in the search bar and got 87 patterns. You can crochet Easter baskets and Easter eggs, Easter bunnies and Easter chicks. The same search at www.ravelry.com gave me eight pages of patterns with 36 patterns per page. You've got one week to go, if you let it sneak up on you like I did.

Happy crafting,

Kathi



Weaving Books through Evergreen Indiana

Along with the last post, I'll give you a list of books that show fingerweaving and small loom weaving.

Fingerweaving Basics by Gerald L. Findley (Excellent book!),
Using Yarn, Fabric and Thread by Betty Leitch,
A Beginner's Book of Off-Loom Weaving by Xenia Ley Parker ( Many forms of weaving),
The Basic Book of Fingerweaving by Esther Warner Dendel,
Small Loom And Freeform Weaving: Five Ways to Weave by Barbara Matthiessen,
Kids Weaving by Sarah Swett

Happy crafting,
Kathi

More Yarn Art

At the library today, we are having Civil War Days in honor of the 150th anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter. My part in the festivities is to give a demonstration of small loom weaving.

My original plan was to weave a rug out of old bed sheet strips. I am going to use two card table legs for the loom. (Set the card table on its side and warp the two top legs.) Well, the more I looked into various weaving techniques, the larger the demonstration grew. I already had an inkle loom which was strung and partially woven. All I had to do was bring it in.

 I found a website in which someone was using a hula hoop to weave a round rug. As I looked more into that, I discovered that round weaving used to be worked on wheel hoops (the kind you see children rolling with a stick in some old paintings).

Following that trail, I ran across fingerweaving, also called Indian braiding, Osage braiding, Chickasaw knitting, or Cherokee fingerweaving. The only equipment that it requires is a stick! I used a pencil. You can take this project on a trip. It's lightweight, makes no noise, can be worked on a plastic straw if you are flying, and makes an interesting, pretty product.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FingerWeaving will take you to a the sharing place for photos and tutorials on fingerweaving. Check http://www.youtube.com/ under fingerweaving and look for sashweaver. There are other very good videos, but sashweaver shows the basic skills.

Happy crafting,
Kathi