The Snake was our first project and used 7 pairs of bobbins.

Check out those beady eyes!

Our next two projects were exploring the half stitch and the cloth stitch.

Our last project was some delicate nursery lace.

I really enjoyed this class once I got used to the new techniques needed in bobbin lace.  I have some great ideas I’d like to try out once I get through the frantic Christmas knitting on my needles right now…

]]> http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/12/01/bobbin-lace/feed/ 0 http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/10/31/beginning-potter/ http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/10/31/beginning-potter/#comments Sun, 31 Oct 2010 20:18:00 +0000 Melissa http://www.endsandpicks.com/?p=1168 This past summer, rhymeswithfun and I signed up to take a beginning pottery class together.

It definitely took me a few weeks to get the feel of working with clay, but it was definitely fun to do something outside of my normal realm of fiber-y comfort.

I ended up with nine finished pieces and although most would be perfect for holding rusty screws in the garage, I think a few turned out okay.

All in all, a great learning experience and definitely something I would try again!

We learned basic embroidery techniques as well as how to dye wool felt with Kool-Aid.

But the best part was that The Madre was in town and joined us to make an adorable owlet!

The first two days of class we planned, calculated, wound, warped and started weaving our projects.  It was WONDERFUL being back in a weaving studio and even though I was pretty rusty with all my preliminary yardage calculations (as exhibited by the extra long warp I ended up with – oops!)

The third class we spent in the Dye Lab and since I ended up with two pieces of fabric, I decided to immersion dye one and hand paint the other.  The fourth class we all came together for show and tell!

Unfortunately, the yarn Elisa and I wove with had a much higher twist than our classmates so we didn’t get the high contrast that others got.

Even so, I’m quite pleased with the results!

Back in April I took yet another class at the Textile Center, this time taught by Susan Stein on silk fusion (also known as silk paper, but silk fusion sounds cooler, doesn’t it?)

Silk fusion is created from silk roving and a textile medium and is limitless in possibilities.  I enjoyed layering in ribbons, metallic threads and Angelina fibers for some extra sparkle!

My last bit of silk fusion was an experiment to see if I could intentionally create open spaces.

While I find the colors rather garish, the technique itself is rather interesting and definitely deserves some more tinkering with for future projects.  Maybe a sun catcher or lamp shade to show more layering?

]]> http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/06/11/silk-fusion/feed/ 0 http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/06/10/long-overdue/ http://www.endsandpicks.com/2010/06/10/long-overdue/#comments Fri, 11 Jun 2010 02:23:59 +0000 Melissa http://www.endsandpicks.com/?p=1109 These last few months have just FLOWN by and I am so behind on so many posts.  So without further ado, here are some long overdue photos of the awesome weekend workshop I took at the Textile Center back in March, entitled Artful Knit:  A Sculptural Approach to Knitting taught by Adrienne Sloane.

Adrienne started off our weekend of sculptural knitting by challenging us to knit with materials we wouldn’t normally knit with.  We were tasked to experiment and see what craziness we could come up with.  I played with wire, ribbon, fabric strips and woven tape threaded through felt circles.  It was quite a liberating experience!

I also played around a bit with “finger knitting” which I hadn’t done in YEARS.  I’m hoping to finger-knit a bit more ribbon yarn and then knit that into a bigger knitting piece for some cool knitted-knitting texture.

I think my favorite part of the class was all the discussions we had on how to knit different shapes, holes, bumps, bobbles, loops and pockets.

Some of my technique samplers turned out looking a bit like the Loch Ness monster, don’t you think?

All in all it was a FANTASTIC weekend.  Thank you so much Adrienne for being so inspiring and teaching such a wonderful class!

I quickly decided that the polyester case they arrived in did not do them justice and they needed some sort of fantastic vessel to display their rock star qualities.  Enter my crazy idea to attempt another crochet project with a big pretty ball of Noro Big Kureyon that’s been kicking around in my stash for who knows how long.

I quickly realized that whatever it was I thought I learned how to do over Christmas (rav link) was not what one would call ‘normal crochet’.  This latest attempt (rav link) ended up being a free form conglomeration of crochet-like stitches that sort of looked like I intended.  (Actually, I’m sure they’re some sort of valid crochet stitches but they’re definitely not the basic sc, dc, and tc stitches the original pattern I attempted called for…)

Enter the ever awesome Crafty Planet to the rescue!  This past weekend I took the first of three beginning crochet classes which will hopefully set me on the right crochet path once and for all.  We’re working on a market bag which so far looks pretty cool although not exactly to the ‘looks like a bag’ stage yet.

Maybe I stand a chance at tackling this crochet thing yet!?!

The night before I did some frantic last minute shibori dyeing of some ugly silk, cotton and linen shirts I bought at a local thrift store.  What else are second bathroom bathtubs for anyway?

Jill was great at sharing all sorts of  little tips and tricks, ensuring we all got great results.

The front of my scarf consists of my shibori dyed silks, cottons and linens, along with some devoré satins and velvets I picked up at The Fiber Studio.   The backside is merino top and several silk hankies I also picked up at The Fiber Studio.

I love the incredible textures you get in nuno felting!

I can’t decide which side I like better.  The silk hankies give such a beautiful ethereal effect.

Another great felting success!

We mixed enough colors to paint two skeins.  The hardest part was waiting for the colors to set and yarns to cool before the final rinse.

The colors really blossomed beautifully after finishing.

What a great class!

Delicious Chicken Satay Salad anyone?  Or perhaps some yummy Pasta B?

My hat is coming along well, although I really hope Gretchen (our awesome teacher) is right about it settling down some once I block it.  I was a bit tight with my stitches in the beginning, but I think I’ve finally got the tension thing a little more under control.  About time, I say.  Look at those ripples!

I have a about 8 rows left before I block it and then I’m done!!