Sewing Circle

[Petrarch's Love]

Actually, it's the sewing/knitting/crocheting/tatting/embroidery/quilting/any other crafts and handiwork circle. Since some of us were chatting about our stitching projects on the photo album thread, I thought I'd start up a place where we can talk about our favorite type of handiwork (are you a knitter or a crocheter?), share pictures of finished projects, swap ideas, techniques and patterns, or have virtual stitching parties (which necessarily would include gossip ).

Here's the link to a post on the other thread with attached pics of a couple recent knitting projects of mine to start things off.

[thevintagepiper]

Yay! The sewing circle thread.

I'm primarily a knitter but I also enjoy sewing and a (very) little cross stitch.

The most interesting things I have made are a cloak (sewing), a lacy shawl (knitting) and magic scarf (knitting). Unfortunately it will be a few weeks before I can post pictures because they are all being shipped to my new home now.

[Petrarch's Love]

Hi Piper--We'll look forward to seeing pics of your projects whenever you get the chance sometime in the future. Good luck with the moving. Michigan to Dubai sounds like a BIG change, but it should also be neat to really get to know another part of the world.

[Virgil]

I bet you thought that I was going to say I crochet. No I don't. Well, I've got nothing to add in this thread.

[Petrarch's Love]

Oh, come on Virg., stick around. We'll teach you how to crochet perfectly lovely lacy looking doilies and knit baby booties.

[mono]

I have always carried a very high respect for this slightly-more neglected artform; the practice looks almost meditative, tedious, yet requiring an immense attention to detail. I own no modesty in claiming that I have always done horribly in any kind of visual arts (even in simple drawing, I have reduced myself to stick figures); regardless, I absolutely love seeing people sew, knit, crochet, and embroider various things - their beginning, their intended plans, and the end result.
Even today (and I felt a lot like little Linus from Peanuts as a child, as I would carry it everywhere) I still have a quilt hand-made for me by my great-grandmother, given to me while a mere few days old. Over the many years, it has gotten somewhat worn and tattered, but I still have it on my bed, and consider it one of my most prized possessions.

[Nightshade]

Err still learning really. I made my grandmother a book cover With a bit of somerset patchwork in the middle.
I want to learn to crochet but I m from a family of knitters and no one can help me and I just dont understand the instructions.
I went to sewing clasees for 2 terms this year ( i think I already mentioned this a couple f times a while back) it was intresting . I want to make a quilt.

[kathycf]

I would love to someday learn how to knit more than just long oblongs that turn into either shawls, throws or scarves.

[thevintagepiper]

Scarves do make lovely gifts though! It is easy to make a tube scarf as well though, for a more interesting piece, and in a way it is easier than a normal rectangular one. You just have to use circular needles and join the ends of the scarf (made with fun fur or some other such yarn, and about 50 stitches) as you are starting. Then you use a plastic marker ring to show you where the end is, and just knit around and around! All you have to do is keepy knitting I the same direction without switching sides, and move the ring over when you come to it.
Heh, I don't know if anyone could do it off of those instructions but that's the basic idea.

[kathycf]

That sounds like an interesting idea, vintagepiper. I am so terrible at following instructions, though. I am not a very good knitter, I am afraid. It can be very relaxing though.

[Logos]

I'm really good at making scarves! knittinghelp.com is a really helpful site, they've got short little videos so you can see exactly how to do specific techniques.

[Nightshade]

DO they do crochet too???

[Taliesin]

Well, we do not knit or sew or crotchet (whatever it is) but since we are not certain of the excact word in english, we have made ourselves a medieval-style linen shirt(you know, we are into LARP and medieval clothing and stuff like that). We began it in a workshop where a helpful lady cut out all those parts and taught me how to stitch them together and what to do with all those edges so that it wouldn't arborize off (or whatever the verb is for that;to embroid?). Although we didn't finish the shirt then, we finished it at home and it doesn't look very bad. It looks quite good actually.
We also have done a pair of medieval soft shoes with needle, wax, awl and thick thread from the cut-out leather but we think that it should be all our experience in this field.

Mind you, we think that we need a good warm cape that would protect from rain and cold quite well. However, the cloth costs quite a penny and we are afraid that we would probably ruin it somehow.

[AimusSage]

I recently read in the newspaper of some old retired guy who was really fantical about embroidering, having done it for 22 years. He got a pre-release version of a Pope John Paul II homage portrait embroidery thingy. He embroidered it, took a picture, and send it to the company as a gift. Apparantly the company used it for the cover of the release package because it was really good. The company's name is Wiehler Gobelin The funny thing was the guy was color blind, and the work consists of 33 colours. His wife sorts the colours and tagged it with a number.

[thevintagepiper]

That's funny!
A friend of mine is in college and she said that it is the fashion at her school for everyone to knit, even the guys!
Imagine:
"So, Bill, how was the football game?"

*clickety clack*

"Oh, kinda sucked...."

*click click*