Three days until a lot of people will be over and the gallery looks....

and a kitchen shot... notice no floor and everything piled beyond in the darkness. And I see Fran there too, and a bottle of wine.

2 Days Into The Sale

First, Thanks to Reader #7 and Reader #2 for your comments and sale lust.

Some things are moving. I am guessing that this week and the holiday weekend will be the most active time here.

The plan for this week is to get the studio pretty well packed up. That means no knitting machine news for a while. I am still doing the little projects, the sort of stuff that I can do while watching TV at night. (yawn) My attempts at being a real knitter using needles, and a pattern, and wool, stuff like that. We will see if anything gets done. Maybe there will be photos.

Otherwise the blogging may be sparse as I pack and clean and plan the open house for Saturday , OH, yea and I have got to get the things together for the trip to Toronto and the finishing of the unknown object.... That is planned for the end of September. Before that there will be the Brimfield antique market. and the sale is on for a month so.... I had better go and start working.

It's been getting busier.

I finally completed the things to send to Toronto. We are semi documenting the project at A-list Textilist and I have an image posted there.

There are also the "little" projects that I'm working on. Today at the farmers market I bought a skein of wool for a scarf.
It's from Scarecrow Farm in Hollowville, New York, the same people that I buy great eggs from.


The major part of the week though has been preparing the shop for a moving sale. It will start this weekend with everything 1/3 off. Here's the shop before the sale begins.

I'm nervous about it. All of this stuff needs to go, or most of it anyway.
The gallery at the house is almost done. We really just need the steps installed. We're planning an open house for next Saturday with a painting exhibit and sale. So a busy week ahead. I will try to keep you all (all 10 of you) posted on what's up.

Yesterday I had one of my revelations. I realized one of the reasons that I love living in this town.

The Artist's cemetery.

How many places can you think of with a separate cemetery (next to the town's cemetery) set aside for artists? Fran and I went there yesterday, looking for the grave of a local legend, Mary Weaver Wilson - who built the tower house around an oak tree. While we were there I just felt .... right... This is a really cool thing about Woodstock. There are musicians, and actor, and crafts people and painters, and sculptors. All in a special little place in town.

Some graves I noticed Hervey White founder of the Maverick artist's colony.

I also noticed Kuniyoshi's grave, and Guston's, and the Avery's. A real connection to history here.

I took photo's really I did but they aren't loading. Bah....

And now the links aren't working.
and Fran is pacing waiting to go somewhere....
Yikes, I started this off feeling nice and calm....

Deep breath

I also have a photo to post of the garage conversion.....

We're having an open house on the Saturday of labor day weekend. and we are showing the paintings of Mary Wilson. That prompted the trip to the Artist's Cementery and this post. Which somehow I have lost the thread of.....

Oh, well...... We're off for a day of art at Vassar.

I have been busy at the shop this weekend and there was no time to get any of the knitting done. I'll have a full day tomorrow to finish up the stuff and send it off to Toronto and the next step.

Part of the busy - ness has to do with the decision we've made to close the shop. Yep, were going to leave the store and move everything to the house. Including the studio. That has both of us feeling slightly overwhelmed since we live in a 1600 sq ft. house and the shop/studio is 3000 sq. ft. Something tells me we'll have to rent a storage unit.

Overall I am feeling great about the move. No more hassles with the bar upstairs, yeah!! So while it will be a frenzy around here for the next six weeks the outcome is going to be very positive. (can you tell that I am trying to live in the moment?)

The people who come into the shop provide me with endless amusement.

This week I had a long conversation with a woman about things in the shop, local places to go see and do. It was a fairly long conversation for the shop. She seemed normal and interesting. Then she says "I guess I can assume you're French?" , I say "why?". "Well, your accent". "Uhm, no that's New Jersey". "Oh" and she leaves the shop.

Tina, I know that you suggested that I speak to people in various accents while in the shop. But I wasn't. And I wasn't wearing a beret, who knows.

The rest of my week has been the usual machine knitting and sewing and at this point the work is at a creative standstill. I have a goal to get this one piece finished and off to Melissa. The goal was Friday, now moved to Monday.

I'm no Angel

Today is Mae West's birthday. My always inspiration. How gay is that!

Putting together Toronto stuff

At home today with the panel for The Gladstone. This still needs to be sewn and the embellishment needs to be added. I'm aiming for completing it to send by the end of the week. Better get to work.

More store strangeness

Yesterday, a beautiful sunny and warm sunday, two women came into the shop. They looked around for a short time. Then they stood about 7 or 8 feet (2 meters) from me and started talking to each other about whether or not I looked like John Travolta. Really! Talking like I wasn't sitting right there and couldn't hear everyword they were saying.

This is just a sample of the insanity I get to deal with in the shop.

Or is this a zoo?

Busy today

This is the beginning of the newspaper piece. I am using a vintage barbie dress pattern and making it big.



Here's the latest panel off of the knitting machine. I am getting closer to connecting a lot of the pieces and sending the whole thing to Toronto and Melissa so she can do her thing with it. Oh, and I figured out the embroidery issues that were holding me back so soon embroidery will be appearing on these. Well I'm calling it embroidery, it's my take on embroidery and related to embroidery.... just like the knitting is related to knitting. In my mind I think of it all as painting and drawing. call me crazy.

Two days off

I needed to take a little time off from the shop so I stayed at the house for the last 2 days trying to catch up on things.
I did mow the lawn and straighten up a little.

The best news from the last week. One of the pieces from the show sold.
Here is part of the review by Paul Smart that appeared in the Woodstock Times.

....Woodstocker John Krynick's knit cotton samplers of prosaic sentences, one stretching the entire last Norma Desmond "Mr. DeMille" speech from Sunset Boulevard across a dishtowel-sized surface. He's also got a series of fantastic woven newspaper works that someone should purchase immediately. One is an entire Sunday New York Times worked down to the size of a large washcloth; the other an entire week's worth of the same paper in the size of a bath towel.......

And the piece that sold was the Sunday NYTimes.

I've been working on the other knitted newspaper. Something is up with the blogger photo upload , or maybe with my connection so I will try to get the image up tonight from home with a different connection.

Yesterday Fran and I went to Bard to see "Uncertain States of America" . It is a show curated in Norway and traveling. Everyone was very young in the show, and there was reference upon reference to everything art-wise in America. I left it feeling confused but interested.....

Of Knitterly interest was the work of Jim Drain, aka Gorgon Radeo formerly of Forcefield.

So that was the week so far.

I have had a lot of comments about the the person in the shop on Monday. So far my favorite.

"Oh, that's proof, the martians are walking among us." .... thanks Michael.

Shop Question

I was thrown for a loop today when I got the dumbest or craziest or most stupid question that I have ever gotten in the shop.

A woman who had been in the shop earlier in the day came back in with her husband. She immediately said that she was just showing her husband a few things. Fine.

They look around and she comes up to the desk and asks " Um....Are these things for sale?"
My answer, wide-eyed "yes"
"Oh, Okay" and then they walk out of the shop.

Everything has a price tag on it. Did they think I just sit in a commercial district with an open sign to show off my beautiful things?

Wow, a first in the eighteen plus years in business. I am almost speechless.
"

Knitting the New York Times

I've got my dowels and the paper has been made into a giant ball of "yarn". This morning I cast on and began work on the project. There will be photos later.

I am still feeling summer lazy. That is good news.

I'm concentrating on the shop today. Not much content here.

It should be a busy day, good weather, lots of people on vacation, now they just need to spend some money.

First to answer Shelly's question. Ruby was an Affenpinscher. She was as cute as she looked in the earlier post even though that haircut was during her chemo.

The heat wave is suppose to break today. I have gotten to the shop/studio early and it is cooler in here than it is outside. The thermometer inside says 80. But it doesn't feel as humid as out. O.K. so this is one time I am happy to have the bar upstairs. I think that they have been running the air conditioner full blast and as we all know the cold air sinks.

I stayed at home for the past 2 days. I've been working on some newspaper "yarn" for a new knitted paper project. This ball is a sunday and a monday NY Times I just might have enough to knit with.

Don't tell Fran, but I have had I dream that I got a new dog.

Staying cool

snowflakes

Memory Day

The Heat has got me thinking about Mexico.
OMG I think I see a bald spot! It's gotta be the camera angle.
Without getting too sad about it I just wanted to note that today it is one year since Ruby died. I don't get all weepy about it anymore but I do miss her.

Busy Monday

I'm doing a bunch of stuff and sweating. I thought I should get things to work on over the next 2 days when it is suppose to be really hot.

I keep forgetting to give this link to Radio Reposado. It has become my new musical background. It's my playlist streaming back at me from someone else. I could have picked this music. So if you want a mix of jazz and lounge and Latin and electronic and , well, just interesting stuff listen to it. It is coming from the Reposado Hotel in Cuernavaca, Mexico.

Maybe I'm just wanting to be in Mexico right now. Soon, soon, soon , I hope.

Summer

I am taking Shelly's advice and just going with the flow of summer. I'm keeping myself centered at the shop not letting the weather bother me.

Knitwize I have been doing little sample things. Samples for functional stuff that I'll need in the fall and winter. A raw silk hat, funny socks that sort of work.

And I am sketching. Trying to put the ideas for a few finished pieces on to paper. I was inspired when the artist Valerie Hammond was in the shop. She brought me a copy of her latest catalogue and we talked for a while even though we were both sweating and hot. I really liked what she is doing with her work. The way she is using victorian/women's imagery in a contemporary way has reinspired my way of thinking about knitting.

I've been lazing on the back deck and there are more pictures of the fawns eating their way through the garden. Blogger doesn't seem to want to upload them this morning so you'll have to use your imagination.

I am in the summer mood. Pass me a beer, thanks.

Sticky Friday

I made it into the shop early. I wanted to open up the door before it got too hot out. The thing is the temperature inside was already the same as out. The door is letting in some fresh air though and the fans help.

I have a piece on the machine that will be going to Toronto. I'm working on it slowly, the sticky air makes mistakes a lot more likely.

It has mostly been a quiet week.

I'm feeling uninspired.

So, apologies for such a boring post.

Warning! Knitting Content Ahead (sort of)

I have been trying to get a chance to post since yesterday. Technical things were getting in the way. I have been knitting. Working out some ideas for Toronto.
I'm also trying to do some of the sewing on earlier stuff.
The next 2 images have machine sewn lines. It really changes the texture and feel of the knitting and almost makes it an armor. It makes a solid fabric.


I just wanted you all to know that I'm not just sitting on the back deck watching nature walk by. I'm doing the art work + knitting some little projects. It's just that there are some annoyances at the moment, {read shop}.... and that makes the S.O. extremely grumpy. But we are handling it.

unfocused

Things are whirling around here.
Last night during dinner the deer and twin fawns were in the yard. I jumped up and said, get my camera I have to get a photo for Rabbitch. So Janice, these are for you even though crazily unfocused. I think I may be beginning to think like a blogger.

I feel a little relief today

Driving up to the shop after being away for two days my palms were sweating and I was feeling worried about what might be waiting for me. Guess what.? For the first time in months I didn't find any beer bottles outside of the door. I didn't find any leaks in the shop. I'm am feeling cautiously relieved today.

Even a pile of dog sh** in front of the door didn't phase me. I am saying it was just a careless somebody on the street and not purposely left there by the nuts upstairs. I have to have faith that things will work out. So today (dare I say it?) looks like it might be a good day. I'm not going to let the heat get to me. I'm just concentrating on the shop.

My days away were productive. I managed to do some little experimental knitting and I also was working on the knit panels. I'm adding sewing to them. I'm still working out the embroidered images

Today my mood is optimistic.

The In-Laws are coming

Instead of one day away from the shop I have decided that I should have two. Today I plan on spending my time puttering around, doing a little cleaning maybe some cooking, because the In-Laws are coming.

We don't have a time for the arrival. They have been in Ontario, I think they went on a cruise on the lake. Who knew? Anyway the cruise ended last night and they will be stopping here on the way back to Boston.

This is a good thing. I love them both.

Fran's mom is a nutritionist and food historian. We always have tons to talk about, like The Omnivore's Dilemma, my current bedside reading. Or we might discuss recipes or her lastest food tour, or the current topics at The Culinary Historians of Boston.

Fran's dad is a semi-retired physics professor, he'll get a kick out of the knitted mobius strip ( yes, I made one) and the knitted structures based on the fibonacci series. Plus, I still have Limoncello that I made (remember July 4th?), he'll have a bit of that I'm sure.

So I'm looking forward to the day away from pressure I've been feeling at the shop (mostly from the nutty landlady). A relaxing summer day with a good meal this evening, aaah summer.

[AmpuTee, your dream about the newspaper work on the patterned wall paper is one of the directions I think that the things might go. thanks for the input.]

Randomness on a hot afternoon

1. The evil landlord was in yesterday. It seems that the drip in the back of the shop "can not be fixed with out considerably expense". I take that to mean it will just stay.
2. I mention the fear that my windows will be smashed one night by the bar patrons. Her response, "we get a rough crowd up there some nights". That sounds to me like I should be afraid.
3. I feel bad that I am boring everyone with these minor tales of woe.
4. I have gotten it into my head that I should knit a mobius strip, I'd like to use newspaper. Maybe I should check into an institution right now.
5. This week there was a mother turkey with at least 14 babies sitting in the tree in the back. They seemed awfully clumsy to be sitting in a tree.
6. Happy blogiversary Rabbitch!
7. "merde" AmpuTeeHee, a little late but merde all the same.
8. All yarns get sticky in very humid weather.
9. Knitting machines don't like the humidity either, believe me, I know.
10. Two fans are better than one and iced coffee is even better.

Yarn breaks and all

I haven't been on the machine for weeks. Today I decided to jump right in.
I started working on the pieces that will go to Toronto. The machine wanted to eat the yarn and needs a little maintenance. But I did get some things done. These are going to be cut up and sewn on so the breaks don't concern me.

OhOh I see water coming into the shop.
SH**


Later everybody. The "other issue" has returned. At least I'm laughing at this point. Hysterically laughing.

Images from the show

It's been craziness around here.

Because I don't want to be a whiney baby I will just mention that the shop had another flood. I have reached my limit.

To the show....
Here are the 4 newspaper pieces

and here they are in the gallery with the great knitted super hero suits by Mark Newport.

The camera is driving me a little batty. It might be that the photos are crappy because I've been finding it a bit hard to concentrate lately.

So now back to the "other issue".

Because I have nothing better to do at 5 A.M.

'What will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Thank-you Rabbitch.

View from the deck

Our friends, Suki and Timm, are mushroom foragers. They have been telling us that this year would be a great mushroom year because of all the rain.
Yesterday Suki appeared at our doorstep with two types of boletes and yummy, yippee, hooray CHANTERELLES. So for dinner last night we sat on the deck and enjoyed the chanterelles sauteed with shallots and parsley on udon.

The deck in the summer is our favorite room. We watch the wildlife go by. I have mentioned the bear in a previous post. We have also watched a family of red squirrels, we counted six, running and jumping through the tree to get to our cherries. The birds have been bringing their young around too. A father cardinal has three little ones following him through the yard as he grabs bugs and feeds them, so cute. And there is a wren family (noisy) and sparrows and robins and blue jays. Our deer, we call them our deer because we recognize them from year to year, have been bringing the fawns through. One has a singlet and the other has twins. The deer are the reason that we don't plant a vegetable garden anymore. Fun to watch. The cutest ever was last year when a fawn was sniffing at a baby rabbit, I'm not kidding, just like Bambi and Thumper.
One little note about the mushrooms, Suki called us later in the day and relayed the information from Timm that we shouldn't eat the large boletes because they were bitter, not poisonous, they just didn't taste good. That has made us a little leery of eating the smaller boletes too. They are still sitting on the counter while we decide.

My Case is Not Unique

With apologies to Violette Leduc.

I am participating in a consumer interview, supposedly I represent 50,000 people in the statistical survey. I must be one of 50,000 blogging gay textile artists that the industries that control us need to know about.

One of 50,000 shop owners who walked into their shops today to find plumbers and the building supervisor in the shop.

One of 50,000 people who is about ready to explode because they were thinking that this morning would be a good knitting morning on the machine, but instead found the plumbers had moved ladders and other equipment into the workspace.

One of 50,000 trying to remain calm and getting more and more pissed off that this was all done without any notice.

Yes, it gives me some comfort to know that statistically I am not unique.

I don't know what makes me do these things.

You Are The Moon

You represent the unconscious side of life, what happens in dreams. You are capable of great genius - but also of great madness. Emotions tend to be primal for you, both your fears and your fantasies. Your intuition is always right, listening to it is the difficult part. Your fortune: You are about to embark on a very important journey - and a very difficult one. Some of your deepest dreams will be realized, as well as some of your deepest nightmares. Follow your creativity and visions; stay away from your weaknesses. You are taking a voyage to the center of yourself, and you may be pleasantly surprised by what you discover.

What Tarot Card Are You?

Thanks to Femiknit Mafia

There really are things to write about.

I don't want it all to sound as whiny as yesterday.
Work on the collaboration is moving along. I'm in a little bit of a waiting mode, M is away and the project, as far as our exchange goes, is on hold.

I haven't gotten to the gallery for photos yet. My schedule and their schedule are in a bit of a conflict. I should be able to get in there next week on Tuesday or Wednesday. (fingers crossed)

TheAmpuT is right when she says that when it's busy there are more things to write about but not as much time.

I should be knitting right now.

While I was typing the earlier post I heard rumblings outside hmmm..... Then I went out bought a newspaper and was sitting reading it and I heard growling noises and then a big crash in the trees across the street. Yep, it's a bear. I got the camera and tried to get a shot but I didn't want to get too close. Then I came back inside, thought a little more about it and picked up the camera again, went out, but I turned around pretty quickly when I saw the bear had 2 cubs with her. Not a good idea to get close enough for a photo.

Thanks to everyone who had good words about the show. If you didn't make it to the opening try to see it. Worth the trip. I will get to the gallery sometime this week to take photos of the installation. Keep watching.

It hasn't all been knitting around here. Fran aided my addiction yesterday and added 3 new cookbooks to the collection. I am especially intrigued by Salads Sandwiches and Chafing Dish Dainties by Janet M. Hill, 1928. Egg Timbales, Halibut Sandwiches with Aspic, Spinach and Tongue Salad, English Monkey, and Golden Buck. Wow. I can see some knit coming out of this.





Scotch Woodcock anyone?
Make a cup of white sauce; add one tablespoonful of essence of anchovies and five hard-boiled eggs cut into quarters lengthwise.

I think this is suppose to be served on toast.

The weeks in the summer seem to go by so fast.

The heat, rain, and humidity left me feeling wiped out. I spent most of my time knitting swatches. A sort of mindless activity with no pressure to complete something.

The work got to the gallery. The show opens tomorrow.

Kleinert/James Art Center
34 Tinker Street
Woodstock, NY 12498
845.679.2079
www.woodstockguild.org

THREAD BARE
Tradition Unraveled

Sally Agee Elana Herzog Beth Humphrey
Paula Lalala Robyn Love Lee Musselman
Mark Newport Donna Sharrett Devorah Sperber
with Paul Leone of The Woodstock Wool Company

Curated by Stella Chasteen, Heather Hutchison and Portia Munson

Opening Reception: July 1, 5:00 - 8:00 pm
Gallery Hours: Fri-Sun 12-5 pm and by appointment
July 1 - August 6, 2006

My favorite part of the invite is that My name is missing. I'm thinking of myself as a stealth textilist. I like it that way.
Once again you all are invited. I'll be there after work... 6:30ish.

I've been getting the pieces ready for the show coming up next weekend.

I have also been trying to get a good image of the newspaper piece one week. It's one week of the New York Times knitted.. This is the best image I've been able to come up with.
sorry
somehow all of the detail has been lost


Otherwise I had a very blank weekend. Summers in the shop don't give me as much time as I would like to do studio things. I sometimes knit in public, but at the shop I get too many questions to keep concentrating on the work or sales.

This week on the agenda is making lemoncello with Cynthia, and getting a new group of Hand, Face, Body pieces together to send to Toronto.

Off to work.

I hope everyone had fun at Janice's party. Where are the pictures?

This week has been busy and surprising.

The leaks aren't as bad as they have been, the bathroom leak seems to be fixed, I haven't had puddles in the shop. The bar has a busy schedule up so we'll see what happens over the weekend. I'm nervous about it.

Other stuff has been good.
Someone was in the shop on Monday and we were talking about my work and she is interested in showing it at her shop in NYC. That is pending and I'll update as I know more.

Yesterday a woman who is curating a show at the Kleinart / James Arts Center in Woodstock came for a studio visit. She picked out seven pieces for the show. All of the newspaper ones including this. One Day. Which is one day of the New York Times knitted.

She also pick all of the text pieces. So I was happy and sad about it. She didn't want any of the machine knitted things because their scale was too large for what she wants in the show. So it's all of the small things (and the older work).

Anyway the show is up July 1 through August 6 and the opening is July 1, 5-8 if any of you are around Woodstock NY that weekend. I'll be there.

I also have five of the pieces ready to send to Melissa in Toronto for that project. The blog about it isn't where I want it yet but that's being worked on too.

I'm wishing I lived close to Vancouver BC. I think the party there this weekend will be great.

Today while I was lying on the sofa napping working on ideas for the Toronto project I heard Fran giggling in the office.

He was being all Jackson Pollack at this site I just had to share it with you all.

Yes, it is another wonderful time waster.

I really am working. Photos soon.

I am calmed down after yesterday's post and the store flood. The way the shop stands now.... The bar is closed until the plumbing problems are fixed. I can hear the plumber working upstairs right now.

My diversion from yesterday. The Peruvian or Bolivian hat from the 50's

knitted of a fine wool.


And the other hat and Lucia's haiku. For some reason I have the urge to knit one of these. I ask again, Is that wrong?

Post deleted

deleted, too negative

I have had a busy week.

1
I don't think that I have fully recovered from the flood from upstairs. I think that the problem with the bar isn't being addressed by the landlord (not to mention the leaks!). Today there is suppose to be someone in to work on the back room leak. It's all driving me nuts.

2
I have been involved in getting the project for Toronto started. We are going to have a little blog about the project and we are ironing things out with that. Hey ! Does anyone know how I can get some chat into the blog? Melissa and I are thinking that more than posting to each other we want some type of discussion going on that is transparent to everyone watching us work. I thought maybe chat in the sidebar or something.

3
I have been knitting the socks (they're done but I don't love them yet) ripping and redoing the toe.

4
I've been reading Everyday Genius : Self-Taught Art and the Culture of Authenticity, by Gary Alan Fine. Tina -who remains blogless- recommended this to me and.... Where can I start.

It has got me thinking about both my business and my art.
- if you don't know- we deal in decorative objects and accessories and art. Most of our interest is in Folk art and other forms that aren't a part of the everyday dialogue in art. So this book is about what we do. On top of that it is about the other types of art communities that are marginalized by the "Art Elite".
That includes textiles. I don't know where I'm going with this, but can you see the connection and why this is relevant to me?

I think it also applies to anyone who is knitting as a hobby. Why is knitting undervalued as art? Why is some work art and some work a hobby?

I here-by declare you all are doing art. I should curate a show, I should curate a show about socks.
hmmm.... more to come. My brain is about to explode.

There are some strange patterns for garments in some of the old knit books.
But, who ever knit this?

Summer tourist season

People are out and about even today, a Monday.

I haven't been able to get into the studio to do any work.

Melissa and I have been having discussions about the collaboration project. We're thinking of documenting the whole thing on a blog. When we get that set up I'll let you know.

Hopefully you all will give comments on the piece as it develops. The idea is to look at it as an on-line bee. Or maybe it's more of a performance and everyone can drop in and see what we're thinking about, what we're making, how it evolves.

We are both really excited about this.

For now, that is where things are.

oh and btw..... no water streaming into the shop. That (as Martha would say) is a good thing.

It seems that I spoke too early when I said that Melissa + my proposal for the show at the Gladstone Hotel wasn't accepted.

It has been. Yep a good thing. Looks like I'll be in Toronto in October for installation and the opening. This should be exciting.

... and I was feeling very happy and lucky this morning... then I got to the shop.

A major amount of water was in the front 1/3 of the store. The bar is leaking on me! The good part is that I had just rearranged everything and the upholstery was all move to the rear of the shop. None of that was ruined. Everything else that got wet seems to be ok. Glass tables and stuff.

So what was to be a happy singing type of a post is now terse and I've got to go and mop some more.

The fug and the fuglier

Since I'm documenting a process here I'm posting these photos of a dyeing experiment.
This knitted then painted.....

becomes....This when unraveled and reknitted.


Sorry examples I know, But I learned some stuff from it.
1. to make an ikat type of pattern for knitting in the round you've got to start off with knitted in the round.
2. Painting dye on the already knitted base leaves way to much un-dyed area.
3. I like the bamboo needles

I may still try some stuff on a flat fabric, but I've got to think a lot more about how the stitches will move in the round.

My 100th post

Just making a note of that.

The rude people have started coming into the shop as soon as the sign is turned. I think that there is an auction preview in town today. That may drive me over the edge.

I've been busy knitting the sock yarn experiment. I don't think that it is quite working. But I'm continuing.

I woke up last night thinking about George W. Bush and what an asshole he is. This attempt at an amendment to ban gay marriage has left me feeling bashed. How hateful can people be? very it seems. I 'm not going into that..............

Another entry in the small world category. Cynthia had a friend, Tomas, visiting from Mexico. He's originally from Tuscany and now lives in Mexico City. His sister also is in Mexico and has a restaurant in.... yep, San Miguel de Allende, and I've been there and I met her. So the world is a tiny tiny place.

So off to knitting and acting aloof, this is a snooty shop after all , isn't it?

Oh one other thing. Josh's film a/k/a Tommy Chong is going to be at the Film Forum June 14th - June 27th. EVERYBODY go and support this!

We now continue with our regularly scheduled knitting day.

The experiment has been painted, set, and wound into balls. The test swatches will begin tonight. The painting went so so. I think that vat dyeing will work out better. I'm a bit afraid of a tie dye affect.

Other wise I've been doing things around the house. Like mowing the lawn and doing laundry. Yawn, boring I know, After putting stuff off for so long I thought that I should get my life into a little bit of order.

More knitting today on the machine. Experiments and tests in various yarn, weights and tensions. No photos, just imagine a big pile of mess.

The truth is,,,, I have just been wanting to sleep. Yesterday afternoon I laid down at 2 and the next thing I knew it was 3:30. hmm.... I'm blaming it all on the tension of the store getting to me.

O.K. I'll stop now I feel that I might be getting too close to wallowing.

Machine maintenance

After days distracting myself from doing any work and playing with DFILM, (I'm not linking to this if you want to go and make films see my previous post), I worked on cleaning up the machine today.

Then I began doing some plain knit things that I think I'll dye in some sock yarn experiments. If they work out there will be photos.

The other socks are progressing I think this week I should have them finished.

Weekends at the shop are wiping me out. I have to be so social and talk to tons of people. Most of them aren't interested, but I try to keep myself up.

I am also back to embroidering the knitted faces. That always seems to be troublesome but I'm pushing through with it.

So I'm busy and doing stuff and, wow, the grass in the yard is so high I'm surprised the neighbors haven't said something.

I've been doing the usual knitting. I've decided that I don't like the toe of the sock so I'm ripping it out and trying again.

I've also been playing and thinking about the ravel knit rugs.

For play I've been going here.
If you make a film send it to me. iknit at hotmail dot com.
I'd love to see ya'lls distractions.

I doesn't look like Melissa and I will be doing the project for the textile symposium in October. We haven't heard from the jury yet, but I would guess at this point that we aren't picked. The idea will continue though.

If I haven't told you we are planning a project based on the idea of the exquisite corpse. We are each beginning a piece and sending it to the other for a response and then back again. For lack of a better word we are calling the finished object/objects a quilt. It really will be a collage of textile ideas.

Some of my imagery will be the stuff you all have seen, the portraits. This one of M and me and who knows what else. I'm playing with the idea of putting the things up on the blog as I work on them. Showing the process.

So that is my thinking this friday morning.

I have also been looking at pet finder dot com . I found a little affie but when I mentioned it to Fran he poo pooed the idea, I guess we aren't ready to have any pets at the moment. I'm not positive about it either. I was just looking.

I did finish a sock. I will finish the pair.

Other than that I took the day off yesterday. Fran and I went to CT to see Andrew and Michele. I missed seeing them at rhinebeck and , well, we just needed a little time off.

Today I'm just sweating it out, literally, at the shop. I am telling myself that I'll be motivated and get to the knitting machine.
But,
but,
but I am feeling too hot.

And sticky.

To distract me and anyone who thought that I might be posting some real content today here is fourfour's top ten moments from the past season of ANTM. funny but you have to be a fan.

Sock porn

I promised a while back to share some of the images of the socks I've collected. FYI I try to find interesting 19th or early 20th century ones.

These are two of my favorites. I only have five, they aren't easy to find.
The entrelac ones are done out of a cotton thread with what looks like a crochet lace finish. The stripes look like a mercerized cotton, the leg was knitted on 2 needles and the heel and foot were done in the round. They have a knit lace trim.

So that is today's distraction. I haven't had time to get any work done. Between the mobs of people and the dripping from the upstairs bar this weekend has been driving me mad.

It should begin to calm down today. Everyone will be traveling home after the memorial day weekend.

My day started out with me breaking the coffee pot.

My own fault I am in a crazy mood. Anxiety or something.

While reading blogs this morning at Sistahcraft, a place where I lurk, I came across this link. It made me laugh. I don't know who the artist is.

Now I am at the shop/studio. It's a town wide yard sale so I thought that I should be here early to claim the space in front of the store. I will try to get some knitting in before the shopping day begins. I expect loads of people wandering through and maybe someone will buy something.

Ugh... holiday weekends.

Not all bad.
I picked up the second installment of the farm share. Tons of stuff for so early in the season. I guess the weather has been cooperating. Spinach and kale and lots of lettuce and baby turnips with the greens that look spectacular. It'll be fun cooking tonight.

vanity sock

The kinks with the material are worked out. I can see some socks coming out of this. The wool has a great hand. I am really liking the material. A great break from the synthetics I've been using.

Now the time thing has got to work out. Holiday weekends aren't usually too good for the studio. If I get here early enough I should get some knitting done.

I really wanted to post some photos of the stuff I have on the machine. But today has been a day of breaks. I'm trying to knit the alpaca and some very fine Italian merino. They don't like being on the machine.. I'll get a bit knitted and then a break.

Hey, does anyone have any tips for casting on the fine wool. Most of the breaking is happening right at the start with the cast on.

The rest of my time today and this weekend will be tied up with the rhinebeck show. Load in is tomorrow am. The show opens Saturday. I will be at the shop. Fran will be at the show. We need to make some money.

So to work...

Navel gazing

Some days there isn't any knitting or any story just a lot of stuff to do around the house and yard.
We're getting ready for Rhinebeck, not this Rhinebeck, this Rhinebeck.

Boring I know but just how it is sometimes.

Rain makes me think too much

Documenting the process for me is hard sometimes. I've got all kinds of things going on and I'm trying to bring them all together into a coherent visual.

To put it another way. I am still working on the thinking part of the work. Today I'm looking at the embellishment of the surface again. A pretty obvious and direct way. Machine embroidered hand on the knitting.

Yesterday I was talking in my studio to a former gallery owner. I was showing the stuff on the wall and then the hand knitted socks and those ideas. He said that it must really help in freeing up the thought process working on the hand knitting. Uhm... yep, that's what I'm trying to do. and all of this post has been a long way of saying nothing is on the machine today.

This has been a busy week with tons of non knitting stuff going on.

I have been working on the sock. I did the heel and hate it so I am ripping it out and starting it again.

Meanwhile I have taken Corbett's suggestion and knitted the leg of a sock on the machine. I dug out some of the alpaca from my stash and revived the bug pattern from the scarves.

Now I'll pick up stitches and start the heel and foot.
And then faces on legs.

I'm using the socks right now as a rest from the machine work. The art. It's a good break and gives me some time to think about the machine knitting and the final form for the work. 2 people looking at the things have asked if they are going to be mounted and framed. I guess that's a good thing, they are looking at them as art and not asking if I'm making pillows or a sweater (not that I have anything against pillows or sweater or any other functional knitted objects It's just not what these are).
So I'll continue work on the socks. Fran laughs and can't imagine that I will actually make a pair. He has seen the boxes of single mitten, gloves, and partially knitted patterned hats that I thought were well hidden.

I am working in the studio. The things there though aren't all that exciting or interesting.

When I haven't been in the studio I have been working on the sock. I'm using the supersocke 100 self striping wool that I received from Jim and Corbett for my birthday. I'm just starting on the heel. Hopefully it will go ok.

I'm off now to try to figure out the printer problem. I'll show some of the new images for the machine knitting when I get them printed out.

I've also been straightening up the studio and thought of posting some photos of the vintage socks from my collection. I can't get to that now. Too many other things going on at the moment. Not the least of which, well, I do have a store to run.

I'm taking today off for my birthday, I'm going to lunch at Cafe with Love. I'm already thinking about what I'll order. Who knows what else I'll do today. I'm hoping for nice quiet uneventful.

Things are working

My plan today was to get to the studio early and re-organized things. I've let it fall into a pretty messy state. First I had to get something knitted. I've been wanting to try some of the images with a cotton.
The machine cooperated ( I oiled and cleaned it yesterday) and I managed to get this done.
The strange thing is the color. I think that the cotton is absorbing a lot of light so I apologize for the photo.

Soon to come.... images of the tube that may one day become a sock. Corbett and Jim are enabling me and I now have sock yarn and a pattern.

When good machines go Bad

The culprit.

My machine is angry at me, I think.
I promise that I will do regular cleanings of you from now on so that the wall doesn't have too much of
This ...

There it is. An attempt at knitting some cotton this morning.

It might not totally be the machine's fault, you see, last night...

Even though my birthday isn't until Tuesday, we had a little get together. Good food and wine and friends and wine. Let me take a moment to say thank-you to this man. With his help and plenty of water I am feeling just about human.

I don't want to say that I am freaking out about this birthday, 49. I should hold off until next year and the mid-century mark. Every birthday freaks me out though.
So those are the factors that have contributed to the mess on the studio wall this morning. Just thinking about that makes me feel like going back to bed.

Muddle

I am excited today. The farmer's market in town is open for the season. I had forgotten to send in my payment for the farm share and when I saw my friends setting up I ran over to the shop to grab my checkbook. Ha, it's in the other bag that I carry around. The one I left at home today. Anyway that will get taken care of next weekend.

I thought I'd do some knitting. Where are my glasses? I have a sneaking suspicion that they are in the same bag as the checkbook. There goes that idea, well, I can still do a little knitting, I just will miss small skips on the machine.

My printer is not working either. yikes, There goes trying to print out the new images I've been making on knitPro.

Time to take a deep breathe, relax and not be too worried that the firemen's inspection parade is today and the street is closed off.

I'm going to knit now, without glasses.

Sun burned, wind burned

and it was raining.

I was only at the market for 2 days but it sure felt like an eternity.

I can't begin to describe what fun it is to wake up at 4 am and go to the fields searching (with thousands of others) for antiques. By about 1 pm everyone is a bit punchy and I usually am ready to shoot someone. And that's just the start of it. Because we set up on a field that opens at one. Yes I am an especially good salesperson with an aching back and feet outside in the wind and rain watching my stuff get ruined. Well enough of that. It almost ( almost) made me look forward to being in the shop.
I do have to thank Fran though for taking over on Tuesday afternoon so that I could drive home a little bit earlier.

So how much knitted stuff got done during all of this? 0, That's a big fat zero.

This morning was spent putting things back into the shop, drying them off and wiping the dirt off of them. I'm getting too old for this.

Tomorrow, I promise, some knitting. Right now I've got to find my lip balm.

I did a little bit of machine knitting today. I decided to do some experiments with cotton for an upcoming project. I tried to find one of the more complicated 2 color images.

Now I've got to get myself organized for the Mass. trip.

I'll be back on Thursday.

A Look Back

I haven't done any knitting lately. Not since before I left for Chicago. This morning I spent my time in the studio rummaging around, looking for inspiration. I found this piece. And have been thinking about it.

I also dug out some double pointed needles. I'm going to take them and a sock pattern along with me this week when we go to Massachusetts. Maybe I'll figure out the sock thing.


I'm working on a few new images to upload into the machine. That is a slow process since I program them in bit by bit. I'll have them ready to go soon. Then there will be more knitting.

until then... Carry on.

Some weeks just suck.

We had a lot of sadness around the house this week. My cousin, Lisa, passed away on Saturday she had been struggling for years with breast cancer. I had planned on writing a little bit of a tribute or some words, then we got caught up in Butch's decline.

So now both Fran and I sit around, thinking we hear Butch getting up. We didn't realize how tuned in we were to every little movement of his... He was old for so long.

There was a funny moment.
Driving in Kingston, New York we saw a sign that said,
"Cinco de Mayo, Saturday May 6th"

You do have to laugh sometimes.

End of an Era

Butch 198? - 2006

A step in the process

Some times when I'm trying to push through an idea I think it's good to play with a few ideas.
What if the knitting comes off of the wall and takes on some form?

I thought I would put these images out there. Really for me. Just to see If this idea might even have a possibility. It needs work. More specific I would say. Images made to then take on a third dimension.

In case you couldn't tell from this post I am floundering, or I feel like I'm floundering.

Even trying to come up with the words to describe what I'm thinking is difficult right now. So there it is. A step.

[an aside] Corbett I am looking forward to a knit day when you get back from N.C. I will dig out the dp's. Thanks for the sock help.