Over the years I’ve had my hands busy with a few different crafts. What can I say, I’m fickle.
There were the college cross stitch years.
Then the time spent as a Tole painting young SAHM.
And I’m pretty sure there was some appliqué and decorative quilt making intermediately mixed in there too. But it came and went, and came and went again so fast, I hardly remember the time or projects.
Paper crafting has probably been the one hobby that I have held on to the longest. Though calling it a hobby is a bit misleading. Obsessive collecting is a much better description. You see, I never really actually do anything substantial with all my supplies. A mini-album here. A couple of cards there. It’s really all about the organizing and hoarding. Maybe that’s why it’s kept my attention for so long; I haven’t had the chance to get bored with it yet because I rarely actually do it. Hmm. Something to chat with Oprah about.
Now I should in all fairness mention my long-time relationship with sewing. I have been sewing since I was about nine when my mom taught me how on her little black 1950-something Singer. We tackled a pink, wool crepe pencil skirt, complete with slit, zipper and button hole (because why would you start with something less complicated … like pajama bottoms … when you can go full throttle into the land of tailored clothing … yeah, to say I come from a long line of over-achievers is an understatement) and at the same time I must say, made great strides in solidifying the tempestuous mother-daughter dynamic. Hmm. Something else to talk to Oprah about.
To me, sewing really isn’t a hobby. I think of it more as a life skill because it can, after all, provide you with one of the fundamental necessities of survival, namely clothing (from the whole food, shelter, clothing trio). Although, I suppose in an emergency paper crafting could be considered a life skill. I mean given some chipboard, a permanent Herma dispenser and a few sheets of patterned paper for decorative embellishment, I could construct a structure sufficient to provide shelter for say, um, maybe three minutes. And if push-came-to-shove, I could use my stash of ribbon to weave nets and bags for collecting and gathering food in. Hmm. A new reality TV show idea to talk to Oprah about..
But whether it was for a few years, or a few months, I have enjoyed each one of my crafting adventures. Not only have I developed numerous new skill sets, each one building on the other, but I have also developed some very wonderful friendships along the way. Hmm. I wonder if Oprah and Gail share a hobby. Something to ask her about.
So with National Crafting Month in full swing right now, I decided that I should try a new craft and then share it with my friends (I mean why not take them along with me on this potentially obsessive ride … that’s what friends do … enable each other, right?). And with no other reasons than (1) I wanted an excuse to hang out with my friend Leslie for an afternoon and (2) the prospect of being able to knock out some scarves for Christmas presents was enticing, I decided that knitting was going to be my new all-consuming-forget-to-feed-the-family-and-fail-to-do-the-laundry hobby.
Oh sorry. Should have warned you there was a Christmas present spoiler coming. Well, hopefully in nine months you’ll have forgotten I mentioned anything about scarves. : )
Yes, I know, most of you are saying “yawn”. Knitting is so 20th century. Been there. Done that. Using the needles as marshmallow roasting sticks now. But maybe I can entice you to come back. Just wait till you see the cuteness Leslie and I “knit lifted”.
Leslie said that we needed to start with the basics, casting on and off. Um, who said anything about fishing? I know less about fishing than knitting. Oh. My bad. That’s apparently how you get the yarn on and off the needles. So after a few guided clicks and clacks of the needles, here’s what my first stitches looked like.
Pretty good huh? Well, remember this picture. Everything after this got worse. Somehow my learning curve flattened.
But I kept pushing on, working hard to keep my stitches even and to keep them from getting dropped. Eventually I found that rhythm knitters talk about and the clicking and clacking of my needles became regular and almost hypnotic. Who needs that runner’s high marathon junkies are addicted to? I’m pretty sure I can get that same feeling without leaving my warm, comfy couch and being able to watch my DVR’d shows in the process. Now that’s a hobby I can embrace whole heartedly!
Eventually I managed to form a long and almost recognizable enough chain of hot pink stitches to make into a loopy flower. I casted off and Leslie then had me form the “rope” into petals. Using the “rope” tails and a darning needle, I secured the petals on themselves (she got the idea for these and the other flowers below at this Plethora of Petals link). A button center completed the flower and my first knitting experience!
Who knew knitting could be so dang fun! At this point my mind and fingers are ready to conquer the knitting world and I started to have visions of Nordic sweaters, baby bonnets and multi-colored toe socks. I get all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it now. But alas, my coach Leslie reeled me back into the world of reality and suggested that I work on a few more flowers before I tackled entire outfits. Okaaay.
So for the next few days, I clicked and clacked and clacked and clicked. My completion time went from hours to half hours and my dropped stitch ratio lessened too. Success! And while my hands nimbly maneuvered the cotton yarn, I began thinking about my plan for a knitting party.
My thinking yielded these party elements, just perfect for a pre-Spring March day.
I started with this cotton yarn color palette.
Then I went to town making lots and lots of knitted “ropes” to create the flowers for the centerpiece.
For the loopy flowers, I knitted lengths of cast on – cast off stitches (yes, I know, my technical descriptions are anything but correct … but hey, I’ve only been at this for a week or so; still working on arching my learning curve) and then formed them into open petals. Once formed, I used more yarn to sew them into place.
Lastly, I added a large white button to the center because all things look better with buttons. That is my mantra.
The discus flowers (again, gotta love my techno talk) were made with lengths of stitches a few rows deep. The number of rows depends on how big you’d like your flowers to be. Because I tend to get bored quite easily, mine were only four rows deep, which included the cast on - cast off rows. After the rows were done, I cut a length of yarn and ran a running stitch along one edge of the “rope”.
Next I pulled the yarn length to gather the “rope” into its discus shape and then used it to sew everything into place. (Sorry about the cat in the background. But you know how cats are with yarn … one is a natural magnet to the other and so I while working on these projects, I often found myself with some additional “helpers”. Say hello to Cocoa).
Another large white button sewn to the center and the discus flower is complete.
Once I had enough flowers for a bouquet (thanks coach Leslie for helping with that!), I added stems. I made the stems by simply wrapping bamboo skewers with green yarn, hot gluing as I went.
I stuck the pointy end into the underside of the flower and hot glued to secure. For added hold, I ran the skewer end through one of the buttons holes so that the point was just visible.
The napkin ring was way fun to create, but I have to admit that I didn’t make the leaves. Coach Leslie “helped” me with them, so refer back to the above link to get instructions on how to knit those.
I used a completed loopy flower, two leaves and a length of “rope” for the napkin ring. My first step was to form the ring using the “rope” and secure it together.
The second step was to stitch the ring to the flower and then third, add the leaves. Adorable!
Now, what could be a better favor for a knitting party than a set of needles? I think nothing! So I tied a discus flower to a pair of bamboo needles and tucked a name tag behind the button center. The leaves are simply looped and tied lengths of string.
Display these stuck into balls of yarn grouped together in a bowl. Guests can grab their respective needles when they arrive and be ready to knit away.
My last project for this knitting party was the invitation. I cut and folded a standard sized card, added a patterned paper mat with four photo corners and ran a strip of contrasting patterned paper along the bottom. A printed sentiment, discus flower and loopy leaves complete the invite and will give my guests a glimpse into what we will be doing.
So with the party accessories checked-off the to-do list, here are a few further ideas/thoughts about a “Let’s Knit Together” gathering:
- Ask someone to be the coach so that you are free to hostess.
- Ask guests to bring their own yarn, giving a few suggestions for guidance. This request will cut down on your costs and allow guests to create items that will compliment their own décor.
- Make refreshments fit the theme. Set out pretzel sticks and veggies cut into long, thin strips to mimic needles. Offer a noodle dish of some kind to represent unrolled balls of yarns.
I wish you all a happy National Craft Month and hope that as the pre-Spring weather emerges you will be inspired to try a new craft and see if it blossoms into a new passion. I know I have found a new love. Sorry paper crafting, you may lay dormant for a time while I cultivate my new knitting skills, and in the process get some Christmas presents done way early. But if nothing else comes of this recent obsession, at least I can spend the month getting caught up on my DVR’d Oprah shows.
Happy crafting dear reader!
~ Elizabeth (ekb)