Earlier this year (Feb 2017) I was contacted, through Etsy, by a lovely lady who asked me if I’d be willing to create a freeform handbag, incorporating her collection of vintage earrings. As a rule, I don’t usually take on many custom orders for freeform pieces, mainly because I rarely know which direction a project may go &, even if the customer points to a particular item as an example, no 2 pieces are ever the same. So it’s often difficult pleasing people who already have pre-conceived ideas… Basically, I don’t want to disappoint…
Nevertheless, I was intrigued when she sent me a photo of the earrings &, after discussing preferred colours & forms (her preference for florals & Autumn tones), handles style, basic bag shape & her assurances that I had free range to create whatever I thought best… I decided to give it a go…. & so it began….
The Earring are lovely & certainly lend themselves to floral designs
Pairing up earring with colours & textures
Deciding on the satin lining…
…we went with the red…
The finished handbag turned out great. My customer was super happy with the result. I too, was very pleased & don’t know why, in the beginning, I was so hesitant. Well, there you go, that’s the creative process. Perhaps this little exercise will persuade you to have a search through your own collectables & see what inspirations you can find….
How lucky were we to have had the best 2 Queensland winter days for the Knitfest… you couldn’t have asked for better. So many fibre enthusiasts came to enjoy all that Knitfest had to offer: presenters had wonderful, interesting trade stalls… the many, varied workshops were all well attended with participators leaving happy & inspired… the yarn-bombing was a hoot & greatly appreciated by all the photo clickers…
A huge thank you to my friend Robyn, who kept my trade stall humming while I was workshopping… I couldn’t have done it without you….
The competitions had lots more entries this year & I’m so honoured to have won both the best beanie & scarf.
All in all, a great weekend… Hope to see you all again in 2018
Hello everyone, the Maleny Knitfest is on again… Saturday 8th & Sunday 9th July, so, mark these dates on your calendar.
The theme for this year is “Under the Sea”
There will be trade & market stalls, yarnbombing, competitions, workshops & demonstrations… all things fibre – a fabulous feast for all of us who love the tactile fibre & yarnie Arts & Crafts: crochet, knitting felting, spinning & weaving & everything in-between & beyond.
I will have a trade stall selling my freeform pieces, my books & patterns & holding workshops on both mornings:
1) Crochet Spiral – The Basics – Saturday morning 8th July 10am to 12pm
You can find out about presenters here & book into workshops here or enter a competition here
Bookings are essential as workshop spaces are limited so, don’t leave it too long to avoid disappointment.
Whether you choose a workshop, enter a competition, would like to see some talented fibre artists & their work or, just want a golly good day out with family & friends, I hope to see you there….
The following is quoted from the knitfest site
“Knitfest 2017 is an exciting weekend Yarn & Fibre Arts Festival held on 8th and 9th July, 2017, celebrating winter arts and crafts, embracing the whole community of Maleny. We will be yarnbombing and decorating the main street of Maleny which will come alive with yarnbombing, workshops, Guest Speakers, music and craft markets. It is a magical celebration for families and a time for young and old to discover new skills, talents and creativity with the use of yarns including knitting, crochet, basket weaving, spinning and weaving, felting and lots more. Get involved and join one of the many workshops. The town will literally be wrapped in art, as 7′ high sculptures made from fibre decorate our street!
The town will feature competitions for community groups, art associations and skilled artisans as they decorate posts and trees in our beautiful streetscapes with handmade art installations made of yarn and fibre. There’s prize money too! There is also several competitions for the Best Beanie, Scarf, Shawl/socks, Tea Cosy etc. Ride the Mystic bus as it travels up and down the Festival Precinct and out to the best tourist locations Maleny has to offer. It’s yarnbombed of course.
We encourage people to bring their knitting needles, crochet hooks and basket weaving skills for random acts of art in the street with the many demonstrations and art involvement in our cafes and Trade stalls. We want to expose the many Fibre artists, arts and crafts groups, knitting for causes groups, artisan groups and craft suppliers in a fun filled family weekend.
The theme for this year is “Under the Sea”.
We will celebrate all that is winter on the mountain.
Knitfest is a not For Profit Community Group run by volunteers. We rely on our wonderful sponsors and Community Grants for funding each year. The Knitfest Yarnbombing Team meet each Tues at 10am – 12pm at ‘The Garden’, 34 Mountain View Rd, Maleny to work on this year’s projects to decorate the town during the event. To sponsor the event, donate yarn or knitted/crocheted pieces, please contact knitfest@hotmail.com
Here are some new freeform crochet pieces I’ve been working on over the past few weeks, now finished & listed in my Etsy shop… Lots of gorgeous colour & beautiful textures to inspire you. For each piece I took into account the type of yarn used, resulting in totally distinct & individual pieces. I’m pretty happy with the outcome… enjoy!
This Jester beanie is possibly my most popular beanie style, created in an 8ply, 60% Superwash / 40% Polyamide yarn & an assortment of acrylic / natural yarn embellishments. Rich, vibrant colours, a joy to work with…
I just love the colour combinations of this lovely 8ply, 50% wool / 50% acrylic yarn, reminiscent of the ocean blues & yellow sandy beaches.
Texture, texture, texture… these 2 pieces, created in 12 ply, 80% Acrylic / 20% wool yarn, are wonderfully chunky yet, if I may say so, subtle & dignified..
& lastly, this freeform crochet scarf that moves from creamy, off white, to chocolate brown to velvety black. Created in a gorgeous, super soft, 8ply, 30% Alpaca / 70% Acrylic yarn blend.
I have to confess that, over the years of working with yarn, I’ve been a bit of a Tea Cosy snob & had little inclination to create, what I thought were rather outdated items. Who would even want them?
However, after being asked to make some, winning a few of competitions, gifting some & even selling a few, I have come to realise that creating Tea Pot Cosies are as creative as anything else I could create: from lovely, traditional ones to more outlandish freeform pieces. I’ve been told that Tea cosies are not only practical but add decorative joy to any table or kitchen sideboard… & so, I stand corrected… thanks to those who put me right…. – enjoy!
