the first rule of Knit Club

I ran into this in one of the communities I read. Its pretty cute. I have a few complaints about it but they are minor and its still a fun mini-flick. So check it out
Knit Club

Let me know what you think about it.

excuses excuses

Injuries are the best excuses for knitting. I spained my back cleaning my room, I always knew cleaning was dangerous. Anyways. I have finally gotten into the Tamale shirt and am enjoying playing around on the Punkrockdomestics forum. I am so in love with that site I can't even begin to tell you.

Nathan, my other, had found one of the knitted images from this site and I have to say that they are amusing. Check them out. I'll warn you they are a bit morbid so if you aren't into the macabe I don't know if you'd like it. yumlum knitwear

other items of interest. Nothing much really. School is school is school. Nathan and I are great, I am a bit peeved about the delay in getting anything done and missing a few days of school due to my back injury but other than that I am feeling really really great!

Welp I am off to keep knitting.

almost there

So I bought new addi turbos since I can't take how slow knitting on denises are anymore. I will be using htem to finally start this pattern. Which I am very impressed to say only cost me a measley $15 to purchase all the yarn for. YAY!

I will be starting it as soon as I finish Nathan's scarf which is very close. YAY! Can anyone please explain to me why scarves can be so painful to knit? I can get through about half fine and then it becomes such a chore. I can fully knit and finish a sweater in a quarter the time it takes me to finish a scarf. Shameful? probubly but still true.

The super bowl sale is going to be happening soon at work. I am very very excited. If you live in the Va Beach area at all you should come out. Bobbie puts awesome stuff at the lowest prices ever for a day so she can get ready for her new inventory and that day is always Super Bowl Sunday. Amusing yes.

Thats that. I started to knit the Jaywalker socks from Mag knits. I really really wanna be in the knit along. I want to know why I never hear about the knitalongs I would like to do until they are already closed. Sigh. Depressing I'll still knit it all anyways and lurk the knitalong but its not the same.

So wha else. .... nothing much. I watched sci-fi fridays with my family as usual and I am still loving Battlestar Galactica. They put out a new show though that looks really good called John Doe. I watched the first episode today interested to see where it goes.

organizing crisis

So I got an email back from the lego knitting machine creator. He was very nice and it read
"Hi Heidi,

Thank you for your nice note. As of now, I do not intend to put
together plans for the knitting machine. In the near future (once my
bandwidth crisis dies down), I will be posting some more pictures.
Perhaps these pictures will help others who are trying to build
something similar.

Again, Thanks for the note,

Tom"

So thats that. Still I am totally impressed that there is a lego knitting machine.

I have been really weird lately in the fact that I have been cleaning my room when I want to procrastinate on something. Now while this might sound like a normal thing this is not a regular occurance for me. I think it has to do with the fact that I hadn't seen my desk top in.... months. And that means I can't sew which I have been wanting to do lately. I have also been wanting to purge lately which is great because I really am a terrible pack rat. (I save wrappers to packaging I like to give you an example of exactly how bad it is). Yesterday was actually sort of embarassing. I saw my friend Joy's room which is really very cool, but back to the point, she has everything extremely organized. Down to little labled boxes and books of like subjects put together and then we came to my room to get something and I have things balanced here that hold up this yada yada yada. I geuss I really don't think about it I just get up and go but still I was kind of jealous of the way everything was so organized. I want to be organized.

So what else. I have been working on Nathan's scarf and it doesn't feel like its getting anywhere. I think thats why I don't like knitting scarves. I get through the first half in like a half a day and the second half takes me a month. Go figure. It think its because on most scarves by that point its just repeative. At least on a sweater you have increasing and decreasing and all sorts of other suprises to get to. On scarves they are just repeative after the first half. I am determined however to finish Nathan and Jesse's scarves so help me Amelia Bedelia. I miss Amelia Bedelia. What mistchif she could get her self into. hehe. In fact here's some fun with Amelia Bedilia.

babies

I finally have a photo of the baby pants for Jill's wee one and the baby blanket for Denise's lil treasure.

I still need to post pics of the One skein wonder and Erin the sweater. but i figure we'll get to that all in good time.


not much going on today.

lego knitting machine

So my friend Atlanta sent me this amazing link of a knitting lego machine. How cool is that? I have to say I think its pretty awesome. So you should all check it out.

Other than that I have been running around like a chicken with out a head trying to get everything settled for school and settle into the new scheduel. I haven't had a chance to pick up my needles all week. I miss them. I have some cool ideas for some things that I hope to do tonight. We'll see. I have to finish my home work first. No ones geussed where the Button's from yet. I am going to give it another week then I'll announce what its from and what the prize would have been.

I signed up for food swap on flickr. Should be fun. Not sure what I should send just yet. I am thinking Route 11 chips since its an American Chip company and they make some really great flavors. We'll see.

Button contest

Things have been going crazy the past few days. I started school up today so I am sure that I will be wondering around for the next week trying to get adjusted to the new scheduel. I should actually be sleeping since I have Math tomorrow at 8 in the morning. Math is the bane of my existance. I am terrible at it. I am planning to go to class then go straight to a tutor and do my homework then prey that I pass what ever tests might be thrown at me. ICk to math. Sorry to all you all who like it.

So yup. I had Digital Photography and Glassblowing today. I am very excited about glassblowing this semester. I still have to post pictures of my glass from last semester. I'll have to do that.

Well I really need to get to bed but I wanted to direct all of ya'lls attention over to the side bar to see my new button. If anyone can geuss where the black sheep on the button is I will send them a prize. So leave me a comment with an email and where the sheep is from origionally.

Things have been kind of busy lately. Today I'm going to the Jivin and Drivin radio show and later the Bloodshot Bill's show. I am really excited about both. I have to go pick up Nathan's dad from the airport inbetween the two since Nathan is at work and Evan is at a Funeral. So thats the day ahead.

Crafty things I finished are:

the Erin sweater
Denises's baby blanket
The One Skein Wonder (which did only take one skein)

I am working on: (how much is completed)

Nathan's double knit scarf (1/2)
Jesse's cabled scarf (3/4)
Angelina Jacket (I misplaced the pattern so its on hold) (1/2)
a Rowan sweater the name of which aludes me right now (1/2)

I made cupcakes yesterday they were a big hit even though they didn't turn out the way I wanted. I was trying to make them the blog cupcakes. I'll load pictures later.
I think they are possible I just need to work on them. We'll see I'll make them again some time soon.

Well I best get ready for all the running around I'm going to be doing.

jelly kitten heels

jelly kitten heels
Originally uploaded by dielaydbugdie.

Hey everyone. I am putting these up on Ebay. I'll post a link tomorrow when I do. Their a size 7. Very comfy. My feet were just to small. What can I say I missed out on having the chace to relieve my 8 year old dreams of wearing jellies my whole life. Oh well I hope some one else will love them.

!

Juicey Fruiter is an amusing blog about park ranger life. I quite enjoied it.

As for life in the wonderful world of me. Well a few things of interest have occured. I got the last skein I needed to finish the baby blanket. YES! I am going to finish it before the New Year ball falls.

Nathan returned from Wisconson. I mailed my Flickr pals gift. Ordered this shirt. I really don't need it but it was on sale and I like that company so I wanted something from it. Its still a cute shirt though and I am excited to get it even though I should have put the money aside for spendage for my Bonneville Speed week vacation.

I wish I could find the USB cord to the camera so I could post all the cool loot I got for X-mas and all the projects I've finished or am working on.

I made plans for August to attend the Bonneville Speed Week on the Salt Flats of Utah before I transfer to Richmond, VA to attend VCU. Very exciting both the Speed week and VCU. though I have to admit at the moment I am a bit more excited about Speed week. Especially since I am going to fly into Tulsa and Ryan and I are going to drive the rest of the way in his Bel Aire. Can I just say that this is a dream? I am going to be spending two glorious days in a Bel Aire a car whose tires I am not fit to wash. Sigh pure bliss just thinking about it. So that is in between summer school and moving. YES!

A friend of mine gave me this link. I think some of you might like it. Its all about color in fashion. very niffty. Fashion in Colors

I think that about covers it for today folks.

Busy

I have been knitting up a storm. I am on the last 7 rows of trim for the Glamprye One skein Wonder which is turning out wonderfully. I'll be sure to post pictures once I find my camera or Nathan gets back. I am waiting for the last skein for the baby blanket but in the mean time I started to write a pattern for a Jacket and Bag that are a take after Cruella De Vills' from 101 Dalmations. I am ordering the yarn for it on tuesday so hopefully it will work so I can dress up as cruella for Halloween next year.

I am working on Jesse's scarf which is a slightly altered Here and There cbales scarf from the Scarf Style book (pg. 15) its really easy but looks like it would have been hard. I did the first half of the scarf in a week and then took 6 months to finish the rest of it because I was being side tracked by other projects, school etc... The alterations include making it striped, about a quater shorter in width, and adding a fisher man's necking to it (where its more narrow at the point where the scarf naturaly rests on the neck). I have a few pictures from when I was working on it earlier this year. I should have the final pictures soon since i have four stripes to go. YAY! Thats the plan for tonight. Watch movies and finish Jesse's scarf so I can mail it to him.

I started the Bike bag from an old Vogue knitting (the one with the felted rose bag). I have to rip it though since i was working on it while watching Lost in Translation and messed up on the original cast on. I put on one to many stitches. No biggie didn't get very far into it.

Graffiti

Not Martha (see links) just recently posted this article about knitting graffiti. Very cool.

Another Graffiti artist I have stumbled upon recently is Swoon.This is an interview with the New York Times that she did recently. I really admire her work not only for the idea behind it but for the beauty and details that she puts into it. She really had great ability as an artist. I would love to continue to ramble on about it but honestly I think the work speaks for it self.

Sigh. I think I am going to have to ask Donna for that book I lent her on Graffiti back. I really sort of miss it.

delays

due to a MIA(missing in action) camera I haven't been able to take photos of my sweater yet but I have worn it out twice already and recieved compliments. I have been commisioned for a sweater vest and two scarves. I will work on them shortly. Tomorrow I am going to go purchase more fling in code pink since I ran out of it in the home stretch. DERN! I needed it for 8 more rows. I have 30 more to go and sadly I can't get through the plain section that didn't need the Fling run with it because I ran out of the fling before that part.

Which gives me the perfect excuse to start Glamprye's One Skein Wonder which I am so excited to start. hmm... well I am going to go run off and work on some more knitting while catching up on my reading of everyone elses blog.

Race to the Finish.

YAY! I finally finished the Rowan Ribbon Twist sweater "Erin". After it taking a whole year, a lack of one skein, and the sewing of one sleeve inside out due to not paying attention to how I had lined it up its all done. I wore it to work today and it was awesome. Love it. I will post pictures tomorrow.

Now that school is in recess I am determined to finish all my back logged projects. I am going to finish the baby blanket tonight for example since I have only 50 rows left. Yes! then it can get washed and packaged to mail out to Denise for her little girl.

I have four more stripes to go on Jesse's scarf another one thats taken a year to do. For shame on me. After I get those done I am going straight to the Angelina jacket and my Rowan Cardigan whose name I can't remember at the moment.

Tomorrow will be picture day and I am super excited to have two projects for sure finished. I'll photo the progress on the others as well.

Thanksgiving

So this was a great holiday. I have a good idea for a fast easy craft project to do this weekend if I ever get off my lazy butt. haha

Turkey preparations this year were recommened to me by Ellyne who says you should soak your turkey overnight in a vinger and water bath then rinse throughly. Rub Kosher salt liberally over the whole turkey allowing it to sit for 15 minutes per pound. Rinse extremely well. butter, salt, pepper and stuff. Place in Brown paper bag and cook till browning then rip open the bag and finish off the browining process. Your turkey should come out suckulant and juicey. truely sublime.

So yes. That is about all that I have been up to. I am hoping to get in a photo shoot with Nathan (my boyfriend also photographer check out www.nathannovak.net). I have been trying to convince him to take some old kitchy retro pictures of me since I love that whole thing. With the long weekend for both of us I thought itd be a great time to do it.

I promise to post my latest watercolors tomorrow as well.

xxxhugs

The Debate

The debate over what is art and what is craft has been a long and tedious one filled with many scalding arguments and heated words. In the end the only thing I could honestly deduce was that attitude toward the piece and the atmosphere it is intended to exude is the only real defining factor between art and craft.
On an extremely general note people like to define crafts as everyday items while art is defined as specialized items for viewing purposes only. This debate charges further debates as to who works harder for their purpose; the artist or the crafts man and to that which is more skilled. In the end it seems those both works hard for their ideas and are bound by the same basic guidelines of design. The defining difference seems to be that crafts workers use those guidelines to further their work while remaining inside them on the other hand artists while fully trained in and comprehending those same guidelines throws them out to push the envelope.
This is evidenced in the "Nuba Woman II" by William Morris for example in the way he not only treats the glass but uses it to represent a personal statement. He treats the glass in new ways creating complex shapes building upon an abstract concept. Namely that we draw from Nature in our everyday lives. It is the attitude that William Morris and the viewer lend the piece which in turn creates an atmosphere which the piece should continue to exude. Meaning because the “Nuba Woman II” is treated as a piece of art it becomes art. This is the same concept the Dadaists were after in such works as Duchamp’s fountain more commonly referred to as the urinal. Which seems to be a contradiction as it is an everyday item that was made for the mass consumption of male urine. However it was given a new life by Duchamp as art through his attitude of the piece which to this day hangs in the Indiana Art Museum gallery as art proving that it is the attitude given the piece by the creator for it to exude the atmosphere of art.
The attitude lent toward crafts however is that of mass production for people’s personal use which leads to a casual atmosphere in which the work is determined useable and abuse able to say it crudely. It becomes seemingly temporary while the art seems timeless. A goblet for example remains a goblet even after hundreds of years. Look at the Facon De Venice Goblet despite the fact that you run into this piece in a museum you treat it with little a here or there. It could very well sit in your cupboard at home, on a shelf in a store, or in the garbage for all that it would matter despite its decorative details and delicate hand etched designs. The only thing giving it authority to be there seems to be its age. This lack of presence is not created by the fact that it is a goblet however but by the attitude we are introduced to when we come in contact with it. The lack of an artists name to be included with the piece as well as its cramped proximity to similarly designed pieces by other anonymous creators from the same time period in a room filled to the brim with other such clusters of like pieces cause you to treat it with a casual disregard unlike the room in which the “Nuba Woman II” rests. Which is sparsely filled, more brightly lit and defines itself with large plaque cards filled with details about it and a creators name.
So where is the problem in defining art and craft then? We touched on it slightly with Duchamp’s fountain and it’s a visible question in pieces like the dinner sets created by Judy Chicago for her “Dinner Party”, or African American quilts they are examples taken out of their usual definition as craft and given meaning through the attitude lent by the statement despite their daily association with our lives. This attitude is not always readily accepted however which is where issues of art vs. craft ensue. These blocks of acceptance are often caused by the medium used to create the piece, the style in which is done and so forth. All these issues come down to matters of personal opinion and the creators’ intent of the piece. Whether it is a concept placed on an adopted piece such as Duchamp’s found object “Fountain” and the African American Quilts or if it was originally intended from start to finish as an artistic statement all along as in Judy Chicago’s “Dinner Party” and William Morris “Nuba Woman II”.

Up to date and up coming

So I am doing pretty good on the finishing of the baby pants. They are definatly going to be up and running on time at the rate they are going. HURRAY!

I purchsed the last skein of Rowan Ribbon Twist to finish my Sweater Erin. thank goodness its getting cold enough to wear it too so I think I am going to finhish it tomorrow in glassblowing while I wait for the other people to blow their glass. That class has been aweosme for the knitting.

I am turning in a paper in there on art vs. crafts relating two peices from the chrysler museum that we had to choose and discuss. I am going to post it and am interested in what you all have to say about it.

I have also decided to delight you with the wonders of school projects since well that is a definate part of my life and why shouldn't you all get to enjoy it? So that will be coming up this break. Look forward to it.

Another use for left over yarn now includes pom-pom smowmen and pom pom scraves.

leftover yarn uses

this is another left overs project. I really need to post that on the side bar. I'll get to it later this week since I should have time.
Candy cane Covers

So this is a fun idea to run with crochet soda tab accesories. I stumbled upon it in a knitting community I glance in on from time to time.

Anyways. I have decided to knit the plaid corset in the latest knit.1 however am first going to finish the baby pants for one very pregnent Jill and the 5 hour baby sweater.

Back Trackin

So I go half way through a pair of short baby pants that go with an outfit that is being knit communally by the group I go to for a certain someone when I realized that they probubly actually wanted the long pants so I decided to rip it all out and start over. I began agian only to get into it and realize I had started on the wrong needle size. BLAST! so I ripped agian and may attempt it agian in a bit.

Been finishing a baby blanket for another friend. Need to pick up the last skein of Rowan Ribbon twist so I can finish the Erin sweater. I think I am going to spend the rest of this week finishing up Jesse's scarf that I ment to finish at this time last year. Ooops. goes to show how fast this year has flown by. Sigh...

Other knitting projects have been taking the back seat to school projects. Some of which are vey fun for example we're building chairs out of cardboard. I am enjoying the project so far. A few of the other prjects have inspired me to have some really good ideas. I can't wait to ahve a bit of extra time to try them out. We'll see.

Next week Amber wants to have a craft night so I am looking forward to having that and hope it'll be come a regular occurance. well I think thats cool for now.