Making? Creating? Crocheting?
Narcisse, started Wednesday 8/18, now consists of one finished back plus two fronts knit up to the color change from purple to yellow. Photos (linked to bigger versions on my archive page):
The catalyst for the crisis was a pattern I read last night for a lovely way to use 800 yards of hand-dyed yarn (and isn't that always the way with hand dyed? you buy only enough to make you happy, not enough to make an object!). The project is called Typeset. My thoughts: ooh, cool, I have 800 yards of hand-dyed yarn I could use up on that.. followed by: Why can't I design stuff like that? My complements to Kim Salazar for the design and the notes on how she did it.
It's not all bad, of course. I've learned a lot of new techniques this year & produced oodles of finished objects. Looking at Typeset, though, I feel sort of trapped in my practice of knitting other people's (wonderful, proven, successful, delicious) designs and not making my own. I get the feeling that to design is better than to replicate. It's just really really not my strong suit. Maybe the exposure I get to great ideas from the world of knitting blogs will help boost me into that type of creativity. Or maybe I'll just sponge up those cool designs & follow the directions. For instance, check out this very cool swirl ball.
The catalyst for the crisis was a pattern I read last night for a lovely way to use 800 yards of hand-dyed yarn (and isn't that always the way with hand dyed? you buy only enough to make you happy, not enough to make an object!). The project is called Typeset. My thoughts: ooh, cool, I have 800 yards of hand-dyed yarn I could use up on that.. followed by: Why can't I design stuff like that? My complements to Kim Salazar for the design and the notes on how she did it.
It's not all bad, of course. I've learned a lot of new techniques this year & produced oodles of finished objects. Looking at Typeset, though, I feel sort of trapped in my practice of knitting other people's (wonderful, proven, successful, delicious) designs and not making my own. I get the feeling that to design is better than to replicate. It's just really really not my strong suit. Maybe the exposure I get to great ideas from the world of knitting blogs will help boost me into that type of creativity. Or maybe I'll just sponge up those cool designs & follow the directions. For instance, check out this very cool swirl ball.
posted by spinnity at 8/25/2004 03:30:00 PM
4 Comments:
But don't you find that you modify just about every pattern you knit? You could view that as the beginnings of design, and just expand on that. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself--I think you're very creative and have a good eye for color and form.
Funny, I was just looking at Typeset on Lizzi's blog http://amimono.blogspot.com . Is that how you found the pattern?
And I really like the swirl ball!
Yes, you caught me! I trundled through about a month of Lizzi's blog & fell in love with Typeset. And I rejoined the knitlist (now the yahoo group) last night, which is where I found the swirl ball.
Well, m'dear, from where I stand (guess who this is!), I agree with Bogie. As a novice, I find the very ability to successfully read, translate, and CORRECT or ALTER a pattern exraordinary.
What consistently fascinates me about knitting is what it reveals about oneself, one's tendencies, and one's personal challenges. Perhaps this is something your knitting is telling you to pursue! What if you forbade yourself from starting any new projects from patterns until you design something from scratch (or even imaginatively alter a pattern using your own ideas -- how about that illusion "S" you created?) Would that be scary? Would it be fun?
You are such a generous knitter, always creating for others -- even offering to make the same thing twice for people who want it! (Even when it's a pattern you find "boring.") You're also delightfully fearless in your work -- I think you just need to leap in to this new world!
Knitters seem to be the humblest of craftspeople, retreating always from the word "artist."
Hear hear! Well said knuknitter.
And about the swap stuff, it's not all that much. If you don't like it, it can always end up at the next yarn swap. I'll bring it to SnB.
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