H is for Hemp

H is for hemp.

I started making hemp jewelry when I was in high school. I still do some macrame once in a while, mostly in the summertime.

E, F and G

Well, I have gotten a little behind in my posting, so here are E, F and G altogether.

E is for eleven rows of swatching.
I knit my first gauge swatch for the sweater on size 8 circulars. The results are not good. I will need to buy new needles, size 9 I think. I will try straights before I go to the store.

F is for felting.

I love to felt my knitting. Felting uses hot water and agitation to alter the fiber. You have to use animal fiber in order to felt something. This purse is knit in wool. Here it is stuffed with plastic bags to maintain its cool shape as it dries. I think it looks a little like a pumpkin. What do you think?

Here is the purse before felting. You may notice the little leaves attached to the end of the strap vine that are no longer attached to the felted version. They fell off during felting. Oh well, I will reattach them.

Here are the big pumpkin leaves I knit. They look really weird after felting. Not sure what I will do with them.

G is for Gauge.

This is a neat tool that helps with gauge. Gauge is so important in knitting, especially if you want anything to fit correctly. This tool measures needle gauge and knitting gauge. I love it.

D is for Doodle

Here is a doodle that I drew. I do love to doodle.

C is for Circular Needles

My new circular needles. As soon as I finish my purse, I will use these to knit my sweater :)

American Gods by Neil Gaiman

American Gods by Neil Gaiman is a very interesting book with a rich storyline. It tells the story of a man named Shadow, who has just been released from jail. He is offered a job by Wednesday. Wednesday wants Shadow to help him with a battle: the battle between the old gods and the new gods. The old gods are gods from the ancient pantheons who were brought to America in the minds and beliefs of immigrants. Some of the pantheons included in the book are Norse, Egyptian, Hindu, Native American, Celtic. There are also some folk figures included. Gaiman does not name all the gods explicitly, and some of them I could not figure out by myself. The new gods are the gods of tv, the internet, media, and other modern phenomena. The new gods are gaining worshippers, while the old gods are losing their power. Hence the battle.

Throughout the book, the main storyline is interrupted by short stories. These stories tell how the different gods were brought to America in the first place. These short stories are a fascinating addition to the book.

I really liked this book, and I would definitely recommend it The whole story was very imaginative, and the characters were well-developed. There was a little twist at the end that surprised me, but it fit perfectly with the storyline and characters. Overall, a good read.

B is for Bead Table

Here is a photo of the inside of my bead table. Every little baggy and container is filled with beads. I also have all of my other beading supplies in my table.

I should bead more :)

A is for Amigurumi

Amigurumi is a Japanese style of crochet. Instead of joining at the end of each round, the items are crocheted more in a spiral. Amigurumi are small stuffed toys, usually animals but also can be inanimate ojects that are given human features. Here is my amigurumi chicken.
If you have been reading this blog, you have probably seen this little guy before. But you have not seen the painting that inspired me to make a chicken. Here is my honey's chicken painting.I am often inspired by his paintings and hope to do more knitting, crochet and beadwork inspired by his paitings. He creates such awesome creatures :)