Techno - tastic

Hi there

   So, since my last post, I have mostly been doing secret things, or techno things. I have two quite different projects on the go, both still under wraps, and both really exciting....all will be revealed in April!

That leaves the techno things...I am by no means a techno whizz, I know the bare minimum of what I need to in order to make things appear on the internet. Until last year my partner did all the website making side of things, but I figured, he taught himself how to do it, so can I. So, a few patient hours and many cups of tea later, I knew enough to build my super talented friend Seleena Daye's website

As I was making the very simple pages in photoshop and drawing blue boxes round things in dreamweaver I was daydreaming about my own website and what I could do with that now I know the tricks.

I finally got round to making some small changes to my website this month, mostly just adding an 'exhibitions' section to showcase the things I've made for exhibitions...

The other techno thing I did was to update my big cartel shop too, that was fun, it had looked the same for so many years.

I am planning an overhaul of my website to make it more inclusive of the other things I knit alongside the products for Knit and Destroy, it will happen this year so watch this space. Also, if you think you might want to make a simple website or an online shop, just have a go, there isn't that much to it! 

A Crafty Christmas!

Being a crafty kinda gal, I love handmade gifts, every christmas I wish I had time to make more but usually just do a few for my nearest and dearest.

This year, my making and doing was completely outshone by all the handmade gifts I recieved.

 

A fancy pin cushion and bag from my Mum

 

Fairy lights with shades made from coke cans from Tamsin 

 
An amazing notebook made to look like my favourite book prop from the Harry Potter studio tour...

 

..A super rag-rug that will be keeping my feet toasty and cozy in my studio...

 

 

...And a roller skating themed bookmark and cross stitch patch, all from the super-crafty Seleena

 

 A beautiful collection of drawings related to our late cat Sirius from Ben.

 

Now....I'd better start making gifts for next Christmas if I'm going to be exchanging gifts with this talented lot again!

The Christmas Craftacular....

You might have noticed, I haven't been doing as many craft fairs as I used to...there are a few reasons for this, but it's all a bit boring!

All you need to know is that last year, I made it down to the London BUST Christmas Craftacular, saw a lot of familiar faces, and some new faces which is always good! Here is what a Knit and Destroy stall looks like these days...

           

I forgot how good these days can be, and this one was great. Seeing people's reactions to my products face to face is always fun, they are varied but there is usually a lot of smiling, and if you know me, you'll know I like nothing more than making people smile...and if I can..make them laugh. There was a lot of smiling and chatting and a fair bit of having a laff with complete strangers.

I will be doing a few fairs in 2013 and will keep you posted, so keep checking back,I might well come to a city near you

All Systems Go - part 2

A little later than promised, here is the second installment, so, the last photo was the knits as they have come off the machine. They need washing to give the labmswool it's super soft finish, but I can't just throw it in with all those loose ends and the foxes in bits, so I sew the ends in, and the foxes up. Here they are before the wash...
 

 

When the knits come out of the wash, they are dried, then pressed, here they are on the ironing board ready for the pressing (aka ironing). I'm not fond of ironing, but don't mind pressing my knits. I definitely iron a lot more knitting than I do clothes...

 

 

So, what's next?!? More sewing, both hand and machine depending on the product. The foxes need eyes, noses and elastic for fastening, as well as a label of course!

 

 

The cushions are machine sewn before being stuffed and hand stitched to finish. Here are some cushions in progress...

 

 

 

And that's how it works, from yarn to finished product. There are lots of stages involved and a few different skills and techniques used along the way which keeps me on my toes. Now I've got some custom coloured glasses cases to knit which I'm looking forward to, as much as I love making the products as I've designed them, making them in a different colour or with a slightly custom design is always good fun!  

 

All systems GO!!!

Winter is the busiest time of year here at Knit and Destroy HQ, at the moment I am making stock for craft fairs and thought you might like to see how it works...

Everything here is made from lambswool yarn, here is part of my store,

Step 1...choose the yarn...

 

Step 2 - thread up the machine and knit...this is the body of a friendly foxxx fur scarf being knitted, you can see there are 2 cones of yarn, this is because I use double thickness in this product for an extra warm scarf!

 

 

Step 3: Sewing up; in this photo you can see the fox scaves are all in bits, these need sewing together before they are washed, also, the other knits need the ends sewing in so they don't all snag on each other and get tangled in the wash!

 

 

That is as far as I've got this week, check back next week for the following stages! 

Something wicked this way comes!

I really like halloween, the one time of the year when you can go out dressed up as ANYTHING and nobody bothers you! Thinking about it the other day I realised I have always been interested in magic, witches and the fantasy. When I was 9/10 this was my favourite book. I read and re-read it so many times..

When it was book week I did my poster of this book cover, painstakingly copying each detail and colouring it in pencil crayon, I wish i had kept that drawing.

Around the same time, there was Grotbags on TV who I loved, and was super lucky to see at a theater near home, I bought a ruler that just said 'grotbags the ruler' on it, I still have half of the ruler! Here she is having a 'hot flop'...

              

In my teens, I finally stopped reading pongwiffy, and grotbags wasn't on the TV any more but there were new witches on the block, oones that weren't green and were teenagers!!! There was Sabrina the teenage witch on TV, but even better than that there was The Craft. Three misfit teens who, when joined by a new girl from out of town form a coven.....

...just in case you haven't seen it (have you been living under a rock) I won't give too much away. But this film which I had on video filled the witchcraft void in my life for a few years of my teens.

I had stopped reading books at this stage, I only read things for school and wasn't interested in books, until my Mum started reading the Harry Potter series of books to my (then 7 yr old) little brother. She said I would like them, and they were about magic which I obviously liked..so I started reading, and stopped when I got to the end of the Goblet of Fire (no more books released yet) wow, I was hooked! Witches and wizards living alongside humans in the modern day but with their own schools and ministry and shops and currency. I couldn't wait for the next installment, and although the story revolves around a wizard there are plenty of amazing witches in these stories. Luna Lovegood is one of my absolute favourites. 

A year or so later, having discovered John Waters films and unearthed a whole world of awesome counter culture that I had been oblivious of I found Elvira...mistress of the dark. I'm not sure if I have watched Elvira as many times as I read Pongwiffy, but it was pretty much the ten years later equivilent!

Every year when Halloween approaches I think about knitting stuff inspired by all things halloween but never quite get round to it...this year...it might just happen...watch this space  
  
                                         

I get around....

So...my last post was about the in the loop conference and I didn't quite get to covering day 3. There was, of course lots of interesting and inspiring knitting talk but there was a highlight that over-rode all of that.
 
I saw a stylish lady wearing a pink bow shaped necklace that looked like one of my knitted ones. I instantly dismissed it thinking it would be the perspex tatty divine necklace of a similar design. Later, when we were having a tea n cake break i saw it closer up and realised it was one of my pieces, very exciting! I have been designing and making for 5 years and this is the first time I have bumped into a stranger wearing one of my designs. I don't approach her yet, it's busy and she's chatting to someone.
 
Later in the day, at the end of one set of talks, I approach her asking where she bought the necklace from because I made it. As she is telling me where it is from, I notice her name badge, it's Freddie Robins....only my top favourite knit artist, aahhhhh! The words get a bit muddled as my brain attempts to process the fact that this awesome artist liked one of my pieces enough to purchase and wear it. I do manage to ask if I can take a photograph of her wearing it, she is super-nice and asks me about my work and agrees to a photograph.
 

    
                                                                 What a great lady!
 
It just happened to be really nice weather for the duration of the in the loop conference, so I took every opportunity to get out into the sunshine and explore the tiny odd place that is Winchester.
 

 

    

 

                        

 

 
That was Winchester, in a nutshell! The following week I went to another conference, this time in Cambridge, this time I was speaking at it. My presentation was about 'the language of knitting' it was the first time I had spoken at a conference, I was nervous, even more so with it being in Cambridge, in their centre for material texts, I don't DO big words! Anyway, I was well prepared and when I saw the room this put me at ease!

I'm sat down...can you spot my head?!

Also, Freddie was there, as was Linda Newington (the lady who organised In the loop) from the knitting reference library, I was getting to hang out with the celebs of the knitting world again! My talk was on the second day of the conference, so on the first day I listened to some presentations, and did some expolring.

           

 

 

    

 

 

 

There were bikes everywhere, I almost got run down by a bike on more than one occasion, it's like Amsterdam but with less space! The following day I gave my 20 minute presentation that I had spent months preparing for, and it went down well, even the cheap laughs I had slipped in were well received, phew.

 

 

Hanging out with the lady who spoke about 'knitting on the internet' before me. I enjoyed both conferences, learnt a lot and met a lot of talented and friendly people. Now back to actually knitting rather than just talking about it!