Knit and Fulled Memory Pieces in Progress
After the pieces dry, code will be added, and an application of a stiffener.
The pieces were mostly loom knitted, partially fulled by hand, then popped in the dryer on high heat with a pair of old sneakers.
Archive for the ‘Processes’ Category
Memory Pieces in Progress
Thursday, July 16th, 2020Work in Progress–False Memory
Wednesday, July 15th, 2020
Used three colors of wool to embroider 1 square by 6 square pieces of 1/4″ hardware cloth. Dark brown for dots, tan for dashes, and cream for spacers.
I used oil sticks fix up the 5″ x 7″ panel.
Each letter has four rectangular blocks. To make the rows tidy, I added spacers if a letter had fewer than four dots, dashes, or combinations.
Each letter is a group of four rectangular blocks that are fastened at top and bottom with a safety pin. There are fourteen blocks–thirteen letters and one spacer.
Used thin dark grey sock fiber to bind through the head and loop of the safety pins.
The silver dots are the edges of the hardware cloth.
My hope is to oxidized the safety pins to add the feel of age.
Work in Progress–Thoughts
Sunday, February 2nd, 2020Thoughts is now bound together. Started adding jute twine for warp.
Also decided to fill the horizontals. Decided to first add horizontals, then they can be locked in with the vertical warp and crosses at the block joints.
Considered using jute-wrapped rope for border.
Decided to use jute rope for two reasons–I like the twist of the rope, and it will be less work and stress on my hand.
When I am working with yarn and twine, I always wrap my hands with waterproof medical tape. The areas that seem to get ripped up and sliced the most are the joints of fingers.
After months of illness, last year I was diagnosed with interstitial lung disease. It is important for me to protect my lungs from further damage. I tried using a medical mask, but it didn’t fit properly. It kept poking me in the eye. I taped the corners to prevent poking, but the mask was still uncomfortable.
Then used an inexpensive dust mask for most of my working session. It was okay, but still did not fit quite right.
It is better to use a mask that has two elastic bands or a respirator. I have a great two cartridge respirator that fits well, but is heavy and bulky while looking down for my stitchwork.
I stopped by Harbour Freight to pick up a better dust mask. They were sold out because of the Coronavirus scare. Then stopped by Home Depot. First looked in the building section, the area with concrete. Found a package of masks. They weren’t what I really wanted, but better than the other two I used yesterday. I found empty shelves in the paint section where masks should have been. There was a sign that stated there was a limit 10 per customer.
Are people being over cautious purchasing mask to possibly protect them from a virus in China?
There have been seven confirmed cases in California.
The best place to acquire correct information is the CDC website.
From the CDC site–
2019-nCoV is a betacoronavirus, like MERS and SARs, all of which have their origins in bats. The sequences from U.S. patients are similar to the one that China initially posted, suggesting a likely single, recent emergence of this virus from an animal reservoir.
Early on, many of the patients in the outbreak of respiratory illness caused by 2019-nCov in Wuhan, China had some link to a large seafood and live animal market, suggesting animal-to-person spread. Later, a growing number of patients reportedly did not have exposure to animal markets, indicating person-to-person spread.
Work in Progress–Thoughts
Thursday, January 30th, 20202020 Goal
Complete all work in progress.
Completed stitching together Thoughts piece. Today I will be adding cream wool stitching around entire piece.
Read a couple of weaving books over the holidays and liked the idea of warp threads used to hang woven pieces.
Planning to twine jute twine vertically through the hardware cloth. Yes, I meant to use the word twine twice. Currently thinking attaching the jute warp threads to a thin metal rod. I like the visual of a couple of nail heads holding the lot on the wall.
Also will add a piece of jute-wrapped rope for the border. Should help to integrate the materials and nicely finish the piece.
This is the border on See a Penny.
Previous Posts on Thoughts Piece
Thoughts in Progress, Tuesday, May 14th, 2019
Thoughts in Progress, Thursday, May 16th, 2019
More wallpieces to complete.
Also have a stash of small 3-D work in progress that needs to be realized.
Weaving on a Little Loom by Fiona Daly
Weaving Within Reach by Anne Weil
In the post I use the words twine and twice. The words look similar. Not just because they start and finish with the same letters, but because the figure-ground is nearly identical. I authored a CD, Appearances can be Deceiving that focuses on figure-ground relationships in a variety of customizable settings.
The CD is available for purchase through Learning Fundamentals.
Work in Progress–Who Is Left…
Monday, June 17th, 2019Who is Left… is a piece that has felted wool blocks stitched together with copper wire. The copper wire was removed from a mixer that caught fire.
The wire replaced safety pins that I had hoped would patina green.
That didn’t happen, because they weren’t bronze. They became a lovely textural brown.
Not the result I wanted, but the safety pins will find their way into a future piece.
Solution to patina pennies green
2.0 parts white vinegar
.5 parts salt (non iodized)
1.5 parts clear detergent (free of ammonia)
Solution Instructions
Spray on solution and allow to set for 1 hour. Reapply.
Allow patina to dry to green powdery finish
Patina will set permanently
Allow to set overnight.
I used Sea Salt and All Clear Free. The solution became thick and white, not a sprayable solution. I dipped the piece in the thick solution and squeezed it through the blocks.
The piece was hung to drain over a plastic bin. Sprayed it multiple times with water. The detergent made a bit of foam. Suspect I will soak the piece in the morning to remove excess detergent.
I wrapped the piece in plastic for the night.
Also wrapped the bin with excess solution in plastic to keep it clean for possible application tomorrow.
Now I wait.
Thoughts, Words… In Progress
Thursday, May 16th, 2019Today I cut 330 plus pieces of hardware cloth for my Thoughts/Words… piece. The extra pieces are to replace blocks that are not quite right. Sometimes when trimming a block it is possible to break the joint. A broken joint can result in shredded fiber and make it difficult to bind the block. Also, the wire is sharp and can cause wounds.
My gloves don’t appear too damaged.
This is how I had my hand taped. I kept adding tape when areas felt a bit stingy. The clear plastic tape on my palm is a horrible product. It gets sticky and leaves a sticky residue after it is removed.
The tools that I use to cut the hardware cloth and the removed tape.
And a few blisters.
My palm tonight after a day working, making dinner, and washing dishes.
Not as annoying as a month after hand surgery. Apparently, when you are told to work as much as you feel up to, they really mean an hour a day, not 6-8 hours per day.
The result was the inability to work for nearly two months. And certain activities are still challenging. Last week I had a steroid injection to break up the scar tissue. After the bruise and sting went away, my hand is behaving more like a healthy hand.
I really should have spread out the repetitive cutting of hardware. Funny how when you get in the zone, you just keep working.
So, tomorrow I will spend part of the day cutting and perforating 330 pieces of roofing felt. Maybe begin assembling the blocks.
2019 Anniversary Piece
Thursday, May 16th, 2019Each year I make an anniversary piece, somewhat of a 3-D greeting card.
2″ x 5.25″ x .75″
1/4″ Hardware Cloth, Wool, Metal Washers, Pennies
Hardware Cloth .25″ X 1.5″ x .25″
Undyed Wool–Brown Dots, Tan Dashes, Cream Spacers.
The background pieces make the code 0527.
0 is 5 Dashes; 5 is 5 Dots; 2 is 2 Dots and 3 Dashes; and 7 is 2 Dashes and 3 Dots.
3 Spacers are placed between each component of the date. Two vertical lengths of cream yarn were inserted through the blocks and bound into the frame.
This is the first time that I stacked code pieces. I really like the result. What if instead of a piece that can be held in your hand, the scale is 5 or 6 feet? Could use my stash of rope in place of yarn. Something to think about.
Work in Progress–Thoughts, Words, Habits, Character
Tuesday, May 14th, 2019Thoughts become words. Words become actions. Actions become habits. Habits become character.
330 blocks–129 Dots, 97 Dashes, 104 Spacers
Debated whether to use blocks of 10 squares or 9 squares.
Dot, Dash, Spacer
Quarter inch hardware cloth, 9×9 squares, 2.25″ square blocks, with 1.75″ square of roofing felt, cream wool stitches.
Fifteen blocks per row 15 x 2.25 = 33.75″
Twenty-two rows 22 x 2.25 = 49.5″
The finished piece will be larger because the hardware cloth borders for each block will be bound with cream wool. Then the pieces will be bound together. A previous piece had 18 blocks that were 1.75″ squares. 18×1.75=31.5″ When stitched together and the addition of a couched border, the finished piece was 33.25″.
Blocks Made in Flash
A symbol for each block was made, then a symbol for each row.
Row 1 of 22
Layout Pattern
The Use Count in the Flash Library is another way to verify correct layout.
Who Is Left to Connect Me… In Progress
Wednesday, April 10th, 2019
Safety Pins Used–263 small, 9 gourd. The knitted brown pieces are much thinner than the cream and tan pieces. Next time I should use the same stitch for all.
Cut a length of bronze welding rod for hanging the piece inside box. Current Dimensions–10″ x 20″.
Next–Patina the metal and build a cedar box.
As stated in a previous post, the quote is from Henning Mankell’s, Firewall.
Who Is Left to Connect Me to My Earlier Life?
Sunday, April 7th, 2019The quote is from Firewall, part of the Wallander series written by Henning Mankell.
Tomorrow is the anniversary of my mother’s ischemic stroke. An event that changed everything.
Last year was a challenging year. My younger sister survived her third surgery for oral cancer, but while in recovery had an ischemic stroke. She did not survive.
Two months later my mother had an ischemic stroke. For a few weeks the prognosis was positive-negative, hopeful-no hope. Before summer I lost the two most important women in my life. The women who knew me when I was a child. We grew and changed together.
I am working on a memorial series. Typically I my series have 11 pieces. Several pieces are in progress but not quite completed. Partly the delay in completing work is the result of recovering from hand surgery. Still do not have my fine motor skill and manual dexterity in my dominant hand.
I using fiber to embroider on hardware cloth for my code blocks. Holding a needle for extended periods of time still causes hand and finger pain. Needed to figure out alternative ways for making things. Since I can loom knit, decided to give that a go. This will also be the first piece in a long time that does not have hardware cloth. It is a good thing to break a dependence on a material.
Who is Left…, will still have a metal component. The plan is to use safety pins to assemble the blocks. The safety pins will also add the possibility of green patina running down the piece.
Blocks
There are three colors of wool blocks: 41 tan for dashes, 51 dark brown for dots, and 52 cream for spacers. The 144 blocks will be laid out on a 9 x 16 grid.
Knit Pattern–Dash 41 Tan Wool Blocks
Cast On E-wrap
Knit E-wrap
R1 Skip, K5, Flat Knit
R2 Skip, K, S, K, S, K, Flat Knit
R3 Skip, K5, Flat Knit
R4 Skip, S, K, S, K, S, Flat Knit
Pattern rolls.
Knit Pattern–Dot 51 Dark Brown Wool Blocks
Cast On E-wrap
Knit E-wrap
R1 Skip, K, P, K, P, K, Flat Knit
R2 Skip, P, K, P, K, K, Flat Knit
R3 Skip, P, K, P, K, K, Flat Knit
R4 Skip, K, P, K, P, K, Flat Knit
Knit Pattern–Spacers 52 Cream Wool Blocks
Cast On E-wrap
Knit E-wrap
Only Knit Purl Stitches
R1 Skip, K, P, K, P, K, Flat Knit
R2 Skip, P, K, P, K, K, Flat Knit
R3 Skip, K, P, K, P, K, Flat Knit
R4 Skip, P, K, P, K, K, Flat Knit
Knitted Swatches with Cotton Cord Separating Blocks After First Fulling
Blocks for Code
The scraps are random sizes, might be fun to stitch together to make letters in a different code piece.
Been thinking about learning to use my mother’s sewing machine.
The blocks were fulled, not felted. Loops for pegs still visible.
Safety Pins
I ordered two types of bronze 3/4″ safety pins from amazon:
Household Mall 3/4-Inch Safety Pins, Bronze (1440 Pieces)
Firefly Bronze Metal Gourd Pin (1000 Pieces)
Received the Household Bronze pins. They are beautiful!
Waiting to assemble the piece until I see the Bronze Gourd Pins.
10 April They Arrived…
The extra space in the curve of the pin might work better with the thickness of the wool blocks.
The safety pins would be lovely for use in the i-cord bowl series I am planning to make. The title is Collected Memories. Got the idea when going through my parents’ collections found in random drawers.
A few years ago I dinked around with the idea of i-cord bowls. Wasn’t the time to develop the work. Maybe I was waiting for bronze safety pins.
According to the email I received from amazon, I may not receive the gourd safety pins until April 12th. So, I patiently wait for the order to arrive.