Unleash Your Creative Self: Knit and Crochet Your Own Halloween Costumes!

To the defiance of summer, the autumn cloaks of gold and red have begun to adorn the mourning trees. The wind gently spreads its falling leaves until all is covered by its colorful offerings. Nature is trying to tell us one thing: Halloween is approaching!

This year, I thought to myself: Why not create my own Halloween costume? The idea seemed brilliant; I was looking to begin a new knitting project, anyways.

What could I make? I began searching the internet until I stumbled across the perfect pattern for a ninja mask. My costume was confirmed at that very moment; I will be a ninja for Halloween.

Visit threadbanger.com to find additional knit and crochet Halloween costume patterns.

Lacey Jane Roberts Masters the Art of Guerilla Knitting

Lacey Jane Roberts is not one to color within the lines.  Her studio practice of large scale, site-specific knitted instillations pushes the boundaries of traditional art.

Lacey Jane’s instillations, which occasionally consist of guerilla actions, showcase her skillful fiber work of knitting, twining, Peruvian wrapping, vacuum forming, latex, knotless netting, multiple harness floor loom and loom maintenance, block printing, basket-weaving, felting, embroidery, hand and machine sewing, and overlock/serger.

Lacey Jane has served as visiting faculty in the textiles department and a Studio Practice Instructor in the MFA program at California College of the Arts.  Her work was most recently included in the exhibition “Capital Jewelers” at Naomi Aron Contemporary Art in Las Vegas, NV.

Her recent ambitious and strikingly beautiful piece “We couldn’t get in. We couldn’t get out.” consisted of a huge hot pink, knitted barbed wire fence made from crank-knit yarn, hand-woven wire, steel poles and assorted hardware. 

Lacey Jane’s guerilla work was also reflected in San Francisco in 2005 when California College of The Arts dropped the word “Crafts” from its name.  Lacey Jane installed the words “& crafts” with hand-knit yarn and plexiglass.

To view more of Lacey Jane Robert’s work go to www.laceyjaneroberts.com.

Around the Yarniverse: Links for Fiber Artists

The weather is turning cooler, the holidays are approaching, and the month of September will soon be behind us.  This only signals one thing-Fall is approaching!

In the spirit of Fall, I have started to knit a pumpkin dishcloth.

Enter a make it with wool contest! 

Recycled cotton: A new and upcoming trend.  

Fall craft ideas for the whole family to enjoy. 

Be a part of the world wide Spin in Public Day! 

A slice of warm pumpkin bread is delicious on a cool Fall day.

Prep your garden with Fall gardening tips.

Some Fiber Artists Knit For Peace

For some, the initiative to knit is not to make a scarf, or a sweater, or an afghan blanket.  Some fiber artists believe the act of knitting should be utilized as a representation of peace, social justice, and a movement to stop war.

CODEPINK, a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement, emerged out of the desire of a group of American women to stop the war in Iraq.  CODEPINK played on the former Bush Administration’s color-coded homeland security alerts that signal terrorist threats.

On Mother’s Day weekend, May 9-10, 2009 in DC, CODEPINK activists knitted squares for a giant, 150-foot long White House “Cozy.”  About 100 women from around the world contributed to the “cozy,” which read in green letters with a pink outline, “We will not raise our children to kill another mother’s child!”

The completed “cozy” consisted of around 5,000 squares, and was then strung across the White House fence.  Children then stitched together 10″ by 10″ linen squares decorated by Iraqi children in refugee camps in Jordan.  

To read more about CODEPINK projects visit the CODEPINK website.

Local Yarn Shops Bring the Fiber Community Together

Local yarn shops are owned and staffed by people who live and breathe yarn.  These are the people who understand the needs, wants, and desires of crocheters, knitters, and fiber artists of all kind.

Laurel Hill respects and appreciates the vital role independent, retail yarn stores play in their local communities.  Sharing one’s expertise with others, and teaching the ancient craft of knit and crochet is the foundation that provides stability and growth in the hand-knitting industry.    

To meet each retail shop’s individual, unique requirements, we have designed a starter kit that allows retail stores to select items and quantities that match their customer’s needs.

Our starter kit includes the following:

- 2 each of Laurel Hill Straight Knitting Needles sizes 4-5-6-7-8-9-10-10.5-11-13-15

- 1 triangular pair of needles size 8

- 1 each Laurel Hill crochet hooks sizes D-E-F-G-7-H-I-J-K-L-M

- 1 Nam Oc crochet hook size F

- 1 Trai crochet hook size K

- 1 Double Point Sock Needle package of six needles 2mm

Dye Your Own Yarn With Kool-Aid

I felt a strong sense of nostalgia as I scoured my neighborhood grocery store looking for the sugary, powdered substance that my parents only let me have in moderation when growing up.

I found the Kool-Aid aisle almost instantaneously.  After quickly glancing at my choices of changin’ cherry, pink lemonade, and black cherry, I found what I was looking for: blue moon berry.  It was the perfect blend of turquoise and aqua, which I would use to dye my yarn.

Kool-Aid is readily available and non-toxic, which makes it the perfect substance to dye your own yarn.  Kool-Aid dyeing works on animal fibers such as wool, mohair, and alpaca but does not work on cotton or synthetics.  You must use pure wool yarn for the best results!

For steps on how to dye your own yarn with Kool-Aid visit Wool Festival.com.

Portland’s First Sock Summit is a Hit

Last Friday 935 avid knitters, who gathered at the Oregon Convention Center, had the satisfaction of setting a world knitting record.  The enthused crowd knitted and purled nonstop for 15 minutes.  It was a moment that will go down in knitting history.

Why socks? Devoted knitters believe socks are great for trying new patterns and techniques, easy to transport around, offer a variety of patterns, and are necessary;therefore, always serving as the perfect gift.

Those who visited the Sock Summit marketplace toured an overwhelming amount of booths, and had the chance to knit on the world’s largest sock.  The Sock Museum was also a highlight, which showcased socks from each decade.

Laurel Hill would like to personally thank the knitters and crocheters at Sock Summit who test drove our new products.  This was very beneficial and inspiring as it gave us a better understanding of how to meet your knitting and crochet needs.

We would also like to thank you in advance for introducing us to your local yarn shop. 

 

 

 

Crochet and Environmental Enthusiasts Crochet Coral Reef to Warn About the Effects of Global Warming

Coral reefs around the world are dying off at a rate faster than rain forests.  Scientists now believe the reef will be devastated in the coming years. 

One of the greatest wonders of the natural world, the Great Barrier Reef stretches along the coast of Queensland, Australia.  However, global warming and pollutants threaten the reef.  

For this reason, the Crochet Reef project commenced to draw attention to how rising temperatures and pollution are slowly destroying the reef. 

The Crochet Reef is made up of many different “sub-reefs,” each with its own colors and styling.  These include the following: the Bleached Reef, the Beaded Reef, the Branched Anemone Garden, and The Ladies’ Silurian Atoll, which contains close to 1000 individual crochet pieces made by dozens of contributors around the world.

In addition to the woolen reefs, there is a Toxic Reef crocheted from yarn and plastic trash.  The Toxic Reef is a part of the project that responds to the escalating issue of plastic trash that is problematic to our oceans and killing marine life.

For more information about the project view the Ted Talks Margaret Wertheim on the beautiful math of coral.

Sock Summit 2009 Casts On

Sock Summit 2009 is celebrating the diversity of sock knitting in Portland, Oregon from Aug. 6 – 9.   

Close to 40 of the finest sock specialists will gather at the Oregon Convention Center to teach knitting enthusiasts how to knit odd socks, historically accurate socks, boot socks, warm socks, lacy socks, and even elegant socks.

You can learn how to make argyle socks, Bavarian stockings, Toe-up Socks for the Stubborn, or Turkish stitches.

While taking a break from classes you can browse the marketplace, which has more than 150 venders, selling everything from yarn, needles, bags, patterns, jewelry, and art.  You can also attend an old-fashioned sock hop or a lecture on the history of socks.

Laurel Hill will be selling our exotic, handmade and sustainable needles and hooks at the Sock Summit marketplace.

To learn more about the Sock Summit 2009 visit the Sock Summit website.

Crochet! Magazine: Exotic Wood Hooks From Laurel Hill

Crochet! Magazine acknowledged Laurel Hill as an innovative, environmentally friendly, and socially responsible company in its July 2009 edition.  

The article focused on Laurel Hill’s crochet hooks and needles, which are crafted from Nam Oc, Trai and ebony woods.  Each wood is carefully hand selected, sized, sanded and polished to create premium needlework tools.

According to the article, Members of the Crochet Guild of America provided the early tests of Laurel Hill’s crochet hooks at trade events, which gave valuable feedback and suggestions.  For example, their suggestions led to the creation of the unique thumb rest that sets Laurel Hill’s crochet hooks apart from other brands.

For more information view the original article from Crochet! Magazine.