Day 10 of 28

My 28 Days piece is coming along ...


Days 5 and 6


Days 7 and 8


Days 9 and 10

So far I've embroidered ten circles, one each day. There will be a total of 28, arranged in seven rows of four. I'm using a sequence of seven colors, which will repeat four times, and a sequence of nine different stitches. The 28th circle will repeat the seed stitch that was used in the first circle. So the circles will come full circle.



I realized early on that I was not going to be able to stitch perfect circles. They're all a little wonky, which I am growing to like. They remind me of something one of my favorite artists, Agnes Martin, wrote: "Perfection is not necessary. Perfection you cannot have."

Streusel News

I have three exciting bits of news today. One is that Streusel is featured in the latest Pattern Spotlight over at Peacefully Knitting. The post tells you everything you might want to know about the pattern.

Second, the very first Streusel (other than mine) is already off the needles! It's a Blueberry Streusel made by the talented Teresa (innersparkle on Ravelry):



When Teresa offered to test knit the pattern, I looked at her Ravelry projects page, and I was in awe. Every one of her lace shawls and sweaters is exquisite—and the woman is fast! She routinely knits two to three shawls a month.

Teresa knit Streusel in a delicious blueberry-colored yarn (DogEared Dyeworks BFL and Silk from Lake Tahoe Yarn Company). Here it is on the blocking wires:



Do you use blocking wires? I've found them to be a worthwhile investment—they make blocking lace so much easier and produce beautifully crisp, even edges.

The third piece of news is that Karin has dyed up more of her Periwinkle Sheep merino silk (the yarn I used for the Streusel sample). From left to right: avocado, orchid, chai, silver lining, and raspberry truffle. Gorgeous, aren't they?

Summer Stitching

"Small Stories," a fiber art exhibition curated by Joetta Maue, opens today with a reception from 6 to 9 pm at the Urban Alchemist Design Collective in Brooklyn. My piece titled 31 Days is in the show.

 
31 Days, by Bonnie Sennott (2012), linen, cotton embroidery thread, dowel rod, 31 inches height by 16 inches width

31 Days began as a way to get myself in my studio every day. For 31 days I purposely wrinkled a piece of linen, then stitched the wrinkles, alternating white thread one day, black the next.



Whether in our clothes or on our skin, wrinkles are something we usually want to get rid of. Instead, I made them the focal point of the work. And as I stitched the wrinkles, I grew more and more fond of them. Their meandering lines made me think of veins, paths, and especially my own aging skin and life's fragility and unpredictability.

This week I began another embroidered artwork that I'll work on each day for 28 days. For this one, I'm embroidering one circle a day, a total of seven rows of four circles each. I'm using seven colors in all and a different stitch each day.



If you happen to be in or around Brooklyn, I hope you'll come see the "Small Stories" show. It runs through July 22 at 343 5th Street.

Pattern Release: Streusel

As the temperatures and humidity rise, it's always nice to have a light and easy lace project at hand. My new pattern, Streusel, a triangular scarf/shawlette, fits the bill for summer knitting. It's now available on Ravelry and in my Etsy shop.



Knit in a fingering weight wool/silk blend from Periwinkle Sheep, Streusel has a soft sheen and fabulous drape. It's just right for covering your shoulders on cool summer mornings or in chilly air-conditioning. For a warm fall/winter wrap, make it in 100% wool, alpaca, or maybe a wool/cashmere blend. (It's never too early to be thinking about your holiday gift list!)


Pattern: Streusel, by Bonnie Sennott
Yarn: Periwinkle Sheep merino silk, in the Chai colorway, 50% merino wool, 50% silk, 437 yards/399m per 100g skein
Needles: US #6/4.00mm



The pattern PDF provides instructions in both written form and a chart. I'd describe the level of difficulty as advanced beginner—the skills involved are not difficult (garter stitch, yarn overs, basic increases and decreases).



It's entirely reversible, which is always a bonus in a scarf or shawl—no need to check whether you're wearing it right-side-up, as there is no "wrong" side. Finished dimensions of my sample were 64 inches/163 cm long by 13 inches/33 cm wide at center.





Thanks go to Katherine for her impeccable tech editing, and to friends and family on Ravelry who provided encouragement as well as feedback as I considered a name for the pattern. I often had baked goods on my mind as I was knitting up this delectable colorway, so in the end Streusel won out.

Camera Play

This afternoon I took my knitting up to the Lady Killigrew Cafe at the Book Mill in Montague, where I finished knitting the sample for my next pattern. I also played around with my new camera while I was there. It has lots of fun settings, like a fishbowl effect:



And a "nostalgic" effect:



And something called "miniature" effect, which blurs everything except one band of the image, supposedly making it look tiny. Not sure I really see that happening, but I like the results anyway:







The Book Mill is such an interesting place; I could have taken pictures there all day ...







But I restrained myself and stayed focused on task. I bound off the pattern sample while I was there and now it's on the blocking wires. Hope to have it ready to release in the next week or so.





Of course, one of the first subjects I tested my new camera on was Snickers:



My old camera was a workhorse that I got many years of use from, but the sensor or something is going. Nearly all the photos I took at Squam were blurry. Wish I had realized that was happening before I left, but c'est la vie!

Anyway, lots of people took fantastic photos at Squam. You can see them in the Squam Art Workshops June 2012 Flickr group.

Squam Sightings and Sale Reminder

I was excited to see some Blue Peninsula projects while I was at Squam Art Workshops last week. Kim of the Woolen Rabbit had a gorgeous red Deephaven on display in her booth at the Squam Art Fair:

She knit Deephaven in the Pomegranate colorway of Woolen Rabbit WW Opal, a worsted-weight blend of merino, cashmere, and silk. Read Kim's Ravelry project notes here.

Cathy brought a beautiful pair of Rockywold mitts to Squam, which she knit for her sister in the Boothbay Blue colorway of Quince and Co. Tern:

Looks like she also picked up a Squam mug while she was there! (I have the same "SQM" logo on a bumper sticker on my car.) Check out Cathy's Ravelry project notes here.

Just a reminder—tomorrow (June 15) is the last day you can use the SQUAM2012 coupon code in the Blue Peninsula Ravelry shop. Enter the code to get $1 off all Blue Peninsula patterns (except eBooks, which are already discounted). Click the "use a coupon code" link when you make your purchase, or go directly to this coupon redemption page.

My Squam ABCs

A is for amazing, awesome women (thank you, Elizabeth, Jen, Michelle, Lauren, Christine, and everybody else who makes it happen).

B is for Buffum—a lovely cabin with a lovely view.




C is for cabin mates, friendly and funny. Clockwise from lower left: Laurel, Ann, Rani, and me.



D is for Downward-facing Dog in Michelle's Gentle Yoga class.

E is for evenings at the twinkle-light-adorned Playhouse.

F is for fox, red, pausing to look at me as he crossed my path.

G is for gluten-free options, lots, in the Rockywold dining hall.

H is for Harlot, The Yarn. It seemed like every time I spotted her in the dining hall she was playing with an incredibly happy-looking baby.

I is for Ice House Road and cabin ice boxes.

J is for joy, abundant.

K is for Krispies, Rice, treats, a most excellent gluten-free dessert.

L is for luna moths (I saw the first one of my life!) and lady slippers.



M is for mosquitoes, real and embroidered. (I stitched the first one of my life.)



N is for new friends made and new things learned.

O is for overscheduled lives left behind.

P is for pine walls, pine floors, pine needles, pine trees.



Q is for quiet dawns spent sketching at Needle Point.



R is for Ravelers and other folks who stopped by my table at the Squam Art Fair. (Camille, you looked so great in Pomegranate when you tried it on, I almost gave it to you!)



S is for the terrific staff of the Rockywold-Deephaven Camps, always helpful, always friendly.

T is for turtle, sunning at Needle Point.



U is for unexpected moments of creativity and delight.



V is for viridity and verdancy, all around.

W is for Wood, Ann, who taught novice boatmakers how to put wind in their sails.











X is for X-Acto knife, helpful in boatmaking.

Y is for yarn bombings and pom-poms everywhere.

Z is for Zodiac, where stitcher extraordinaire Rebecca Ringquist demonstrated how cool and easy it is to make woven picots.



Sketches to come in another post!