Freeform Necklace

On my continuing mission to fill in gaps in what I've made lately, I turned my attention to my freeform necklaces.

I sold two of these at my first Sussex Neighbourhood House market. I brought one along to my first class in the Make Craft Your Business course as an introduction to to myself and my work. It sold to another participant. That gave me an encouraging boost.

The challenge is to develop more effective ways of making these. They are a combination of fancy handspun, hand-dyed fibres, felt balls, pearls, semi-precious stones, thread and beading wire. My technique involves twisting, stitching and binding. Despite the freeform look, it takes a fair bit of planning to make sure that features end up in the right places. I like the ends to be nicely finished. A bit of flexibility in length is another desirable feature. So, I'm working on them and enjoying the process. Stay tuned for developments. 

Up and Up

I came across this book while browsing at the Wool Show.

I was actually looking for another sock book by Ann Budd, which I haven't found yet, but this one seems to have all the basics I was looking for. And you can see I've knited another toe. I've included the first completed sock in the picture so you can be sure that I'm not just showing you the same toe over again. I'm also happy to report that the short-row toe process is getting easier. Now I have an easy bit of knitting for my handbag while I knit the foot. When I get up to the heel I'll have to pay attention again.