The sad truth is, we cannot control the effect our art has on people. The attempt to control that effect is the "art" we are all trying to hone. For example, I don't know an artist who could say they know precisely how a piece will "go off" when first displayed. Sometimes something doesn't turn out the way it was originally envisioned. In fact, I would say most of the time this is the case. Edits are made at every stage in the process, from planning to execution and every step in between.
I will not attempt to broach such a large subject here, I could write a book on the effects of color, texture, shape and scale. But, I will say-don't be deterred! If the first edition of a particular concept doesn't convey what you are attempting, then try again. If the color you mix is not quite right, then mix it again!
It is hard to see a work that I have put time and effort into become garbage, but sometimes cleaning out the closet is what is needed to spark new creativity.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Kickstarter Project
Creativity Knits: Artful Knitting Tools
Creativity Knits is my project on Kickstarter.com. A few days ago you saw the prerelease of needles with fiber embellished ends, in preparation for this very project. I plan to make a line of luxury, artful knitting needles, with only the best in materials and embellishment. These needles will be stained with a specially purposed stain to maintain their smooth texture. Next, there will be some painted decoration near the knob, and finally, the knob end will be fabulous-think rhinestones, metallics, vintage items, and jewel tones. Everything glam!
I am so excited about this project and the potential to really be able to go all out on this First Fifty sets of knitting needles. It is a concept that has been knocking around in my head for many years, at least 7, and I can't wait to make my dream a reality. The final needles will be photographed artfully, for a second set of "art" from them, and then sold in my Etsy Store and possibly another online sales storefront.
Bringing knitting tools to the art side. That's what this is about!
Friday, September 28, 2012
Creativity Series: Skills
There are two aspects to skills needed, but not possessed, for a project. The skill level you have may not be up to what is needed for the execution of the piece, or the skill needed is just simply not in your repertoire at all.
If it is a skill level issue, I have found that being open to learning new skills is essential. Whether you take a lesson, class, or teach yourself, it is worthwhile to expand your skill-set, so that you will be prepared for the later, more difficult, project without spending a huge amount of time on learning. For example, I've never painted with oils. This is something I'm pretty upset about allowing to happen-It would have been better to me to learn oils while learning acrylics, so that I could choose which would be best for a painting. Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Now, with my more advanced paintings the only choice I have is acrylics because I know how they behave. Correcting this is part of my goals for 2013. More skills available gives you more choices in your art. As they say, there is more than one way to skin a cat!
For new skills, classes can be invaluable. An actual teacher, whether online or in person, can often be a great resource for bouncing ideas off of for execution of a particular piece. I'm not saying they should tell you what to do-just simply answer questions. The new skill I would love to acquire is metalworking. Whether it ends up as jewelry pieces or large sculptures, I am going to need a class for this as I have little to no previous experience. If only I could have taken every class in art school! Knowing what you can and cannot teach yourself is crucial. I do espouse the idea of trying it on your own before a class if time or finances are a concern. People are often surprised by what they can accomplish with a bit of elbow grease!
If it is a skill level issue, I have found that being open to learning new skills is essential. Whether you take a lesson, class, or teach yourself, it is worthwhile to expand your skill-set, so that you will be prepared for the later, more difficult, project without spending a huge amount of time on learning. For example, I've never painted with oils. This is something I'm pretty upset about allowing to happen-It would have been better to me to learn oils while learning acrylics, so that I could choose which would be best for a painting. Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Now, with my more advanced paintings the only choice I have is acrylics because I know how they behave. Correcting this is part of my goals for 2013. More skills available gives you more choices in your art. As they say, there is more than one way to skin a cat!
For new skills, classes can be invaluable. An actual teacher, whether online or in person, can often be a great resource for bouncing ideas off of for execution of a particular piece. I'm not saying they should tell you what to do-just simply answer questions. The new skill I would love to acquire is metalworking. Whether it ends up as jewelry pieces or large sculptures, I am going to need a class for this as I have little to no previous experience. If only I could have taken every class in art school! Knowing what you can and cannot teach yourself is crucial. I do espouse the idea of trying it on your own before a class if time or finances are a concern. People are often surprised by what they can accomplish with a bit of elbow grease!
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Creativity Series: Don't be Deterred, Planning
It seems like a simple enough concept, to do what you desire with your art. Unfortunately, most artists can tell you this is not how it always happens. Sometimes the hang-up is in the planning/logistic stages, sometimes it is in the execution/skills needed, and sometimes any art just flat does not have the effect intended by the artist!
Planning:
We all know the woes of this planning stage. What supplies and time will come from where and when?
I would say, this is the most frequent time at which a piece is abandoned. We may not even realize we're doing it. The thought process goes something like this, "Oh I would love to make XYZ." And quickly follows, "I can't because a)I don't have time, b) I don't have supplies, or c) I don't have the money." Time and money, isn't that what it always boils down to?
My advise on time-create daily. Make progress on something daily. I know that is sometimes the most difficult part of living creatively-actually making it a part of your life, as opposed to just an idea. Some people work best with setting a time to create daily-say just after the kids are in bed-some people create an area in which to work and go to it as he or she is able-a studio small or large, and others, create a daily date for themselves, with a time and place pre-planned.
Supplies are another challenge. Organize them. Label the bins. Put project sets together of consumables, and keep tools of each kind in a given place. I find that keeping, say, my knitting needles together, all sizes and sets, and then having various project bags going. Usually I keep the needles with an "active" project, but remove them for something "in hibernation" or that will be undone. If you don't like a piece, and can't rework it, then get rid of it! I have trouble getting rid of finished-but-unloved art.
Financial Aspects: Money is a huge challenge to me. Budgeting is not my friend, to say the least. And due to this I disregard new ideas out of hand without really investigating the financial cost of the supplies. Don't do this! If there is an idea you have, look at the supply costs, see if the cost can be spread over a period of time (or if you can make something else to buy the supplies :) Often, when I make an effort to do this, I am not disappointed, I can find a way to work it out.
Having the where, when, and how of making art come together, is an art in and of itself.
Planning:
We all know the woes of this planning stage. What supplies and time will come from where and when?
I would say, this is the most frequent time at which a piece is abandoned. We may not even realize we're doing it. The thought process goes something like this, "Oh I would love to make XYZ." And quickly follows, "I can't because a)I don't have time, b) I don't have supplies, or c) I don't have the money." Time and money, isn't that what it always boils down to?
My advise on time-create daily. Make progress on something daily. I know that is sometimes the most difficult part of living creatively-actually making it a part of your life, as opposed to just an idea. Some people work best with setting a time to create daily-say just after the kids are in bed-some people create an area in which to work and go to it as he or she is able-a studio small or large, and others, create a daily date for themselves, with a time and place pre-planned.
Supplies are another challenge. Organize them. Label the bins. Put project sets together of consumables, and keep tools of each kind in a given place. I find that keeping, say, my knitting needles together, all sizes and sets, and then having various project bags going. Usually I keep the needles with an "active" project, but remove them for something "in hibernation" or that will be undone. If you don't like a piece, and can't rework it, then get rid of it! I have trouble getting rid of finished-but-unloved art.
Financial Aspects: Money is a huge challenge to me. Budgeting is not my friend, to say the least. And due to this I disregard new ideas out of hand without really investigating the financial cost of the supplies. Don't do this! If there is an idea you have, look at the supply costs, see if the cost can be spread over a period of time (or if you can make something else to buy the supplies :) Often, when I make an effort to do this, I am not disappointed, I can find a way to work it out.
Having the where, when, and how of making art come together, is an art in and of itself.
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
"Jewelbox" Knitting Needles
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Etsy Listing |
This is a project long in the making. I'm not sure where the original inspiration came from, but I made my first set maybe 6 years ago. My mother bought them, and still has them with her knitting needles. I love the feel of fibers, and look of the fancy novelty stuff, so this to me is a natural extension-fiber topped knitting needles.
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| A view from above |
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| Lovely Points! |
The needles themselves are quite lovely, with a pointy but not-too-pointy tip, good for general knitting without splitting yarns.
I've been careful to use all acid free, archival adhesives, so there is no worry about them not aging gracefully-they will, for sure.
I'm off to go knit with my set of super fancy super gorgeous new needles!
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Sizing Rectangular Shrugs
There are quite a few different predominant styles of shrug going on right now, I'm going to discuss the easiest-the rectangular shrug. This shrug is made of simply... a rectangle. The length is determined by the back waist length, and the width, by the size of the person and length sleeves desired. First, let's find a picture of what I'm talking about, and a source of measurements.
Aha! here we are. This is a shrug and skirt set I designed many years ago, but it will suffice for our discussion. If you will notice. The sleeves are long, the knitting is running side to side, and there is ribbing around the shrug opening. If the shrug were laid folded with the opening edges together, it would look like a rectangle that is half the length of the shrug. For length, I am discussing the length from neck opening to bottom edge, and for width, it will be wrist to wrist.
The link given is for the CYCA yarn standards website. It may be reached this way, or by typing in yarnstandards.com, which is easier to remember and what I generally do. This site has body measurements (for sweaters and tops mainly) as well as hook/needle sizing guidelines, yarn wpi guidelines and quite a bit of other information. The guide to ease is invaluable as a designer.
Back to our discussion:
For this child's shrug, the length is about 9 1/2 inches prior to ribbing. This is the back waist length. The ribbing is added after this 9 1/2 inches, making it slightly longer, but with the stretch involved with wearing a shrug, we can assume about 9 1/2 inches is the finished wearing measurement. It is important to realize that the back waist length should be the FINISHED STRETCHED measurement, if the shrug is tight. If the shrug is looser, this length can be longer, but the width has to also be long enough to accommodate this length. So, If the shrug is looser, both the width and the length need to be adjusted.
For the width of this shrug, I used the center back neck to cuff measurement, times two, with again, a bit taken out for stretch across the back. This amount of ease is purely determined by your stitch pattern, your yarn, and your desired fit, so I cannot give an exact measurement, except to say that for this shrug, about 2 inches was taken off. This 2 inches will not be adjusted for in any other part of the pattern, namely the shrug opening.
The measurement I use for the shrug opening is the cross back measurement, shoulder to shoulder. This is not adjusted by any other measurement for a closely fitted shrug. For this shrug, remember we took out 2 inches for stretch across the back. Some might think the opening should be 2 inches smaller, but, for this shrug, the actual cross back is already stretched while wearing, by that 2 inches. That is to say, when the shrug is worn, it is stretched those 2 inches, so it does not need to be accommodated.
While deciding on measurements, be sure that the sewn portion, the sleeve length, is the sleeve length desire or the sleeve length mentioned on the measurement page. This all works together to create a shrug that fits.
SO for an adult:
The back length for a fitted shrug should be the back waist length or the upper arm measurement, whichever is greater. Take into account stretch at this point, as the back will be not stretched lengthwise, while the sleeve will be. In general, I would take about 2 inches off the upper arm measurement for larger sizes, in determining the back length. It is a balancing game. But if the upper arm does not fit, it cannot be worn, while there is some "give" in the back length.
The opening measurement should be again the cross back measurement, with the knitting only slightly stretched, as the actual wearing measurement will be stretched further than this measurement.
The sleeve length is as desired, or the sleeve length to underarm measurement for long sleeves.
For this style of shrug, the total length is the first measurement discussed above, and the total width is the opening measurement plus 2 x sleeve. Ribbing be either added or subtracted from this measurement while knitting, depending on the width/length of the ribbing, and is a design decision.
The measurements used above are for a closely fitted rectangular shrug. For a looser shrug, the opening width should be adjusted, the back length can be adjusted, but the sleeve length is pretty standard.
Please discuss any likes/dislikes of this method!
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| Child's rectangular shrug with rectangular skirt |
Aha! here we are. This is a shrug and skirt set I designed many years ago, but it will suffice for our discussion. If you will notice. The sleeves are long, the knitting is running side to side, and there is ribbing around the shrug opening. If the shrug were laid folded with the opening edges together, it would look like a rectangle that is half the length of the shrug. For length, I am discussing the length from neck opening to bottom edge, and for width, it will be wrist to wrist.
The link given is for the CYCA yarn standards website. It may be reached this way, or by typing in yarnstandards.com, which is easier to remember and what I generally do. This site has body measurements (for sweaters and tops mainly) as well as hook/needle sizing guidelines, yarn wpi guidelines and quite a bit of other information. The guide to ease is invaluable as a designer.
Back to our discussion:
For this child's shrug, the length is about 9 1/2 inches prior to ribbing. This is the back waist length. The ribbing is added after this 9 1/2 inches, making it slightly longer, but with the stretch involved with wearing a shrug, we can assume about 9 1/2 inches is the finished wearing measurement. It is important to realize that the back waist length should be the FINISHED STRETCHED measurement, if the shrug is tight. If the shrug is looser, this length can be longer, but the width has to also be long enough to accommodate this length. So, If the shrug is looser, both the width and the length need to be adjusted.
For the width of this shrug, I used the center back neck to cuff measurement, times two, with again, a bit taken out for stretch across the back. This amount of ease is purely determined by your stitch pattern, your yarn, and your desired fit, so I cannot give an exact measurement, except to say that for this shrug, about 2 inches was taken off. This 2 inches will not be adjusted for in any other part of the pattern, namely the shrug opening.
The measurement I use for the shrug opening is the cross back measurement, shoulder to shoulder. This is not adjusted by any other measurement for a closely fitted shrug. For this shrug, remember we took out 2 inches for stretch across the back. Some might think the opening should be 2 inches smaller, but, for this shrug, the actual cross back is already stretched while wearing, by that 2 inches. That is to say, when the shrug is worn, it is stretched those 2 inches, so it does not need to be accommodated.
While deciding on measurements, be sure that the sewn portion, the sleeve length, is the sleeve length desire or the sleeve length mentioned on the measurement page. This all works together to create a shrug that fits.
SO for an adult:
The back length for a fitted shrug should be the back waist length or the upper arm measurement, whichever is greater. Take into account stretch at this point, as the back will be not stretched lengthwise, while the sleeve will be. In general, I would take about 2 inches off the upper arm measurement for larger sizes, in determining the back length. It is a balancing game. But if the upper arm does not fit, it cannot be worn, while there is some "give" in the back length.
The opening measurement should be again the cross back measurement, with the knitting only slightly stretched, as the actual wearing measurement will be stretched further than this measurement.
The sleeve length is as desired, or the sleeve length to underarm measurement for long sleeves.
For this style of shrug, the total length is the first measurement discussed above, and the total width is the opening measurement plus 2 x sleeve. Ribbing be either added or subtracted from this measurement while knitting, depending on the width/length of the ribbing, and is a design decision.
The measurements used above are for a closely fitted rectangular shrug. For a looser shrug, the opening width should be adjusted, the back length can be adjusted, but the sleeve length is pretty standard.
Please discuss any likes/dislikes of this method!
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Ideas
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| Sketch by Raphael |
The nature of creativity and "ideas" is very fascinating to me. I think we all have all of the characteristics above, at different times for different ideas. Personally, I have painful epiphanies and let solutions come to me in their own time, most of the time. I may let a problem sit on the "back burner" for weeks or months before making a move on it. Right now I have one specific project in mind, that I've been interested to watch the creative process on. The basic idea came to me all at once, but I've been letting it marinate for a couple of weeks now, tweaking it, playing with it in my mind, but--it came to me yesterday that for this project, I'm going to have to start it to figure it out. Work out the kinks along the way. Its not particularly complicated, just something I have very little experience with. I am excited to work on it.
I think this method of ideas/creativity/problem solving is probably the most effective for me. Generally, with my knitting especially, I will work out all the kinks and design points in my mind. Then I will start knitting, but very early on in the knitting process, I write the pattern. The whole pattern, working out stitch and row counts mathematically instead of waiting to get to that point in the knitting. This seems to produce better garments for me. But, with this current project, that won't work! It should be interesting to watch the process develop as the project gets started.
What do you find helps ideas develop? What do you do to speed the process?
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