It's been super exciting these last two days up in 416 - the studio classroom where Textiles happens.  There was a movement afoot a few years ago to start calling 416 "Cellblock No. 9" because me and a few of the advanced students all went crazy over rockabilly royalty, Wanda Jackson, and a song of hers about a riot in a women's prison that goes, "There's a party goin' on... up in cellblock #9."  Well, the Textiles studio does sometimes feel a little like the laundry at a women's prison, or so I imagine.  (My poor assistant Allison has been washing "free" theatre drapes up there every spare moment.  We got them from surplus through a big comedy of errors - we'll use them to do discharge projects, and hey, it's free fabric. I did have a drapes-shop flashback when she opened the giant box they came in.  One's past never leaves!) 

Anyway, we had a visit yesterday afternoon from Faythe Levine, who directed the documentary film, Handmade Nation, and who is on our campus because she curated a show for our gallery called "Craftivism."  She has sharp eyes, she noticed a St. Vinnie's treasure that hangs over our chalkboard right off the bat.  It's a tiny embroidery that says "Plan Ahead" but of course, the funny part is, that the stitcher had to put the last a and the d on their sides to fit it on the cloth (or so it seems.) I had to fight Jaana for it in the store when we came across it.  Anyway, I was impressed that Faythe noticed it because it's one of those things I've been looking at for so long I can't see it.  Faythe seemed very cool, and we're all looking forward to seeing the show when it opens on Wednesday.

This morning my advanced students were super rowdy and came up with a ton of interesting ideas.  Then because I was impressed with Drew's handmade message shirt, I got the idea that I'd post their handwork here.  Stay tuned for Drew's rebus shirt.  The other plan we've put into action is that the Stitch Gallery (in locker 527) would issue a challenge every month. October's is the "First Annual Puff Paint Challenge" and they're all out there buying that awful stuff right now, I would bet, for their 6"x6" works of puff paintery.  I'll post the winner here.  

The Stitch is getting a remodel over the next couple weeks, so it'll have lights and a floor. It was closed all last year due to well, basically, management's involvement in Women's Studies. With the big conference last year there was no time for the Stitch, even though as a gallery it's only the size of a locker and has no regular hours.  I will be sure to post a picture of the place here - we do have a velvet rope, and have been working on marble flooring, but that's not going too well so far.  We may have to switch to wall to wall carpet, or handwoven rugs.  Now that they've loosened up the locker policy, there may be a chance to take over locker 525, below the Stitch and put in a coffee house, so it'll be sort of like the old O.K. Hotel in Seattle.  

The other big exciting thing is that Spring brings Mindy Sue Meyers back to us!  Mindy just had a super great show for her MFA and got reviewed in the legitimate press, and also on All Things Cupcake.  Take a look, unless you're hungry. Then, you want to wait until you get back from your favorite bakery. 

Patterns, Cheap and dirty

I was thinking after my last post about where I go for patterns, and how we decide what to knit when.  Aside from the vintage books I've already talked about, available at your local thrift and or charity stores, I also have a few great places I go for free or really inexpensive patters when I get the itch to knit, and don't exactly know what I'm in the mood for.  Most knitters by now are pretty familiar with knitty.com, which does a great job keeping the knitting world up to date and in-fashion.  I have noticed lately that they're getting more sophisticated, and it's not as good a site as it used to be for sheer nuttiness and quick weekend gift projects, but still worthwhile if you're ready to dive into a big sweater project or are one of these sockaholic types.  Another place I frequent for free patterns is Berrocco.  They send me a newsletter via email called the Berrocco KnitBits newsletter and it's pretty interesting what they offer in the way of free patterns. If you go to their website you can search an extensive database of cataloged patterns, and their gift patterns are usually super cute and not tacky - for tacky free I go to Lion Brand. No, just kidding, sort of. Lion is a real conundrum for me, as I hate about 50% of the furry, synthetic and trashy-sold-as-sexy crap but on the other hand, they know their knitters. So they also have nice organic cotton, cashmere, and wools that you won't find at Michael's or the other big-box craft stores, and the free patterns for those yarns are pretty decent.  Baby sweaters for the upcoming shower are one thing you can find here that are cute, and done in fibers that will neither embarrass you in front of the mother nor damage the child's emotional well-being for life.  I guess what I'm saying is, Lion's website is worth a look for free patterns as well.  The last place I visit regularly for inexpensive knitting patterns is Webs.  The patterns that they work up for their own line of Valley Yarns are downloadable for about two bucks, and they have one designer, Kristin Hipsky, who's work is really to my taste.  The patterns are well written too.  

With winter coming on, I will probably be hitting the internet for knitting patterns, and indulging in a little bit of free-style knitting as well. The stash, after all, is still lurking in my basement. I will never be a person who catalogues her stash, this I know about myself. But I had an important lesson in stash management last week. The long and the short of it is, remember that one day you too will die, and it's true you can't take it with you.  I don't want to torture any fabric collectors out there, but I saw a basement full of luxury fabrics valued at about $100K on Friday, and the lucky parties who inherited this gold mine can't use it up in their lifetime (some of it they've already worn as children and teenagers!) nor are their children interested.  It's a bad day when you have to call your local college art department and ask to have a professor sent over to offer solutions to how to unload your mother's fabric stash.  I can't at this point say what's going to happen to all that material. But I think I would be remiss if I didn't just say, "Stashers, consider the children."  

Having no children, I plan to just keep knitting for another 4 decades.