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OK, guild members, this is an invitation to you, yes, YOU, to contribute to this newsletter!! (Avital waves piano wire dps over head in a threatening manner.) Mirjam is a prolific writer and I enjoy bashing at the keyboard when I have time but we can't be the main contributors every month! Jen, thanks so much for your contributions, the article on Sharon Abrial, the web site notices, and for agreeing to be our first "member profile" victim. I know that everyone's been busy with the chagim and now I hope to hear from the rest of you! Patterns, book reviews, fiber thoughts, interesting web sites, problems and solutions--I welcome any submission, within reason. It doesn't matter whether you don't know how to write or spell or whether English isn't your first language. I'll do my best to turn it into readable English. It also doesn't have to be about knitting; we've always been rather flexible about including other fiber arts. Remember that this is *your* newsletter and it'll look a bit silly if I have to start sending out blank pages at the end of the month. If you're not sure whether a topic will work, send me a proposal and we can discuss it. (I might add that I'm not adverse to doing a little discreet arm-twisting on the side!
I would like to tell you about a (mostly fiber) exhibition. We presented people with the idea of creating their own shield, and collected twenty-four shields. The Hebrew word for shield, "magen," carries the same dual meaning as in English (and most European languages) as an artifact shaped to defend the body and as symbol of a family name or trade. Two years ago our friend Toni Friedman (of Nir Etzion) lost her son, Magen, in the Lebanon war. We asked her permission and dedicated this exhibition to her son Magen (z"l = of blessed memory). Prof. Asa Kasher wrote an essay.
Fiber works:
- Toni Friedman: A black background on which she appliqued five stripes
cut from Magen`s uniform, woven at the left upper side with four stripes.
On the stripes she arranged all his badges and emblems; on the underside
she sewed arm echelons. She called it "From Magen to Magen."
- Shula Lis made a quilt, in mainly black and red with stripes sewn
and turned, "Dove with olive Branch."
- Mirjam Bruck Cohen: I made a work called "M = Mem" (the Hebrew M)
on my own woven variegated and checkered red and white. I embroidered a
silver M containing a blue MEM on the right side when you look at it. Since
it has a vest shape (it has a back and a front) it really is the right
side. A white appliqued felt hand holds, like one would hold a bouquet
of flowers, a fly shuttle, 2 knitting needles, a sewing needle, and a crochet
hook, and on the back there is a knitted m+mem. To complete the vest feeling,
side ribbons hold the vest in place and should remind us of the small tallit.
The vest is hung on a female shaped clothes hanger.
- Sonia Shmueli embroidered the high priest's breastplate.
- Noya Fintzy combined dye techniques with an embroidery of a female
pregnant contour, as well as writing a lullaby.
- Yosefa Azrad made a shield of sprigs, related to her Hebrew name,
Zered ("sprig").
- Tali Blumenau rolled up materials of black ribbons into metal shapes,
round and triangular.
- Martha Davni painted an eye and framed it on a cushion-like soft
silk folded shape.
- Estel Falkowitcz wove 3 aprons shaped as little cushions. Aprons
= the woman's shield.
- Ruth Aiva Kamhi used sticks that she folded and sewed into felt,
which rested upon a circle of laurel leaves.
- Ayelet Lindenstrauss-Larsen felted a group of animals in delicate
browns and beiges.
- Ora Lahav-Chaaltiel made three shields from her own handmade paper,
symbolizing the forefathers of her family.
- Tova Ben-Shalom painted and embroidered a consolation of biblical
words.
I have only described the fiber works. The other works were made of
clay, metal, hide, and plastic. We had 300 people at the opening and over
a 100 the next day. It is being held in Megadim, Israel, from Sept. 15
till Oct. 28.
Despite the heavy flooding in the Bat Yam/Yaffo area, Sonia G., Yehudit A., and I attended a workshop offered by Nina Libin at her sister's apartment on the edge of Yaffo. Nina is a charming and patient teacher, born in Russia and now living in New York City, and the author of the book, Beanile Lace (Lacis, 1998). She visits her parents and sister's family in Israel several times a year. At home, she is a professional Russian/English translator and a volunteer lace expert at the costume department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Nina learned the art of tatting in Russia and, with several other tatters, sought to revive it by teaching and by translating old patterns into modern notation. In the mid 80s, she discovered a way to incorporate beads into tatting. The result is "Beanile Lace" (coined from "beadwork Nina Libin"), a technique that involves threading small glass beads on the shuttle and ball thread and then locking them into the tatting with the double stitch. The results of her work are stunning. Her book contains examples worked with heavier cotton threads and seed beads, but her more recent work, with metallic threads, freshwater pearl beads, and antique beads, resembles Victorian silverwork. The tatting recedes, visually, and the beads become more prominent. The pictures that appear on the "Farewell" page of her book (Elat necklace and the Gold Lotus shoulder pendant) illustrate this development in her work. She showed us some lovely necklaces, earrings, and kippot.
When Nina called me during Sukkot and offered to hold a free workshop, I thought it would be quite a challenge to find enough tatters to form a class (I only know five, including myself, in the whole country). But Yehudit and Sonia boldly rose to the challenge, although neither had wielded a shuttle before. Sonia has some Russian patterns in "frivolite[accent acute on last letter]" (the Russian term word for tatting is borrowed from the French) and wanted to see whether this was the same technique. Yehudit is interested in tatting with metallic thread to ornament a kittel.
Tatting is a fairly simple craft but the initial hurdle of mastering the half-hitch stitch is the greatest challenge. Yehudit and Sonia gamely made rings and Nina showed Yehudit how to do a picot. I brought along samples of my tatting and worked on a Beanile Lace earring from Nina's handouts. I also bought a copy of her book and a lovely, simple, handmade wooden shuttle from St. Petersburg. We spent over four hours with Nina, well fueled by coffee and snacks, before heading for home.
Nina will be returning in March; if anyone is interested in meeting
her or seeing her work, please e-mail me (Avital). If you want to see some
of her lovely work, her Web site is http://home.beseen.com/internet/beanile.
(adapted from a newsgroup posting)
Reading about the "Corner Embroidery Problem" fits in with my attempt to embroider plain Hebrew texts in x-stitch letters in a half moon shape. It is not easy at all. The idea is that the text will be a 'natural' part of the wanted shape, using of course the letter shapes, which historically have their own meaning.
After drawing many, many pages on graph paper, I came to some conclusions that helped me. Because, in most cases, you want the corner or the side panel pattern to be the same size as the original "straight" one, it helps to make a little cardboard or paper window. Take a larger-sized paper or cardboard (I use cardboard from underwear and socks packing). Measure the outer lines of the pattern/letter, draw on paper/cardboard, and cut out the window. Now if you work with a charted pattern, you probably have a design so many x-stitches high, and so many x-stitches wide. With a soft pencil mark this on the appropriate sides. Lay your window at the desired angle on the corner of the material or chart, and then you can work out exactly where each newly planned stitch should be!!!
Some facts I found: a line of 5 x-stitches in a row might be only 4 sideways. To give a better appearance, it might require filling in another diagonal line. One should draw this until it looks okay. Sometimes making the corner pattern in a lighter or darker shade distracts the viewer with the feeling that it is not completely the same. Sometimes I just enlarge or reduce the pattern.
In my current work I want/need all letters to be about same size, but they have to be attached to the cloth in different directions, which has to give the general idea of almost half a circle. It was a big challenge. I drew it on paper and ended up cutting paper and later cloth shapes of the letters and trying to arrange them in the desired pattern. It become an artwork in itself, while the x-stitch letters were put aside for a while, but using these basic shapes was a great help.
Now I am back at it again. I have looked and researched a lot of mosaic floors in the process. The ancient mosaic artists really knew how to achieve this effect. They wrote whole texts in various directions, without giving the impression that it is hard or strange--it looks so natural. Sometimes I think that many stitchers, especially x-stitchers, are too bound by the concept of working in rows. Of course, this is due partly to the problem of having to pull a thread and move it to the next place where it appears, and you may not want it to be visible but, at the same time, not feel like cutting and restarting the same thread several cm away.
But what about in a work that is going to be completely stitched on
the front and its back threads are covered? Why not pull the thread on
the background a bit loosely and use other colors to couch down those background
threads here and there? Since most of you frame your work, it will be invisible
anyway. Now this free stitching here and there might free you to make any
pattern in any direction. I know that I said I had some unconventional
ideas, but please, before you all start shouting objections, take a few
moments to look at mosaics (after all, they do look like little embroideries)
and give it some thought.
Driving between the raindrops this week, guild members Sivia, Marian and I met informally over coffee with Sharon Abrial, an American woman who is visiting from France. Sharon comes to Israel each year to visit her son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren who live nearby. When I spoke with her on the phone before we met she mentioned that, as she is also a lone knitter in her current home in the south of France, she now looks forward to her annual guild meeting here in Israel.
After living 20 years in England, Sharon moved to France with her husband and, in order to keep knitting the things she liked, she became the French distributor for Rowan yarns. It was through her association with Rowan that she met both Kaffe Fassett and Brandon Mably.
Sharon is quite an accomplished knitter. For her travel knitting she brought with her a ruffle-edged, flowered cardigan she is working on from a kit from the new French Rowan distributer, Tricoter, and at home is working on her second Peter Gregory Aran, which is her favorite kind of knitting.
Regarding Sharon's philosophy of knitting, she feels that knitting helps
keep her "centered" and is her favorite form of meditation.
Jennifer T. is well known to Oasis Guild members as one of the original members, the former coordinator of meetings, and the guild's first Web master. She lives in Herzliya with her husband and three children (10.5-year-old son, 15-year-old son, and 18-year-old daughter). She made aliyah in 1980, married in 1981, spent six years in Minnesota, then returned to Israel just before the Gulf War. She currently volunteers mornings at her son's elementary school library and has been studying html and Web design on-line.
Jennifer has a BA (U. of Minnesota) in Fine Arts and Near Eastern Archaeology. After coming on aliyah, she started an MA in Israeli archaeology at Tel Aviv U., but discovered 3/4 of the way through her first year that she really wanted to study museology. She spent three summers doing pottery restoration and enjoyed that aspect of archaeology the most.
In Minneapolis, Jennifer worked in a large yarn shop, where she was exposed to many aspects of knitting on a small scale. She is interested in just about everything but tries to keep her knitting simple so that the project has a reasonable chance of being finished during her lifetime (that's something that many of us can relate to!). She used to sew a great deal but was no longer able to leave out projects with pins when her children were young. She has dabbled in beading and x-stitch and is now exploring spindle-spinning.
Surprisingly, Jen's initial contact with Israeli knitters occurred before
she moved back to Israel. At a TGKA (Knitting Guild of America) national
convention, she met Marian P., who introduced her to Ellen S. and Donna
M. These four were the core group, which later became the Oasis Guild.
Jennifer enjoys the monthly meetings, getting together with other fiber
enthusiasts. She finds that she leaves each meeting feeling really "recharged."
She would like to see the Guild broaden its activities to include an education
geared towards new and less-experienced knitters. Among her own future
projects, she wants to try a series ot knitted dolls titled "Famous Knitters,"
and would love to learn how to knit faster (she claims to be the world's
slowest knitter!).
By Avital:
Youth Wing, Israel Museum, Jerusalem. During Sukkot, I took my 7-year-old
son to see the superb exhibition, "It's About Time." On the second floor,
in an alcove, there is a painting of a woman trapped in her knitting. Her
skirt is a ball of yarn and her hands are imprisoned in the tangled yarn
of her "skirt." Yarn is wound around her legs, almost down to her hand-knitted
socks, and her clenched teeth hold a piece of knitting in progress. "Woman
with Knitting Ball," tempera on canvas, Inge Pries, Germany. My guess is
that you won't find her on the KnitList...
There is also a series of drawings consisting of very fine parallel lines drawn at right angles to each other. "When Kasimir Malevich Fell in Love with Penelope," pen and ink on paper, Sam Azoulay, Israel. From a distance of a few feet, the blue-black drawings resemble gauzy woven fabric. So what does this have to do with 'time'? The commentary says that Azoulay is able to measure the passage of time by the quantity of lines that he has drawn. As for Pries's painting, my guess is that she considers knitting to be a waste of time (the companion piece to "Woman with Knitting Ball" is "Patience," depicting a woman surrounded by incomplete jigsaw puzzles).
If you are in the Jerusalem area with kids during Hanukkah, I highly
recommend this exhibit.
First, a stole to delight the heart of any stash-keeper. One that presents
another alternative to the timeless dilemma of where to keep all those
extra skeins:
http://www.firstview.com/WRTWfall2000/ALEXANDER_MC_QUEEN/P015.html
A close up:
http://www.firstview.com/WRTWfall2000/ALEXANDER_MC_QUEEN/P012.html"
Aw, c'mon, that collar was just having a bad hair day!!! ;-) [Edit.]
There is, however, information regarding upcoming guild study days with Pat Ashforth and Steve Plummer http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/woolly_thoughts, and Margaret Stove, for whom I couldn't find a webpage, but does have her works on several NZ guild pages, such as http://www.creativefibre.org.nz/.
And, as with most things connected to the web, one thing led to another and if your web browser supports javascript, you can "visit" the V&A online at http://www.vam.ac.uk/Infodome/. Click on "Images On Line" and enjoy a glut of nearly 2000 images from the collections. Since the javascript popup page doesn't support navigation buttons, you'll have to use keyboard shortcuts to move around. Using the Alt+left arrow will bring you to the previous webpage.
There isn't a specific category for "Knitting" so you will have to browse
the miniscule thumbnails. Worst come to worst, it's great inspiration.
Study Day: V&A Museum Design for Knitting- Saturday 18 November 2000, 10.30 - 16.50 in the Lecture Theatre. Entrance is by pre-booked ticket #28 unless you meet their criteria for a discount.
This year's study day aims to look at some of the latest developments in Contemporary knitting. Consultant: John Allen, FRCA (knitwear designer and curator of New Concepts in Knitting at the National Museum of Textiles in Tilburg, Netherlands; see previous issue of the Electronic Camel). Invited speakers include Nora Fok (knitted nylon jewellery), Philip O'Reilly (feltmaking/colour) Marion Foale (3D knitwear) and others. To book by credit card phone (44) 020-7942 2209.
Sukkot has come and gone but there's time to plan your knitting for next year! These sukkah decorations were knitted several years ago and may be seen on my web site (http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Bluffs/3211). Sorry but I didn't include patterns for the lulav or grape cluster because I've don't have enough time to try to recreate them and I can't count the stitches of the finished models.
Materials: Worsted weight acrylic yarn, 5 mm. dp needles
Gauge: about 5 stitches/inch. m1= Make 1.
POMEGRANATE [red yarn] - Cast on 8 stitches on 4 dp. needles and join
to form round.
Rd 1: k.
Rd 2: *k1, m1* 8 times.
Rd 3: k.
Rd 4: *k2, m1* 8 times.
Continue increasing 8 stitches every other round until the pomegranate
measures about 4 inches in diameter (about 56 stitches around). Knit for
1 inch.
Decrease:
Rd 1: *k6, k2tog* 8 times
Rd 2: k.
Rd 3: k
Continue decreasing every third round until you have 32 stitches left.
Stuff the pomegranate firmly. Continue decreasing every third round until
you have 8 stitches. Knit straight for 2 rounds.
Last round: *K2, m1* 4 times. This is the blossom end. Cast off loosely.
ETROG [yellow yarn] - Cast on 8 stitches on 4 dp. needles and join to
form round.
Rd 1: k.
Rd 2: k.
Rd 3: *k1, m1* 8 times.
Increase 8 stitches, every 3rd round, until there are 32 stitches,
total.
Knit straight for 1".
Decrease:
Rd 1: *k2, k2tog* 8 times
Rd 2: k.
Rd 3: k
Stuff etrog firmly and continue to decrease 8 stitches, every 3rd round,
until there are 8 stitches. Break yarn, draw through stitches and fasten
securely.
DATE CLUSTER [brown yarn] - Stem: Work I-cord* for 6". Break yarn, draw
through stitches and fasten securely.
Individual dates: Work I-cord for .5".
K1, m3 in 2nd stitch, k1.
Knit in st.st. for 1 inch. Break yarn, draw through 5 stitches and
fasten securely. Sew up sides of "date". Sew beginning of I-cord to stem.
OLIVE BRANCH [green and black yarn] - Stem [green yarn]: Work I-cord
for 6". Break yarn, draw through stitches and fasten securely.
Leaf [green yarn]: Cast on 1 st. Inc to 3 stitches by k1, p1, k1 into
same stitch. Work in garter stitch for 1 inch. K3tog, fasten off yarn and
weave into stitches. Make several leaves and sew to stem.
Olive [black yarn]: Cast on 1 st. Inc to 5 stitches by k1, p1, k1,
p1, k1 into same stitch. Work in st.st. for 3 rows. Break yarn, draw through
stitches and fasten securely. Make several olives and sew to stem.
MYRTLE/HADASS [green yarn] - Stem: Work I-cord for 6". Break yarn, draw
through stitches and fasten securely.
Leaf: Cast on 1 st. Inc to 5 stitches by k1, p1, k1, p1, k1 into same
stitch.
Rw 1: P.
Rw 2: K2tog, k1, k2tog.
Rw 3: P.
Rw 4: K1, K2tog, psso. Fasten off.
Make several leaves and sew in multiples of 3 to the stem.
* I-cord. Cast on 3 stitches on a dp needle. Knit. Slide stitches to other end of needle. Knit, pulling yarn firmly.
