Life's a Stitch

And more recently life’s a creative adventure with some travel thrown in.

We hang out with knitters, but besides the projects we see on blogs and Ravelry, how many do you actually see in the wild, up close and personal? Of all the thousands of Baby Surprise Jackets, have you ever seen one on a real baby, one of which you haven’t knitted?

I’ve been thinking about this. In the past five years, not counting ones in captivity at knit shops or craft fairs, I can count identifiable works in the wild on one hand. There was a Vintage Velvet scarf in Seattle, an Anne Norling Strawberry Hat in Denmark, and a Fakeisle hat in Bellingham. Where are the others hiding?

Or the opposite, have you had anyone stop you, out of the blue, and ask if that’s a Charlotte’s Web you are wearing? I don’t know why these things intrigue me. I guess I have a fear of hitting my local Sally Ann and finding dozens of Baby Surprises after spending days knitting one myself. Or maybe only knitters appreciate knitting.

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Seeing as though there’s plenty of knitting content here, I’ll give some not so equal time to the woodworker in my house. He turned this spalted birch vase as a special gift for Blogless Marsha’s blogless spouse.

Personally, I don’t get wood turning. We have many beautiful pieces in our house, but they each require hours and hours and hours (you get the point) of standing on hard concrete in a dirty dusty environment, and at the very last minute it’s conceivable that you can hit a rough patch and blow it all to smithereens.

Once I heard a loud whump from his garage workshop, followed by an expletive, naturally. Out he came, shaking his head, lamenting the fact that yet another one had gotten away. Poof! Sawdust. A couple of weeks later he looked up. There was a good part of the body of a bowl impaled in the garage’s roughly insulated ceiling.

Way too risky for me. I guess it’s the woodturner’s version of a knitted gift from the heart.


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16 responses to “Gifts from the heart”

  1. Kristen Avatar

    Wood turning? I always assumed it was some type of leisurely activity like whittling. I didn’t realize it was an extreme sport.

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  2. Carole Avatar

    Knits in the wild are rare, I agree. Unless you’re at a fiber gathering! That vase is stunning.

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  3. Michelle Avatar
    Michelle

    I can always spot a hand knit scarf a mile away and then I find myself accosting the wearer of said scarf so that I can touch it… I love that vase.

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  4. Chris Avatar

    I have never thought about that. But I did have a friend see a hat out in the wild and asked the Mom if they knew me. I had done a few hats in the same style with the same yarns, and their grandson had the matching hat.

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  5. Lorette Avatar

    I don’t see many, that’s true. Though I’ve had a couple people come up to me and identify my Rogue sweater by name.
    The vase is stunning, but I’ll stick to a sport that usually doesn’t have flying wood splinters. I don’t knit that fast…

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  6. Angie Avatar

    Could wood turning be very graciously considered a cousin of spinning? We have a friend who makes us beautiful items. He also raves about my shortbread so he gets lots. I’ll post a story about my babysweater siting.

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  7. Awesome Mom Avatar

    I have yet to find any hand knitting in the wild.
    My husband’s family is very into wood working. Maybe it is just more manly in their eyes than knitting. You can make a lot of very useful things with both hobbies. They are both also old fashioned. People have done them for centuries to make necessary yet beautiful things for their families.

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  8. Rosie Avatar
    Rosie

    Tell Chuck that vase he made is breathtaking. It is like something one would see in a museum. I just love his creations in wood as you know.
    Love, Rosie

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  9. Karen Avatar

    Sounds like a dangerous hobby but that vase is just gorgeous!

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  10. Dorothy Avatar

    I never thought about it, but you’re right. I hardly ever see knits in the wild. Of course, using my family as an example, I don’t even see hand knits on them!! Why I keep knitting for them, I don’t know. Well, except the grandkids. I’m always getting photos with my handknits showing. My dil really, really appreciates them and has the kids wear them as much as Orlando weather will permit. The vase is gorgeous – lucky Marsha’s husband.

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  11. rose Avatar

    Have you made a BSJ? I want to but her directions seem a little scary to me so I keep putting it off.

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  12. Suzanne V. (Yarnhog) Avatar

    Hand work is hand work–I love it all and I’m always on the lookout for it. Last weekend I was in a wedding (the one for which I made the Icarus bridal shawl), and another woman had made an amazing chuppah that obviously took months. I may have been the only one who really appreciated the effort, although it was quilted and embroidered, not knitted. And yesterday I went to a baby shower, for which I knitted a blanket, and another woman had made a baby quilt–which, again, I may have been the only one who appreciated. But I don’t think I’ve ever seen a recognizable knitting pattern in the wild.

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  13. Lene Avatar
    Lene

    Wow! I have never seen anything like that BEAUTIFUL vase, it’s a masterpiece!
    Love to all of you, Lene

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  14. Michele Avatar
    Michele

    I’ve seen Clapotis and Central Park Hoodies in various places in NYC along with the ubiquitious strawberry hat……

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  15. Monika Avatar

    Oh my god – this vase is wonderful! I love all things wood, this one is definitely worth spending hours on it. I hope Marsha’s husband is going to appreciate it!

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  16. Joanne Avatar

    That vase is absolutely gorgeous. Your husband does nice work. My hubby works in construction and is not a hobby type of guy. Of course if you work all day with your hands, I guess that is the last thing he wants to do when he gets home. He retires in a few more years and I am curious to see what does with his free time.
    I would like to get a copy of your herringbone scarf pattern.
    Take care.

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