I think a really exceptional workshop is one that not just teaches you a few new skills, but a whole new perspective on the possibilities a craft offers. That’s very much how I felt about the weekend spent with Jacqui Carey, where I finally found the easy way of creating warps (particularly with metallic threads) but also saw a more creative side to kumihimo beyond just copying patterns and playing with colour designs.
It’s been a while since I’ve had the chance to do even a full day craft course, let alone a multi-day one which is always a great treat. As you can probably guess from the number of RSN Day Classes and other pieces I’ve done I find taught classes and workshops really a lot of fun. Thankfully for even what used to be obscure crafts, the international sharing brought around by the internet has made people aware of some of the beautiful work and techniques out there, and I suspect encouraged the publication of ever more specialist texts.
With some of my other projects on the go all being quite involved, and some requiring furniture rearrangement to work on, I wanted something that would be straightforward and simple to pick up and put down. I love kumihimo for this. It’s very easy to just plonk down on the floor, work a few patterns repeats, and be done. As a repeat is usually less than twelve moves, it doesn’t ask for too much commitment.
I consider myself very lucky in life to have plenty of people that I would consider knit/quilt/sew/general-gift-worthy. As well as being generally excellent people, I know they will understand when I give them something with wonky seams, a couple of holes and maybe a forgotten pin, that it is the thought and the kind intentions behind a gift that counts, not necessarily the skill in the execution. However, that doesn’t make the creation of gift items any less intimidating…
I mentioned in my last post on kumihimo that I wasn’t completely happy with how my satin rattail braids were turning out. I’d completely fallen in love with the marudai and was having a lot of fun with the making part but felt the finished look was lacking a little something. Thankfully, the fix turned out to be an easy one.
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After my first attempt with my new acrylic marudai, I was very keen to start digging into some more kumihimo patterns and start exploring just what I could do. This is where only having 8 bobbins, or tama, was probably a blessing to keep my enthusiasm contained while I developed the skills I’d actually need for some more complex patterns.
You might think that, after the Bernina, trying quilling, and some adventures across the pond, that I’d find more novelty in refusing to try out new things than adding another piece of crafting equipment to the mix….
astitchornine 