Knitting and Quilting

Some may wonder why you see a lot of quilting on a knitting blog. The answer is, this is more of a craft blog, named for a favorite pastime, knitting. 

I have done crafts all my life for as long as I can remember. I was hand sewing and doing embroidery from the time I was very small.

When I was about 11, my mom signed me up for a sewing class where I learned to sew clothing. I made a most horrible bright orange print dress as one of my first projects. But I did learn to sew and put in zippers and do hems and all that good stuff.

Somehow I learned to knit, though I don't remember how I started.

This is a recent hexipuff, knitted from a chart I used for a vest I knitted,
probably in the late 1980's.  I still have the pattern, but the vest was given away long ago.

 

 

For most of my adult life I have been a quilter. First I did clothing, then I started making fairly traditional patchwork quilts from scraps and fabrics I raided from my mom's stash.

One of my clothing projects was an Afghani Nomad's dress, made from a Folkwear Pattern. I spent so much time on the embroidered and quilted yoke of the dress, that by the time I finished, the dress no longer fit.  

I dabbled in lots of different crafts for awhile. I tried fabric dyeing and marbling. I made a lot of beaded earrings. I knit several sweaters and vests, lots of hats and scarves. I bought plenty of materials for crafts I barely tried.

At some point,  I decided to devote my time exclusively to quilting. No more dyeing, because even with a respirator, dyes made me cough and sneeze. No more knitting, since obsessive knitting had given me a bad case of sciatia.

I quilted. I learned lots of techniques. I created some techniques of my own. I taught quilting. 

And then I rediscovered knitting and the Harry Potter Knit and Crochet House Cup on Ravelry.

When I first started playing, I made this Harry Potter inspired quilt, based on a tale from Beedle the Bard.

 

Now, I knit as much as I can. I try not to aggravate the sciatica or totally wear out my hands. I can crochet in a pinch, and I still quilt. If you see a mention of Quidditch or Hufflepuff, it has to do with knitting games. But I will always enjoy playing in my scraps and making things with fabric and thread.