tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post397978743132973299..comments2024-03-25T05:07:17.533+02:00Comments on D a n c e s W i t h W o o l: Do you ever wonder?Lenehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03678637714674755599noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-80354877137264868032008-03-28T07:17:00.000+02:002008-03-28T07:17:00.000+02:00I am the kind of knitter that grows ideas from oth...I am the kind of knitter that grows ideas from other designers knitting. It is difficult for me to come up with designs on my own. I freeze up when it is left entirely up to me. I used to think that I needed to get over that and just try harder. Finally I realized that it simply is not the way that I work. I now find great joy in knitting a project designed by someone else. I will make changes that I feel suit me better but, I need the foundation of someone elses design to get me going. Perhaps you could say that that is how I design. I thank those designers for giving me their creations.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-66901991351404337922008-03-26T00:49:00.000+02:002008-03-26T00:49:00.000+02:00Dear Lene,I've been a regular reader for months, b...Dear Lene,<BR/><BR/>I've been a regular reader for months, because you never forget to think about what you are making, even if it's only that, just making something according to another's pattern. I do believe that one can't be creating from scratch all the time – and with two young children I find myself following patterns more than ever before -, and just making offers a different form of satisfaction. It's like growing a garden: you don't do much, really (like, you are not selecting plants to create a new variety), but you do get the satisfaction of seeing something beautiful and / or useful grow and of having your small part in that wonder. As others have said, your mind is probably at work in the background, just like a garden needs a period of rest over the winter. Spring is just around the corner !<BR/>Thank you for blogging so beautifully.<BR/>SéverineAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-88617500238342615242008-03-25T04:36:00.000+02:002008-03-25T04:36:00.000+02:00The socks are lovely and they fit well-what more c...The socks are lovely and they fit well-what more can you ask of a pattern? How many colours of yarn can you use without a repeat? <BR/>Cheers. NaomiAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-53416700665373983292008-03-25T01:31:00.000+02:002008-03-25T01:31:00.000+02:00In my head its like music. There were masters of ...In my head its like music. There were masters of composing that never ever get old or tired and hard on the ear, and people of great talent interpret that music in all kinds of ways. New expressions are found inside those same patterns of notes by each different player, all just a little different from everything every one has played before. <BR/><BR/>Musicians are rightly applauded for their talented playing, and a good knitter should feel just as satified with the sound production of a pattern from any source, be it her brain or a book. <BR/><BR/>Your interpretation of knitting is not going to be the same as Starmores, though you might play the 'notes' in the same order. How you interpret the patterns found in knitting or music is what makes the magic. <BR/><BR/>Its all about scale perhaps. One day it might be a grand symphony of a Starmore sweater, or a Lene sweater, and one day it might be the country dance of monkey socks, but trust me. There is music in there and endless creativity and talent.Needleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14322437575472650069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-78625171573874648972008-03-23T22:56:00.000+02:002008-03-23T22:56:00.000+02:00wow! what a thoughtful discussion..if the sock fit...wow! what a thoughtful discussion..if the sock fits i say keep on knittin'. i love your blog name...monkey socks? at first i thought it would be like the kind they make the "sock monkey" out of but yours are way more kool and the colors are great. where in finland? my grnadmother was from laparanta and i have relatives scattered across finland. my husband is also of finn heritage and up here in da UP many many finns...they are the only ones who fly the flag proudly...whats up with the swedes and norse? only 18 today with more snow to come but i am fairly sure by may it will be dry and green, well, it was last year anyway. this is my firs year away from kauai where i lived for 35 years. always have lived within hearing distance of the pacific ocean, never lived land locked before althou we are surrounded by three of the great lakes and there are thousands of lakes in da UP.<BR/><BR/>what would you like in trade for a current finnish quilt magazine? i dye, print and paint fabric...havent tried wool yarn or cotton thread yet but i am sure that is looming on the horizon >:-)<BR/>althou dyeing wool takes different chemicals and dyes but i am up for the challengesusanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03441116514488993210noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-26989291703437872262008-03-22T19:47:00.000+02:002008-03-22T19:47:00.000+02:00Dear Lene,I think we shouldn't overestimate indivi...Dear Lene,<BR/>I think we shouldn't overestimate individual creativity. Maybe it doesn't even exist..! I think we all swim in one big collective sea of creativity, longing for beauty and joy of crafting. No one is really able to create something without all the artistic work done before. Our creative minds are fed with all the beauty and inventivity that others offer us, around us and in history. In the end I think it's not really possible to divide one's 'own' idea's from everything you have seen before. Maybe the real joy of making something consists not really of creating something new, but of linking you as a seperated individual, the material world (the wool) and this collective spirit of beauty and creation. I think that the question 'how new, how original, how proofable individually invented by ME' is eventually of no importance. Let's jump in the warm bath of this inspiring, yarn- and colourloving sea and simply enjoy it, be it re-creating or new-creating! <BR/><BR/><BR/>I've never before react to your blog, but have been reading it since last september - have read all the old posts too - and love it very very much, so: thank you! <BR/>Flora (buddhaknits at Ravelry)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-84124291809524138662008-03-21T07:03:00.000+02:002008-03-21T07:03:00.000+02:00trying to linktrying to linkAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-17930096940697264792008-03-21T06:48:00.000+02:002008-03-21T06:48:00.000+02:00Just go ahead and knit those socks. I don't think...Just go ahead and knit those socks. I don't think many knitters exclusively knit their own designs- many of us find joy in the journey of construction, whether it's our own design or not. (Many people express themselves by modifying the original pattern, or by subbing fibre.)<BR/><BR/>Do what makes you happy! Even if you follow a pattern, no-one else can claim to have put the time and effort into those particular socks!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-24090836314225040292008-03-20T21:56:00.000+02:002008-03-20T21:56:00.000+02:00I do not believe knitting from another’s pattern o...I do not believe knitting from another’s pattern or knitting the same thing over and over kills creativity at all. On the contrary, when knitting from a pattern there are things to be learned, seeds planted for your own creativity. Whether it is seeing how to make a beautiful decrease or successfully combine unlikely colors, new ideas are generated. The repetition of knitting monkeys over and over allows your hands and body go into a rhythm that is soothing to your soul and allows your mind to relax and wander, or just relax. If you are like me, sitting and doing nothing, is not relaxing, but the repetitive nature of knitting a simple stretch is relaxing. There is no stress to knitting a tried and true sock pattern. With a clear relaxed mind your creativity can blossom. Creativity can be thrilling, frustrating, confusing. Knitting a repetitive pattern allows you to continue knitting without frustration and confusion; your creative mind can process without the pressure of waiting for the solution to be realized, without forcing an unsatifactory solution. <BR/><BR/>I am currently fussing over a pattern that I want to alter, in the mean time I am knitting hats.<BR/><BR/>What I DO wonder is how you produce such wonderful drawings and have time to knit. I LOVE your drawings. Do you draw quickly? I wonder, if I could draw like you, would I ever knit again? Your drawings inspire me. I think…someday...I will try to draw.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-20622413472288533772008-03-20T13:10:00.000+02:002008-03-20T13:10:00.000+02:00Well Lena,What an enquiring mind you have! So crea...Well Lena,<BR/>What an enquiring mind you have! So creative! Also what a wonderful artistic blog you have, and what cosy feet!<BR/>AndieDyerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03106807255439588963noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-33465113729578583012008-03-20T06:08:00.000+02:002008-03-20T06:08:00.000+02:00I've not posted before but like to look at your bl...I've not posted before but like to look at your blog.<BR/><BR/>This is a GREAT post which I read very quickly: I need to go back and digest it. Your quilt teacher had some very valid points. A lot of "creativity" can depend on "how" you start -- when I started quilting I was started with mariner's compass and feathered star - not usual patterns for beginners. But I learned how to do those processes early. Then you are not so "afraid" to go forward. But I'm mostly knitting now, and am very happy to use beautiful patterns that people have taken the time to create. But most knitters usually ALWAYS change something, don't we!MaryjoOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12861945604000052572noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-59857877327532032142008-03-20T04:23:00.000+02:002008-03-20T04:23:00.000+02:00Why don't you consider your choice of yarn, modifi...Why don't you consider your choice of yarn, modifications to fit your feet or those of recipients, etc. part of the creative act? And is there anything so bad about perfecting a skill? I played piano for a long time, and that meant a whole lot of scales. They're not 'creative,' they defy you to 'interpret' them, but they are part of the process nonetheless.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-56589046228828543902008-03-20T04:03:00.001+02:002008-03-20T04:03:00.001+02:00and I've just read beths comment, I also knit to l...and I've just read beths comment, I also knit to learn in an 'how did they do that' way.<BR/>SStellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05073753506202447996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-12497903341963944822008-03-20T04:03:00.000+02:002008-03-20T04:03:00.000+02:00I knit for different reasons, some times what I wa...I knit for different reasons, some times what I want does not yet exist, so I have to design/create it, some times I knit to relax, so it is meditative, some times I knit because I want to prove I can, that I am able to knit this complex clever design by another. Some times I even design my knits because I want to show off, you know when you plan a complex thing to show you can, <BR/><BR/>and lastly I knit to provide warm, loving things for people I care about, so i also sometimes knit the same sock over and over, mine is ribbed and toe up, with a gusset heel. <BR/><BR/>On my academic life I work with students of design, teaching them to select the right methodology for the work they are doing - with knitting it is the same - select the same sock if the challenge is not the methodology that is right, select a bohus reproduction if the methodology is about being inspired and technically proficient, is the selection and the knowing selection that matters to me, <BR/><BR/>I would be worried if everything you knit had the same methodology or reason, imagine a designer of knitwear who could sell patterns but not value and use the patterns of other designers, Imagine if you were limited to the vision of the original designer and couldn't modify any hand knit? the world would be a scarier place wouldn't it?Stellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05073753506202447996noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-54070484066329784732008-03-19T22:06:00.000+02:002008-03-19T22:06:00.000+02:00I've knit a couple of Alice Starmore designs and l...I've knit a couple of Alice Starmore designs and learned so much by doing them - it's definitely worth "copying" something when you learn tricks and think about designs that you can work your own way later on.<BR/>Sometimes we also need those repetitive patterns that we can work on without thinking too much - if the socks are wonderful to wear, then why not?<BR/>CarolAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-21911092166142611112008-03-19T20:30:00.000+02:002008-03-19T20:30:00.000+02:00As a fairly new knitter, I depend on other's patte...As a fairly new knitter, I depend on other's patterns to help me learn the basics of design. Sometimes I take their pattern and tweak it to suit my tastes. Is that creativity? I know that I am a creative person because I create things that are both useful and beautiful. Does it make me more or less creative because I didn't think it up first?Donna Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07877384848664758611noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-75780294622538154742008-03-19T18:15:00.000+02:002008-03-19T18:15:00.000+02:00The Buddhists believe that in doing small repetiti...The Buddhists believe that in doing small repetitive things creativity is released.<BR/><BR/>I think someone telling you that you must create is just as limiting as someone telling you that you must follow a pattern.<BR/><BR/>The only thing you must do is follow your heart.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-5262806008147360322008-03-19T15:14:00.000+02:002008-03-19T15:14:00.000+02:00Hello Lene,Ricognize your question! I feel sometim...Hello Lene,<BR/>Ricognize your question! I feel sometimes quilty too, but then I think: Trust your brain, perhaps it takes a rest for a wile! Knitting a pattern....I call it my "knittingblock" Now I enjoy to knit my inspirations and I enjoy to knit an others inspirations.<BR/>I'm a happy knitter. Knittinglove from the Netherlands, Anje<BR/>//averecht.web-log.nl/averecht/photoseacoasthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10317542680871834989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-88837148074264507572008-03-19T14:53:00.000+02:002008-03-19T14:53:00.000+02:00I knit many things--other people's designs, my own...I knit many things--other people's designs, my own designs, and lots of socks. Though I enjoy the occasional lacy or heavily patterned sock, usually the socks are absolutely plain. I call them my relief knitting because I can work on them when I'm too tired or preoccupied to knit something more complicated, and I can still be soothed by the process of knitting and by the beautiful yarn turning into something both lovely and useful. And each morning when I'm getting dressed I open my sock drawer and see all these fantastic, colorful, utilitarian socks--it does my heart good. As for "copying" someone else's designs--when I knit a really fine pattern from someone else, I learn things, tricks, ways of seeing the stitches, that then inform everything I knit after that. There are seasons to creativity. Sometimes you need to express your own, sometimes borrowing someone else's is just what's needed. But as in all things with knitting, there is no overall right or wrong here, just what works for each of us as individual knitters!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-81531094623073306762008-03-19T13:23:00.000+02:002008-03-19T13:23:00.000+02:00I think it is ok to use a pattern over and over if...I think it is ok to use a pattern over and over if you love it. You also do knit others and try out new ones you like, don't you? So keep going. And you make your own stuff.<BR/>I think it is perfect and there is a time for everything! Oh and I don't see aproblem to add my own changes to something written down by soemone else - don't you do that with cooking or baking recepies, too? We just shouldn't call them our owns then. Just my 2 eurocents! :-)Tinahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00370838552387556024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-21713934632688878052008-03-19T05:57:00.000+02:002008-03-19T05:57:00.000+02:00Well, I've been new to your blog recently and I lo...Well, I've been new to your blog recently and I love your Monkey Socks. The way you displayed them walking in the snow just cracked me up! And I love your dwg. too! <BR/><BR/>So let's give a good cheer to "Monkey Socks"! :)Knitting Maniahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07751227475793526295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-44330685314869722592008-03-19T01:28:00.000+02:002008-03-19T01:28:00.000+02:00I say if knitting monkey socks leaves you feeling ...I say if knitting monkey socks leaves you feeling happy and satisfied, then stick with it! You'll know when it's time to move on. The pressure to be creative when you're in the mood to knit from a pattern is exactly that--pressure.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-74953442455613140682008-03-18T23:41:00.000+02:002008-03-18T23:41:00.000+02:00Lene, Glad to know you are basking in the sun with...Lene, Glad to know you are basking in the sun with your monkeys. Your interpretation of Henry VIII was awesome. I think you have a calling. Your picture of 'Tina' is so adorable too. Take it one stitch at a time.<BR/>Wool be with you!Alinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09725715111333459852noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-10308702518219089362008-03-18T23:00:00.000+02:002008-03-18T23:00:00.000+02:00Dearest Lene, your creativity shines, no, it beams...Dearest Lene, your creativity shines, no, it <I>beams</I>, with so many of your projects... If you take the time to produce beautiful coverings for your feet and you enjoy the yarn slipping through your fingers, who is to criticize you for creating... socks? And even if you make a Starmore sweater in the exact colors and pattern from a book, have you not created a warm smile in your own heart by bringing the photograph to reality in your hands?<BR/>Sometimes the stitches are enough, in themselves, to fill the definition of creation: "Voila! I've created Monkey Sock!" Sometimes the artful mind takes over and a whole new sweater springs from your mind to your needles. <BR/>Both ways are good.<BR/><BR/>(And seriously, if you're knitting to be trendy, you really need some bulkier, flashier yarn. Fun-fur, as it were...)Lorihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05214085624017840666noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17492826.post-28140361613401523672008-03-18T22:00:00.000+02:002008-03-18T22:00:00.000+02:00I've been thinking the same thing lately, though l...I've been thinking the same thing lately, though less eloquently. And I, too have just knit some monkeys. They are addictive! I think our choice of yarn can be our creative input, and it's a bit like yoga - even when you are just going through the motions there is a lot going on in your subconscious without any attention on your part. It's quiet, meditative downtime that pays rewards, and those rewards come out creatively in other areas of life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com