People keep telling me that they have forgotten how to get themselves started with spool knitting.
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So, I have made a video tutorial on how to spool knit with a 4 peg spool knitter. LINK
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And, they also ask me: ‘How do you cast off or finish your spool knitted cord?’
Good question!
Here’s a video tutorial on how to finish your spool knitted cords: LINK
I am working on designs for all kinds of spool knitted jewelry. So I have just made 3 video tutorials that explain how to spool knit 2 peg cords, as these are wonderful in jewelry making.
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2 peg cords are also great for doll and toy making as well as bag handles and other things…
Here are the videos:
Video #1: Basic 2 peg spool knitting: Link
Video #2: How to spool knit a flat link braid: Link
Video #3: More 2 peg techniques: Link
Hope you’ll find them useful!
A few months ago, our daughter was very sick and needed surgery. It was VERY challenging- we were just wrenched by the trauma of having our beloved daughter going through such a rough experience right after having her beautiful baby.
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The Demeter/Persephone story resonated deeply with me (by the way, ‘Traveling with Pomegranates‘ by Sue Monk Kidd and Anne Kidd Taylor is a great book to learn more about Demeter and Persephone).
For many years, I have been delighted with the images of the Minoan Dewdrop or Bee Goddess images that relate directly to the Minoan Goddess of the Bees, and have made lots of things in homage to her, including shuttles and necklaces and other treasures.
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I asked my daughter if she would like me to make her an amulet or talisman necklace with the Minoan Goddess of the Bees on it, as a reminder of my love for her. It’s always nice to have a physical reminder of that love, after all!
She said yes, but not a metal one, as the baby loves to grab and hold onto anything she wears, so she would prefer wood on a soft cord.
So, I drew the Minoan Goddess of the Bees onto a piece of wood, and burned it, and sanded and smoothed it. I didn’t varnish it, just in case the baby puts it in his mouth. Olive oil or bees wax will do nicely for a baby safe finish.
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Needless to say, we wanted to make the cord baby safe too, which meant using an organic cotton. I used Lion Brand’s Nature’s Choice Organic Cotton in ‘khaki’. It spool knits beautifully.
I used my Cordelia cordmaker Link and spool knitted a 36 inch (90 cm) long cord.
I joined the ends of the cord and made a lark’s head knot to attach it to the wooden piece.
(How to make a Lark’s head knot: Either make a fold in a cord or join the ends to make a circle. Push a loop of the cord through the hole. Pull the other end of the cord or necklace through this loop and pull up. Lark’s Head Knot completed!)
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I love making gifts that are an expression of my love, using techniques that I find very comforting and soothing. I hope that that feeling of love and soothing energy will be carried in this necklace and that it will serve as a reminder to my beautiful daughter that she is loved and treasured!
Do you like to doodle? I do. I always have.
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A friend mentioned that she’s been using
her doodles to inspire her in her
crochet design, (I’m going to be writing more about
this soon, with links)
and that got me thinking…
Why not doodle on wooden dolls?
So, I got out my Faber Castell artist pens
(link to where my husband bought them for me
for Christmas: pens
and did a little doodling on
a small wooden peg doll body.
Here’s the front of the doll body,
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and
here is the back.
Because the doll is
tiny,
and this pic
is wildly blown up
it looks much coarser
than in real life.
I varnished the doll
body after I doodled on it,
and then
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made little
wooden
hands and feet.
I varnished them
as well,
and then
drilled tiny
holes with a
very fine
drill bit.
That’s so I
could sew
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the spool knitted
cords that
I made with
my
Cordelia cord maker
for the doll’s
arms and legs
to the hands
and feet.
For the legs,
I spool knitted
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a cord that is
6 inches long.
As you can see,
the cord goes
through the body.
I drilled larger
holes through the
body for the arm and
leg cords.
For the arms,
I spool knitted a
cord that is 4 1/2 inches long.
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The hands and feet
are stitched to the
arms and legs,
and then the extra yarn
is wrapped around the
wrists and ankles,
stitched through
and woven into the
arm or leg.
Here’s the Doodle Doll,
cuddling with Tottie Tomato’s
puppy, waiting for Tottie to pour tea….
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Tottie is a little distracted,
because she’s busy admiring
the new Cordelia cord maker
that I just made, with a
portrait of her on it.
Tottie is pleased with it,
and has suggested that
I put it to work,
making another Doodle Doll
to keep her new friend company.
I will have to do that,
but first, we ought to pour tea….
Recently, a jewelry maker contacted me and asked me if I could make her some industrial strength spool knitters so she could spool knit wire for her jewelry making.
I went for a rummage through our stash and found a wonderful old piece of wood. It looked like it was an old handle off some kind of tool that had seen heavy and hard use. It was worn smooth but ripply and looked quite organic.
We inherited it from my husband’s Dad more than 10 years ago.
I cut some pieces off it and used them to make these 4 and 6 peg spool knitters.
Yipes! Is that wood hard! Drilling the holes and hammering the nails in was intense .
whew…. My tendons were screaming for mercy.
I love the way they feel…. the old wood is smooth and textured from having been worn by years of use- it’s quite alive!
The whole collaborative process is so inspiring to me. I just love it when someone says to me –
‘Can you think of a way of doing this or that….. ?’
Sometimes, I am not interested in making the new thing
(for instance, we just don’t want to make wooden potholder looms anymore….sorry)
But, lots of times, I am intrigued by the ‘Can you make a this or that’ question and end up in the workshop having a wonderful time!
This was definitely one of those times. I love working with wire, and do a lot with it. So, I am really glad that Vickey inspired me to make some super strong spool knitters for wire.
Just think. That old, old piece of wood out in the workshop would still be laying there, just waiting to come to life if Vickey hadn’t emailed me…..
This kind of thing makes me celebrate the joys of the internet.
Someone has a thought and sends a note to someone else a thousand miles away. Then, that person goes and finds a piece of the past and brings it to life in a new way. And that recycled, re-created, upcycled treasure goes off to the first person who creates all manner of magic with it.
Now, that’s creativity in action!
(image source: photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay. Copyright, not to be used without permission)
Today, Tuesday March 3, is a day to celebrate little girls and to wish them hope and protection.
In Japan, today is the day that elaborate displays of precious dolls are created….
Paper dolls symbolizing things that are unhappy are placed into boats and set afire, to take away the unhappiness…
And, little girls are invited to have marvelous teaparties with their friends and their dolls.
I wish I had known about this when my daughter was little, because we would have teapartied heartily!
It’s never too late to have a happy childhood, so I say:
Get out your dolls and have a teaparty!
Make some paper dolls that symbolize some kind of unhappiness that you are ready to let go of, and then burn ’em.
I am going to celebrate by sharing a picture of one of the new dolls that is in my just about to be released book:
‘Spooligarumi: Cute & Easy Spool Knitted Dolls & Toys’
Here’s the Fluffy Bunny Spooligarumi Doll – Perfect for celebrating Doll Festival Day:
My new downloadable pdf book: Spooligarumi: Cute & Easy Spool Knitted Dolls & Toys
is now available from my website .
All text and images on this site are copyright protected and not to be copied or shared without Noreen Crone-Findlay’s permission
Somehow, I don’t think that I will ever go to New Orleans for the real Mardi Gras,
but that won’t stop me from celebrating in my studio!
I made these Mardi Gras masks with all kinds of techniques and things that I love:
Tatting, spool knitting, crochet, butterflies, Grandma’s vintage buttons, beads and other found objects, as well as woodworking.
Feels like a celebration to me!
Happy Mardi Gras!
Images and text are copyright Noreen Crone-Findlay and not to be copied without her permission.
People often ask me- ‘How can you make different size spool knitted cords?’
There are several variables that will change the size of your spool knitted cords.
They are:
The size of your spool knitter: A bigger spool knitter will allow you to spool knit with thicker yarn.
A smaller spool knitter will allow you to spool knit fine threads into slender, fine cords that are not all loopy and droopy.
Another variable is the number of pegs:
The size of the hole in the spool knitter will affect the finished size of the cord, as well.
The thickness of your yarn or thread or cords or roving or fabric strips- thin threads = small spool knitted cords, thicker yarns or combinations of yarns= thick spool knitted cords.
In the picture above, I spool knitted with one or 2 strands of sport weight yarn with the larger spool knitters, and thin threads for the 2 ridiculously tiny spool knitters…… I’ve labelled each of the spool knitters, noting how many pegs there are and how many strands of yarn I used in each cord….. hope the image shows up the differences.
Note that you can make a thicker cord with the same spool knitter, just by using more strands of yarns held together.
The key to making great cords with your spool knitters? Experiment!
All images and text are copyright Noreen Crone-Findlay, so please don’t copy or share them without Noreen Crone-Findlay’s permission. Thank you!
When I am feeling sad and upset, I find it really helps if I make some Angel dolls.
This week has been a corker, with the death of our beloved old horse, among other challenges.
We have done a whole lot of soul searching, and have decided that we just can’t handle having horses anymore. So our dear little girl horse that we adopted a year and a half ago is going to go back to live with her momma and birth brother. She’s going to be well and truly loved and cared for.
This has been one of the hardest decisions we’ve had to make in a lonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnng time, so believe me, I really have been needing to find comfort. (And yes, I certainly do pray, and meditate, so those are the source of great comfort, but making angels is also a HUGE comfort.)
So, in the interests of invoking Angel Energy for ourselves and for everyone else, too…
I have designed these sweet little, easy to make spool knitted angels.
I began with a design that I had developed a few years back and have re-fined and polished it. I am really happy with it now.
You can make the little angels very quickly and easily and can make them truly one of a kind by changing the yarn (handspun would be perfect)
and whether or not you add buttons for the face,
or add loops or other kinds of hair…..
I also like to stitch a pin to the back of the Angel, so I can pin it on my lapel, or scarf, or shawl, or bag, or hat….
I need to make a bunch more so I can send them and give them to friends and relations….
The more Angels there are, in every way, the better it is!
You can order the pdf for the pattern for the charming Tiny Spool Knitted Angel from:
https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/48409301/pdf-pattern-for-tiny-spool-knitted-angel?ref=shop_home_active_3
Please note that the images on this blog are copyright protected
and are NOT to be copied without permission.
Thank you.
Every once in awhile, a little wild woolieness ought to come into a Yarnie’s life.
So, I have designed this Wild and Woolie Spool knitted doll. I used hand spun yarn to make it, but any yarn that makes your heart sing would work well.
All together now, let’s sing: Wild Thing! I think I love you!
LOL!
I’ve got her pattern listed etsy shop now: Wild Thing
Image source: Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)
Noreen Crone-Findlay, designer and author
Tottie Talks Crafts Blog 