Zest, zing and zippy...

Are you not feeling the love for knitting in the Spring and Summer months?  Here are few goodies that will put the zest, zing, and zippy back in your knitting spirit and keep your needles smokin'.

First stop is for this lovely free pattern on Knitty.com called Julia by Jennifer Wood.

The Loopy Ewe has free downloads of adorable sock patterns for Spring and Summer (including toe up patterns)  You can never have too many socks or sock patterns.

Wraps, wraps, wraps!
Betty and Beatrice at Berroco.com for my crochet buddies...and for the knitty, Spice Route Shawl and Sunshine Shawl (ette) from LionBrand.

Super cute and quick knit -Baby Mitts and Butterflies from Spud & Chloe.

Have a wonderful weekend of knitting or crochet, or both.

Margaret (in the mood for more knitting!)

Vogue Knitting Magazine Spring Summer 2011


Crochet Inspiration

And Spring arose on the garden fair,
Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;
And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast
rose from the dreams of its wintry rest.
~Percy Bysshe Shelley, "The Sensitive Plant"
quotegarden.com

Extreme Knitting

Do you ever feel that your stitches bring out the extreme ideas and concepts inside of you? 

The Last Knit by annekeAnna

AND

Rachel John, Extreme Knitting 1,000 Strand Knit

Visit her website to learn more.

Ease into your day with gentle stitching, some knitty animation and lots of colorful yarns...

Margaret (for a moment, I was imagining walking through the cascading yarn in the 1,000 Strand video)

Combine the extremes, and you will have the true center.

-Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel

Brainyquote.com

 

Knitting Art: 150 Innovative Works from 18 Contemporary Artists

A whole bundle  of delicious craftiness is waiting for you on CreatingTheHive.

You are what you knit...

Charity Buzz...
Today, I checked in on Ravelry, and rec'd a note from SeasidePurl, the moderator of Hearts of Love and discovered a new project that they will be working on called Knit1, Bless2, a Debbie Macomber charity project.  Stop by Hearts of Love while you're on Ravelry and join in the activities.  SeasidePurl, aka Teresita Valadez was chosen to be  interviewed as one of the Ravelry Charity groups in Knit Knitavian Style: Allow your knitting adventures to begin.

Free...

Property of knit1fortheroad.com™

©Margaret Nock, 2011.

All rights reserved.

There are free and perfect for warm weather projects from knit1fortheroad.com free pattern section just waiting for you to try. As with any pattern or website, please note all copyright and trademark restrictions...luv, luv.  Feel free to email me if you have any questions regarding a pattern. 
 
Knit Knitavian Style Travels...
 

©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.

Molly, fully recoverd from surgery and prancing around ValleyForge over the holiday weekend. Hat and fingerless gloves are featured in Knit Knitavian Style.

During the holiday weekend, Dave and I took a few side trips.  I did want you to see that I actually wear what I make. Fresh from the You Are What you Knit Department...is a pic from Valley Forge where I'm wearing the Savannah Chunky Slouch Hat and the Delicate Desire Fingerless Glove (both from Knit Knitavian Style).  There are also plenty of Spring/Summer knit patterns, interviews, resources, fun articles and inspiration to keep you knitting all year round.
 
More to come! 
I'm working on some fun new projects in the coming months...more knitty travels and a serious time management overhaul- lol. Hey, it's on my to do list, I have to at least give it a try. 
 
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend, a few bunny sightings and your favorite jellybean flavors.
 
You are what you knit! 
Margaret (still knitty after all these years)


Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into.
-Wayne Dyer
Quote from www.brainyquote.com

Get creative! Stay inspired!  Snag your Creating The Hive invitation here.

©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.

The wonder of wildlife and the delight of bunny knitting...

John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum 

Picture taken on Good Friday by David Nock

Have a peaceful and safe Easter Holiday weekend. Don't forget to take your needles and hooks with you wherever you roam.

Margaret (admiring the wonder of wildlife and working on a knit bunny project)

©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.

John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum: Islands of the Marsh

Check out Creating The Hive. Here's your invitation to enjoy the crafty fun.

Art meets nature, meets fiber at AnnMarie

,

Margaret dances, birds sing, and the sun shines at AnnMarieSculptureGarden

Okay, here's part three of last weekend that you might find interesting.  We took a drive over to AnnMarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center located in Solomons, MD, where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay.  The art center and garden benefits from one of the Smithsonian programs that loans wonderful sculpture to them. 

When I walked through the sculpture garden path, it was more like a nice stroll through the woods with the pieces of sculpture nestled naturally in the environment.  Some smaller pieces of sculpture where placed in trees, and surprising little paintings (Tree Pops)were found on tree limbs and trunks that had been broken or removed.  There are so many colorful surprises along the nature path just waiting to be discovered.

Tree Pop Alert!

Even the benches and trees combine to create a story of nature and art.

(Spring Fling Wristlets are featured in Knit Knitavian Style)

The art center includes ongoing exhibits of talented artists from every discipline and well worth a look.  It's a wonderful day when I get to enjoy,paintings, mixed media, video, fiber, paper, glass and sculpture in a natural setting and all in one place. Heaven!
There are ongoing exhibits and programs for the community and a studio school. 

My knitting blog has become a bit of a travel blog with knitting, needleart and nature combined lately.  We tend to travel with our homemade lunches around wherever we've lived and tried to take advantage of good weather, free museum days, and internet coupons - lol.  I encourage you to explore, when you can, and discover your own fiberfilled, needleart and natural community.  You may be surprised and inspired by what you find and the people you meet.

Margaret (have knitting, will travel)

You're invited to CreatingTheHive, the fun and free art and craft community.

©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.

Knit Knitavian Style: Allow your knitting adventures to begin. on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, AuthorHouse/Bookstore, and on Etsy.

Signs of excitement in the next needleart generation...

Saturday morning (before Eastern State Pen)we stopped by the Fiber Arts Sheep Shearing Festival in Glen Mills, PA. The rain didn't put a damper on the event. There were demos and tours of the Newlin Grist Mill. Here are a few pics and info from the event that I found fiberluscious.

First stop - a demo on the Lucet and the Spindle from the wonderful ladies from Colonial PA Plantation.

Spindle demo and a rusty Margaret trying her hand using the spindle.

Next:  The Liberty Lacers (Philadelphia Area Lacemakers)

This demo included a little history, basic techniques, and fabulously delicate designs.  The amount of bobbins is a little daunting.  The basic bobbin lace uses 4 bobbins at a time crossing the threads over or under in different combinations.  Word of warning...cats enjoy the process too!  A perk to this kind of work is that you can leave it for awhile and start back easily where you left off.

Next stop... The Handwork Studio
This wonderful organization is dedicated to teaching children needle arts.  I was so thrilled to learn and chat about what they are doing for the community by passing on the handmade, needle arts tradition.  Very exciting stuff.  They are located in several areas so please stop by their website and learn more.

Sheep and a bit of shearing (very gently done).
I was so impressed with the ladies who brought the sheep to this event.  Many times I've seen people be a little rough with their animals and I was relieved to see the loving care these animals were receiving.
Here's a wee one learning to get used to a harness...

 

Note: If you missed yesterday's post, please take a look at Cozy, a knitting installation by Karen Schmidt at Eastern State Penitentiary.

Margaret (happy to find and share knitting and needlearts wherever I roam)



©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.




Respect the Spindle: Spin Infinite Yarns with One Amazing Tool

Lucet Braiding Tool

Lucet Braiding Variations on a Renaissance Cord


Beginner's Guide to Bobbin Lace

3 Beeutiful Things:Ghostly Imaginings at Eastern State Penitentiary

This weekend we spent part of our rainy Saturday at Eastern State Penitentiary, learning the history, studying the architecture, and creative art installations that are currently being added to some of the cells.  I have info of knitworthy wonder for you from this visit... Karen Schmidt: Cozy.

You can't walk through the site without taking away something to think about.  It will effect you on every level.  You may even encounter a ghostly image or two, if you're so inclined.

I can't wait to share the rest of the story with you...

Margaret (seeing images of knitting in the oddest places)

Created for 3Beeutiful Things Group on CreatingTheHive.

©MargaretNock, 2011. All rights reserved.

Eastern State Penitentiary (PA) (Images of America)


Episode 105: Eastern State Penitentiary


Knitting for Good!: A Guide to Creating Personal, Social, and Political Change Stitch by Stitch