Saturday, February 20, 2010

MAKING SUNSHINE

Hues of spring

I have not been asleep at the needles over these deep winter months but in the midst of a creative swirl, vibrant with color and texture. Everything that evokes new growth, fresh starts, and the resurgeance of life have been unfolding in a garden of color—greens, yellows, blue-greens, and most recently, a joyful explosion of coleus cerise. Oh, and the designs—loose, spring-like tops, wraps and leaves. Somehow or other, yesterday I began knitting a dragonfly… So, you see, Jane has been busy.

Above you see the hues that launched it all, a blend of Twisted Sister Voodoo silk&merino marrying Blue Heron's silk/Merino all in the shades of spring. Stitches here are a play of ripple and feather and fan but wait until you see where I've taken those fans this time. One day, it was as if I could suddenly see things that had been previously shrouded in mystery, as if the lights came on in my usually allergy-fogged brain.

Close-up stitchwork

Maybe it's the yoga and Pilates I've begun with the help of Trudie Styler's DVD or maybe it's the Zone diet Ive put myself on to counteract asthmatic inflammation (I'm so tired of having to go on steroids. Puffball Jane and all that) but it's like I've swung open the door to an energy stream and the ideas keep flying through. Sometimes they even nudge me awake at night demanding attention with pithy little questions like "What if you could knit a —(fill in the blanks)."

Meanwhile, the Inspired Knitters Club is tapping deeply into the flow. In March, I plumb the fever of inspiration itself and delve into how to knit mystery. And the website will come alive later next month, too, as Peter Eastwood (web guru who built this site) and I continue to build content for the members-only area. The library looks gorgeous. Ialmost bruised my knuckles trying to reach through the screen to pluck things off the shelves.Being a former librarian, I wantedit to look real.

It's still very much winter here in the far north east. More snow on call for today but who cares? When making your own sunshine, the weather is incidental.