I have been crafting most of my life an have never kept track of everything I have finished in a year. Well, I decided to keep track in 2022. The thing could have been STARTED years ago, as most people that craft have many UFO's (Unfinished Objects) in their arsenal, but as long as I finish it in 2022, it is getting counted here.
FINISH #1 - Pillow covers for my cousin's daughter Anna, FINISHED January 9, 2022 These were challenging to make because the fabric Anna chose was very thick so when I went to hand-sew the final seam, I couldn't get the needle through four layers of fabric.....Plan B, make the pillow covers the envelope style that open in the back. They turned out nicely if I do say so myself.
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Hello! It has been a while since I posted on my blog....Northern Shores Knitting continues to turn out all sorts of hand-made goods, animals and custom dogs and cats. This post, is about the MN STATE FAIR. Years ago, I decided to enter something into the MN State Fair so I entered a kid's sweater that I had been knitting for one of my nieces (I Think). It was a cotton cardigan with cute stripes on it. I won a 4th place ribbon for it and was pretty proud. What I didn't realize, before I entered the sweater, was that the workmanship and finishing techniques that go into the entry, scores as many, if not more, points than the design and functionality etc. and that sweater, I will freely admit, was not finished very professionally. Right after that, I took a Finishing Class and now know the correct techniques for finishing knitted items. Fast forward many years, and I decided the time was right again to enter a few things. I am not as into knitting sweaters as used to be, but thought I could enter a few of my smaller creations. I marched down to the state fair two Mondays before it opened and stood in line with a variety of people, all who had something "creative" to enter. I saw birdhouses and scrapbooking pages and some sort of wooden instrument and crocheted afghans and on and on... I entered in four categories: "Doll, ethnic, made and dressed by exhibitor; to represent a country or culture, single or pair." In this category, I entered RAGNAR.... To my delight, he won a blue ribbon!!! The next category was "Doll, made and dressed by exhibitor, representing a fictional storybook character." In this category, I entered PETER... To my delight, he won a BLUE RIBBON!! The next category was "Toy animal, other than bear, (Group of 3 to 5) soft, stuffed, made of yarn or fabric. In this category, I entered three lions... To my delight, THEY WON A BLUE RIBBON!! For some reason, when they were displayed, they were not put together in the showcase.....Oh well. The last category was "Toy animal or figure, made by exhibitor of yarn, under 15 inches." In this category, i entered ELLE. Much to my delight, she won a RED (2nd) ribbon. All in all, not too shabby if I do say so myself. I will certainly try again next year. I was really fun to be a part of the Great Minnesota Get-Together!
Hello...I am Jane and I have been a crafter almost my entire life. I can remember at a very young age coaxing my mother into taking me to the local craft store where we would spend lots of time staring up at the wall of rug hooking kits unable to decide on one to pick. I would also embroider scenes onto pillow cases and needlepoint Christmas ornaments, many of which I still have today. I've done counted cross-stitch, crocheted, and even took a brief dive into basket weaving. My mother taught me how to knit when I was 14 and the rest is history. I have been knitting for over 40 years and have knit everything from afghans to sweaters to hats and mittens and anything else that you can make with needles and yarn. Now I am hooked on the small stuff: knitted toy animals, baby sweaters and other miscellaneous baubles.
My fascination with quilting began more recently, about 25 years ago when my Aunt Mary taught me how to hand applique fabric tulips onto squares. When I had made enough of the squares, I took them back to her and she and I (mostly she) sashed the tulips together to make a quilt top. We then filled it with batting and I started hand quilting.....I am still working on that quilt to this day. Thanks MOM and Aunt Mary for fostering my creative side. You have both always been inspirations for me and champions for all of my endeavors. My cousin and sister are are huge influences in my life and Northern Shores Knitting would not be here without their encouragement and support. Thanks GALS!! I think I am going to use this blog mostly as an archive for my work, but you never know where it might go..... |
AuthorMy name is Jane and for me, life would not be complete without a creative outlet or two....or three...So I knit, quilt, make barn quilts etc. etc. Archives
April 2022
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