Noodle

I think it's probably fair to say that if I have any down time and the only thing available to me is pen and paper, I'll be either:

1. making lists; or
2. sketching beading ideas; or
3. making tables of colour combinations for beadwork; or
4. sketching knitting ideas

Pretty predictably.

Sometimes my ideas are completely half-baked and vague, and sometimes the sketches are accompanied by step-by-step instructions (which I fervently hope I can read later; my handwriting is awful) and step-by-step illustrations with thread paths and whatnot.

I really couldn't say with any sort of reliability what sort of correspondence (besides none) there is between the thoroughness of my sketches and the viability of the ideas.

Sometimes they work out exactly as planned, and sometimes they don't.

Take the picture that you do not see anywhere on this page. I had a great idea. I had tables of colour combinations. I had pictures and notes.

About a third of the way through I changed my mind about one thing (which involved cutting), and another third of the way though (yes, that would be two-thirds of the way through. This thing involved three sections) I was a little bored and folded it another way and added fringe beads and fire-polished beads and realised that I could make a whole chain of them if I wanted to, and perhaps this was the time to start afresh, taking photos every step of the way so that I could duplicate it later.

It was almost cool.

But first I just needed to do some noodling around on an idea which suddenly came to me as I did some surfing.

I saw a flat weave which I thought could be used to make a cube-shaped object, but the scale needed to change, and the types of beads needed to change and just when I thought it was barely a moderate success, my thread all secured and the thread burner about to make the final cut, I realised that another layer would give it both the structural integrity that it was lacking (it was a bit smooshy) as well as eliminating that slight blandness.

I completely love the cube, and need to make sure I remember how I made it (or perhaps do it another way) before I forget and have to write up instructions.

I also make a couple more pairs of earrings.

This is an excellent way of using up amounts of beads too small to throw away.

(They're both in my Etsy shop, by the way).

If I had a couple more hours, I could wear my mitred skirt out to dinner this evening, but I don't so I can't, but I will, one of these days.

I'm not a weaver, but I hang out with weavers, and so I have to bask in John's glory: he won Best of Show in Handwoven's Not Just For Socks competition for his gorgeous (I wish he had close-ups, because it's gorgeous. I just said that a few words ago, but I'll say it again for emphasis: Gorgeous) weave-it and crocheted shawl. The guy's a mad genius with weave-its, mad being the operative word. No, genius. No, mad. Never mind: Mad Genius.