Warp and Weft by Jenn McKinlay

Special Announcement: The winner of the signed book BLACKMAIL AND BIBINGKA by Mia P. Manansala is...Gillian B!!!

Congratulations, Gillian! To claim your prize, you can email Mia at: mpmthewriter@gmail.com 

JENN McKINLAY:  If you know me at all, you know that I'm a crafter. You name it, I've done it from basketweaving to scrapbooking to woodworking - been there and done that. 

The only craft that seems to stick is the fiber arts. I started with crochet and then moved on to knitting. I've been very content, knitting at the end of the day as my wind down from the word smithing.

And then I was in Canada at my favorite yarn shop (it's in a barn on a sheep farm - Gaspereau Valley Fibres) and I got sidetracked by these amazing scarves and wraps and whatnot that they had draped all over the place so I spoke with the woman in the shop that day and she explained that she taught weaving and these were some of her creations. WEAVING! I was entranced. 

The next thing I knew I was doing a deep dive into weaving books, videos, and debating buying a rigid heddle loom.

Screeeeeeeeech!!!!

That would be me, slamming the brakes on before I was $1K into a new hobby I wasn't even certain I'd enjoy. 

Instead, when I got home I checked around and noted that my local yarn shop Tempe Yarn and Fiber also has a weaving class. So this is how I spent my morning yesterday, learning the art of warp and weft with my first run at weaving. 

So, how did it go? Well...

OMG - I love it so much! It's complicated and fussy in the beginning (the warping) and then super duper cool (the weaving). I was in class with three other ladies and we encouraged each other as we went along - a newly forged sisterhood in fiber :)

So, I think II have a new hobby! But first, I'm going to baby step my way in with a book (natch) and study up before I go full on weaver immersion. But, seriously, it was the BEST! 

While in class, our lovely teacher Amanda told us it was National Spin and Weave Week -- Oct 3-9.

I didn't even know there was such a thing, but it felt very appropriate for me to be in this class at this time. You can find out more info on all sorts of fiber arts here: Handweavers Guild of America.

What about you, Reds and Readers, if you could take up a hobby right now, what would it be? 

Are You a Starter or a Finisher?

Jenn with s-i-l Natalie in Jan 2009.
That scarf came in handy!

JENN McKINLAY: About nine years ago, I decided I was going to learn how to knit. For reals, this time. I had tried it before but there was a lot of counting and some of the stitches were akin to deciphering a secret code, honestly, ssk, yo, k1, p2, what did it all mean? I had started so many projects over the years with great enthusiasm but then life would happen and I never finished them. I was a grand starter and had a bag stuffed with miscellaneous skeins of yarn and unfinished projects like the ribbing from a vest, half of a beanie, and a quarter of a potholder. It was ridiculous. 

Newly determined, I tried to pick projects that I thought might actually get finished. I started with the basic scarf and hoped the stitch was complicated enough to be cool and hold my interest but could be accomplished faster than an incoming ice age. Halfway through the first very long scarf and it felt like a journey without end. 

Booties!

It became clear that for me, knitting (like writing) bogged down in the middle at a crossroads I think of as the choice between punching through to the bitter end or abandoning all hope. I chose bitterness and refused to quit. Through sheer determination, and several episodes of Sherlock, I was able to knit my way into the homestretch and finish my first scarf. I'm not saying it felt like giving birth or finishing a manuscript, but there were some marked similarities, most notably the cool "Hey, I made that!" feeling at the end of it. Yes, there were some dropped stitches and I did have to go back and fix the random error, usually by ripping out several rows of knitting but for the first time I could remember I didn't mind.

My impatience years ago, during those first few projects, made it not worth it to me to go back and fix things even though they bugged me, which led to my eventual quitting. Now a little older and wiser and more determined, I had the patience to  fix things. I wasn't rushing for an outcome so much as trying to make the best possible scarf, hat, what have you, and I knew it would take as long as it took and I'd be happier if I fixed the stitches that bothered me. It was worth the effort and time to make it right. Essentially, I evolved into a finisher!

Jenn's current project.

Since then, I've gone on to knit blankets, hats, pillows, bags, etc. It's my reward at the end of the day for getting my writing done. It also soothes me when the writing goes poorly. At least I feel as if I'm accomplishing something even if it's just another square on a blanket or maybe it's mastering a pattern that had been difficult and I finally get it. I love those light bulb moments!

So, how about you, Reds? Are you starters or finishers? How do you get motivated to finish a project when it's a struggle?

Color Me Happy

RHYS BOWEN: Rhys: For my birthday last month my daughter Clare sent me three coloring books. Adult coloring books (no, there were no racy pictures to color, although that may be the next step) but complicated designs that require lots of concentration.

I’ve been trying them when I sit up in bed at night, trying to wind down and fall asleep and you know, they are addicting. So far I’ve tried marker pens (didn’t like so much. Too harsh and hard to work with), colored pencils and watercolor pencils. I haven’t tried crayons because they are probably too fat for the intricate details. I'm not sure how relaxing they are, because there is a lot of concentration involved in staying within the lines, but they stop worrying thoughts from flying around my head!

I gather coloring has become a BIG THING. There are coloring clubs in the same way that there are book clubs and quilting circles. I can see it would work well as an activity that one could do mindlessly while chatting with friends. As long as a little wine and nibbles are involved, I’m all for it.

Given all the craft-centered cozy mysteries there are, I just wish I had a little time to write "Color Me Dead."  I'm sure somebody will soon!

So I’m dying to know who else has taken up coloring as an activity and whether you find it works to relieve tension. And if not coloring, what? I know some people quilt, some knit, embroider.  Do tell all, dear Reds and Readers: what do you do to wind down, relieve tension and indulge in playfulness?

HALLIE EPHRON: Coloring would give me an anxiety attack. I'm no better at staying within the lines than I was when I was 8. I like to play bridge -- does that count? And read the bridge column. And the comics in the newspaper. If it weren't for the bridge column and the comics, I could easy go with e-only news.

LUCY BURDETTE: Oh my coloring, how did this become a thing again? Who thinks up these new trends? Right now my mother-in-law is very sick and several people are coloring in her room--and finding it very stress-reducing. I would rather read, if I can concentrate or have something gripping. But I love COLOR ME DEAD--Maybe it's already in production Rhys?

SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: Kaye had a great post on the coloring craze recently! I must confess I'm curious. I picture adult coloring like monks making mandalas — very Zen. I guess I should try it! But Lucy, I'm with you — I think I'd rather read or take a walk.... Lately to reduce tension I've been taking a lot of walks. That's not exactly playful, though, is it... Hmmm.... Maybe coloring is worth a try. I think we have some glitter pens somewhere.....

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN:  I'm afraid..I cannot even face this . It makes me anxious, and I have to say I have no desire to color at all. All those little blank spaces? Not at all. It's anxiety-INDUCING to me . Is there a right way to do it? What do I get when I'm finished? A pretty picture that I did not design? Then what DO I do with it?  ::Shaking head::  I agree about talking walks, that's one of my favorite things. But coloring?   What do I do to relive stress? I will let you know when I come up with something.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: I was intrigued by Kaye's coloring book post, too, and bought one, and some markers. Have I colored a single picture? No. When exactly did I think I would do this? Sigh. It's a lovely idea, though, and I loved to color when I was a kid, so the concept is soothing in a nostalgic way.  But if I was sitting somewhere with time to kill, I would be reading, something, anything, always. And if I could manage to do something fairly mindless with my hands, I'd work on my completely neglected quilting project... Too many things, not enough time.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: If I were going to reduce stress via making "artwork," I think I'd do paint-by-numbers. At least then you get a kitschy picture to frame and hang. As a matter of fact, you could do an entire wall of ironic retro "art" projects - those colored-string-around-nails pictures of owls, the crushed-crystal-inside -the-outlines poodle dogs, macrame hangings... if I had a midcentury aesthetic going on in my house, I would definitely do it. But coloring books? I'm afraid they seem pointless, which is probably a sad comment on the adult mind.  Just picturing myself sitting at the table and coloring, I can feel my anxiety level rising - I'm wasting time! I could be doing something I need to do.

Knitting and needlepoint at least lets you pretend you'll have something useful at the end. And I enjoy board games and card games, but the fun part is socializing (and trash talking) with the other players. Maybe that's what would make coloring fun for me - do it with a group of people. With cocktails. Drunk competitive coloring sounds like a lot of fun.

RHYS: Anyone up for drunk-competitive coloring? So who has tried coloring as a relaxing occupation? I am still not sure whether I will ever take to it. They now make small books and I can see doing it on a long plane flight (but would I look stupid sitting on a plane coloring?) I still think that kitting or crochet will be my choice of mindless activity when I want busy-work to do with my hands on long evenings or plane flights. Any other suggestions, Reds?

Sew Crafty

RHYS BOWEN: I've always been amazed to see the number of comments we get here at Jungle Red when we feature a book to do with sewing or other crafts. I've never been in a Michael's craft store when it hasn't been busy. So it's fascinating to note that in this age of the cheap ready made, when you can buy a perfectly knitted sweater from China for twenty dollars, crafts still matter to us.

It's clear we are programmed to work with our hands. All those industrious ancestors who had to make their children's clothing or the child would run around in rags are driving us to carry on the skills, just in case.

Crafts are so important in making books into best sellers that my agent once jokingly suggested that I do a big World War II thriller that involved knitting. Or maybe she wasn't joking?

So for my Saturday list today I wondered what crafts my fellow Jungle Reds enjoy doing?

Here is my list:
knitting
beading
sewing (occasionally)
and of course I love to paint, both watercolor and oils.

LUCY BURDETTE: I used to do a lot more before WRITING took over! Like sewing, crocheting, canning...for one of my favorite projects several years ago, I took a ruined quilt that had belonged to my mother-in-law's mother and sewed a lavender sachet for everyone in their family from the pieces. (And they have a big family!)

HALLIE EPHRON: Rhys, I'm so impressed. Beading? Really? Say more!! And I hope you post one of your paintings, and I"m sure I'm not the only one...

And Lucy, lavender sachets! With home grown lavender?

I'm terrible at crafts. Truly awful. I think this is related to the fact that I also can't make a bed. Impatience doesn't help. Though I did quite a bit of crocheting in my 20s. And some quilting and embroidering, which I learned to do in elementary school. We cross-stitched a sampler on gingham and embroidered a map of California. I wonder with all the cuts if kids get any of the cool art projects we had.

HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Nothing. Zip. Terrible. (I can crochet, and used to make baby blankets and afghans all the time, with great delight. My Gramma Minne taught me to knit, and I've made sweaters.) But ah, these days, I gotta say, I think yarn is gorgeous, and I love craft stores. My reaction, however, is usually: "I wish I knew what to do with all this stuff."

Does flower arranging count? I'm pretty good at that, and love when the flowers come from my own garden. How about--magazine-stacking? (I have perfected that.) Does towel-folding count as a craft?

RHYS BOWEN: Flower arranging, Hank? Now that is a skill I fail at hopelessly. I put them in a vase and they sag in all directions. Pitiful.

JAN BROGAN: I embroidered during my high school years -- flowers on faded blue jeans mostly. And actually knit Icelandic sweaters in my twenties. The reason I knit Icelandic sweaters (they are the heavy monotone but multi-color ones) was because I needed a pattern to keep me engaged or I stopped paying attention when I knit and it got ugly. Real ugly.

I actually think knitting and other repetitive hand crafts are a form of meditation. But no -- I don't do it anymore. But I play a lot of guitar - and that's my hands, right?

ROSEMARY HARRIS: Icelandic sweaters? Lavender sachets? Wow. Most of my craft chip goes into my garden these days - planning colors, heights and leaf textures.

I used to knit, as long as it was a square or a rectangle. Crocheted a quilt once, made a shawl once and a mosaic table top. Had brief flirtations with shell art, chinese brush painting and jewelry making.

Now I'm with Hank...does china stacking count? Re-arranging the vase collection? Hank, since you're so good at towel-folding can you give me any tips on folding a fitted sheet? Few domestic activities are as exasperating to me.

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: What I can do: sew, simple garter-stitch knitting, embroidery, needlepoint. What I do do: ....uh..ironing? The knitting dropped out after college, and I stopped sewing after I had my second child. The needlepoint lasted until my writing career took off, as the many bargello pillows in my house can attest.

What's interesting is that my youngest daughter is expressing a keen interest in all these traditional crafts. For Christmas last year, she embroidered a handkerchief for each member of the family with a design and an initial. If we can clear a sewing space out of her increasingly unused play room, we're going to set up my machine and haul all the boxes of fabric and trims out of the attic. And a friend has offered to teach us how to knit! So who knows, I may be returning to the days of crafting.

DEBORAH CROMBIE: Hopeless. My lovely grandmother sewed and knitted, and gave up trying to teach me either. I swear the old Singer had a grudge against me, and knitting needles drove me to want to commit murder.

I drew as a child, pastels and charcoal, but these days my friends make fun even of my attempts to decorate the whiteboard calendar in my kitchen. I used to be a better gardener. And a better cook. At one stage in my life I was determined to make whole grain bread from scratch--if that's not an art, I don't know what is. Oh, and I took a weaving class, with dreams of filling the house with crafty yarns and looms. Result? One not-too-bad throw. (There was a character who was a weaver in the book-in-progress.)

I'm a decent amateur photographer but lack the drive and technical skill to be really good.

But--there is a but--I've wanted to make a quilt since I was in my teens and my grandmother and I day-dreamed about the quilt she'd buy me some day. I have a friend who's a brilliant quilter and who has encouraged me to actually give it a try. I wanted to do something that would give me quiet time, that would disengage my brain, and that was neither work nor chores, for those things seem to take up the majority of my life.

For months my friend helped me collect fabrics and work out a pattern. Finally, this Sunday, with much coaching, I cut and then hand-stitched my first few bits of fabric together. It felt like Christmas. I suspect, however, that this will be a loooooong project.

RHYS BOWEN: You're right, Jan. It is a form of meditation. I love to sit in front of the TV on a winter night and knit, making sure my brain winds down.

So let's hear from our Jungle Red visitors: are you crafty? What is it about crafty cozy mysteries that so attracts you?

And since this is the pub week for my new book, Naughty in Nice, please go to my website and, if you've bought my book, do enter the contest for a fun and fabulous French themed prize.