01 April, 2013

Challenge: 11 questions


PäiviH from the blog Tanssivat puikot had been challenged to answer to 11 questions about her handicrafter habits and instead of challenging new people decided to just leave the challenge open for anyone interested to take and answer the questions too. As I've thought this is one of the more interesting challenges circling blogistan at the moment, I decided to join in! So here are the 11 questions and my answers to them.


1. What is your most ambitious handicraft project you are dreaming of?
I'd say that out of my current dreams, the most ambitious is probably a fair isle cardigan. I would really love to make one but am also very scared of the project at the same time. An other ambitious dream I have is a quilted bedspread.

2. What has been the most ambitious handicraft you have actually made?
Probably the historical ballgown (vanhojentanssipuku) I made for my friend back when I was studying to be a seamstress for a traditional school dance. I made few other nice dresses back in the day.
Outside that world of professional sewing the most ambitious handigraft I've made has definitely been the double knitted Protu 20 scarf, of which I'm super proud of.

The Protu 20 scarf was a custom order I made in few weeks with great exitement.
It was a lot of work but I was super proud of it when it was finished.

3. Are you ever unable to choose and thus do not start a handicraft project when it's time for you to start a new project?
Nope, I don't think this has ever happened to me. Also, I always seem to have several projects I'm working on at the same time (see this post for an example) so quite often when I'm finished with one project I just move on to an other one I'm already working on. New projects tend to come along there in between when ever I come up with a new one.

This box in our livingroom contains most of my unfinished knitting  and crocheting projects and tools too.

4. What type of handicrafts do you most like to do?
At the moment my handicraft of choice is definitely knitting. I'm very much enjoying the versatility of the craft. But I do enjoy many other things too and will probably push myself more back towards sewing when I'll get a proper space where to work with bigger projects.

5. Is your job in any way related to handicrafts?
No, or not more than public library work is related to any other field of life. No special emphasis on handicrafts. But before becoming a librarian I used to work as a seamstress and have to say that I'm rather happy that isn't my day job anymore.

6. Is it a complete chaos or clean and organized at your workstation (or where ever you store tools)?
My crafting supplies and tools are actually rather organized, which is somewhat untypical for me. That's how ever more a result of not having a proper space for crafting and all my materials and tools need to be stored in one cabinet and few boxes all the time. It wouldn't work it it all was super chaotic.

This is my kinda packed handicraft closet.

7. What material do you have in store but have never used for anything? How long have you had it?
Ok, this is not a material but a tool, but I have a textile printing screen that I got from a friend seven or eight years ago and have never used. In general I try not to store things I'm not using for anything too long.


8. What kind of mood are you in when you make handicrafts? Are you working as fast as you can to finish the project of do you work calmly and enjoy the process?
I'm pretty laid back with my projects and mostly do them because I want and need to do something with my hands, not because I would want to finish things as fast as I can. I can be ambitious too, but some years ago I chose to not make handicrafts my job so I won't be working on them like they would be.


9. Have you ever come up with an idea, structure of method in your handicraft projects that you have thought has been something new and different than what has already existed?
I'm fairly certain that I have never come up with anything that someone else wouldn't have come up too, but there definitely are few things I've figured out on my own without ever seeing any kind of instructions or patterns for making them before doing them myself for the first time. 


I'm sure someone else somewhere has also done double knitting with different pattern on each side, but this is one of the things I figured out on my own without seeing anyone elses project or any instructions.

10. Which school grade would you give yourself about your handicraft skills?

On a scale from 4-10 (this is the scale they used when I was in elementary school) I'd say 9. I mean, I'm pretty good in many things but the more I learn about handicrafts the more I feel like I need to learn more and better. So good but not perfect.


11. Which is the handigraft project someone else has made that you love the most?
The fox hat Inari made for me as an unbirthday gift some years ago. It's very dear to me in many ways and tends to serve as a thinking cap sometimes too.

Well this was fun. I'm not gonna challenge anyone else as I wasn't officially challenged either, but if someone else wants to answer these questions I'd definitely recommend it and you can consider yourself challenged.

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Päätin tarttua Tanssivat puikot -blogin PäiviH:n avoimeen haasteeseen vastata 11 käsityöaiheiseen kysymykseen. Näihin oli hurjan hauska vastailla ja samalla pohdiskella omaa käsillätekemistä. Jätän itsekin haasteen avoimeksi, koska minua ei virallisesti tähän haastettu, joten kuka tahansa, jonka tekee mieli vastailla näihin kysymyksiin on tervetullut mukaan!

2 comments:

  1. The image of you pondering over something, looking very serious and wearing the fox hat at the same time makes me smile. Everyone should have a fox thinking cap, indeed :)

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    1. It seems to amuse peoble when I walk around the house wearing it. :D I also like how it's an unintendent reference to a book (Looking for Alaska by John Green). I should borrow said book to you sometime as it is very good book.

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