the emotional life of sølje

Here is my April Journal Quilt Page, subject surrounds infertility. Very appropriate that it is unveiled today as I am having one of “those” days which I am really feeling sad about the subject.

The freemotion quilted words are “Dealing with the Barrenness” and “She’s empty down there”. The pendant was made by Kevin’s cousin, Jerri who is a very talented glass artist. The goddess bead I used is of opaque lilac glass. In another that I bought from Jerri, she created a fetus within the goddess’s womb. Since I’m “empty down there” in regards to infertility, I chose to attach the opaque goddess.

This Journal Quilt page did not work out in the direction I was hoping. I did use a sueded fabric for the center, I like the texture. Overall, I have a bigger plan for a quilt with the subject of infertility in my head, this one was a practice run, for fun. Wow… “fun” and “infertility” all in the same sentence.

Tags: Journal Quilts, Quilting by Solje
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What a handsome boy! quite the ham, too!

Finally a finished picture of Daniel and his sweater! This is from Sally Melville’s “The Purl Stitch” book. I basically read her pattern, but knit in the round. It turned out to be larger than what Daniel’s size is now, so it should be good for a couple of years. I used Cascade wool mix (which I think this had an alpaca mix, could have been Cascade’s Pastaza) in a green that closely matches my Olfa cutting mat

I must say that in my first 10 months of knitting, I am happy about the amount of garments I have finished. I have one Dale sweater (#12103 Finnskogen Pullover) for Kevin that I want to finish by/around Christmas and I am itching to start Lavold’s Pandora angora sweater/coat for me.

Tags: Knitting by Solje
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My Einstein Coat (Sally Melville, “The Knit Stitch”) is finally finished. In Lamb’s Pride, Harvest Gold colorway no less! Good for autumn anyway.

My previous image of my Einstein Coat shows the finished coat with the first set of sleeves I made. I did not like how they fit, so I ripped them and totally reworked the sleeves. I added fewer decreases on the sleeves (stopping at the 40th ridge), and now the length fits perfectly. I also had a different shoulder, as I had to add length on the front and back panels. For the final product, I machine stitched a stay stitch after the row that I would pick up for the sleeves, and cut off the excess shoulder (that was knit down the sleeve). I am glad that I decided to do this since I do like the drop shoulder.

I had to add wide button bands on each side of the front because I did not follow the directions correctly. I am thinking it may need pockets, but for right now, I am content with the finished product. I am also thinking of adding a zipper instead of buttons. Knitting a bottom band added a more finished look, since I did not follow the edge directions as listed in the book. Obviously I have learned much after this project.

Tags: Knitting by Solje
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This month is based from a mixed feeling about life. We are all of one cloth, but different components. Everyone has a different composition–but we are still on one planet. I wish for the Pollyanna view that everyone could work together, but I know that won’t happen. There will always be a “fiber” that is unruly, not wanting to work with the others. No amount of strong-arming it will keep it in place.

It seems for the benefit of the planet, that we all do need to work together. That every person has a right to be treated humanely, with decency. But the other part of my brain wonders how much is to be sacrificed for that goal–the possibly unreachable goal.

Even with my mixed feelings about the state we are currently in, I am thankful for the multitude of organizations that are working towards the basic human rights plight. A small amount of compassion goes a very long way and leaves a deep impression on the soul.

Tags: Journal Quilts, Quilting by Solje
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My February page was about playing with textures–which really ended up being the direction that the majority of my pages took. I used recycled sari silk to create a color-rich center, framed with organza, and centered with a gold ring.

The silk represented my struggling creativity. It is breaking out from the frame (whether intentional or not, I’ll never tell). I’ve had a hard time coming out creatively since my parent’s deaths. This year was really the first time in well over three years that I have been able to focus and play with fabrics and fiber. My mind has essentially recovered from the stress of doctors, procedures, scheduling, and dealing. The gold ring is my connection to God, which will always be my center.

Tags: Journal Quilts, Quilting by Solje
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I had a moment of inspiration the other day. From that came my “Lava Java” postcard series The inscription I have added is:
Mocha Grande
triple Latte
will start the day off just right!
My sanity restored!

Tags: Quilting by Solje
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“Pineapple Expressions”. Paying homeage to our lousy ski season for 2004-05. With hopes that feeding the snow gods some K2s that snow would pile up… It didn’t work. Thanks to the Pineapple Express (jet stream that comes straight from Hawaii, hence the name), our weather was warm last winter, resulting in hardly any snow in the mountains.

This page was created using nothing but freeform applique. The pineapple block was to be a paperpieced block, but my attention span was zero, so I decided to try a freeform fusible method instead. I also decided to teach myself to knit in January. It was definitely a month of learning new things.

Tags: Journal Quilts, Quilting by Solje
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My (almost) finished Einstein Coat, with modifications.

Ok, I am a knitting beginner, and this was 2nd of 4 garments that I started this year (3rd almost finished). I did not pay attention to the weight of the yarn, so I was essentially knitting the suggested yarn weight for the “Not So Warm Einstein” using the regular Einstein Coat directions. The coat ended up being too small (obviously, duh… why didn’t I think of that!). I added width with a wide button band (no buttons will be put on), and I added rows for the front and back at the shoulders. I had already started knitting the sleeves when I realized that it was going to be too small… I did not want to rip out the knitting, so I made a design decision. What am I planning to do now that I am nearly finished? I am going rip out the sleeves and re-work them.

Tags: Knitting by Solje
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I thought I would share one of my latest completed projects. This is a great weekend project–but it did take me longer. Life was in the way, why does the family want me to cook meals so often?

I purchased two skeins of angora yarn (colorway Purple Haze) from Danette Taylor. For anyone who hasn’t indulged in her yarns, the colors and quality are wonderful! Because of the nature of angora, you can’t see the diagnal pattern that the knit/purls created.

Pattern found here: Aibhlinn on Knitty.com

Yarn found here: Danette Taylor Designs

Indulge!

Tags: Knitting by Solje
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I think I need to change blogging software. For some reason, I don’t get the same choices when wanting to upload an image to our server anylonger, so creating thumbnails has to come from my beady little brain.

Over the last month, I haven’t wanted to deal with it, so that meant no posts at all. September was a month of watching my little boy start kindergarten, having to move him to a different class (from full day to half day), watching CNN and all the cable news on the hurricanes, playing pogo games and finally my creative energy returned when I finished a sweater I was knitting for Daniel.

I also finished a soft cowl (which is just a turtleneck without the sweater) using angora (rabbit) that was hand dyed by Dannette Taylor. I can’t remember the name of the colorway, but it has jeweltone purple, blues and greens. Gorgeous! The pattern I used is Aibhlinn from Kitty.com I have begun to work on the sleeves of my Einstein Coat also. The last time I looked at that thing was months ago… I simply got tired of the color. Plus the fact I used the wrong size yarn threw me for a loop, and so I will be making alterations to the pattern after I finish with the second sleeve. I will post pictures and the description of alterations when I finish.

One other project that I have been continuing to play with are fiber/quilted postcards. The image shows two of the latest six I have completed. I called this series “Northern Lights”. I used Angelina fibers along with a black organza sewn to a handdyed fabric. I enjoyed the process, but want to work on better content and construction. This “simple” project did take some time to do, but you would never know by looking at it. Maybe I was just doing it wrong, who knows.

And finally, in an effort to become more financially frugal, I have started up my sourdough starter again. Some may not think this is a huge thing when it comes to finances, but truly, it is! No more Krusteez Pancakes to buy for my son (who loves them, and I know have all sorts of ingredients with more than ten letters), dinner rolls, pizza, breads galore too. This is a small step in the overall process, but one that has really made a big effect in our grocery bill. We are making changes in our spending, and attempting to become not so willing to give in to instant gratification.

So this is my month in review. I will post the picture of my cowl soon. I just love that piece!

Tags: A Family Affair by Solje
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