Tag Archives: inspiration

Where Have I Been Lately?

18 Sunday Jan 2015

Posted by in Inspiration, Projects

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Well, hello! If this is your first time visiting Inkled Pink, greetings and welcome, I am pleased you stopped by. Or, if I am honored enough to have you as a returning visitor, thank you for coming back!

I have been away for a while, as life has provided me with a few joyful and very energetic distractions.the boys

These two keep me busy and on my toes. Which, amazingly, does not provide much time to weave, or write. However, inkling is never far from my thoughts. Nor are ideas on what to do with those lovely bands.

I see things that give me inspiration for projects all the time and my idea notebook is full of projects just waiting to be created and shared.inkle project inspiration book.

It is my goal to begin posting again soon! I miss it way too much to not do it for much longer.  So, stay tuned and be sure to sign-up for updates by following the blog , liking the Inkled Pink facebook page, or signing up for email notification.

Until then…

warp, weave, be happy!

~Jennifer

Inkle: Read all About it!

24 Sunday Jun 2012

Posted by in Reading

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I sat on the floor with 25+ years of Handwoven Magazine at my finger tips. Stacked in neat tantalizing piles they were waiting for me to attack.Stack of Handwoven Magazine

A few weeks ago a fellow guild member sent out an email bragging she was destashing her Handwoven Magazine collection dating back to 1985 (well, not really bragging, but since I don’t destash I am always jealous of people who do). My heart fluttered, I only learned about the magazine 4 years ago when I became a weaver. Just imagine what inkle weaving treasures could be in those pages. She had EVERY issue. I had to go take a look.

Now, how to find the inkle weaving articles in over 100 issues without taking so long to search that I would have to move into her house. Hmmm! I needed a game plan.

Guess what? Interweave Press, publisher of Handwoven, has indexed every issue since 1979 by subject and author!

Handwoven Magazine Inkle IndexYeah, I know, No way! What an awesome resource!

I went to the index, searched the word inkle, printed the index pages that matched my criteria (6 in all) and headed to her house.

My game plan: with the specific issues and pages I was interested in highlighted, I’d be in and out. Took a little longer than that, but after 2 ½ hours I was a happy girl. I still can’t believe I only walked out with 6 magazines. But my “plan” allowed me to be eagle eye focused.

Since I’m so into inkle band projects, I was hoping to find cool ideas and inspiration; more than belts and bookmarks. While those were there I did find some great goodies. Including a doll I can’t wait to try! How unique and cute are these?!

Inkle Band dolls

“Inkle Band Babies” by Christi Eales Ehler, Handwoven Magazine Nov/Dec 2003 p. 60

Thank you Handwoven Magazine so much for saving me from having to move! This index might just be one of the greatest online weaving resources around. I’m hoping to make some of the fun Handwoven Magazine projects in the near future, let’s hope my son keeps taking long naps!

warp, weave, be happy! ~Jennifer

Yay! The Check Is in the Mail!

30 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in Design, Teaching, Travel

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I have never been so happy to mail a check. Ok, that is a bit of an exaggeration, but I had a smile on my face when I dropped it in the box.

Not long after I learned how to inkle weave I ran across this picture.

Anne Dixon inkle woven bands. The Braid Society

The orange and white band stumped my limited knowledge of inkle design, as did the others actually, but that orange one… How was that done?! I did a little internet slouthing and found it was woven by the gifted weaver Anne Dixon. So, I emailed Ms. Dixon – and she replied with a great email outlining the process. I was ecstatic. But the funny thing is, I had no idea she was the Anne Dixon, author of “The Handweaver’s Pattern Directory: Over 600 Weaves for 4-Shaft Looms”. And now the author of the soon to be released “The Weaver’s Inkle Pattern Directory: 400 Warp-Faced Weaves”. Woohoo, I’ve already preordered mine!

So where did I send the check? To the Western North Carolina Fibers/Handweavers Guild to become a member of the guild and to attend an Anne Dixon inkle 3-day workshop in July in beautiful Hendersonville, NC! I met a lovely bunch of ladies from the guild last weekend and I am so glad to join their group.

Is it July yet? This is going to be an amazing birthday present to me and if all works out we will be able to make it a family trip. Does it get any better than that? Yeah, I don’t think so either.

warp, weave, be happy!

Inspiration at My Fingertips

06 Tuesday Mar 2012

Posted by in Design, Inspiration

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While having a cup of tea the other day I glanced down at my nails and thought, “It is time to take this polish off.” Then I thought, “I wonder what this color would look like in an inkle band.” Inspiration at my finger tips.

It may be hard to see in the picture, but the color is an iredescent deep purple created by blending charcoal gray and pinkish iridescent pearl. I enjoyed that manicure. . .

I’d never worked with metallic yarn so I was really intrigued by this bit of inspiration. As soon as my son was up from his nap, I packed him in the car and off to Jo Ann Fabrics we went.

I bought purple, lavender, and pearl DMC metallic embroidery thread, without a coupon (sigh). Curious what the metallic yarn would look like next to a cotton yarn, I chose 3 perle cotton yarns from my stash that were very close in color to the metallic yarns.

Then I designed a simple pattern with stripes, horizontal bars, and dots to see what the effect was in different pattens. I used all 6 strands of the embroidery thread so it would match the weight of the perle cotton yarn. And ended up with . . .

Inkle Band Metallic

  1. Bars
  2. Dots
  3. Metallic dots next to a metallic line
  4. Line

Lesson learned: the closer in color the metallic yarn is to the the cotton yarn the harder it is to achieve a patterned effect. Instead, the metallic acts as a highlight, not a standalone element.

It’s going to be fun to incorporate this into future projects now that I know what I know. And knowing is half the battle. Isn’t it?

What inspires your craft?

warp, weave, be happy.