Knit a Bike for Le Tour Yorkshire

This year the Grand Départ of the Tour de France, the world's largest annual sporting event, is coming to Yorkshire.  The Yorkshire Festival 2014, and York: Be part of it are celebrating this momentous event with 100 days of art & culture from 27 March to 6 July 2014 when Le Tour leaves York.  We are "being part of it" too.  Hippystitch is joining up with Deborah New to knit (with your help!) a giant bike (& some jerseys) which will be part of a yarnstormed installation in Rowntree Park, York.

In order to be ready in time we are holding our workshops in Craft & Design Month - May 2014. (Last year we had great fun in Craft & Design Month preparing for the Yarnbombing Event at the Rowntree Park Party). Do join us this year to try out some finger knitting, arm knitting, (yes, bring your arms!) & big knitting with very large needles.  We hope to be doing some wheel weaving too!

March/April 2014 Issue

We had fun in Craft & Design month last year - so come & join us again this year!

The workshops are on:

Saturday 10 May 2014 - Your Bike Shed
Bicycle Cafe, 148-150 Micklegate, York, YO1 6JX
2-4pm

Thursday 22 May - Rowntree Park Cafe
Rowntree Park, Richardson Street, York, YO23 1JU
2-4pm

There's no need to book just drop in - all materials are provided

The Knit a Bike installation goes up in Rowntree Park on Friday 6 June 2014 and will remain till after the Grand Depart.  Find it by the tennis courts near Rowntree Park Cafe! 

Sponsored by Friends of Rowntree Park and one of the Yorkshire Festival Events

 

Woolly Bike Workshop for The Woolly Bike Trail

Completed - York Viking Woolly Bike

Cassandra Kilbride is running the Woolly Bike Trail Project.  She is aiming to produce 10 themed woolly bikes across Yorkshire as part of the Yorkshire Festival 2014.  This is a 100 day festival in the run up to the 2014 Tour de France Grand Depart (5-6 July 2014).  And she is looking for willing participants to join her workshops.
 

Cassandra & Viking Shield Wheel

A friend & I joined her at the Designer Outlet in York contributing some time and knitting/crochet to the York Viking Woolly Bike along with other like-minded folk.  There are 2 free workshops associated with each of the 10 bikes.  The other Woolly Bike towns and cities are Wakefield, Leeds, Hepworth, Huddersfield. Scarborough, Haworth, Halifax, Hebden Bridge & Sheffield.  Each has a different theme.  And there's still time to join in with other workshops across Yorkshire.

Our crocheted & knitted covers for the front forks

Here are the links if you want to find out more about the Woolly Bike Trail ...

http://www.yorkshireswoollybikes.co.uk/

or the Yorkshire Festival 2014 ...

www.yorkshirefestival.co.uk/ 

or the Grand Depart ...

http://letour.yorkshire.com/

There will be an exhibition of all the woolly bikes in Sheffied Cathedral at the end of the process.  So watch out for that one! 

The finished York Viking Woolly Bike ...

York Viking Woolly Bike

... I think you'll agree it looks quite special!

A Final Big Knit Cushion & Moving On

This is just a very short post because so far this year I've bored you all rigid with my big knit cushions.  But there is one you haven't seen yet ...so here it is:

Another big knit cushion!

This used 10 different yarns - one of which was a silk fabric yarn. The needles were 25mm needles and it was k1,p1 across 18 stitches - all rows.

Now I'm moving on ...to arm knitting I think.  Watch this space!

Some New Stuff & Some Favourites

At my next event on Friday 14 March 2014 there will be some new things and some favourites.  So here's a sneak preview of the new stuff:

Vintage Coin Cufflinks

Vintage Domino Brooches - new size

Vintage Geology Map Notebooks & Pouches

Resin & Button Cufflinks

Felt Earrings

Felt Necklaces

Knitted Wire Bird Brooch

Penny & Ha'penny Brooches

Vintage Car Cards

Gardening Hints Cards

Wild Flower Cards

Bird Cards

Trees of the Countryside Cards

 

Vintage Geology Map Cards

There will of course be my People & Places range, Liberty print fabric necklaces, button brooches & bracelets, map notebooks, wild women & magical mermaid brooches, resin button brooches and rings and some monster egg cosies.  In fact lots of things suitable for Mother's Day, Easter or just to treat yourself! Take a look in the my gallery for some extra pics.

Alice Fox - Textile Artist, Printmaker & Geographer

I recently went to a talk by Alice Fox at the City of York Embroiderers' Guild.  Alice is an artist working primarily in textiles and print but initially trained in Geography.  Her work is about connecting with the landscape.  It was a really interesting session.

Alice Fox sketchbook extracts

Alice Fox sketchbook extracts

Alice was the Artist in Residence at Spurn Point in 2012 (see "Textures of Spurn") and much of her work involves mark making on both fabric and paper with found objects, especially exploring rust marks.  She also uses collagraph printing techniques and embossing, enhanced with the use of stitch. 

Alice Fox books showing mark making with found objects

Alice Fox book showing embossing with found items

Her work covers large exhibition pieces, smaller artists books, prints and hangings with & without the use of stitch.

Finished hanging (detail)- Alice Fox

Since the Spurn Residency, Alice has been developing her work on other projects such as "Gifts from the Pavement" involving textures, marks and shapes from the streets of Saltaire and with "Tide Marks" developing further her coastal based work.

You can find out more information about Alice and her work here:

http://www.alicefox.co.uk/

and you can vote for her for the Craft & Design Selected Makers Awards 2014 (until 31 March 2014) here:

http://www.craftmaker.co.uk/alicefox/ 

For more information about the City of York Embroiderers' Guild look here - they're a very friendly bunch with lots of interesting talks and workshops:

http://yorkembroidery.blogspot.co.uk/ 

Hundertwasser, Coffee, The Third Man & Vienna

Recently I spent a few days in Vienna.  It's a lovely place and seemed amazingly uncrowded for a capital city (it was February!).  Here are some of my highlights starting with all things Hundertwasser ...

Hundertwasser Haus

Hundertwasser Haus showing some of the original architecture

Hundertwasser Village

KunstHaus Wien - gallery displaying Hundertwasser's art

Window detail at the KunstHaus

Hunderwasser designed Incinerator facade at Spittelau

 
Hundertwasser, originally an artist, thought modern buildings were anonymous, heartless and aggressive.  He sought to counter this with his building designs which are irregular, colourful with uneven floors and the "right of window" - an individual's right to decorate round each window within an arm's reach and include tree tenants - a piece of nature growing out of windows to improve man's environment. Hundertwasser wanted to create "barriers of beauty".  He designed the Hundertwasser Haus with help from architects Krawina & Pelikan. It was handed over to residents in 1986.

The KunstHaus is the only gallery with a permanent collection of Hundertwasser's work and it has a really good cafe! It was formerly the Thonet furniture factory but was remodelled to Hundertwasser's design.

The facade of the incinerator at Spittelau was designed by Hundertwasser.  Information regarding the plant suggests that this has made a major contribution to the reduction of "visual pollution" of the urban environment.  In other words it looks pretty good for an incinerator!

Perhaps we should take a coffee break now...

Perfect cappuccino

Amazing macaroon

All at Cafe Central

Don't be fooled into thinking a Mozart donut will be nice - it won't! (This was not at Cafe Central I hasten to add)

If you haven't seen "The Third Man" (black & white film noir set in post Second World War Vienna starring Orson Wells, Joseph Cotton & Alida Valli, directed by Carol Reed) then you definitely should!  Unfortunately tours of Vienna's sewers don't start till May but we could go on the Ferris Wheel (Riesenrad) in the Prater...

Riesenrad

Harry Lime's view perhaps?

And if you like heights you can also go up the Stephansdom...

Amazingly colourful roof on the Stephansdom!

Even the steps at the Albertina are covered in art (which I think they change from time to time)...

Malevich's Man in a Suprematist Landscape

Malevich was a Russian artist who founded the Suprematist art movement which is based on geometric forms and limited colours.

And of course there's always some interesting architecture just round the corner...

Otto Wagner apartments decorated in Jugendstil style (Viennese Art Nouveau)

And there's lots more for another time!

Valentine's Day Yarnbomb - Rowntree Park, York

Some of you will have been inundated with Valentine's Day cards today and some may not.  Whichever group you fall into this is for you ...

Love Heart Yarnbomb (& Blue Sky!)

and I can tell you it was mighty cold this morning putting it up.   If you want to take a look in the flesh (so to speak) you can find this love heart in Rowntree Park, York on the tennis court fence just near the cafe.  (Should be there till the end of half term.)  I can thoroughly recommend the cafe where I was able warm up after my exploits with a latte and pain au chocolat.

Those of you who want to know a bit more about the yarnbombing.  Here are some tips ...

1. Assemble your materials

Yarnbomb kit

2. It helps to have a plan

Yarnbomb plan

3. Make sure you have enough crafting materials for the job

Finger knitting

and away you go.  (Not very subversive - I did get permission first!)  Could have done to be just a little bit taller - perhaps I need some bigger steps!
 

Valentine's Day Yarnbomb