Dyepot, Teapot

Silicon Florist has a round-up of links from last night’s Ignite Portland event. I had a great time. Those five minutes go really, really fast.

Here’s some links to follow up on my talk.

That binary scarf pattern is available on Knitty. Knitty is a great resource for interesting, attractive patterns, and they’re all free. It’s published as a quarterly online magazine.

The sweater percentage diagram came from Knitting in the Old Way, by Priscilla Gibson-Roberts. Knitting Without Tears by Elizabeth Zimmerman, is another great book for learning how to make a sweater that fits you, using any yarn you’d like. The method of designing by percentage comes from her.

If you’re just getting started, Stitch & Bitch by Deb Stoller (editor of Bust Magazine), has really good illustrations showing exactly how knit stitches are formed, as well as detailed explanations of how to fix common mistakes.

The “knitting 2.0″ site I mentioned is called Ravelry. It’s still in invite-only beta, and the waitlist is long (but moving as fast as they can handle), but as someone who uses a lot of “social” sites, I am really impressed with this one. It seems to do exactly what it needs to, no more, no less.

And for online knitting entertainment, the queen is Yarn Harlot. She has four books out, one of which won the 2006 Ben Franklin Award for humor.

Did I leave anything out? Leave a comment and I’ll add the needed links.

Ha, maybe I do want to write.

To my occasional embarrassment, sometimes I get in the habit of watching a lot of tv while knitting. Especially shows like What Not to Wear and America’s Next Top Model, which send Lucas running. One recent Saturday, I saw an episode of ANTM where Janice Dickenson (former model and full time crazy person) was teaching the girls the difference between posing for editorial and catalog photos, and it clicked with something I’ve noticed about how people respond to fashion content.

Editorial photos are what Vogue does with those multi-page articles showing Keira Knightly on the savanna. Catalog is more obvious; it’s what you see in department store ads and mail-order catalogs and anywhere a retailer is trying to convince you that you, too, could be that woman in the turtleneck and boot-cut jeans. Models pose differently for these two kinds of pictures (check this yourself: where are they looking? are they smiling? what about posture?) but the way the clothing is styled is different too.

A catalog image needs to convince you that you can wear something. The people will look happy. They’re probably standing straight and looking at the camera. The clothing will be styled to reflect the buyer’s (presumed) lifestyle, without a lot of elements you’d have to be highly exhibitionistic to pull off. But editorial photos are meant to do something else. They’re more conceptual, less practical. The focus is on inspiring the reader and evoking a mood. Runway shows will do this too. They’re trying to sell you on an idea.

But people outside the fashion industry aren’t necessarily tuned in to this distinction, and are often more focused on ‘can I wear that?’ than ‘ooh, I want to be a Baroque German Princess too!’. So you get complaints that the models in Vogue Knitting are wearing tutus with their sweaters, or there’s no camisole under the sheer blouse, or something else along those lines. Our habits for evaluating clothing are more practical, less imaginative, and we don’t automatically analyze ‘how could I make that work for me?’. I don’t think that’s bad, but it’s an interesting tension to observe. It probably has applications elsewhere, too. Are we selling an idea, a mood? Or an item to plug into someone’s existing needs and lifestyle?

As a footnote, this is what’s interesting about ’shopping’ magazines like Lucky. Their aim is to take these concepts and break them down into things the reader can directly buy or do, bridging the gap. They identify trends and break out the components, and then show multiple versions so the reader can find one they like. If you’re interested in staying fashionable without spending a lot of time on it or hiring a stylist, this is perfect.

I haven’t felt like writing much lately. I’m in the middle of one of my occasional ‘bored with technology’ phases, too. So I’m letting a few things slide. It’ll pass before long, I expect.

I’ve been tracking everything I cook on my wiki, though. Might be interesting if you’re looking for ideas.

I’m also going to be presenting at Ignite Portland on Thursday. I’m giving a five-minute talk on why knitting is neat. If you’d like to go, plan to be there early. The number of people who’ve expressed an interest in attending exceeds the space’s limits. But it should be worth it; there’s 18 fun talks on the schedule, and free food and drink.

Speaking of knitting, I just got an account on Ravelry. It’s an awesome knitting social network and project management tool. I’ve been adding some of the things I’ve made, and I’ll link to it again when the site is public.

Members of the Portland Etsy street team will be in Brooklyn this week for a trunk show at Etsy Labs. Several shops are also doing an online sale. The vendors participating have some very cool work. Check it out.

Portland is in the middle of its own fashion week right now. I’ve been following the coverage, and I was thinking about trying to go to a show or two, except… they’re having it at a shipyard on Swan Island. And I don’t drive. I’m really having trouble with the idea that an event that’s billing itself as green/sustainable picked a car-required venue, with apparently no shuttle service from downtown. What on earth were they thinking? People are saying that the venue is lovely once you’re there, but for me the location is a complete deal-breaker.

I’m also not that excited about the work I’ve been seeing in photos so far. There’s a ton of solid colors and drapey fabrics and knits, and on the whole it just doesn’t feel very fashiony. A good shape and structure is important, but you need details, too. At least the attendees seem to have taken ‘dress to impress’ seriously, with interesting results.

I’m sure there’s some good work in there, but given the (very low) odds that any of it is offered in my size, I want to feel inspired, not just vaguely content. I guess I’ll just stick to ogling the fall Prada collection for now.