the art and imagination of Jen Minnis
this shawl was a gift for my SIL’s mother. she was going through some serious health issues, and this was my way of sending our prayers on for her…
I love shawls that utilize multiple lace patterns. they help keep the knitting interesting… and they always look great. this was a really fun pattern to make.
this is one of my favorite projects. it was made from some of my handspun as a gift for my sister-in-law a couple Christmases ago.. i really love the way the colors came out and the texture of the handspun knit fabric.
i got the impression that my sister-in-law really didn’t appreciate it… i think she would have preferred something store bought… but what matters to me is the love i put into a gift for her. after all, gifts are about the giving… not the gratitude. i made something that i was proud to give… and i would have loved to receive.
the colors are more true in the top photo. this photo shows the lace pattern well, but the colors really didn’t come out. i love the combination of lace and mobius. i thought that was especially fitting for the science loving sister-in-law.
this is the story of a dragon. and, as with all dragons, it starts deep in the heart of the imagination…
I’ve been working on a lot of illustrations lately… but I’m not able to show them, because they are all tied to an upcoming project (WWMDFK?). I did get an unrelated illustration done, though, and thought I would share the process that went into creating it.
the process starts from a pencil sketch.
actually, it starts from several sketches… the best elements of each cobbled together on tracing paper to make the finished concept.
from there, it is traced out onto 108 lb. bleed proof smooth surface paper made for pen and ink work with ink on the light box. when I’m done, I scan that one for a good black and white image that I can reuse in various ways later.
and then color that one in… I used Prismacolor artist grade colored pencils slowly and lightly layered and then blended with a neutral to remove any stroke marks.
when all the coloring is done, I go back over all the ink lines to strengthen the contrast and sharpen it up. and then I scan in the color version.
I touch up any areas that need it in Photoshop (like erasing any stray color that brushed over onto white areas)… and that gives me yet another digital file to have fun with later. I haven’t had a chance to sit down and clean up this guy yet… but I will. with many illustrations, this would be the end… but for this dragon, he had yet another phase of his transformation…
I carefully cut him out and layered him onto a background made from torn old book pages.
layers of black and white cardstock are glue in for the nameplate section.
the original is 8″ x 10″ with a 3 3/4″ x 4 3/4″ plate area. it will be framed and a photo added to the plate area. the scanned image will be printed at a reduced size with our information in the block for identifying the books in our personal library… and maybe even for some gifts 
I hope you enjoyed watching him emerge!
baby knitting has been in the works lately. this cute kit from Knit Picks is very fun. when finished, this will be a sweater for a 1 year old little girl. the yoke is the blister stitch pattern in multiple colors. i’m very excited with how this is coming out.
here’s a peek at the backside of the blister stitch section:
this has been giving me lots of ideas… i can really see working this blister stitch pattern in a Pi style round for a centerpiece or trivet… or the center area of a Christmas tree skirt…
For the last few years, i keep meaning to post these pictures… and then when this time of year rolls around, things just seem to get so busy with holiday prep.
above are some of the marzipan fruit i made a few years ago. i always love these! they are a little special treat to me. unfortunately, when i made a bunch for a thanksgiving with my in-laws, they all commented “how cute” and proceeded to completely ignore them. i don’t think a single person tasted them. as a result, i haven’t made them since. i’m missing them. i think i will make some for just us for Christmas… a little special treat we don’t have to share.
if you are interested in making your own, here is Lots of Marizapan inspiration and some marizapan how to.
and pumpkins! we didn’t have a chance to carve pumpkins this year, so I’m reliving these. these were my favorite pumpkins we’ve ever done.
i already posted most of the holiday projects back in the run up to christmas… but here are a few that weren’t finished then:
these dishcloths were made quickly to help fill out a gift basket made for my FIL for Christmas 2007. the pattern can be found here. i was able to make both from one *super size* skien of sugar & Cream cotton. i’m planning to make up a bunch of these through out the year for christmas gifts and quick grab gifts.
i know, i know, the pictures are crap. ugh. there was so little light those days right before these were gifted… and the charcoal color is really hard to photograph anyway. at least this proves i completed them, lol. they are well loved now.
tomorrow, i’ll post about everything i’ve been up to since the holidays have been over.
if you are at all into paper arts or collage, you might want to hop on over and pick up the free Christmas image countdowns available at tentwostudios.com and artist-how-to.com
the Christmas knitting is coming along at a snails pace. of course, since it’s been so long since i posted, it will seem like lightning fast to you all! lol.
putting it all behind a cut to protect the innocent (ok, not really very innocent… but recipients unawares… )
Continue reading ‘Christmas Knitting is progressing… slowly…’
on Monday the 1st, Paul took the day off work and we spent the day together, just the 2 of us. it was our 7th anniversary and we really enjoyed just being together. we went out for a nice brunch, then off to golden gate park to the Japanese Tea Garden. there are quite a few more photos over at flickr!it is so lovely there.
well, i’ve gotten a long way along the process… but there is still a bit more to go. if you are interested, you can see the first 2 designs… and thumbnails for all the rest… over at the CafePress shop.
this last week has also included heading up to Sac for some handyman work (Paul) and some wedding planning discussion (me) with Paul’s sister.
busy, busy, busy….
lovely lovely spawn of satan!
WHHHHYYYYY do i have to be alergic to mohiar?!?!
seriously debating what to do with this bit of started shawl. i’ve been told that KSH does NOT rip well. much better to just cut it and move on…
but do i want to suffer through the allergies to make a small (1 ball instead of 3) shawl as a gift for one of the girls? or does it just plain win, and i give away the barely used ball i can’t return?
this stuff is so lovely and pale that i couldn’t photograph it on a white background. it just disapeared. and it is almost light enough to float. if i have to be alergic to a yarn, can’t it be a cheap and lousy yarn? why does it have to be the gorgeous luxury stuff?
Continue reading ‘Sneaking a peek at holiday knits… and Satan Spawn yarn’
