Art Log: Note to Self

[akirlu]

Take a silk knotting class. The fact that the news is not full of notices of homicidal East Asian pearl knotters going on job-precipitated mass-killing sprees (going "knot-al"?), despite the vast number of hand knotted pearl necklaces in the shops, suggests that my technique may be in need of some refinements. That, or there is more to this Zen Buddhism thing than I have previously credited. That, or somebody out there has Really Good Drugs*, and I want some.

*Really Good Drugs here being ones that provide a bulletproof sense of calm while NOT fucking up your small movement manual dexterity at all.

Comments

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

My friend Celia Martin has devised a method many people like and illustrated it here: http://martinseclectic.net/Tutorials/PearlKnotting.htm

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the pointer! The fixed-needle technique is, with a bit of practice, quite helpful. Ultimately, I think the real thing is to admit to myself that I need to go back and re-string this current neclace on enough 'extra' silk to give me the clearances to do the knotting, but I think that once I do that, working the knotting on a fixed needle will greatly improve my speed and precision with the knots.

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

Celia said that she buys the individual cards with silk and uses one for each piece and just throws away what's left. It's a bit more expensive that way, but she's always sure she has enough.

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

Oh, I used one of those cards with two meters of silk. I only had a few inches of play left to do the knotting with. It's a r-e-a-l-l-y l-o-n-g necklace. And you just need more thread to move back and forth when you're making the knots.

I have a plan, though. I'm going to knot two of those 2m silk cords together, string half the necklace on either side of the knot, and then knot outwards from the middle. That should leave me with more than a meter of play on each half, and provide practice for closing the endless loop.

grin

[angeyja.livejournal.com]

Don't mind me.

"flow state" and translating here.

(so you don't have to take up yoga and brown rice, or drugs. Unless you're inclined for other reasons.. on any of the above.)

I don't get this (FS)with the wire yet (ever hopeful.) I do in drawing and the wire, as frustrating as it can some times be, feeds the drawing. My eyes (old drifting south) focus intensely after wirework. Like a zoom lenses on a camera.

I feel the pain though. You also made me laugh. ;)

Re: grin

[akirlu.livejournal.com]

The making laugh, that's what we're all about around here. :)