Monday, April 6, 2009

Viking Knit


Saturday, I took a Viking Knit class. I really like to learn new techniques and had the opportunity to take it at Beadcache, in near by Mansfield, MA.

Boy, it took (is taking) me a long time to get the tension right. I was told that Viking Knit is very forgiving. I'm counting on that! Ann Spano is our teacher and she did a good job.

The first picture shows my start on the dowel. In the following picture, you can see the dowel and the draw plate used to transform the rather ugly looking knit into a lovely chain. The final results is about twice as long as what is on the dowel.

What we learned (and what is shown) is single knit. But we were also shown how to do "double knit". Which we found was rather simple after given the explanation. While we did not have time, in the class, to finish, I feel confident that I can finish it. So, in a few days, I'll show the finished product. Assuming I find time.





So, stay tuned.

B

4 comments:

  1. Can't wait to see the finished project. It's so much fun learning a new technique. Seems like I'm always looking for new things to do and ways to do them.

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  2. I'll be waiting - since I have absolutely no idea what viking knit is!

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  3. This is a nice first attempt. I am guessing that the teacher had you hold the dowel with your hand while working the wire; this does not allow you to properly control the wire while tightening each stitch. I highly recommend that you anchor the dowel in a bench vise. This leaves both hands free to control the wire, tension, and alignment of the stitches. I think if you do this, your chains will be very nice!

    You can see my basic set-up for weaving on my website:
    http://janra-jewelry-designs.com/creating-vk.html

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