Monday, July 5, 2010

Back to the Future

1968. Viet Nam. Rolling Stones. Martin Luther King. Bobby Kennedy, Alice's Restaurant. Apollo 8.  Spinning. Knitting, Macrame.

Yes indeedy. I once made a macrame thingie that hung on my dorm wall next to a Jefferson Airplane poster:



I wasn't at all fond of macrame, but I loved the colors of this piece, and so it travelled around with me, hanging around on walls while I did other things. When we moved from Maryland to Georgia, I noticed it looked rather scruffy.  I removed it from the wall and thoughtlessly asked Roy to toss it out. Which, of course, he didn't do. He still has his grade school report cards.

2010. Iraq. Afghanistan, Rolling Stones (they are still giving concerts!). etc. etc. yadda yadda. Spinning. Knitting.  Dyeing. A few months ago, I spotted a gorgeous batt All The Pretty Fibers' store on Etsy. I quickly dropped it into my shopping cart...the lovely colors rang a bell.


Then I asked Roy where that old macrame thingie was. And sure enough...



I will spin one of the batts into a graduated yarn, perhaps to knit either Aeolian or Luiza .


It's amazing that a color scheme I admired 40-odd years ago is still beautiful to me.  And even more remarkable that Roy actually found the wall hanging in the basement. Of course, he will never let me forget that he saved it so I could write this blog post. Sigh.

26 comments:

Walden said...

Beautiful batt! Can't wait to see it spun up!

JelliDonut said...

What a cool story! So glad the macrame wasn't tossed.

yarnlot said...

That is lovely macramé. The thread you used looks a bit silky too.
The spun yarn will be gorgeous for sure. Laptop has good taste!

Soo said...

Gorgeous colours. And heh - totally groovy macrame!!

margaret in manhattan said...

...was right there where you were in '68 - can't remember much more than that!

Happy 5th ...

Kitty Kitty said...

Rofl... I of course would have still had it in the basement as well but I am a well known packrat. I still have my kindergarden letter practice pads.

The macrame is lovely and really beautiful work. Did you ever do komakino?

The battcis just to cute with the kitty!

Delusional Knitter said...

That is a beautiful colorway, doens't matter what year it is, LOL! Thanks for sharing links, been looking at shawl patterns lately ... ya know summer and all and I missed Luiza somehow even thought I recognize all the others from that designer, queued it!

knitterPat said...

Wow! Beautiful batt! Love the colours! :)

LittleBerry said...

I agree the wall hanging is pretty colours - my sort of colours and the batt is remarkably similar... the cat obviously approves too always a good sign...

Me personally would go for Aeolian in the graded yarn...

Annika said...

Amazing how similar the colorways are. You have a good eye for color!

Char said...

I love this story. It shows that inspiration can be found anywhere, from anything. BTW I love the colors too!

KPiep said...

It would have been tragic if the macrame had been lost forever! And I do not at all find it unusual that you should still like the same colors after all of those years. I think a lot of us have a specific color preference that way - even if we switch it around a lot from year to year.

Unknown said...

Just read this to my husband - and showed him the pictures. His comment? "YAAA Roy!"

My comment - not able to be published but it was directed to him.

Love the colors both past and present!

gayle said...

Holy crap, it has been 40 years, hasn't it!?!
I'll bet I've got some projects from that era buried in my sewing room somewhere. Probably unfinished...

Deborah said...

I really like that wall hanging. The batt too.

Laritza said...

Beautiful! Can't wait to see the yarn!

Experimental Knitter said...

Beautiful macramé work. Colors I like call to me too. Can't wait to see the batt when it's all spun into yarn.
Aeolian is so gorgeous; waiting for my beads to arrive so I can cast on. Though Luiza is tempting too.

BadCatDesigns said...

That is really remarkable. I look forward to seeing the yarn that you spin.

desert tyrtle said...

Kitty-approved, I see!

Rosemary said...

Oh, I just love the colors, too. It's amazing how closely matched the macrame and the batt are, isn't it?

I can't wait to see what you do.

I love that last photo - sweet kitty

Rosemary

Kathy Kathy Kathy said...

I agree with the Kitty.

Lacefreak said...

Just shows you had great color sense even then :-) I think that fiber will produce a spectacular shawl!

Robin said...

Those colors must just be clost your heart. How amazing to have the macrame project still and how close it is to your fiber! Very pretty, I am sure it will be a stunning project.

Unknown said...

Nice article.How to Macrame these beautiful wall hangings?

Anonymous said...

Oh, macrame, I remember that! My mother was into that and I remember trying it a bit, but never got into it. You're wall-hanging is very nice and a lot more creative compared to a lot of stuff I remember seeing. How funny that you chose the same colors. Very pretty.

Janet said...

I like the story - and the colours.