Jonelle Raffino - Freeform Style: Blend Knit and Crochet to Create Fiber Art Wearables

Freeform Style

Blend Knit and Crochet
to Create Fiber Art Wearables

Prudence Mapstone and Jonelle Raffino

www.mycraftivity.com

Freeform Style. Copyright 2009 by Prudence Mapstone and Jonelle Raffino. Manufactured in China. All rights reserved. The patterns and drawings in the book are for personal use of reader. By permission of the author and publisher, they may be either hand-traced or photocopied to make single copies, but under no circumstances may they be resold or republished. It is permissible for the purchaser to make the projects contained herein and sell them at fairs, bazaars and craft shows. No other part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote a brief passage in review. Published by North Light Books, an imprint of F+W Media, Inc., 4700 East Galbraith Road, Cincinnati, Ohio 45236. (800) 289-0963. First edition.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mapstone, Prudence.

Freeform style : blend knit and crochet to create fiber art wearables / Prudence Mapstone and Jonelle Raffino.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-60061-138-4 (pbk. w/ flaps : alk. paper)

1. Knitting--Patterns. 2. Crocheting--Patterns. I. Raffino, Jonelle. II. Title.

TT825.M25 2009
746.430432--dc22

2008042969

EDITORS
Liz Casler, Jessica Gordon
and Robin M. Hampton

DESIGNER
Geoff Raker

PRODUCTION COORDINATOR
Greg Nock

PHOTOGRAPHERS
Ric Deliantoni, Al Parrish
and Christine Polomsky

WARDROBE STYLIST
Monica Skrzelowski

PHOTO STYLIST
Lauren Emmerling

MAKEUP ARTIST
Cass Brake

TECHNICAL EDITOR
Amy Polcyn

www.fwmedia.com

Metric Conversion Chart

Dedication

We take great pride in the international community of friends we have made through our freeform art. The freeform group on Yahoo! continues to be a place where we find inspiration, guidance and the most wonderful group of creative women. Many members of that group contributed to the scarf showcase here and to other projects we have done. Freeform Style is dedicated to these ladies who we proudly call our friends, mentors and freeform family.

Acknowledgments

FROM JONELLE: I first fell in love with freeform many years ago when I stumbled upon some of Prudences early work. I was captivated by the complexity of the colors and textures. Even with twenty years of knitting experience, I could not imagine being that good or creating such amazing things.

When I finally met Prudence and had the privilege of taking her workshops, I knew that my knitting and crochet would never be the same. My grandmothers taught me to follow a pattern like it was the law. A weekend of freeform unraveled the entire notion of a pattern. It challenged the way I knit, crocheted and designed. Learning freeform opened my eyes and made me an artist. It was a truly powerful learning experience.

Today I look back and realize that the process of learning to freeform expanded my power as a fiber artist and designer. I have learned to take simple garments and give them a freeform embellishment that makes them memorable. When I see a pattern I like, freeform allows me to give it my own special touch. More importantly, I have never had a scrap of yarn that could not be freeformed into something.

Prudence Mapstone has been one of the most influential artists in my career. She is my mentor and has inspired my journey as an artist. The projects in this book reflect the techniques and artwork that she has created in her years of teaching freeform around the world. It is my honor to coauthor Freeform Style with her, but I bow to her talent. She has made my yarns, the yarns of SWTC Inc., beautiful with her amazing work.

FROM PRUDENCE: Jonelle Raffino is President of South West Trading Company, one of the pioneers in the manufacture of earth friendly yarns. A family company, SWTC was the first to introduce SOYSILK brand fiber (made from the residue of soybeans used in the creation of tofu) to spinners, then soon after they produced a SOYSILK hand knitting yarn. A few years later they introduced to the U.S. market some of the first yarns made from bamboo and not long after that developed a 100 percent corn fiber yarn.

As Jonelle has noted, we first met when she booked in to do a number of workshops I was conductingand I have to report that I have hardly ever met a more enthusiastic or willing student! It is always thrilling for a tutor when a student gets excited about the methods you are demonstrating, but as a freeformer it is even better to watch someone immediately take off in their own direction, the ideas coming thick and fast. The only downside is that, unfortunately, their hooks and needles cant possibly keep up! I think she had most definitely found her creative niche at those workshops, and Im sure she didnt sleep much during those first few free-forming days, but each morning she was back bright and early with additional swatches, new questionsand lots more yarn.

As the world looks toward more sustainable and environmentally friendly products, I think we can all look forward to seeing what other new and exciting yarns Jonelle and the SWTC team develop in the future.