Boxes of Happiness

I seem to recall that I had initially set the goal of posting here every week. Well, it didn’t take too long for that to go out the window!

In all honestly, I did create a playlist on YouTube last week that I had intended to post here and after I put it together, I sat back and promptly forgot. So, I will post it now and let you know that I chose videos of other fiber art reefs to show folks how your donations all go together to create one installation. I have had questions from crafters whether they should create one item or create an installation ready chunk of corals connected together and I would encourage you to keep your donations singular unless your desire is to create a large piece that is it’s own “ecosystem”. Having individual pieces of corals will allow us to manipulate them into the best place in the reef for their design and color.

I am starting to receive shipments of corals and critters from organizations and individuals and it is so exciting to open the boxes and see the wonderful things that you have been creating. Thank you!

Don’t forget, if you are in the Eugene, OR area next Saturday, stop by the Eugene Textile Center between 10-3 for inspiration and a chance to ask questions or to just sit and craft with us. Hope to see you there!

A Perfect Alliance

Very excited to announce that the PNW Community Coral Reef Project has partnered with the non-profit Coral Reef Alliance out of California. They will be providing educational materials at our installation and helping to encourage fiber artists and crafters to get involved. I have visited their wonderful website and used their images to gain inspiration on making my pieces for the reef and it’s nice to know that they have knitters on staff who are excited to participate.

Additionally, I took a trip up the coast yesterday and dropped off informational postcards at the Latimer Quilt and Textile Center in Tillamook, OR and at Coastal Yarns in Cannon Beach, OR. Hopefully I will be able to arrange a crafting day at Latimer sometime in the future. Stay tuned!

For my inspirational suggestions today, I would like to point you to the playlist that I have created on Youtube which include videos on past coral reef installations as well as instructional videos on how to create different elements of a fiber art coral reel. You will find that some of these patterns are in languages other than English but I have found them to be instructional as someone who is fluent in knitting and crochet. I hope you will enjoy!

Inspiration and Aspiration

This morning I wanted to talk about sources of inspiration that I go to online when I am considering what to do next in creating corals for the PNW Community Coral Reef. The Institute for Figuring , the originators of the idea of a fiber art coral reef, have just opened another satellite reef in Baden Baden Germany and over 40,000 coral pieces were created for the installation. I follow several accounts and hashtags on Instagram that post photos of the various satellite reefs by following #satellitereef #crochetcoralreef #hyperboliccrochetcoralreef #christinewertheim and the account crochetcoralreef. Additionally, I follow non profit groups on Instagram that are alligned with coral and marine conservation and preservation, such as The Ocean Agency. Often times, I will be inspired to create corals from what I see in their photos of actual reefs. Following #coralreef #reef #coralbleaching and #coral will also pull up these images for me. One source of inspiration that might not be so evident are home aquarium accounts. By looking at clean, up close photos of corals in saltwater aquariums, it is easier to see how the corals are structured and thus, easier to figure out how to create them. You can find these accounts through #aquarium #aquariumhobby and #saltwateraquarium.

Finally, think about other artists and artistic disciplines that may create corals. Staying in the world of fiber, Vanessa Barragao’s installations are incredibly inspiring and Mulyana will always be my personal favorite. I have also fallen in love with Courtney Mattison’s ceramic corals.

Hopefully that will give you some eye candy to inspire your next creation!

Making Corals From Recycled and Plastic Materials

One of the topics that I hope to emphasize in the PNW Community Coral Reef is the issue of plastics in the ocean. I have been able to make one hyperbolic shape from plastic lacing that I found in a resale shop and this morning I made two anemones from sturdy bubble wrap packing materials that I got in a shipment a few weeks ago and I crocheted their tentacles out of jelly yarn, something that I also used to make a ghost net for the display.

For the anemones, I simply made a cone of the bubble wrap and taped the side shut with clear packing tape. I then took my smallest, sharpest crochet hook and poked holes around the top far enough apart to prevent the plastic ripping and crocheted the jelly yarn into the plastic wrap, making tentacles with double crochet and leaving three crochet stitches between each tentacle. They are a little top heavy so I have stuffed them with additional packing material to make them a little more sturdy.

I also want to emphasize making corals with recycled materials. Last year I got a new sofa that was wrapped in this white fabric. I saved it and recently cut it up into strips and crocheted it with a huge hook into a hyperbolic shape for the bleached area of the reef.

Another thought that I have had but haven’t had a chance to do yet is to take something plastic, like a milk jug or Styrofoam like a mini cooler, and cover it with bleached corals as if someone has thrown it into the ocean and nature is trying to cope but not succeeding.

So, if you are thinking of making a statement piece for the PNW Community Coral Reef, I would encourage you to look around your environment and use something at hand.

Making Session for the PNW Community Coral Reef

If you will be near Eugene, Oregon on Saturday January 22, stop by the Eugene Textile Center from 10-3 for a maker’s session. Learn about the PNW Community Coral Reef, get ideas for corals and critters and sit and create if you wish.

52 Weeks of PNW Community Coral Reef Patterns and Ideas-Week 1

What better time than January 1st to begin digging into the PNW Community Coral Reef Project! My goal for this year is to post weekly with pattern ideas for people interested in creating corals and creatures for the reef.

Today I thought I would talk about seaweed, Bladderwrack, Sea Moss, Channell Wrack…whatever you want to make. These “dangling bits” will be used in the reef to add punches of color and texture and will drape and dangle all around the installation. It’s a freeform sort of simple piece that you can do, even as a beginning crocheter or knitter. The drawing below provides a pretty good roadmap for what you will want to create.

Crocheters can choose their favorite color and simply make a single crochet chain for as long as you desire. Keep in mind that the wandering nature of this piece can make it deceptively time consuming. You can easily get a substantial piece of seaweed from a 12 inch chain.

Once you get to the end of your chain, turn and start coming back. Wherever you want a dangling element, simply single crochet a chain “off the beaten track”.

When you are crocheting your new chain to dangle down, you can split this chain into as many “side tracks” as you desire. Each branch can branch again and again. It can be a very meditative “mystery tour”.

The longer you make each dangling bit, the more branches you can create and the more impact your seaweed will have. Making this in sparkly novelty yarn can be very fun!

There are written patterns for knitting Bladderwrack and Channelled Wrack.

For the piece below, I simply knit a three stitch I-Cord out of novelty wool for several inches (12? Maybe more?). I then cast off and picked up three stitches along the I-cord and started making another I-cord to dangle down. I continued in this manner until I had branched out on each I-cord as many times as I desired. You can see how to knit an I-cord here. When I was done, I threw it in the washer and felted it.

Here are some photos of how I have incorporated seaweed into my smaller pieces.

What are some other patterns and ideas that you would like to see this year? Let me know in the comments!