Objects and Elements – New Blog, New Design Team

Art Jewelers Susan Lenart Kazmer and her business partner Linda Larsen ; owners of Objects and Elements webstore, have been busy the last few months. They’ve been updating the store with all kinds of unique goodies you won’t find anywhere else like Ancient Roman Glass beads, antique African Dougan, unique bezel settings and cast bronze Ammonites .

I’m a big fan of ICE resin and it’s what I use in my jewelry work. You can buy that online at the Objects & Elements store . There is also lots of unique bezels, fibers, resin molds and tools for your art jewelry making needs.

In addition to searching out great jewelrymaking supplies, they have just revealed a new blog and a new Objects and Elements Design Team.

The Objects and Elements blog has just gone live and will soon have lots of content such as jewelry by Susan Lenart Kazmer and Linda Larsen, design team jewelry inspirations, updates on new store items, guest artist features, reader challenges and more. You don’t want to miss out on any of the fun, so be sure to add the RSS feed to your blog links or add to bloglines or Google Reader

I am extremely happy to announce that I am on the Objects and Elements Design team. The other Design Team members are: Jen Cushman, Deryn Mentock, Kristen Robinson, and Jane Salley . In the coming weeks, you’ll be able to see the design teams creations on the new Objects and Elements Blog. The team wil be creating some lovely projects using the amazing supplies from the Objects & Elements store, along with various found objects, beads, wire, etc… to inspire you to create your own unique jewelry.

If you are unfamiliar with Susan and her work, please check out her amazing jewelry work, check out her blog , get her book “Making Connection” or look at her workshop schedule to take a class with her.

Not too long ago I did a test knit for another designer that was for a cabled cardigan. It’s really cozy and nice but it just about broke me in a ton of different ways. I couldn’t get gauge, which I suppose is my own problem, but mainly I was somehow both bored and forced to pay attention at the same time.

Because it used the same cable all over, I always had to know what row I was on, but nine out of ten of those rows, nothing in particular was going on. So I couldn’t stop paying attention, but what I needed to attend to was boring.

It may have ruined me for knitting cabled sweaters, but maybe I just need something that’s more engaging. Like this Modern Aran Cardigan pattern from Lion Brand Yarn.

This is a reworking of an old pattern from their archives, and you can tell that form the classic look of the cables and the oversized feel (nothing cropped about this one!). It has allover cables, but like a classic Aran sweater it’s not the same cable, so you’ll have to pay attention to what row you’re on and what cable turns happen for which cables on that row.

Because of this, it’s considered an intermediate knitting pattern, but if you’re comfortable working from multiple charts at once it shouldn’t be a problem for you. There are three different charts and seven different cable moves.

Also because the pattern is so big and boxy there are only two sizes available, with a finished chest measurement of either 49 or 63 inches (that’s 124.5 or 160 cm). It’s up to you to decide how much ease you would like and whether that will work for your body.

The pattern uses worsted weight yarn (and calls for another classic, Lion Brand Fisherman’s Wool). It calls for six buttons and includes pockets to make it extra cozy.

This one looks like a great winter project to make and to wear if you’re up for a bit of a challenge. You can grab the free pattern or buy a kit with the yarn needed direct from Lion Brand Yarn.

[Photo: Lion Brand Yarn]

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