A knitted cozy for WHAT??
I was cruising for inspiration by surfing through the entries at CraftZine -- and saw an entry that intrigued me. It's the Knitted Walking Stick Cozy Competition, sponsored by a radio program in Great Britain. It's not as awful as it sounds at first-- listen to this: "The Missability Radio Show takes a fresh look at the design of disability related assistive technology. Promoting craft and DIY culture, knitting, conversing, customising, problem-solving and tea-drinking, The Missability Radio Show promises to bring you articulate guest-speakers, practical tips for the satisfying personalisation of useful equipment, and plenty of entertaining, home-made audio joy!hmm. All they show on the website is knitted tubes. ho hum.
So, I start thinking. (always fun, whether it works or not...)
Remember Marie's Funny Farm? OK, maybe you weren't there, but Marie's ghost was unhappy that she might move, and so caused a small but dramatic fire in one of the upstairs bedrooms. (hey, we were inspired by liberal doses of farm life, fiber, spirits, and each other-- it was legendary! As in make up your own legends.) We decided to knit her a refrigerator cozy to perk up her spirits. It was patchwork, of course. There were a few doilies, glow in the dark yarn (for those midnight snack raids), beads, bells, and all sorts of fun.
I even contributed a toilet seat cozy, for cold nights, out of glow-in-the dark yarn (with men in mind, a target-control thing), with bells even (for going tinkle).
So, if I were to design a Walking Stick Cozy, what will it look like? hmmm. I could go a couple of ways.
One, glamour. I'm thinking BEADS. Maybe even on a fishnet background, to be sexy. Where the walking stick becomes part of the whole "Here I am, Baby!" message.
Beaded fringe, even. oooo...
Another idea-- knitted lace. Maybe drapey frills even. Architectural, in a way.
Oh- architectural? How about knitting a soft or stuffed animal shape? This would be great for kids! How about a giraffe, with the head at the hand grasp (or just underneath, for safety), and LOOONNG neck, and a body where the feet would touch the ground? This would make a great contest for kids in the hospital.
Or carousel animals? The stick would be the carousel part. hmm... an engineer could build something that makes the animal go up and down. Or, that could just be the person walking with it.
Fruit. Remember fruit caps? Why not a banana on a stick? Or a popsicle, even? I love it!
Let's see. What else can you put on a stick?
Make it a Tree! Leaves, branches, as big (or not) as you like. Be a tree hugger!
Why not a way to state your political views? As in "Vote for Elmo!" Knit a sign.
OK, I'm watching tv, and on This Old House, they're flushing golf balls down toilets. (touring a plumbing design facility) My whole train of thought is, well, flushed away.
I'll leave you with a picture of my collection of walking sticks. Except for the ones that aren't there...
posted by Ruth S. @ 4:05 PM
4 Comments:
This post makes me laugh.
One of my best girlfriends is somebody I met in the hospital. We were both undergoing the same mega-surgeries on both of our knees at the same time.
We were both crafty and despaired of the crutches and then the canes that we were assigned after being operated on. They were so ugly!
So the crutches we decorated with ribbons. The canes we first painted, then later crocheted covers for. We had a whole slew of 'em, enough colors to match every outfit in our closets.
Everything old is new again.
Laura
this could get really fun. there is a woman in australia who does fabulous sea creature inspired crochet from plastic bags. check this out http://hellejorgensen.typepad.com/gooseflesh
scroll down her blog, tubular formations and coral
This project also makes me think about this european group that does public art- knit graffiti
http://maskerade.blogsome.com/
Thanks for the idea!
I have a walking stick made from a crabapple tree that died on me. (This is the "lemons - lemonade" thing.) A friend put a brass cartridge casing on the bottom for a ferrule, and it makes a dandy walking stick, but the handle, which was the root ball area of the tree, is a bit gnarled, so a felted cover or something of that sort might be in order the next time I have need of a cane.
Hey there! Was very excited to read about your giraffe-on-a-stick idea on my Discussion Forum!
I was telephoned yesterday by a woman whose sister does customised paint jobs on walking sticks. The woman who phoned me has a husband with - yes - a *giraffe* painted walking stick which apparently gets positive comments everywhere!
There are some problems with the paint, she said, like it rubs off on hands etc. and gets chipped. Your knitted cosy obviously won't present those problems but I thought it was a cool coincidence and I wanted to let you know. I'm very excited to see your design!
thanks for blogging about the competition! It all helps to spread the word. It looks like the cosies will have a stand at the London Stitch'n'Bitch show this November, so anything you make will be famous!
:-)
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