This post is “the rest of Opus Daily Practice”. A bit of traveling managed to happen at the end of this project which meant I was able to post to Instagram, but my cell phone data plan was unhappy with the usage needed for blogging. Below are the rest of the pieces created for the […]
We are currently in the process of taking out a rather mongrel hedge and replacing it with a fence. The hedge seems to consist of all sorts of different bushes and trees cut to hedge size. Every now and then, as we pull out the hedge 8 feet at a time, we come across a decent sized tree trunk and branches; these have been going into the “save” pile.
Above is a spoon cut from the hedge. It sits on the remainder of the branch it came from. I am eternally fascinated with taking a raw piece of wood and turning it into a functional object. As the wood has a mind of its own, you never quite know what you will get.
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I know my blogging has been a little quiet lately, and one of the reasons is I have been working away. In addition to a busy photography month, I have also been updating my other project, Handmade in Canada. Let’s just say when you dye your own yarn and knit your own items it takes time.
So after weeks and weeks of knitting, the shop has finally been updated. There are a ton of new items and we are pretty excited about sharing them with you. All our items are naturally dyed by hand and made by hand too. If you have a moment check it out.
Also at the bottom of the Handmade in Canada site are our social media links. We can be found on Facebook and Instagram (@handmadeincanada), plus you can hit the follow button to follow the blog. I hope you will follow along and see all the cool items we are making.
I thought today would be a good time to put up a “Works in Progress” post. 2016 seems to have given me a lot of opportunity (or possibly inspiration) to work on creative pursuits. So here it is, in a visual presentation, the current works in progress.
Carving, wood burning and painted accents. This piece when completed will be a ring dish.
Adding more Canadiana into the knit line at www.handmade-canada.com . These pieces are not on line yet but will be coming soon.
Natural dyeing of wool…..a lot of natural dyeing.
Carving spoons the perfect size for the sugar bowl. Large spoons are next on the list thanks to a brand new gouge.
Lots of “road knitting” while working on larger pieces. This will be a Cowichan inspired pillow cover.
Still working on the Roe Islet series of paintings both on panel and paper. The large squares measure 2 ft. by 2 ft., while the paper works are larger.
Handmade toggles with wood burned embellishments will be decorating new knit items in the near future.
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A lot of items being worked on at the moment. Most of these images are from my Instagram accounts, it is where I post my most up to date works in progress. The accounts are @handmadeincanada and @debramhunter ; feel free to follow if you like to see quick visual posts.
What is up next? More natural dyeing, more toggles, knit cuffs, more spoons and finishing a painting in progress. Hopefully soon a few of these new pieces will be available on www.handmade-canada.com .
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Tonight it is another super quick blog post as I am finishing off the last of the “have to’s” on my knitting list. The last few months all I seem to do is knit , knit , knit, dye more yarn and repeat. It also explains the lack of blogging (well that and endless weeks of preserving and jelly making). The fact that I have a shipment of 25 pounds worth of Canadian wool on its way tells you just how much knitting has been going on….of course I haven’t quite figured out where I will store it once it arrives, but I will figure it out.
Tonight I am finishing off more finger puppets. This time simplistic childlike airplanes. Perfect for popping on your finger, acting out aerobatics and making zooming noises. This first batch is a special request, but I will eventually have a few online at www.handmade-canada.com .
As of tomorrow I can start rebuilding stock for the shop online. Currently it is pretty wiped out with stock going into boutiques and galleries in Alberta and British Columbia. I have lots of new ideas that I am looking forward to trying including expanding the wearables section of the items I make. It’s a good thing I have a huge shipment of wool coming my way!
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As some of you may know, I have a new site up called Handmade in Canada. It is a site of handmade and art pieces, influenced and inspired by Canada, and often made with natural, eco-friendly and Canadian sourced materials.
Over the next few weeks we will be adding shops and galleries to our various collections on Handmade in Canada. Today we launched the O’ Canada Collection.
Our O’Canada Collection celebrates the colors of our flag. The iconic red and white, are accompanied by grays, dark browns and blacks. This is classic Canadian. Our collection will remind you of ….well……everything Canadian (and maybe old school work socks too!).
The O’ Canada Collection is made of natural sheep wool, produced here in Canada and milled in a heritage mill. We believe in using natural products and using Canadian produced raw materials when possible. The yarn for this collection is hand dyed in natural dyes in micro batches with the red color being obtained through dyeing with lac. All items are hand knit and are one of a kind. Each item posted is available for purchase and ready to be shipped. Items can be viewed by clicking HERE.
Items start at $15.00 including tax and shipping within Canada. The pieces make great gifts for friends and family as they are Canadian made, unbreakable, and ship well.
I hope you will pop over to the new site and check it out. More collections are to come. Also if you have any special requests send us an email, we are always up for creating something new.
For more information please feel free to email us at handmade-canada@outlook.com .
by Debra Hunter
Red Deer, Alberta and Pender Island, BC, Canada
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Carved spoons is my latest handmaking obsession. It is something I just had to try and I admit I am hooked. I have a thing for functional items. We live in a small house with lots of people, there isn’t a lot of room for 3D decorative items, but if an item can be beautiful and functional I am thrilled to own it.
My first ever spoon is the one on the left. Chunky and rustic, yet measures a perfect teaspoon. Great for measuring sugar and spices.
My second spoon is the one on the right and in the picture above. I was able to refine the shape more to seem less rustic. The branch in the picture above is the left over part of the branch that the spoon was carved from. This one went from being part of the crabapple tree (it needed pruning!) to a spoon in two days.
A third spoon has been made and just needs oiling and finishing, while a fourth has just been started.
As the spoons are being crafted from prunings that would usually just be collected by the city’s green waste program, it is great to see “waste” turned into functional items. As I find larger pieces of wood I will be able to expand my scope to scoops, cutting boards and other usable objects.
Photography by Debra Hunter
www.debra-hunter.com
For more handmade objects check out www.handmade-canada.com
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Take one dried branch, a rotary tool, and a bit of time, and what do you get? Handmade wooden yarn needles from eco sourced materials. Sourced local, made local, made by hand, and each one is unique. Pretty cool. I’ll be making more of these soon.
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The order is knit. The design in the center is the resort’s logo. Just a little bit of finishing to do and then the order will be off to Woods on Pender located on Pender Island (British Columbia, Canada).
To see more knit items check out www.debra-hunter.com . Knit items are available to both individuals and small scale wholesale for businesses interested in unique handmade pieces.
Also if you are a Canadian maker, grower or creative check out www.handmade-canada.com as it may be a project you are interested in joining.
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h..... the blog 
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