vbran
| Forum role | Member since | Last activity | Topics created | Replies created |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Member | Jun 22, 2008 (18 years) |
- | 1 | 0 |
- Forum role
- Member
- Member since
Jun 22, 2008 (18 years)
- Last activity
- -
- Topics created
- 1
- Replies created
- 0
Bio
I’m Varian Brandon. I am the great granddaughter of an incredible crocheter. I have some of her hooks. They are microscopic! This woman worked in a dressmaker’s shop to pay for her wedding dress. Later on, she would rather work on her crochet than do housework. I’m sorry, but I honestly cannot find anything wrong with that?
My grandmother sewed most of her own clothes growing up. She made almost all of my favorite doll’s clothes… and taught me to sew. She was fearless and never used a pattern.
My mom learned to do leatherwork so she could teach the craft to rehabilitating war veterans. She also took up making very realistic flowers in metal when I was in grammar school. Now, she claims to be an “appreciator.” My mom is one of my most loyal supporters.
A wonderful woman who was a friend of my mom’s taught me how to knit when I was eight. She used walk her yellow lab with a skein of yarn under her arm and needles whirring away in her hands. She made me feel like I could do anything. We started with a sweater made of royal blue Red Heart yarn. She was, and is, the best!
Since then…I have taken classes, read books, and tried a lot of techniques…but seem to always return to Fair Isle and Aran designs. Fair Isle is like painting with yarn and the textures created in Aran designs are mesmerizing! Both techniques are a lot of fun to create.
On a Rowan Yarn Tour of the Highlands and Islands, I had the absolute pleasure of taking classes with both Alice Starmore and Kaffe Fassette…so you see where my love of color comes from.
A few years ago, Jamieson & Smith conducted a design competition for a Fair Isle sleeveless golf sweater. I entered and was lucky enough to come in third… the top American…in this international contest with Shetland judges. My brother says I am the American winner. I think that title is a bit overblown, but I appreciate the brotherly support. Title or no, J&S has accepted several of my designs and I have added Cascade Yarns to the list of companies who display my patterns.
The highlight of my year is the Kanuga Knitting and Quilting retreat that I coordinate in the mountains of North Carolina every January. It is big fireplaces, creative people, and lots of fun.
Until recently, I worked fulltime for the federal government. Now I’m seeing where this trail of yarn will take me.
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