cute outfits & color scouting

I recently started a couple new photo blogs. One is with my friend’s Cirilia and Ragga so it’s called RaggaRoseWest. We’re taking photos of our outfits and of course there’s knitting in there too. It’s a fun project because it’s making me combine garments in different ways than I normally would. My safety outfit during the last several years has been t-shirt, plaid shirt and jeans but that can get boring so I’m spicing things up with more inspired choices. Here are a couple of my favorites so far.

The shirt is from one of my favorite new designers, Íris Eggertsdóttir. She has an amazing studio/shop called Líber in Reykjavik. She also knits and crochets a lot of her pieces including cool collars, masks and sweaters. I’ll definitely be paying her a visit or two when I’m there next week.

This sweater is one of my new favorite treasures from an Amsterdam brand called Chillimint. The designer that appliqués hand crafted Asian fabrics onto vintage or thrifted garments. This particular sweater is a cabled cashmere pullover with the most amazing hand-beaded fabric. The designer was recently in India and may still be there selecting new fabrics to use. What a life! I’ve been following her blog and Facebook page ooing and ahhing over everything she makes.

The second photo blog I started is called Color Scout. It started during my last trip to Reykjavik in October/November. I went for a couple walks taking photos of colors and color combinations in the city that were particularly inspiring to me. I used a lot of the Reykjavik images as inspiration for an upcoming secret project, but in the meantime you can pull your own inspiration from the images and I’ll be adding more photos each day.

I’ve also been color scouting during the holidays in Amsterdam…

and Germany…

I love taking walks with the purpose of color scouting because it makes me see things differently and experience the city with a different perception of time. Usually, I’m walking or biking with a destination in mind, but when I look for interesting color combinations I’ll walk down different streets and discover new pockets in the city I would never find otherwise.

I also notice I use my sense of sight in a more specific way, looking close-up and shifting to a wide overall perspective in order to find appealing colors. I think it’s a very healthy practice because so many days are spent doing something goal or task oriented. It feels good to take a break and shift focus because it allows something new to enter and affect you.

I pass several colors that are boring to me, so capturing an unexpected color and textural combination feels like finding treasure or discovering a secret that nobody else knows about. Picking yarns for a new knitting project can be the same. Some yarn colors don’t evoke any excitement, but you know when the perfect yarn comes along and makes you feel like everything is just right. Combining certain colors communicates very specific moods and when you add color to shape and texture, you’ve potentially discovered a cozy treasure chest full of magic.

I’m sure several color scout photos will inspire some new knitting designs, but in the meantime I’m enjoying the practice of observing my surroundings with my “color glasses” on.

Be Sociable, Share!

•