Aroha|Aloha KAL, Split chapter, pt. 1

Aroha|Aloha Mauna Hat tester
 

March 4, 2021, part-way through a row of 2×2 ribbing … Thoughts … must. write. down.

It was the last week of February with March on it’s way, the sun was lingering significantly longer each day, the rain was tapering off, the winter coat was exchanged for a winter jacket, and a loud-ish voice in my head was pleading with me to make a commitment to be more demonstratively crafty and constructive come March 1. Would I take on yet another 12 weeks of The Artist Way? Do I want to devise my own 30-day program aimed at my audience of one? What about the Green KAL mentioned by Dana Johnson on her blog or the Drunk Knitter’s mystery shawl/read-along/knit-along–both of which had potential except for very little green yarn in my stash or the need to purchase a mystery pattern. Is another 12 weeks of The Artist Way really what I want and/or need now? What to do?

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The answer came from an unexpected place—not quite at the 11th hour (CET) but close—via an email dated February 28 from Françoise Danoy and Leila Raven’s Aroha|Aloha project announcing a KAL. Hmm,  color my interest piqued … The fact I’ve admired Ms Danoy’s journey as a creative force connecting to her Maori ancestry via knitting, which in turn lead me to discover the talents of Leila Raven whose own journey of claiming her Hawaiian DNA and transferring that to knitting resonated with my unwavering love of the Big Island, all aligned and made my March commitment to creative pursuits clear. Oh, and in my small queue of neglected knitting pattern PDFs (which includes an Aroha shawl) sat a Mauna Hat, so team Aroha|Aloha for the win.

Never mind I had zero knowledge of Latvian Braids or next-to-zero experience with color work as of March 1, but thankfully March is a long month.

With Turkish yarn purchased in Old Town Sarajevo (frogged from my last UFO crocheted scarf), an eagerness to be more creatively present in March, an appreciation of knitting as a conduit to a spirit of Aloha from over here on the shores of the “Jadransko more” (Bosnia-Herzegovina and Croatia being true to my own genealogical journey and how it’s framed my creative self over the years), and connection to a universe of makers bigger than myself, I’ll proceed forward in the rhythm of the K2, P2 ribbing I’ve just interrupted and knit on …

Masks Made by Lulu: Feb 19, 2021 edition

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The conundrum was this—do I post images of the latest and greatest mask creations knowing there is a universe of improvements to make on my photography “skills”, or do I save the photos and learn to become an incrementally better photographer? The first option comes with a fair amount of humiliation knowing these masks are a labor of love and actually look much better in real life but option 2 could actually take a decade or longer, so there’s that. Part of the inspiration for maintaining a blog is to overcome a lifetime of procrastination through creative expression and I’ve always had more than enough excuses to not follow through. This is my internets “work in progress space”, I suppose.

Below are a few of the latest endeavors using a “darted” mask style reconfigured into three panels instead of the one or two paneled versions graciously shared online. The initial goal behind a three-panel design was how to best use recycled (up-cycled, reclaimed) denim and maintain enough breathability in a fully-lined face mask. (Also, how to best incorporate decorative details such as pom poms and rick rack …) 

The “3 Pt. Dart” design also inspires more whimsy and variety in fabric combinations which for a life-long fabric-hoarder like myself, living in a land without the likes of Robert Kaufman or Amy Butler fabrics, Stonemountain and Daughter or Poppy Fabrics, or even a Joann store, helps keep the creative muse alive. 

Girls Diamonds Denim face mask
100% pre-washed cotton and up-cycled denim with stitched details // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap
Girls Diamonds Denim face mask
Front view. She's adorable.
Wild Red Dot Denim
100% pre-washed cotton & repurposed denim // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap // Gold rick rack!
A trio of 3-pt. Dart face masks
100% pre-washed cotton // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap // Pom poms!
Flamingo Green Dots
100% pre-washed cotton // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap
Flamingo Green Dots
Because who doesn't love flamingos?
Festive Cherry Picnic Snake
100% pre-washed cotton // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap // POM POMS!
Festive Cherry Picnic Snake
Trivia: red checker fabric purchased in Rijeka on a whirlwind trip to Istria.
Big Game Reptile Ovals
100% pre-washed cotton // lined w/opening for mask filter // nose wire // comfortable adjustable ear strap // Gold rick rack!
Big Game Reptile Ovals
(I hope Rosie likes the mask made out of the fabric she gave me.)

Support Bandcamp Fridays & shameless self-promotion

BC on BC
Because I’ve made the commitment to launch this blog (which means I need content) and want to promote three artists in particular while bashfully sharing some of my own design work—here’s a sincere attempt to champion a once-per-month event allowing independent labels and musicians to earn 100% of their Bandcamp sales. Bandcamp Fridays started in 2020 as a reaction to lost-revenue or canceled tours due to Covid-19 restrictions, with the site waiving all fees each first Friday and proved so wildly successful for all involved (Bandcamp, artists, and fans) it will continue throughout 2021. (And yes, I still design from time to time.)
 
It’s been a bit over a year since the long-overdue cessation of my eMusic subscription as many of my most beloved labels such as Glitterbeat/Earthbeat, _Anti, Soundway, etc. abandoned eMusic and could most often be found on Bandcamp. As it’s unlikely I’ll purchase vinyl or a compact disc willingly in my lifetime, and would rather give the likes of Apple and Amazon as little disposable income as possible, Bandcamp is more often than not my first stop because I’m OK with supporting musicians through making a purchase of an actual album.
 

Who to follow and support on Bandcamp according to Lucija

I’ve been fortunate enough to listen to music by the artists below as part of my design process for their creations and am more than happy to send well-deserved love (and hopefully sales) their way. 

Beth Custer

The immensely-talented Beth Custer and I have been BFFs since the late-80s and have worked together on and off over the years. Clarinets, saxophones, keyboards, compositions, and voice are a just a smattering of her many talents, and I know no other who works as hard as she. (Fun fact: I also officiated her wedding…) Our recent collaborations lead me to…

Kokoku The Band

Managed by Beth Custer’s frequent film collaborator Cathy Lee Crane. File under lo-fi 80s punk-femme folk. (I really wanted the photo of the trio in their quaint mom jeans on the cover but listened to the client 😉 )

Anaphoria

Anaphoria lives in the expansive brain of NSW-based Kraig Grady where he continues to create experimental intonational textures and sounds. Oddly, he’s the only person I’ve ever known to ship massive, self-built and toned mallet-based instruments across continents.

So, mark your calendars—the first Bandcamp Friday takes place on February 5th from 12:00am to 11:59pm PDT (Pacific Daylight Time) and will continue every first Friday of the month throughout 2021. (Note to self and others in the EU: wait until at least 10AM CET to purchase…).

Lucija.com is here! It only took 20 years but I finally did it!

Split Riva NYE
Introducing Lucija.com and an admission about procrastination…
 
It was either in 2000 or 2001 when I used a DSL connection to bring up either Network Solutions or GoDaddy to purchase the domain name Lucija, under the impression there would eventually be a design portfolio to show off. This was a time when flat HTML pages ruled, CSS and webfonts were out of my peripheral vision, and truthfully, creating a vanity website to call my own was a technical headache for me. Oh, the curse of being a learning-differenced perfectionist!

Eventually I would embrace the splendors of using CSS and CSS Frameworks in Dreamweaver, the introduction of webfonts to remove Verdana and Arial from my typography preferences, and slowly jump on the WordPress bandwagon (only many of the themes left me frustrated). So did the potential of a portfolio consisting of mostly Page Flow Diagrams in Onmigraffle or Interaction and UI designs under NDAs. The redirect from Lucija.com to an About.me page continued and continued…

Over the years I bought theme after theme including a couple of licenses for Jupiter and Oshine (managed at least one site with the latter), dismal attempts at Designmodos’ Slides and Qards, but a completely satisfying experience creating a musical journal with 15Zine (stellar support, btw). I’d download a Jupiter 5/6/X template here and there over the past five years only to be frustrated with the lack of control over presentation (which I can only blame on that useless case of perfectionism on my part). Excuses for not completing this site were as plentiful as hot outrigger canoeists at the Queen Liluokalani race in Kona.

Running out of excuses I decided to sit down, buckle up, and force myself to make sense of Jupiter X and Elementor. It helps I found a purpose for the “blog” as a means to document the projects that bring me joy and satisfaction (sewing and knitting) with scattered design jobs here and there; and to document this gorgeous location I’ve settled in.

Welcome to my site and enjoy the ride,  xo L
 
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