Wrapped in Wool

Getting all the Christmas stuff out of the house (which you should never do on New Year’s Day according to custom but always want to) leaves mantles and bookcases and other household surfaces looking bare.  I like the look of austerity after so much abundance in December, but still need to inject some warmth into my big old house.  I think I can get both with a few pieces of “cable knit ceramics”: pottery that looks like a sweater!  I’m late to this design trend (as usual) but it really appeals to me right now, in my post-Christmas, January mood. I can wrap myself in wool and my house too.

Here are some examples of what I’m looking at/for:

Cable-knit sweater bowls from Etsy seller reshapestudio.

“Knitware” collection tumblers and vases from Brooklyn potter Alyssa Ettinger.

“Knit Vases” from British artist Annette Bugansky.

“Wave” sweater vases from Illu–Stration.

If you want a soft sweater texture for your accessories rather than a faux surface one, you can buy wool-wrapped vases like the ones from Ferm Living pictured below, or easily make your own by wrapping, gluing, and/or sewing an old sweater sleeve around a cylindrical glass vase.  Pinterest can direct you to many sites with examples and instructions; I liked the ones below.

“Sweater vases” by Ferm Living at Velocity Art & Design; upcycled sweater-covered mason jars from DIY Crafts.

Now that we’re in the realm of textile arts, let’s move on from pedestrian vases into more exotic fare:  look at these amazing sweater-wrapped “domestic trophies” by Rachel Denny:

Red cable-knit deer head and blue cashmere “Clover” bunny at racheldenny.com

And finally, if you just want to sink into a cozy sweater yourself , how about this custom-made cable-knit slipcover?

Hand-knitted armchair slipcover by Etsy seller BiscuitScout.