World wide knitting day

UK magazine here is the link

That was a fascinating read - thank you Cher. As I don't spin or weave it was no wonder I was lost though, lol. :-)

Thank you Cher !!! lovely Journal mirjam

You're welcome higz Cher

Thank you Cher !!! lovely Journal mirjam

So us weavers spinners and dyers can't temp you then????

lol higz Cher

I think I'll stick with the "ready made" option for wool thank you Cher. Probably do the same for dress materials too, lol. Anything for an easier life. :-)

Can't say I blame you, lol

higz Cher

I jokingly refer to myself as a "secondary fiber artist" at Guild meetings. I never mastered a drop spindle, have done basic weaving but do not find it that interesting, so probably wouldn't do it unless there was something I couldn't find ready woven. OTOH, there are some members of our Guild who have lengths of handwoven cloth which are just that - lengths of cloth. Likewise, there are spinners who have hanks of handspun yarn lying around, and when I ask what they are to be used for I receive blank stares. Being an intensely practical soul, I don't consider lengths of fabric or hanks of yarn to be finished products. To me, they are waiting to be turned into somethig which is BOTH beautiful and useful. When I remarked on this at a meeting once, one of the spinners loftily replied that SHE is "process-oriented", and I must be "product-oriented." Well, yes. I can't see doing all that spinning or weaving unless I got something wearable or usable out of it.

Must get back to my sewing machine - just finished putting a band of sequins all around the edge of a wool gauze shawl to dress it up a bit, and I have some storebought lengths of 95% rayon 5% lycra knit waiting to be made into short sleeve tops.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.

I couldn't agree more. I can spin with a drop spindle - or a wheel - but it doesn't do anything for me, likewise weaving. Throwing pots is another skill which people say is 'satisfying'. Well it's not to everyone.

Hurrah!

I hope you replied just as loftily!

I was given a beautiful small length of weaving the wool of which had been grown, spun and dyed by the weaver. There were at least two subtle Earth colours and it was a herringbone pattern. The maker, a Faroese Viking I met in Iceland, wanted me to have it and it would have been churlish to refuse and it is very beautiful - but too small for anything. It's used as a small shawl for dark age grandchildren when it's nippy but when I run out of grandchildren it will just sit in the chest. Waiting for great grandchildren I suppose :-)

Can you attach sequins with a machine???

I had no idea!

Mary

You really need to get out of the house more! Sequins nowadays come all joined up in long strips, and you attach them by machine using a big, tough needle and your longest stitch. I put these on using a size #16 needle and the roller foot on my machine, and going VERY slowly. I had this hunk of off-white wool gauze, 54" x 54" which I wanted to dress up for use as a shawl, which meant attaching slightly more than six yards of edging (allowing for mitering the corners, that is.) A lot faster than doing it by hand. p.s. sequins also come in ready-made decorative motifs, if you like that kind of thing.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.

I'm impressed :-)

I don't use the sewing machine, all my sewing is done by hand. Spouse does the machine sewing in this house and he has little use for sequins :-)

Mary

I can identify with that Olwyn Mary. Sometimes I have kept a length of fabric and studied it for ages before deciding what to make with it and what design to use but once it is decided it gets made quickly.

Oh how pompous some people are!

It sounds like a busy time for you now. I like the sound of that sequin band - it makes a garment very special. I once had some narrow black polyester ribbon with silver embroidery and used it as a stripe down the sides of a pair of black trousers. They lasted me for the best part of 15 years for special occasions. :-)

What a shame to spend all that time spinning and never using it. I spin and knit / crochet or weave mine, I've made socks shawls tablecloths tartan material I turned into kilts, table mats serviettes towels tea towels odd remnants used for lavendar bags hot water bottle covers Rugs these being thick rugs too, with complicated colour weaving to create the patterns I have wanted. Slippers cardigans jackets kaftans woven lace curtaining for a door, cushion covers depending on the fleece used in the spinnng of course anything from very fine to very thick yarn can be acheived for the above items and more, any scraps left over go into my Kumuhimo braiding for keyrings and belts bracelets some adorned with beads some not, depending again on what one wants. I spin anything from sheeps fleece to dog hair cat hair silk cotton flax, oh and flax is great dyed for deck chair covers, or seating as it is strong. Natural dyeing where possible, then I can spin some fine shetland as thin as cotton and knit lovely heirloom shawls...

Beats me why people would want to spin never to use it, how strange.

higz Cher

I agree. It would be like knitting a garment and not wearing it. I just don't want to spin :-)

Mary

Thats fine if you don't want to spin, you don't have to...nobody does..lol

I can't fathom anyone weaving great lengths of fabric either, I mean, I work out how many ends I need for a project and thread that up and weave it, or perhaps some just stick any old bits on the back roller and hope for the best. Weird... never known of that one before but hey ho each to their own.

higz.....Cher

There are also Spelling Bees and Quilting Bees. I think the reference is probably to the amount of talking going on - the "buzz".

=Tamar

I like that use of ribbon on your pants Bernadette !!! mirjam

Ah, that's why, of course it is, lol, never thought of that one... thnx higz Cher