Hand Spinning News
The New year is a time for reflection, possibilities and new starts, and as is tradition when we welcome in a new year, I'll try to remember to write 2025 instead of 2024
Perhaps it's also the time for thinking about sock longevity. Rebecca has done the science by logging the techniques used to spin for eleven pairs of socks and then wearing them out. And one of the free patterns this month is 'armoured' and also features a replaceable sole.
This also seems to be the month for free e-books. Interweave has one for beginner knitters with seven free cowl patterns and Littlelooms is offering one with three rigid-heddle loom projects for the home. If you're quick, and if natural dyeing is one of your 2025 goals then you can download The Easy Peasy Natural Dyeing eBook for free.
So without further ado, read on for more news, views and reviews for spinners, knitters, crocheters, dyers and weavers. This is the edited round-up for January 2024 2025.
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Cover photo, Snow Queen pin-loom snood by Janna Ford.
Contents
In the media
Colouring the Iron Age: oldest dress in the Netherlands was bright red and blue
This is a reconstruction from fragments that may be Europe's oldest two-colour garment.
The body, thought to be a woman, was wearing a remarkable amount of jewellery and fragments of the textile have survived thanks to the corroding metal.
Analysis showed that the yarns were dyed red with Polish cochineal and blue with an indigo-yielding plant, most likely woad.
Experts have reconstructed the dress using the available information. The dress and artefacts will be on display later in the year, and a book is now available.
http://vandervaart-verschoof.com...bright-red-and-blue
Channel 4 to cast on Tom Daley to host Game of Wool
More details have been announced about the new knitting-based Channel 4 game show, Game of Wool.
Tom Daley is to set challenges for ten knitters who will meet in the picturesque countryside of rural Scotland.
www.channel4.com...daley-host-new-knitting-competition-game-wool
Uni student's award-winning biodegradable shoelace
Jacob Smith wanted to create the best possible shoelace, and make it 'the new normal' for footwear.
It claims to be stylish, washable, good for and the planet and not come undone.
He spent time exploring wool, knitting techniques and natural dyes, which made him feel like Walter White.
idealog.co.nz...award-winning-biodegradable-shoelace...
Handspun stories
2024 in review
One of my favourite 'year in review' posts was from Rebecca whose post contains a ridiculous number of skeins of yarn, finished projects, knitted and sewn.
She achieved so much yarn by spinning at least 15 minutes per day, which she says often turned into 30 or 60 minutes.
osbornfiber.com/2024/12/31/2024-in-review
Predictions 2025
To accompany the above post, Rebecca has written a 'prediction' post which contains this beautiful collection of fibre that she plans to spin. There are also pictures of fleece and other fibres, plus the yarn that she hopes to knit.
osbornfiber.com/2025/01/01/predictions-2025
A beginner's mindset
"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few."
Beginner's mind is a zen concept that means looking at the world as if it were new. Maybe this is the best time of the year to try this.
Claudia suggests that you can gain more from your knitting with a beginner's mindset.
www.moderndailyknitting.com...beginners-mind-or-once-more-with-feeling
Fibre prep spinalong
How long is too long to let singles rest?
Spanish Peahen took nearly two years of what she calls 'plycrastination' before getting around to plying these spindles of singles made from a gradient braid.
In this post she links back to the fibre prep and spinning, and details how she overcame her plycrastination, reeled the singles, made a plying ball and finished the yarn.
thepeahenspod.com...fiber-prep-spinalong-2
I knit my dream hat with homespun yarn
Having learned to process fleece and spin yarn, Engineering Knits was keen to use every inch of what she'd spun. A scarf would have allowed her to knit until she ran out, but she chose this hat and she's very happy with the result.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=To3I5A8r2q8
Socks for science: results
Rebecca has done the science and presents the results here of her sock handspinning experiment. This involved eleved pairs of socks, with carefully-documented details about the fibres, prep and knitting.
She wore the socks until they developed holes and has ranked them here.
osbornfiber.com/2024/12/10/socks-for-science-results
Advent calendars
Christmas seems way behind us now, but I enjoyed being able to see the Advent calendar yarn and fibre packs posted by Highland Heffalump.
The fibre advent pack contained some new-to-her breeds and blends, and the names were Christmas characters.
My main link is part 1, part 2 is here.
highlandheffalump.com...advent-calendars-part-1
Alpaca for life: a herder's view of the andean highlands
Alpaca herder Alipio Melo has written about the joys and challenges of raising his beloved alpaca in the Peruvian highlands.
It's a very special article, containing some beautiful photos of the animals and the landscape. He has even included video footage.
spinoffmagazine.com/alpaca-for-life
Dyeing with buckthorn
I once planted a hedge and was encouraged by a local shrubber to include alder buckthorn. The reason was that it is the main food for the brimstone butterfly. Despite being invasive in some places, in Britain it was historically removed and is not now very common.
It is a dyeplant and Cindy Craft has written about the range of colours that she has managed to achieve on wool.
spinoffmagazine.com/dyeing-with-buckthorn
Drumcarder and diz: creating a marled roving
maybe one of your 2025 goals is to card/comb and diz your own roving. Emily Wohlscheid explains how to use one to make marled roving and goes on to explain how she has designed her own, using her metalworking skills.
spinoffmagazine.com/drumcarder-and-diz-creating-a-marled-roving
Alpaca: wooly warmth without the itch factor
The actual weaving tests here were made with commercial alpaca yarn, but the introduction and tips will certainly also apply to handspun alpaca yarn.
handwovenmagazine.com/weaving_with_alpaca
The art of saving your scraps for another project
Yes, trash in = trash out and you don't want the lower-quality fibre, nepps and VM to spoil your beautiful skein of worsted yarn but Meagan advocates keeping a bag of fibre scraps that you can use to make lower-quality yarn or felt.
plymagazine.com...trash-in-trash-out
13th century spinning whorl with swastika symbols
Archaeologists have discovered a spinning whorl decorated with swastikas.
The symbol now has negative associations but when this was carved it was a symbol used by many cultures and represented prosperity, security and the sun.
Other finds at the site include five loom weights, six spinning whorls and a copper alloy thimble.
archaeologymag.com..whorl-with-swastika-in-norway
Tips and tutorials
Three strategies for weaving with a color you don't like
If you've spent money on (or spun) yarn in a colour that you're not keen on, but want to use it rather than bin it or give it away, Tien has three strategies for using it.
handweavingacademy.com...yarn-in-colors-you-dont-like
Don't put that sandwich in your drumcarder!
The video on this page is taken from a course but it does contain one useful tip about using your drum carder effectively and not damaging it. (It doesn't involve actual sandwiches, although don't put those into your drum carder either.)
spinoffmagazine.com...sandwich-in-your-drumcarder
Video tip: when and how to use floating selvedges
Sara explains when you should use floating selvedges, and whether you should beam them with the rest of the wrap or hang those ends separately over the back beam.
This is a short video taken from her new course about selvedges.
handwovenmagazine.com...floating-selvedges
Products and Reviews
Doodle your way into 2025
We've seen Pacific Knit Co's Doodle Knitting patterns before but Doodle Decks are an inspiring way to mix up the doodles.
You can shuffle the pack to mix and match colourwork motifs for hats, cowls, socks and sweaters. With thanks to Dana for the suggestion and you can see one of her Doodle Deck projects here and buy Doodle Decks at the link below.
pacificknitco.com/search?page=2&q=doodle+deck
Technology
Octopus-inpired camouflage smart fabric
This is a smart woven fabric with 1mm x 1mm colour-changing cells which respond to their environment. It's not ready for deployment just yet but is a proof-of-concept.
www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment...
Gallery
Sometimes just a picture is enough
Luminous
You may recognise this beautiful wordy tapestry as Sarah Swett's work. In this post she is also feeling grateful that we have battery-powered photography lights to work by nowadays and also the pleasure of working by candlelight.
sarahcswett.substack.com/p/luminous
Zebras on the Serengeti Scarf
Carla Jeanne Hubbart was inspired by the natural beauty that her daughter and son-in-law experienced on their honeymoon safari.
The page has more details of the project and a pdf download behind their paywall.
handwovenmagazine.com/zebras-on-the-serengeti
Tablet Weaving - Minions
Highland Heffalump loves minions and has adapted this tablet-weaving design by Catherine. She has shared her adapted design and gives links to the original pattern page plus a Youtube short in which Catherine talks about her own evolution of the design.
highlandheffalump.com...tablet-weaving-minions
Stripey conference shawl
tashalouizamc used two single skeins of sock yarn in pale and dark grey along with an "a crazy skein of handspun - an experimental cable ply from earlier in the year".
Her Ravely project page is only visible if you're logged into Ravelry.
www.ravelry.com/projects/tashalouizamc/get-a-shift-on-3
Free patterns and projects
A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn.
Cause and Effect by Rebecca Osborn
Rebecca is excited that her pattern is featured in the current Knitty magazine and is also the cover image.
This pattern isn't marked 'Knittyspin' but Rebecca does note that it's a great pattern to showcase your handspun yarn because it's "extremely gauge-adaptable".
The pattern has three sizes that require 80 - 150 yards of fingering-weight (14 wpi) yarn.
Rebecca's own blog post has links to the pattern on both Knitty and Ravelry.
osbornfiber.com...new-pattern-cause-and-effect
Stashdive Socks by Sherrill Roy
the1764shepherdess has written up this pattern which she says is "perfect for using up handspun and commercial yarn, anything that you can combine to make the bulky weight wpi".
She encourages the use of the hashtag #stashdive2025.
the1764shepherdess.com...Stashdive-Socks....pdf
Ankylosaur by Marcia Weinert
Ankylosaur features a heavily-textured 'armoured' cuff and fully replaceable sole. Am I the only one who thinks that all socks should be made this way?
There are five sizes which use 438 - 550 yards of fingering-weight yarn.
knitty.com...PATTankylosaur.php
Free rigid-heddle loom projects for the home
This free e-book (requiring a free login at littlelooms) contains three projects, Piping Hot Pillows by Liz Gipson, A Kitchen Valance in Brooks Bouquet by Mariellen Boss and A Cushy Alpaca Pillow by Leslie Ann Bestor.
littlelooms.com/library/56111290
Piper the Peppermint Snake by cbfiberworks
Since 2025 is the year of the snake, Chanel has published this charming pattern with " simple stitches and beautiful colourwork".
The crochet pattern is right there on the web page, with ads. There's also a premium version with photos, a video and more.
cbfiberworks.com/free-crochet-pattern-piper-the-peppermint-snake
Pattern and project suggestions
Snow Queen Snood By Janna Ford
Our cover photo this month shows this snood (scarf that can be worn as a hood). It is easier to make than you may think at first glance. It uses two colours of yarn and a Zoom Looom / square pin loom, which is a quick and fun way to work with your handspun yarn.
Remarkably, this is Janna's first published pattern. As she notes on her Instagram, she used 100% merino yarn which made for a very soft and squishy scarf.
This pattern appears in the winter '23 issue of Little Looms, which (if you need the pattern) you can purchase as a single issue if you don't have a subscription.
shop.longthreadmedia.com/products/easy-weaving-with-little-looms-winter-2023
Emika by Linda Marveng
I've been intrigued by this garment since I first saw it. It can be worn like poncho, or turned for a cape. Or worn as a shawl.
It would look good over a vest and the cables go with Chiye featured last month.
It requires 1554 yards of DK-weight yarn (11 wpi)
www.ravelry.com...emika
Snow Blossom Shawl by Suzanne M Ross
This is a topical pattern, it celebrates the first flowers to brave the winter weather.
It's a cosy and squishy brioche shawl which requires 882 yards (very specific!) of DK-weight yarn.
www.ravelry.com...snow-blossom-shawl-2
Kalio by Anne Hanson
This stranded colourwork cowl will be cosy and also show off a colour-changing handspun yarn.
It uses 250 - 300 yards altogether of DK-weight yarn.
There is a matching cap and mitts.
www.barenakedwools.com...kalio
But is it art...?
Dijanne Cevaal: stitched travel stories
Dijanne Cevaal prints onto fabric using natural inks and then outlines the shapes using naturally-dyed threads.
www.instagram.com/origidij
Woo Jin Joo: Magic, myths and monsters
Woo Jin Joo's work draws on the mythology and folk culture of Korea and how these ancient stories effortlessly weave human and non-human elements in magical ways.
This artist interview includes images of her 3d sculpture as well as embroidered pictures.
www.textileartist.org/woo-jin-joo-magic-myths-and-monsters-in-mixed-media
Sonya Kelliher-Combs merges collective knowledge and native Alaskan heritage
Sonya Kelliher-Combs has native Alaskan heritage and combines organic and synthetic materials, traditional and new, local and imported.
www.thisiscolossal.com...sonya-kelliher-combs
UK Events
2025
Waltham Abbey Wool Show
Sun 19 Jan 2025 10am-4pm, Marriott Hotel, Old Shire Lane, Waltham Abbey
All-day and timed tickets available.
Chosen charity since 2017 is Knit for Peace. Workshops range from beginner to intermediate.
50 exhibitors, a selection of crochet, knitting, spinning and other craft workshops at a variety of levels.
The theme for the 2025 Competition is hats!
www.walthamabbeywoolshow.co.uk
Textiles East Fair
Sat 15 - Sun 16 February 2025, The Burgess Hall, St Ives, PE27 6WU
Aims to provide a dynamic, active platform for textile artists to exhibit and retailers to showcase their beautiful products for purchase.
textileseastfair.wordpress.com
Unravel
Fri 14 - Sun 16 Feb 2025, Farnham Maltings, Hampshire
At the core of unravel's three day in-person festival is the curated marketplace which showcases independent producers, well established makers alongside first-time yarn show exhibitors from around the UK. In addition, on each day of the festival, there is an inspiring programme of bookable workshops.
farnhammaltings.com/artists-and-makers/craft/festivals/unravel
North West Winter Wool Festival
15 - 16 Feb 2025, Imperial Hotel Blackpool
A gathering dedicated to the rich traditions of knitting, crocheting, weaving, and spinning. Created by an indie yarn dyer in response to the increasing call for more fibre arts events in the North West, this festival offers a warm, welcoming space for creativity and community.
northwestwinterwoolfestival.co.uk
East Anglia Yarn Festival
15 - 16 Mar 2025, Norfolk Showground Arena
East Anglia's premier fibre festival, bringing amazing exhibitors to Norwich for the second year. Classes, crochet and knit-a-long, The Big Stitch Night, podcaster meet-up.
www.eastangliayarnfestival.com
Wonderwool Wales
26 - 27 April 2025, Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells
First held in 2006 to promote the market for Welsh wool and add value to product for small wool & fibre producers in Wales, the festival celebrates the green credentials of Welsh wool and its versatility as a material for creative crafts, designer clothes, home furnishings and more.
Wonderwool Wales has grown year on year. It covers everything from the start to the end of the creative process.
A list of accommodation and camping in the surrounding area is available on the Wonderwool website.
www.wonderwoolwales.co.uk
The Woolly Good Gathering
Fri 4 - Sat 5 April 2025
Since 2019 Edinburgh been missing an important festival: a yarn festival!
A new event to celebrate knitters, crocheters, weavers, spinners and fibre lovers with a festival of crafts, workshops, talks, food, music and good company.
www.woollygood.co.uk
Spring Into Wool
12 - 13 April 2025 - The Grammar School, Leeds
90 stalls, food, free parking, workshops, demos.
The perfect event for all lovers of knitting, crochet, feltmaking, weaving, spinning, dyeing, and all things woolly!
www.springintowool.co.uk/index.htm
The Sodbury Yarn Over
12 - 13 April 2025, venue tbc
Yarns, fibres, weaving, crochet, knitting, spinning, accessories and workshops and more.
thesodburyyarnover.co.uk
Buxton Wool Gathering
17 - 18 May 2025, Grand Octagon room, Pavilion Gardens, Buxton
50 exhibitors will be displaying the best of yarn, knitting, and crochet in the gateway to the Peak District. The website contains an exhibitor list and ticket information.
The event's home page contains some charity patterns raising money for Macmillan.
buxtonwool.co.uk
Tangled Galashiels Fibre Festival
Fri 30 May - Sat 31 May 2025, Galashiels, TD1 3JX and tba
The two-day festival isn't just a yarn festival, it's a celebration of independent textile artists, crafters, dyers and spinners, as well as its local community.
Textile exhibitions, interactive activities, workshops, a brand new Fleece Market and over 30 craft stalls
www.tangledgalashiels.com
The Great British Fibre Festival
7-8 June 2025 Coldharbour Mill, Uffculme, Devon
A yarn and fibre show with a twist - it's aimed to educate and connect people with the origin of their yarns, wool fibre and more...you'll find flax, leather, nettle, wood, ceramic and more at the show!
Brought to you by the organisers of Stitch Fest South West.
www.thegreatbritishfibrefestival.co.uk
The Wool Monty
7 - 8 June 2025 Magna, Magna Way, Sheffield S60 1FD
Accessible, inclusive, welcoming.
thewoolmonty.co.uk
Mill Open Weekend, John Arbon Textiles
7 - 8 June, 2025, The Assembly Rooms, South Molton Town Hall with tour of JAT Mill
This legendary event returns. Includes mill tour and workshops, talks and even a few other vendors at the beautiful 18th century function rooms in South Molton Town Hall
Tickets for tours, talks and workshops are now available for booking.
www.jarbon.com/mill-open-weekend
Cumbrian Wool Gathering
21 - 22 June 2025, J36 Rural Auction Centre, Cumbria
A gathering of people with a love for wool and yarn, and the associated crafts. The first Cumbrian Wool Gathering is organised by the same team responsible for Bakewell Wool Gathering and Buxton Wool Gathering.
cumbrianwoolgathering.co.uk
Cotswold Wool Weekend
Sat 4 - Sun 5 October 2025 The Corn Hall, Cirencester
A two-day celebration of all things wool and yarn, including stalls, talks, demonstrations and workshops
Tickets available online now.
sites.google.com...cotswoldwoolweekend
All that remains is for me to thank everyone who blogs, writes articles or posts pictures on the subject of spinning, knitting, crochet or weaving. This newsletter wouldn't exist without them.
Nor would it exist without your support, so thank you for that.
Please share a link to hand-spinning-news.com with anyone who may be interested.
It's always good to hear from readers for any reason and I'd particularly like tip-offs about about any relevant stories, websites or social media accounts that I should be following.
Happy spinning!
Shiela Dixon - Editor / curator
shiela@hand-spinning-news.com
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