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Hand Spinning News

Our crafting is labour-intensive. Is the time well-spent? Felicia was only able to spend ten hours on her Tour de Fleece spinning and ponders this question. Christina has also asked the same question about handwoven pet accessories.

Another theme that has emerged this month is natural dyeing; mordants, natural dyes and mud dyes.

So without further ado, read on for more news, views and reviews for spinners, knitters, crocheters, dyers and weavers. This is the free round-up for September 2024.

Find out how to receive the full version of Hand Spinning News in your inbox, earlier than the free edition appears online.

Cover photo: Mississippi Mills Museum by gretta vosper on Unsplash.

Contents

 

In the media


 

Handspun stories

A shared walking wheel

A shared walking wheel

This is the story of a walking wheel that Josefin and a relative managed to buy for a price that was "an insult to the wheel".

They have done a little refurbishment to the wheel and spent some time using "Beata Sophia", as they christened her.

waltin.se/josefinwaltinspinner/a-shared-walking-wheel

Natural Dyeing: Black-Eyed Susans

Natural dyeing: black-eyed susans

These black-eyed susans should have produced an olive green. Spoiler: Leigh's results are unsatisfying but we can learn more from failures than successes, right?

This is a two-part story, if the link at the bottom of the first post appears to be broken, the second part is here.

Leigh has been exploring the dyeing possibilities using local resources. This month she has also tried pear leaves and hardy hibiscus.

leighsfiberjournal.blogspot.com...black-eyed-susans-part-1.html

Ooooh, colors!

Ooooh, colours!

Hunter used a natural dye kit to turn some white napkins into coloured napkins. Over two or three blog posts she emphasises that it was a lengthy process.

Her cochineal, osage, logwood and madder have produced cheerful colours that you may not immediately associate with natural dyes.

tinynonsense.com...ooooh-colors

The Longest Yarn coming to Southwell Minster

The Longest Yarn coming to Southwell Minster

In June we learned about The Longest Yarn exhibition which is a 3D depiction of the D-day landings. It will be on display at Southwell Minster for most of September. This article contains a little more background about the work.

www.englishcathedrals.co.uk...the-longest-yarn-southwell-minster

How protection for Harris Tweed was woven into the fabric of Scots law

How protection for Harris Tweed was woven into the fabric of Scots law

Harris Tweed is the only cloth in the world governed by its own Act of Parliament. A judgement was made 60 years ago which says that the name can only be used for cloth that is made of pure virgin Scottish wool which had been dyed, spun, and finished in the islands of the Outer Hebrides and hand-woven by the islanders at their homes.

www.scottishlegal.com...harris-tweed-was-woven-into-the-fabric-of-the-law

Turning wool into pellets

Turning wool into pellets

we have seen a couple of stories recently about entrepreneurs having low-quality wool turned into soil-improving pellets for gardeners.

Taproot, a community farming organisation in Nova Scotia, is planning to install a pellet machine to give local farmers another revenue stream.

ca.news.yahoo.com/turning-wool-pellets-could-keep-090000581.html

Paper threads: learning bit by bit

Paper threads: learning bit by bit

This is one of the most amazing niddy-noddies I've seen. What an extraordinary design.

The yarn is paper and in this post, Peggy writes about spinning and wet-finishing paper yarn.

peggyosterkamp.com...paper-threads-learning-bit-by-bit

coffee cloth

Coffee cloth

Sarah has long been turning her used coffee filters into yarn but here she tries a different tack. Layered and sewn together they make a sturdy but flexible fabric.

sarahcswett.substack.com/p/coffee-cloth

Weaving for dogs: A waste of effort, or a perfect opportunity?

Weaving for dogs: a waste of effort, or a perfect opportunity?

Christina Garton suggests three ideas for dog-related woven projects. She considers the question of whether this is a useful way to spend time.

handwovenmagazine.com/weaving-for-dogs


 

Recent and current events


Tips and tutorials

Grafting genius

Grafting genius

If you have trouble remembering the moves for grafting or Kitchener stitch, this may help.

I must confess that I've read this through a couple of times and still don't understand but maybe this will work for you.

www.moderndailyknitting.com/community/grafting-genius

How to knit slip-stitch colorwork

How to knit slip-stitch colorwork

This is an introduction to slip-stitch colourwork. If you've never done colourwork before, this is an easy way in because you still only need to hold one colour per row.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpUdPABpC8g

How to knit cables without a cable needle

How to knit cables without a cable needle

If you haven't seen this before then it's a useful thing to have in your toolkit. As Kathleen demonstrates here, it is a very efficient way to make a 2x2 cross. I don't think I've seen this used to cross more than two stitches, I imagine it could work but may be more tricky to correctly catch the stitches that are briefly off the needles.

youtu.be/bkE6vNM6Zf0?si=CR3_jauxRVK604-R


Products and Reviews

The Mushroom Color Atlas  by Julie Beeler

The Mushroom Color Atlas by Julie Beeler

Artist Julie Beeler has published The Mushroom Color Atlas, a beautifully-illustrated how-to guide. It contains 500 colour swatches and a guide to identifying, harvesting, and distilling the hues.

This is Colossal's review.

www.thisiscolossal.com/2024/08/mushroom-color-atlas/


Technology

Oyster shells repurposed as magic 'Seawool'

Oyster shells repurposed as magic 'Seawool'

Seawool is a patented fabric made from oyster shells.

The shells have low thermal conductivity and make a "magical yarn". Eddie Wang has developed a low-carbon process that turns a "waste product into gold".

uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/waste-gold-oyster-shells....

Waste textiles turned into sweets

Waste textiles turned into sweets

fabrics like cotton that are cellulose-based can be broken down into glucose and a small amount of residue. designer Jinghan Li wants people to consider waste as a resource for food. It's just one of the opportunities to create a closed loop.

With thanks to Pamela for the link.

www.dezeen.com...jinghan-li-fabricandy-cental-saint-martins

Potato yarn breakthrough

Potato yarn breakthrough

UK company Fibe have developed processes to make fibre from the above-ground parts of a potato that are usually a problem for the farmer.

The strong and soft fibres are said to have similar properties to cotton.

www.fibe.uk/media


Gallery

Sometimes just a picture is enough

Starfall Shawl

Starfall Shawl

The gradient in Emilia Vasnin's shawl is beautiful so it's unsurprising that she says "gradients are my thing". Her favourite part was watching the colours blend into a gradient, and then watching the knitting change as she worked.

spinoffmagazine.com/your-finished-object-starfall-shawl

Fibre artist meets her subjects through her work

Fibre artist meets her subjects through her work

Artist Faith Humphrey Hill draws portraits of strangers, scans them and uses software to knit the images using vintage knitting machines that are hacked to be driven by her computer.

She enjoys drawing people that she didn't know and meeting them through her work.

www.thebeacon.net/fiber-artist-meets-her-subjects-through-her-work

languishing WIPs

Languishing WIP

These felted slippers have been 14 years in the making. woolandfabric started making them when her daughter was 4 and she has now turned 18.

www.instagram.com/p/C4hsfWJgYVC

Hand blended and handspun alpaca mix

Hand blended and handspun alpaca mix

This is a jumper adapted from a cardigan pattern. It's made from a "hand blended and handspun alpaca mix".

www.instagram.com/p/C-kDq_AIgaf


 

Free patterns and projects

A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn.

Zoom Loom Eclectic Art Bag by Margaret Stump

Zoom Loom Eclectic Art Bag by Margaret Stump

This design is intended for "those extra Zoom Loom squares that somehow didn't get turned into a project", says Margaret.

The bag plan is based on a traditional Japanese rice bag, traditionally made from scrap fabric, called a komebukuro.

schachtspindle.com/blogs/projects/zoom-loom-eclectic-art-bag


Pattern and project suggestions

Wirlie Burn hat by Hazel Tindall

Wirlie Burn hat by Hazel Tindall

Hazel wrote this pattern for twelve colours but after being asked for the pattern, rewrote it for five colours. The pattern includes both the five and twelve colour versions.

It can be made in a wide variety of sizes, and there are instructions for making it shorter.

www.lovecrafts.com/en-gb/p/wirlie-burn-hat...

Bricker by Anne Hanson

Bricker by Anne Hanson

Bricker has a 'robust' brickwork knit/purl pattern that can be read in reverse if, like me, you prefer toe-up. The pattern has four sizes.

www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/bricker


 

But is it art...?

Martinez Studio Rings In 30 Years Of Weaving

Martinez Studio rings in 30 years of weaving

Wenceslao Martinez opened Martinez Studio to the public on 21 August to celebrate its 30th anniversary.

The artist weaves wool-on-wool tapestries using naturally-dyed handspun Churro wool. His weaving is rooted in ancient Zapotec processes and designs.

doorcountypulse.com/martinez-studio-rings-in-30-years-of-weaving

At 94, the pioneering Lee ShinJa weaves a new tradition

At 94, the pioneering Lee ShinJa weaves a new tradition

Lee ShinJa's New York show, Weaving the Dawn, "showcases several decades' worth of tapestries that challenge the boundaries of the art form".

www.thisiscolossal.com...lee-shinja-tapestries


 

UK Events

2024

Yarndale

Yarndale

28 - 29 September 2024, Skipton Auction Mart, North Yorkshire

Over 180 makers, craft workers, retailers, and artisans in the picturesque market town of Skipton, North Yorkshire.

yarndale.co.uk

Spinning a Yarn

Spinning a Yarn

'Spinning a Yarn' opens at Somerset Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury from 14 September to 30 November

An exhibition in the Mapstone Gallery will feature historic collections alongside work by contemporary artists whose work uses wool. The Nicola Turner and Trevor Pitt commissions in the Abbey Barn will close on 2 November.

The project aims to tell the story of wool in Somerset.

swheritage.org.uk/news/spinning-a-yarn

Masham Sheep Fair

The Wool Event, Masham Sheep Fair

28 - 29 September 2024, Masham Town Hall

Craft market and fleece stalls, specialising in British wool to compliment the sheep-related events that fill the square of Masham over the weekend.

www.mashamsheepfair.com

Shetland Wool Week

Shetland Wool Week

29 September - 5 October 2024

Shetland Wool Week is a world renowned celebration of Britain's most northerly native sheep, the Shetland textile industry and the rural farming community on these islands.

Includes classes, talks, drop-ins, art. See website for the full events listing.

shetlandwoolweek.com

West Wales Wool Show

West Wales Wool Show

Saturday 12 October 2024, Queen's Hall and Plas Hyfryd Hotel, Narberth, Pembrokeshire

A celebration of all things woolly. From beautifully hand crafted items, clothing and footwear to knitting wool, fleece and all the equipment needed to make at home. Demonstrations run throughout the day with stall holders sharing their skills and knowledge with visitors plus wool skill workshops such as felting.

westwaleswoolshow.weebly.com

Kelly House Woollyl Weekend

Kelly House Woollyl Weekend

12 - 13 October 2024, Kelly House, Lifton, Devon

Many exhibitors from around the South-West and further afield, producers of the finest woollen yarn to felt makers.

www.woollyweekend.co.uk

Bakewell Wool Gathering

Bakewell Wool Gathering

19 - 20 October 2024 Bakewell Agricultural Centre

A wool festival dedicated to the best of yarn, knitting, and crochet, in the heart of the Derbyshire Dales.

There will be exhibitors, demonstrations of fibre crafts and a fleece stand selling plenty of local fleece.

bakewellwool.co.uk

The Glasgow School of Yarn

The Glasgow School of Yarn

18 - 20 October 2024, The Trades Hall, Glasgow

Scotland's longest running yarn festival, championing local and innovative makers since 2011.

GSoY has an abundance of beautiful yarns, fibres, and accessories for every crafter.

www.glasgowschoolofyarn.co.uk

The Big Textile Show

The Big Textile Show

26-27 October 2024 Leicester Racecourse, Oadby, Leicester LE2 4AL

30+ trade stalls, 30+ courses, food and free parking.

thebigtextileshow.co.uk

Stitch Fest

Stitch Fest

2 and 3 November 2024, Newton Abbot Racecourse.

Since 2016, Stitch Fest has moved to bigger venues and is now held under one roof at Newton Abbot Racecourse, showcasing some of the best independent makers, dyers, spinners and designers and a fabulous workshop and demonstration timetable.

www.stitchfest.co.uk

The Knitting and Stitching Show, Harrogate

The Knitting and Stitching Show, Harrogate

21 - 24 November 2024, Harrogate Convention Centre

Meet up with like-minded crafters, discuss ideas, learn new skills and shop for your annual craft supplies, including wool, beads and beyond from household name brands and special suppliers alike including Fabric Godmother, Toft and more.

www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com/harrogate


 

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!

- Editor / curator

shiela@hand-spinning-news.com

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Archive

All issues since January 2015 were archived. However, due to old and dead links making bad SEO, I'm not quite sure how to handle this. Watch this space.

H S N archive