Cake row resolution marked by yarn bombers
The end of the court case over Lidl's copy of M&S' famous cake was marked just before Valentine's day with this post-box topper showing the two caterpillars putting aside their differences
Hand Spinning News
The email version of this newsletter may look much better online: hand-spinning-news.com
Do you spin intentionally or for its own pleasure? Devin makes a case for spinning as "a sensory joy" and a comfort at difficult times of the year or distraction from a destructive world.
This month there's a theme of scraps and stash. The gallery features a hand dyed and spun 'scrap happy' blanket, in the patterns is a Simply Scrappy cowl designed for using up small ends. You can join Spin the Bin as Joanne has done to use up some of that stash (or make room for more). craftmehappy has been collecting waste fibre in a box for a long time, and has spun corespun and supercoil yarns.
Read on for this month's round-up of news, views and reviews for spinners, knitters, crocheters, dyers and weavers. This is the full edition for March 2022.
Cover photo: David Broadbent / Alamy Stock Photo.
Contents
- In the media
Cake row resolution - Handspun stories
Joy spinning, teasing, having a fluffy time, Winter-Spring crochet, wool boards, anything but plain weave, Nahuala Spinning, sheep and winegrowing, world's oldest trousers, hand woven velvet, Spin the Bin, history of the Rambouillet, nettle dress - Colour inspiration
When little needs saying except 'beautiful colour' - Tips and tutorials
How to block a blanket, how I wash my hand knits, ten common crochet mistakes, the best yarn for knitting cables, supercoils from waste fibre - Technology
fully woven smart display - Yvonne
A cartoon - Reviews
The Twisted Stitch Sourcebook by Norah Gaughan, Level Winding System for the Electric Eel Wheel 6 - Gallery
Showcasing some of the best spinning images I've seen this month - Free patterns
A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn - More patterns and projects
More project ideas which will work well with handspun yarn - But is is art...?
Larry Weyand, Katherine McClelland - UK Events
A listing of 2022 events
In the media
Handspun stories
Joy spinning
Do you always spin intentionally for a specific project?
In this blog post, Devin makes a case for spinning as "a sensory joy" and a comfort at difficult times of the year or distraction from a destructive world.
afewgreenfigs.blogspot.com/2022/02/the-yearly-slump-joy-spinning.html
Teasing
Teasing is essential for the best carded rolags.
Josefin's posts are usually packed with information.
In this case she covers teasing by hand, teasing with combs, flicking (before carding, before combing or as main preparation) and using a hand card as a flicker.
Still having a fluffy time
Sue has a 'standard size' for her skeins and therefore has nests of combed fleece left over.
Here's how she drumcards and spins these various breeds together to make unique blends.
travelfibreandthread.blogspot.com/2022/02/still-having-fluffy-time.html
Winter-Spring crochet
attic24 has been inspired by the flowers that bloom at the end of winter.
These lovely violas are one of many experimental flowers in this post, it's well worth a look.
attic24.typepad.com/weblog/2022/02/winter-spring-crochet.html
The Hat Queen
Jane Daniels set out to make 500 hats, and earned herself the nickname 'Queen of Hats'.
"Making a hat allows you to experiment with color, use some handspun, try different beginnings and endings, see if you like a new technique, or knit with an expensive yarn."
This article for Ply magazine includes her basic hat recipe along with various modifications.
Wool boards
This is a wool board. Like a mood board but with wool.
It's more than a mood board. It contains swatches and documents experimentation. As Josefins says, "perhaps I'm not planning on spinning the whole fleece right away. In those cases the wool board is an important map for me once I do dive into the fleece again. I have a neatly organised manual to work from."
Anything but plain weave
Plain weave is simple and versatile. Here are some ideas for taking plain weave to the next level.
If this is useful to you, there is a part two here with six more ideas.
handwovenmagazine.com/anything-but-plain-weave-color-and-weave
Jamdani: fabric of moonlight
In April 2021, we saw an article about Dhaka muslin, a legendary cloth "as light and soft as the wind".
This Handwoven article is related, Jamandi refers to the embroidered ornamentation on the Dhaka muslin.
Nahuala Spinning
This article contains a delightful description of an encounter with Guatemalan spinners and their intriguing spinning and plying techniques.
It first appeared in Spin Off in 1978
spinoffmagazine.com/nahuala-spinning-by-harry-and-olive-linder
The extraordinary alchemy of sheep and winegrowing at Littorai Wines
This is a fascinating story of how grazing sheep contribute to wine-making.
Ted Lemon chose a 'biodynamic' style of farming. "It is a 'wine farm' not a 'vineyard monoculture", he says.
Not only do they increase organic matter and humus in the soil, the way that they graze and what they deposit increases the biodiversity. "Ultimately, they make the wine better".
The world's oldest trousers
Archaeologists in China have discovered a pair of wool trousers around 3,300 years old. The dry climate means that they're in very good condition.
Initially they were puzzled as there's no evidence of the fabric being cut. Twill, tapestry weaving and twining were all used.
www.sciencenews.org/article/pants-oldest-ancient-horseman-asia-culture-origin
Hand woven velvet using ancient looms
The interviews in this video are in Italian and I didn't find that they auto-translated well. But the footage of ancient looms producing cloth for governments and the rich and famous is well worth a watch.
Using the looms is clearly very physical work.
Story Series: The Versatility of Plant-Based Fibres
Fibershed have collected together and bookended a few articles on the subject of the versatility of plant-based fibres; Three Bast Fibers to Know Beyond Hemp and Flax, The Hemp Casita of Rezolana, Updates from Field to Mill, Spinning the Structure of Life with Paleotechnics and Harvesting Hemp.
fibershed.org/2022/03/04/story-series-the-versatility-of-plant-based-fibers
Yarn choice for Andean backstrap weaving
Vampy has been involved with Abby Franquemont's online Andean backstrap weaving class.
The best choice for warp yarn is Khaitu, Andean handspun weaving yarn. It has a lot of twist. In order to demonstrate that commercial yarn is a bad choice, she tried a selection of yarns.
She even added twist to make them more suitable but the results are still not as good as her own handspun, where she was able to spin yarn with the right characteristics.
Spin the Bin 2022
Thread Head Joanne has taken part in Spin the Bin. You put together 24 ounces of fibre from your stash to spin throughout the year.
Thanks to spinning every day in February, she has finished hers and details what she's going to do with the yarn.
It's not too late to join this challenge, and you don't have to complete it in a month!
A new lease on life
What do you do when your Dachshund takes a bite out of your favourite handspun hat?
TT820 details her repair. It's nicely done, but she felt that it was a little rough and so added and embroidered flower!
A sheep of one's own: a brief history of the Rambouillet
Rambouillet wool is next-to-the-skin soft, it takes dye beautifully and has excellent elasticity. Its loftiness gives it an airy feel and makes it cosy-warm.
Carol Sulcoski writes about the characteristics and history of this breed.
www.moderndailyknitting.com...a-sheep-of-ones-own-a-brief-history-of-the-rambouillet
Walk, gather and spin
At the start of this video I was assuming that these pieces of lichen were destined for the dyepot, but no.
Which Side Is Your Spinning Wheel Flyer On?
Most people are right-hand-dominant and most wheels (which have the flyer to the side of the wheel) have it to the left of the drive wheel. Some manufacturers have made 'left handed' versions of their popular wheels.
Should you choose a wheel according to whether you're left or right-handed?
Anne Merrow has conducted some research on the subject and her inconclusive conclusions are here.
The Nettle Dress
Way back in January 2021 (it seems a long time ago anyway!) We saw that Dylan Howitt was planning to make a documentary covering the gathering, processing, spinning of nettle fibre, and the making of a dress.
Dylan has announced that the dress is now finished, and the process of turning the footage into a finished film will begin.
www.kickstarter.com/projects/nettledress/the-nettle-dress/posts/3425325
Colour inspiration
When little needs saying except 'beautiful colour'
Colours of the year
Many companies publish their 'colour of the year' and they're all different.
Our annual colour correspondent Ewespecial reports that the Pantone colour of 2022 is Very Peri, the "happiest and warmest of all the blue hues".
Four colours, multiple choices, many possible combinations
aspinnerweaver has posted a dozen designs for woven bands, you can use them as they are or take inspiration. They all have 39 threads for bands about an inch wide which is "great for dog collars and leashes, hatbands, key fobs, lanyards, ukulele straps, and lots of other things".
aspinnerweaver.blogspot.com/2022/02/four-colors-multiple-choices-many.html
Carding for Color : Understanding and Analyzing Color
Colour theory is a perennial topic, but it's one that doesn't get old, for me at least.
With this tutorial I was put off a little by the 'write what you see' exercise, but after reading the whole tutorial which put hue, saturation, temperature and value in mind, then this seemed much more logical.
schachtspindle.com/carding-for-color-part-i-understanding-and-analyzing-color
Dans la roseraie
ivicreas dyed this fibre with short repeats (seen here).
Even though it's 2-ply I like the way that the grey and pink meet.
Morocco
The red and gold here gives a coppery look. Melanie says that it reminds her of "Morocco or cave paintings".
Tips and tutorials
How to block a blanket
When your project is "so big that you can see the curvature of the planet" then how on earth do you block it?
MDK has some tips.
www.moderndailyknitting.com/2022/02/08/color-explosion-block-large-handknit
How I wash my hand knits
I'm not sure there's a lot to learn about how to handwash a precious handknit garment, but it's interesting to read about Tanis' routine (ie how often, and avoiding marks).
www.tanisfiberarts.com/blog/2019/3/how-i-wash-my-hand-knits-5am7t
Ten common crochet mistakes (and how to solve them)
If you're like me, done a little crochet but still a little unclear on the basics, then this very good article is aimed at us.
www.darngoodyarn.com/blogs/darn-good-blog/10-common-crochet-mistakes-and-how-to-solve-them
Spin the best yarn for knitting cables
Melanie Smith explores how different handspun yarns behave when knitting cables.
Spinning supercoils from waste fibre
craftmehappy has been collecting waste fibre in a box for a long time, and decided that it was time to spin them.
She made a variety of yarn and knitted samples. They include corespinning and 'supercoils'. She doesn't own a drumcarder, so she fluffed them up by hand into a cloud.
She includes a video showing the process of spinning the supercoil yarn from start to finish.
www.craftmehappy.com/2022/03/spinning-multicoloured-core-spun-and.html
How to: butterflying yarn singles
You may have read the instruction "butterfly the yarn onto your hand" with no further explanation.
It's a way to temporarily wind singles onto your hand before winding them onto your spindle. Shell Feda explains in words and pictures.
spinoffmagazine.com/how-to-butterflying-singles-yarn-for-spindle-spinning
Three spinners on washing wool
Is it always necessary to put raw fleece through the detergent twice? Spinners discuss the soapy subject.
Slip-Stitch Texturing Techniques
There are some really nice slip-stitch patterns here, as well as a discussion of the various slip-stitch techniques and tips.
www.interweave.com/article/knitting/slip-stitch-texturing-techniques
Technology
Scientists develop fully woven smart display
An international team of scientists have made a woven fabric which functions as a display, as well as incorporating other functions such as sensing and energy harvesting. Possible applications include curtains that are also TVs, energy-harvesting carpets, and interactive, self-powered clothing and fabrics.
The researchers had to take into account the stretching that each fibre would be subject to during the weaving process.
www.inavateonthenet.net/news/article/scientists-develop-fully-woven-smart-display
Yvonne
Sock
This is stolen from one of my favourite cartoonists, Dave Coverly who draws Speed Bump. He made this joke but with spacemen and I thought it would be funny to apply the line to our sheep.
If you like Yvonne, click the image to find her page, you can use next and previous to explore more cartoons.
Keeping this wheel spinning
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Reviews
The Twisted Stitch Sourcebook by Norah Gaughan
This is a book of stitch patterns and garment patterns using twisted stitches.
The book came out last year. Thanks to quiteayarnblog for this review.
quiteayarnblog.com/2022/02/26/knitters-bookshelf-twisted-stitch-sourcebook
Level Winding System for the Electric Eel Wheel 6
This is a review of a product that isn't available yet, and there are further improvements to be made, but if you're an Electric Eel Wheel user or curious about the EEW then this will be of interest.
As well as allowing you to continue spinning without stopping to move the flyer hooks, craftmehappy found some unexpected benefits.
www.craftmehappy.com/2022/01/testing-myautowindercom-level-winding.html
Gallery
Sometimes just a picture is enough
Scrap Happy
Jean has finished this blanket. It's all handspun wool with some silk and mohair, dyed with natural dyes.
it's her second (the first is in the picture) but she doesn't expect to make a third.
onesmallstitch.wordpress.com/2022/02/14/scrap-happy-february-3
Witchcraft or coincidence..?
This extraordinary shawl contains rook feathers and locks. It's a response to the prompt: The Dark Side
Fiberygoodness presents this 'behind the scenes' with artist Ineke De Brouwer.
Öraefi
This is knitincolours' Öraefi which is a jumper with a neck 'you can hide in'.
It's handspun yarn, probably merino, although she's not sure.
It's designed to be worn with a bit more ease but knitincolours preferred a bit of negative, It's shaped at the waist and is longer on the back side than the front, so it's going to be warm.
The pattern is here.
Pizzelle Shawl
taliesin spun this yarn some years ago, it's around 200g of merino/bamboo.
The pattern is Pizzelle Shawl by Jessica Gore. taliesin says that it's "a nice clear pattern, which worked perfectly for my handspun yarn."
Lilac Echo Flowers
This is chicksinrubber's second Echo Flower shawl and she used beads instead of nupps this time. She used bfl/alpaca blend and silk.
Echo Flower Shawl by Jenny Johnson Johnen is available for free
Full circle
This wool was shorn in October, spun from November to February and knit in February. A full circle from fleece to sweater.
Josefin has made this Icelandic-style yoke sweater in handspun singles lopi-style yarn.
The pattern is Telja by Jennifer Steingass.
Platinum Jubilee bag
HighlandHeffalump made this drawstring bag at a wet-felting group. The theme was a Platinum Jubilee project.
highlandheffalump.com...yop11-week-35-52-finally-a-new-cast-on-and-wet-felting
Silla Hat
biotayarns has made this hat and mitt set using walnut-dyed Cheviot/Llama blend.
Floofy Winter hat
It's not immediately obvious but this hat is woven.
Many fiber-y arts
whimsicalwoollies loves to squish as many fibrey arts together as possible. This project involves hand spun art yarn, circular weaving, needle felted wire work and colourful locks.
Colour work on a single color background
threewatersfarm, who dyed the Mixed BFL wool top that oksanateicholz used here, comments "color work on a single colour background is a great way to use handspun!" and she's right!
Perfect for spring
This jumper is light and airy, mamasteddybear designed it specifically for the yarn that she spun from raw fleece.
There is quite a selection of pictures here if you swipe / click left and right. beginning with a bag of fleece, washing, combing, spinning.
An impressive project.
Crochet Wrap
At first I saw gemstones in this shawl but it turned out to be the way the light was showing through the holes onto the background.
It's beautiful all the same, and the colours in the yarn are jewel-like. Diane says that it's spun from "a handspun sliver from Anna Gratton Ltd called Everglade, 29 micron Corriedale plyed with a fine commercial Merino".
She thinks that the pattern may be Nova Shawl by Sara Kay Hartmann. There are many more photographs in this blog post, along with more details about the spinning and crocheting.
Free patterns and projects
A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn.
Simply Scrappy cowl recipe
Helen says that she doesn't worry about finishing a row when using a new colour, so this recipe is perfect for using scraps. Either choose colours carefully or grab from your stash and see what happens.
It calls for fingering weight but I guess that's not critical and if your yarn is wildly different than you can adjust the number of stitches in multiples of 4.
With thanks to April for the link.
Get Started with Shifter Socks
The colour charts here are very straightforward to knit, but when combined on your project make the whole thing look super complex.
It's suggested that you swatch in-the-round for a 'free' coffee cozy.
There's a 'download' link at the bottom of the post and why not join the knit-a-long?
If you're new to stranded knitting, there's a 'basic techniques' article with video here.
A further bonus is this tutorial about stretchy cast-ons for top-down socks.
lattesandllamas.com/2022/02/13/2022-geek-a-long-get-started-with-shifter-socks
Peggotty by Claire Slade
oswegofiberworks used a Shetland wool / silk blend and the pattern Peggotty by Claire Slade but made some changes. She modified the pattern to use a lighter yarn than the pattern called for, and to take out the garter-in-the-round, which she refused to do!
"The best part about being a knitter is that I can make real what I dream" she says.
More pattern suggestions
Scrollwork by Irina Dmitrieva
Scrollwork by Ukrainian designer Irina Dmitrieva is popular with hand spinners, the one shown is by anneleterme in navajo-plied BFL.
It's knit on 3.5 and 4.5mm needles, uses 150 - 420 yards of worsted-weight (9 wpi) yarn.
Anne says "only 7 patterns repeats and a pompom, I like how it looks, soft and very warm."
Small crochet purse by Natalie Pelikh
We tend to swoon over the soft and fluffy fibres but the tougher, less elastic yarn has its place too.
If you've spun something (intentionally or unintentionally) that isn't so soft or elastic, then there are projects that it'll be perfect for.
Natalie Pelikh has a range of bag patterns ranging from this very pretty little purse to a backpack. They look great in a smooth neat yarn, but she says that they'll also look good in tee-shirt yarn or even macrame cord. Bonus: gauge isn't an issue.
Natty Cap by Anne Hanson
This cap has a hounstooth-style stitch pattern, so use plain yarn that will give good stitch definition, and choose an attractive button.
It uses 175 - 275 yards of DK-weight (11 wpi) yarn.
Where's My Hook? Crochet bun cover by Kay Wiley
This pattern is aimed at the beginner and if you wear your hair in a bun it'll keep your hair neat and your hook handy.
www.darngoodyarn.com...wheres-my-hook-bun-cover-crochet-pattern
But is it art...?
Larry Weyand: life-size bathrooms made entirely of wool
A work that explores the transient space of the bathroom or a fun, fluffy exhibit? You decide.
www.cbc.ca...rug-hooked-bathrooms-craft-council-newfoundland-labrador-1.6338353
Katherine McClelland : detailed portraits
Katherine McClelland creates detailed portraits with wool. She uses needle felting and wet felting.
UK Events
2022
Wild
Farfield Mill, Garsdale Road, Sedbergh, Cumbria, LA10 5LW
Two exhibitions are currently running at Farfield Mill that will inspire those interested in various textile techniques.
"Wild" runs until the end of February, "Threads in Sheds" until the end of March.
New work from around the world, with "wild" as the theme The European Patchwork Meeting tries to inspire a trend towards freedom, opening new and enriching perspectives, an approach off the beaten track which
will inspire you.
The British Tapestry Group National Members touring exhibition "Threads in Sheds" aims to preserve the heritage of tapestry weaving and to celebrate contemporary creativity.
Members from across the organisation who are at various stages of their weaving career have created new works which use a significant element of silk.
Norfolk Makers Festival
9 - 20 March 2022, The Forum, Norwich.
A wide variety of crafts including knittings, spinning, weaving, crochet.
Demonstrations, have-a-go tables, workshops and exhibitions.
Wonderwool Wales
23-24 April 2022, 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.
Mill Open Weekend, John Arbon Textiles
Friday 10 - Sunday 12 June, 2022, John Arbon Textiles, Hacche Lane Business Park, South Molton
This legendary event returns as an in-person event in 2022. Includes mill tour and "all sorts of additional bits and bobs". More details to be announced.
The Wool Monty
18 - 19 June 2022 FlyDSA Arena, Broughton Lane, Sheffield S9 2DF
Accessible, inclusive, welcoming.
Southern Wool Show
3 and 4 September 2022, Newbury Racecourse, Berkshire
The perfect event for all lovers of knitting, crochet, feltmaking, weaving, spinning, dyeing, and all things woolly!
Llandovery Sheep Festival
17 - 18 September 2022,
To highlight and raise awareness of all the wonderful things that our British wool can be used for.
Yarndale
24 and 25 September 2022, Skipton Auction Mart, North Yorkshire
Stunning exhibitions, skill demonstrations and a full programme of textile workshops create a visual feast and make Yarndale a real must-visit for yarn lovers.
The Knitting and Stitching ('Ally Pally') Show
6 - 9 October 2022, Alexandra Palace, London
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.
If you enjoy Hand Spinning News, please do share a link to hand-spinning-news.com by email or on social media with anyone who may be interested. Obviously this early full version is a benefit to you as a paying subscriber. An edited version of this particular issue will be mailed to free subscribers and visible at hand-spinning-news.com later in the month.
It's always good to hear from readers for any reason (or no reason!)
Happy spinning!
Shiela Dixon - Editor / curator
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