According to one handspun yarn enthusiast, it's way too early for Christmas cards in the shops, but it's not too early to think about making your own decorations or planning an advent activity. Our gallery this month features wreaths, trees and an Advent fibre swop.
Also this time we have a back-in-time theme, with more medieval-style spindle-twiddling, a look at the textile trade of the time and some replica viking spindle whorls.
In case you hadn't noticed, we're approaching Halloween and so Yvonne is mixed up in a suitably spooky story.
Here's another mention for the UK Supplier List. (Permanent link in the header above.) This is still new and I'm still adding to the database. If you know anyone who should be listed, or if you are included and would like to update your details, please let me know.
Read on for this month's cunning curated collection of inspirational information and entertainment for spinners, knitters, crocheters, dyers and weavers. This is the full issue for October 2019.
Find out how to receive a longer, ad-free version of HSN earlier in the month.
Photo right: Done and good, Knit/Wit. The cover photo is the author's own, sheep by Rutland Water
Michael Portillo and 600 other freemen have driven a flock of 30 mule sheep over London Bridge on 4 October in an ancient tradition known as the Woolmen's Sheep Drive and Wool Fair.
The Evening Standard has the story if you can find it among the ads.
Being carbon-neutral is becoming a virtue in the fashion industry.
London based company, Sheep Inc. are creating 'carbon-negative' jumpers. In return for the rather high price tag, you will get day-to-day updates on your adopted sheep's activities and whereabouts (probably not the actual sheep your jumper came from) as well as details about the carbon footprint of your jumper's manufacture.
www.euronews.com...jumper-lets-you-adopt-sheep-that-the-wool-came-from
These aren't genuine Viking spindle whorls but they are replicas made from stone from the same place that some original whorls were found, and they were made using the correct tools for the time.
Liz recently bought another one to go with some that she already had. Here's the story of how she met the man who made it.
Congratulations to Josefin for winning the 'people's choice' medal for her yarn at the 2019 fleece and spinning championships, Sweden.
The categories were demanding, the intermediate required a sock yarn from a primitive-breed fleece. For the advanced category spinners were asked to make yarn for a cape similar to that found on the Bocksten bog man.
The Bocksten man was found with the most complete men's outfit in Europe from his time (1290-1430). Josefin has included a picture of the outfit.
She has detailed how she prepared and spun her yarn for both categories.
As a bonus, in a follow-up post she takes us on a detailed tour of the Swedish fleece championships.
waltin.se/josefinwaltinspinner/swedish-spinning-championships-2019
April has posted a large number of pictures from her factory visit of Schacht to celebrate their 50th anniversary.
www.withwool.com/blog/2019/9/25/celebrating-schachts-50th-anniversary
Let's take a trip back in time to the 14th and 15th centuries and across to the Malmö area (Sweden).
This essay by Viveka Hansen gives a picture of the textile trade at that time, where it was produced, how it was transported and traded. It refers to objects in the Malmö Museum. There are a number of illustrations including this delightful artistic impression of how the coastal town could have appeared in late Medieval time.
www.ikfoundation.org/itextilis/domestic-imported-woollen-cloth.html
This is baby camel down, spun from punis using supported spindle.
Rachel has been documenting her progress in words and pictures in her Instagram feed. Click her spottedsheepstudio handle to view all pictures
rahardjo has modified her Electric Eel Nano to take a quill. She used a wooden 5mm DPN.
Jenn believes that life in the past must have been more colourful than we might imagine, if her experiments with foraged local plants are anything to go by.
This amazing finished project is her Norfolk Horn blanket. It uses Norfolk fleece and dyeplants that she's gathered and also some which have local connections.
The darker background yarn was spun from lambs fleeces which she says were "Silky soft and buttery warm".
These two skeins are very complementary but one is a handspun blend of silk and linen and the
other is a commercial skein of silk gima.
They match because they were dyed at the same time. Joanne plans to use them together in a project.
Single or double-treadle? This is a question that has provoked some fierce debate and letters to magazines.
Spinners will vote with their feet. There are pros and cons and many are now moving to 'zero-treadle' electric spinners.
Prompted by this amusing picture of Barry Schacht pedalling his double-treadle wheel, Anne Merrow has written this article which appears on the new Spin-Off magazine website.
spinoffmagazine.com/treadles-more-or-less-single-treadle-or-double-treadle
Last month's video featuring Josefin spinning on an antique French spindle prompted some comments.
Elly suggested this video showing the same 'twiddling' technique being used at an Open Farm day. The spinner has some interesting comments and it's fascinating to watch her well-prepared fibre "drafting itself".
Shetland Wool Week patron Oliver Henry called this year's event a "phenomenal success".
You can see the address that HRH the Prince of Wales made to the event.
There has been talk that the event is growing too large but Mr Henry has offered some suggestions including opening up more country halls, laying on busses and extending the event.
This earlier article reports on the massive turnout for the opening ceremony (with an amazing picture.)
www.shetlandtimes.co.uk/2019/10/07/wool-week-described-as-phenomenal-success-by-patron-henry
September 21 was the third Saturday in September and therefore Worldwide Spin in Public Day.
The Worstead Guild of WSD spent the day at Wroxham Barns and have posted pictures on their blog.
Many other groups and individuals worldwide were also out - pictures can be found on the official Facebook page and on Instagram
worsteadweavers.org.uk/2019/09/25/world-wide-spin-in-public-day
BritSpin is an athletic-themed spinning event to raise money for a chosen UK charity, this time Alzheimer's Society and Alzheimer Scotland.
I'll be able to give the grand total raised next month because it's still 'winding down' as the full issue goes out. Yardages are still being counted and totals calculated.
Team members have been posting pictures of handspun yarn and spinning in groups or in public. View on Instagram here or the Facebook group. The picture and main link are HighlandHeffalump's progress.
Whether you have one of Pamela's multi-tools or some other control card / twist angle gauge, or if you're thinking of getting these tools, Pamela's videos on this page will explain how to use them.
www.fibersprite.com/blog/using-the-fiber-sprite-spinners-multitool...
When Jillian doesn't want to get out her blending board and just needs a couple of textured rolags, she gets out her hand carders and uses them like mini blending boards.
She details two methods of adding the fibre.
www.jillianmoreno.com/journal/2019/10/2/hand-cards-for-textured-rolags-and-roving
Amy has made this sock using two 2oz braids, one with a progression, and one solid in a different colour.
The video that she refers to, in which she talks about the technique, is here.
You may have heard the terms combo draft and combo spin and like me assumed that they were one an the same thing.
Jiillian Moreno explains. The difference in the finished swatches is dramatic.
This article appears as the Knittyspin column in the first fall issue of Knitty.com
"waste wool" is the crumbly, short, coarse stuff sheared from a sheep's back end, legs and head.
It's also known as "dirty wool" or "black wool" because It's filthy. Scouring it is expensive and water-intensive.
Will Stevens has run a trial comparing no fertilizer, a commonly-used one and a trial organic fertilizer made from wool.
The wool pellets, which contain nutrients as well as improving water retention, produced broccoli as large as the commonly-used fertilizer, and produced them faster.
addisonindependent.com/news/golden-russet-using-sheep-wool-fertilizer
The push towards wearable devices involves giving yarn properties such as energy storing, energy harvesting and touch sensitivity.
Researchers in Drexel University's College of Engineering and Center for Functional Fabrics feel that they have developed a new way to give yarn these properties while still remaining durable, washable and capable of being machine-knit.
The process involves impregnating and coating regular yarn with a 'two-dimensional' materila called MXene.
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-10/du-tny101019.php
If you like Yvonne, click the image to find her page, you can use next and previous to explore more cartoons, and join the mailing list for a regular digest email.
Thank you very much if you've had a go at any of these on your computer or tablet.
I've set them up with 35 - 50 pieces- just the right number for a coffee-break challenge and you gradually reveal the cartoon.
But if you fancy more of a challenge (or less) you can customise the number of pieces before you start.
Are you a teacher, pattern designer, dyer, equipment manufacturer or supplier?
Would you like to reach the readership of thousands of hand spinners and at the same time help to support Hand Spinning News ?
This Cheviot, Leicester, Jacobs, Lonk and Black Welsh roving was reserved from a 'single farm yarns' project.
The farms are low intensity, high nature value with a strong emphasis on animal welfare. The fleece was processed in a Derbyshire mill.
Contact Kate Schofield (Lancashire Farm Wools) for more details, availability and prices by email at schofield316@btinternet.com.
Over the course of a year, Esther Rutter - who grew up on a sheep farm in Suffolk, and learned to spin, weave and knit as a child - travels the length of the British Isles, to tell the story of wool's long history here.
This is Kathryn Hughes' review of the book which appears in The Guardian.
www.theguardian.com/books/2019/sep/13/this-golden-fleece-esther-rutter-review
Sometimes just a picture is enough
Jean has made these flowers using thrums - loom waste. The pieces are short and have to be knotted.
She doesn't give instructions for making the flowers, but Schacht has published instructions for similar flower petals and leaves here.
onesmallstitch.wordpress.com/2019/09/14/scrap-happy-september-2
We saw the Art Deco spinning wheel only last month, but Gary has since modified it at the buyer's request. I liked the simplicity of the first version but his deco-style painting of the cat with the ball of yarn is beautiful.
https://olympicspinningwheels.wordpress.com/2019/09/17/art-deco-wheel-2-0/
Why stop at the end of the Tour de Fleece? Knit/Wit began a sweater spin which she's just finished
She hopes that this gorgeous yarn amounts to around 1200 yards and I'm looking forward to seeing how it looks knitted.
Here's a wonderful twist on the Christmas wreath from milancorinne. They're made from dyed Wensleydale locks.
These little Christmas trees involve metal art as well as art yarn.
This lace shawl is Gothic Angel by Boo Knits, it is beaded and has three little extensions from the border which give it a fractal look.
Chicksinrubber's is made from purple silk gradient spun from Hilltop Cloud fibre.
www.ravelry.com/people/chicksinrubber/handspun/purple-silk-gradient
This month's Sexy Spindle Shot is this extremely cute tiny Turk. It features pyrographed and coloured flowers and butterflies.
Even through Google Translate, the Swedish text is difficult to understand, but I gather that she's adding twist to a low-twist (or no-twist) yarn, because it comes apart so easily when knitting.
It's always good to see process photos and in this case it's the full journey from 'animal to yarn'.
This very flooffy hat is made from golden retriever with blue wool highlights.
I've always loved this stained glass effect. Here knitshadows paired 'combospun' yarn with some local brown fleece
The coloured fibre is from Three Waters Farm and spun during Tour de Fleece 2019.
"Probably my favorite finished object to date", says knitshadows.
This could be the third rendition of the Fileuse Spinning Wheel Sweater that we've seen here. It's a popular and free pattern for handspun yarn.
The pink and green were both from a single fleece, 'dyed in the wool' before drum carding and spinning.
BoogerHollerFluff didn't want it super-tight and modified the pattern a little to fit her with 'neutral ease'.
A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn.
I think we've had this pattern featured in this spot before, but I was prompted by this handspun rendition by vermontgirlamy which she made as a last-minute competition entry.
Pattern designer Susan Ashcroft says that it's "perfect for long-striping or handpainted yarns".
Amy King has made Flax using her own dyed 'Targhee Classic' yarn, a 'nearly solid' colourway. She looks very happy with it.
The pattern is free and comes in a very wide range of sizes from newborn to 4XL. It's made using aran-weight (8 wpi) yarn, but if you fancy something lighter, there is a version which is also free and uses fingering-weight yarn. Follow the links to 'Flax Light'.
Let's Knit promise that this chunky cardy "will become your wardrobe staple throughout autumn and winter"
Requires free sign-up with Let's Knit (originally published in issue 110, October 2016)
The suggested yarns are 7wpi. (gauge is 16stsx23rows=4"/10cm using rice stitch.)
www.letsknit.co.uk/free-knitting-patterns/essential-chunky-cardigan
This hat works beautifully with handspun. Use a yarn with colour changes of your choice (109 yards). The dark colour could be handspun or a commercial solid dark colour (231 yards)
It's one-size. If your head size is above or below average, I guess you can adjust needle and/or yarn sizes.
For the adventurous, there is a matching sweater.
The pattern uses intarsia technique to create the patchwork effect. It includes charts and instructions, notes on intarsia and stranding and a phototutorial on splicing yarn ends.
Thanks to Dumpy for posting pictures of her handspun version.
These bagels look good enough to eat.
They were made by Kate Jenkins to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Panzer's, known as London's "original Jewish deli".
on 12 November you'll be able to create a bespoke bagel by selecting from a choice of knit and crocheted elements such as knitted smoked salmon, sliced red onion and tomatoes.
Kate will be there 'serving' them on the night. When customers make their selection, she will take them back to her studio, stitch them onto mountboard, sign and frame them for the customer.
www.creativeboom.com...jenkins-knits-and-crochets-an-entire-bagel-bar
Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 October 2019, Kendal Leisure Centre
Kendal Wool Gathering mixes demonstrations, fun activities and displays, all connected to the cloth on which the town's wealth was built.
A large number of exhibitors will be bringing a huge variety of goods including yarns, dyes, crafts, art, accessories, tools, felting, crochet, patterns, carpets, looms, spinning wheels and more. Outside there will be livestock, where you can meet a variety of sheep and Llamas, whilst learning about the important Lake District sheep farming industry.
Nottingham Conference Centre Goldsmith Street Entrance, Nottingham. NG1 4BU
Sunday 17 November.
Scotland is more usually associated with tartan and tweed, but linen and flax are an important part of its history
This touring exhibition aims to combine stories from the past with new works from contemporary designers.
The towns in Scotland, Ireland and the Netherlands that the tour visits have their own stories and this gives the opportunity to include local designers and stories.
I'm Shiela Dixon, I've beeing doing this for around ten years in order to promote and encourage the craft of spinning.
You can help to support this work with a regular contribution (pay what you like, no matter how small) and in return receive HSN earlier and receive a longer ad-free* version (approx half the number of stories again).
A final word of thanks to everyone who blogs, writes articles or posts pictures on the subject of spinning, knitting, crochet or weaving. This newsletter wouldn't exist without people writing interesting and useful things.
If you enjoy Hand Spinning News, please don't keep it to yourself. Obviously the link to the full version is a benefit for paying subscribers, but please do share a link to hand-spinning-news.com by email or on social media with anyone who may be interested.
It's always good to hear from readers for any reason (or no reason!)
Happy spinning!
Shiela Dixon - Editor / curator
If you're reading this newsletter on the web and would like it delivered to your email inbox for free every month, just fill in your email address in the box somewhere below. If you've reading this in your inbox and would prefer not to receive any more, just use the Mailchimp 'unsubscribe' link at the foot of the email.
A PeacockMedia publication
Hand Spinning News as a free monthly email.
Please share HSN with your friends:
Follow me on Instagram
Facebook
Twitter
