So, biting the bullet and stepping out of my comfort zone I decided it was time to see if I could join the Cornwall Guild of Spinners and Weavers .The website is very informative and they looked like a lively bunch, so I contacted the secretary and invited myself along to the September meeting. The second meeting was very busy and it was a bit difficult to get a seat, but once again I persevered and as I had enjoyed the meeting, I accepted the invitation to become a member.
At the meeting last Friday, Jane Deane gave us a talk about the production of silk and told us a great deal about silk worms. Then in the afternoon, she demonstrated how to spin the different silk fibres she had supplied and spent some time with us discussing how the sinning was going. Some members had not spun silk before and were given a lot of help.
How was the meeting for me? Well, another tentative start and I was not made as welcome as I would have liked. Still, at least I've made a start and perhaps it will get easier as time passes. There are some very talented spinners and weavers and some real characters so I am looking forward to the next meeting. Billed as a weaving day, but I'm not sure what that entails. It will be good to get back to some weaving!
Sunday, 28 October 2012
Monday, 1 October 2012
What a long time
it's been since I last updated this blog and what a lot has happened.
We have moved house, and said a fond farewell to Yorkshire and a wow here we are then to Cornwall! Our move did not go as smoothly as we had hoped, but after a bit of a wait we finally moved into our temporary home and started unpacking.
My spinning, knitting and weaving activities have taken rather a back seat, but I have now started spinning again and have joined the Cornwall Guild. They have two meetings each month, one held on a Friday at Probus and one on a Saturday at Chacewater. Both meetings seem to be very well attended and some members attend both.
It was just a little nerve wracking going to the first meeting because I didn't know anyone and did feel a bit unwelcome at first, but I'm fortunate in that I can barge my way into other people's conversations so I soon felt a bit more comfortable.
It came as a bit of a surprise to find that many of the members have their own sheep and some have goats too. The animals seem to be mostly kept as pets rather than for meat or wool and there seems to be a preference for Jacobs, although one also has Rylands.
Many of the members are also accomplished weavers and that is what I want to get to grips with next so I think I will be able to get quite a bit of help.
So here we are near the sea and able to go for lovely long walks along the coast path, see lots of birds, ships and breathe the lovely sea air! So here are a few photos to whet the appetite!
A lovely place to be and lots to look forward to!
We have moved house, and said a fond farewell to Yorkshire and a wow here we are then to Cornwall! Our move did not go as smoothly as we had hoped, but after a bit of a wait we finally moved into our temporary home and started unpacking.
My spinning, knitting and weaving activities have taken rather a back seat, but I have now started spinning again and have joined the Cornwall Guild. They have two meetings each month, one held on a Friday at Probus and one on a Saturday at Chacewater. Both meetings seem to be very well attended and some members attend both.
It was just a little nerve wracking going to the first meeting because I didn't know anyone and did feel a bit unwelcome at first, but I'm fortunate in that I can barge my way into other people's conversations so I soon felt a bit more comfortable.
It came as a bit of a surprise to find that many of the members have their own sheep and some have goats too. The animals seem to be mostly kept as pets rather than for meat or wool and there seems to be a preference for Jacobs, although one also has Rylands.
Many of the members are also accomplished weavers and that is what I want to get to grips with next so I think I will be able to get quite a bit of help.
So here we are near the sea and able to go for lovely long walks along the coast path, see lots of birds, ships and breathe the lovely sea air! So here are a few photos to whet the appetite!
A lovely place to be and lots to look forward to!
Thursday, 3 May 2012
Norwegian Purl
Until now my attempts to master the continental style of knitting have not been all that successful and even with the help of Lisa who has never knitted any other way, I was finding it impossible to keep an even tension. Then I saw an advert for an on line class which seemed to fit the bill. Anni is originally from Norway, but is now based in Cornwall and has a business selling yarns, knitting patterns and lots of other goodies.
So I signed up for the class and now, after a bit of trial and error and a lot of practice, hey, I can do it!!!! The link to the course details are here and although the current course has ended, Anni is planning to do another one soon. The videos are fairly short, but well done and you can download them and view them as many times as you like. There is also a message board where you can post comments and ask questions.
Anni can also be contacted through Ravelry which is a free site for knitters, crocheters and anyone interested in textiles. It is a fantastic resource for information about all aspects of knitting and spinning and there are simply hundreds of patterns that you can access and download, many of them for free.
As I will be moving away from Yorkshire very soon, it is comforting to know that I will still be able to keep in touch with friends over the Internet and exchange views and ideas even if I can't meet up face to face.
No knitting photos I'm afraid, but here's a photo of someone special who I shall miss a great deal, but who is going to teach me how to use Skype!
So I signed up for the class and now, after a bit of trial and error and a lot of practice, hey, I can do it!!!! The link to the course details are here and although the current course has ended, Anni is planning to do another one soon. The videos are fairly short, but well done and you can download them and view them as many times as you like. There is also a message board where you can post comments and ask questions.
Anni can also be contacted through Ravelry which is a free site for knitters, crocheters and anyone interested in textiles. It is a fantastic resource for information about all aspects of knitting and spinning and there are simply hundreds of patterns that you can access and download, many of them for free.
As I will be moving away from Yorkshire very soon, it is comforting to know that I will still be able to keep in touch with friends over the Internet and exchange views and ideas even if I can't meet up face to face.
No knitting photos I'm afraid, but here's a photo of someone special who I shall miss a great deal, but who is going to teach me how to use Skype!
Thursday, 16 February 2012
Going Continental
For all the years I have been knitting, I haven't really tried to master the continental way of knitting even though I'm told it's quicker and easier. So, I watched this on You Tube
The most difficult part is holding the yarn firmly enough to make sure of an even tension, but not too firmly to stop it moving freely. Somehow, I seem to be finding it very hard to make progress, but in the true spirit of adventure I'm persevering.
So what are the advantages? Well, the garment definitely grows faster. Because the yarn is held still and isn't wrapped around the needle, your arms and shoulders don't have to move as much. This makes it easier right? So far the jury is out.
My friend Lisa, who is German and is an accomplished continental knitter has offered to give me a tutorial and in return, she would like me to show her how to knit the English way! Nowt so queer as folk!
So next post might include a photo or two! In the meantime, I'm having another try so that the DGG has a nice thick chunky sweater in time for her next lot of lambing duties next month!
The most difficult part is holding the yarn firmly enough to make sure of an even tension, but not too firmly to stop it moving freely. Somehow, I seem to be finding it very hard to make progress, but in the true spirit of adventure I'm persevering.
So what are the advantages? Well, the garment definitely grows faster. Because the yarn is held still and isn't wrapped around the needle, your arms and shoulders don't have to move as much. This makes it easier right? So far the jury is out.
My friend Lisa, who is German and is an accomplished continental knitter has offered to give me a tutorial and in return, she would like me to show her how to knit the English way! Nowt so queer as folk!
So next post might include a photo or two! In the meantime, I'm having another try so that the DGG has a nice thick chunky sweater in time for her next lot of lambing duties next month!
Friday, 27 January 2012
January Blues
It seems that we are no longer waiting for our buyer as we thought we were, just any buyer. It is really frustrating when people don't let you know and we are both feeling a bit down. But having said that, I haven't been idle.
So what have I been up to. Well, over Christmas, I knitted two socks, (unfortunately not the same pair, but the second one of pair one and the first one of pair two); two moebious scarves (one was too small so I had to knit a second) and a crochet curly wurly scarf! Well there wasn't anything on TV that we wanted to watch and it rained quite hard.
Then back home to a festive meal with the DD and her family when we demolished an extremely large joint of beef at one sitting followed by a very dubious sponge pudding!
I have now finished spinning the 50 grams of Camel and Silk I started back in the summer, the Merino and Silk I started in Autumn 2010 and am now setting out to spin the silk singles for my intended weaving project, unless something more interesting comes along. It just might because I have decided that spinning a very fine yarn, not only takes ages, but gets a bit boring!
The DH has a very fetching pair of fingerless gloves, just completed and the second sock is underway! Another moebious has been cast on, but I may need to find a bigger circular needle because the yarn is quite thick and I may have cast on too many stitches.
We went to London for the day to see the Leonardo exhibition at the National Gallery which was very enjoyable apart from a rather injudicious choice of footwear that caused me to have very sore feet. No photographs allowed, but we treated ourselves to a catalogue ( reduced of course!) and also a very nice cream tea. Although the lighting was very low, and it was very crowded and hot, it was possible to get quite close to the paintings and drawings and there seemed to be an innate understanding between everyone as to when to move on and let someone else get close.
My favourite exhibit was the little notebook in which Leonardo had made some drawings and had written some notes in his famous mirror writing. The book was tiny and quite tatty and you could imagine that he had just put it down even though you know that he last handled it 500 years ago.
Not much to photograph as it's been so dismal, so here are a few shots taken in Trafalgar Square on our day out. This is "Tom" a young street artist pushing a tennis racquet over his body while riding a huge unicycle! A true artist!
Here is a magnificent ship in a bottle which occupies the Fourth Plinth.
Here is yours truly. Head and shoulder's only please Dave!
And the Olympic Clock, which it seems is the tourist's choice of photographic background!
Back to the knitting!
So what have I been up to. Well, over Christmas, I knitted two socks, (unfortunately not the same pair, but the second one of pair one and the first one of pair two); two moebious scarves (one was too small so I had to knit a second) and a crochet curly wurly scarf! Well there wasn't anything on TV that we wanted to watch and it rained quite hard.
Then back home to a festive meal with the DD and her family when we demolished an extremely large joint of beef at one sitting followed by a very dubious sponge pudding!
I have now finished spinning the 50 grams of Camel and Silk I started back in the summer, the Merino and Silk I started in Autumn 2010 and am now setting out to spin the silk singles for my intended weaving project, unless something more interesting comes along. It just might because I have decided that spinning a very fine yarn, not only takes ages, but gets a bit boring!
The DH has a very fetching pair of fingerless gloves, just completed and the second sock is underway! Another moebious has been cast on, but I may need to find a bigger circular needle because the yarn is quite thick and I may have cast on too many stitches.
We went to London for the day to see the Leonardo exhibition at the National Gallery which was very enjoyable apart from a rather injudicious choice of footwear that caused me to have very sore feet. No photographs allowed, but we treated ourselves to a catalogue ( reduced of course!) and also a very nice cream tea. Although the lighting was very low, and it was very crowded and hot, it was possible to get quite close to the paintings and drawings and there seemed to be an innate understanding between everyone as to when to move on and let someone else get close.
My favourite exhibit was the little notebook in which Leonardo had made some drawings and had written some notes in his famous mirror writing. The book was tiny and quite tatty and you could imagine that he had just put it down even though you know that he last handled it 500 years ago.
Not much to photograph as it's been so dismal, so here are a few shots taken in Trafalgar Square on our day out. This is "Tom" a young street artist pushing a tennis racquet over his body while riding a huge unicycle! A true artist!
Back to the knitting!
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