A Spinning Spider floating on Gossamer wings

Spider silk, is a very lightweight protein fiber, also known as gossamer. The silk is very strong and can handle a stress load superior to that of high-grade steel, before it breaks.  I am currently working on a post about cloth that was spun by spiders for later this week. Be prepared to be amazed.

Yarn Bombing

 

 Yarn Bombing: The Art of Crochet and Knit Graffiti! By Mandy Moore with Leanne Prain

You probably thought that knitting was some sedate craft for elderly ladies. Yarn Bombing is out there. Be aware…the threat level of seeing yarn graffiti in your area may currently be at “Guarded Level Blue”. But, now that the Yarn Bombing book is in publication, the numbers of Guerilla Knitters will be growing. It will catch on and the alert level may switch to “Elevated Level Yellow” soon.

You ask, “What is this all about?”

It is about knitting and crocheting items that are for public spaces, Knit Graffiti. Sweaters for statues, covers for parking meters, a bus covered in yarn, a street sign cozy, tree warmers, a lamppost wrap …look at some examples by clicking on the picture of the book.

Graffiti Cans

 

Guerilla knitters are here, and they are from all walks of life. The girl next door, the mother-to-be down the street and maybe even the bus driver. These knitters have come out of the house and are now knitting in public and creating art. Well at least making people smile, so take a second look.

Knitting needles are dangerous weapons……in the hands of knitters. It is a passion, an obsession, and a great way to reduce stress while creating something for yourself or a gift.
Knit Graffiti is cropping up all over the world. Have you seen any in your travels? Please let me know where.  I am looking forward to seeing it myself. We have a statue of a dog walker, walking several dogs  in town…winter is coming…maybe the dogs need sweaters.

Yarn Bombed

Cat’s Cradle…- string games (string pictures)

 

Middle Finger Base or Opening A

Cats cradle was just something to keep me entertained  on car rides, when I was young, or so I thought. I have a new respect for string games, and the variety and complexity of many. They increase dexterity, hand eye coordination and memory. String games require a length of string, yarn, approximately 2 yards, made into a loop and two to four hands, sometimes a mouth, wrist or foot gets into the game. The history goes back further than we can date, it’s an ancient pastime. There are 750 documented string games.   

The first writing of a string figure is by a Greek physician Heraklas during the first century. He used it for medical purposes, setting a broken jaw. This is the same figure Aboriginal Australians called The Sun Clouded Over. In 1978 the ISFA was formed…International String Figure Association. Check out the site, they have “A STRING FIGURE OF THE MONTH”. They are also looking for new figures that are recent or are not currently in their database.

There are string figures for one person as well as string figures for two.

“Cats cradle” is the most popular string game. Throughout the world Jacob’s Ladder”, “Tree hole”, “Cup and Saucer”, also have a following, though under different names. There are string games that tell stories, ie: The Candles. You start with one figure and as you tell the story, you keep changing shapes, like pictures in a book. You can entertain yourself or a group of people making shapes of animals, objects, and nature. Some examples are dressing a pelt, casting a spear, two mountains and a stream, a turtle, butterfly, dog and sled…… The list goes on. I do want to say that some off the string pictures do require imagination, much like seeing constellation pictures in the sky. Still, they look like they would be fun to try.

When you are on a bus, train, or plane and the children in the next seat are giving their Mom a hard time, that’s when you can pull out the string. You will be a big hit to everyone…I am off to practice string designs.

Threads

Threads

This photo caught my eye. First it was the fact that it was done with thread. Then I tried to imagine how Charles Csuri accomplished the 3-D face. So I decided to read about him and this piece of artwork. Mr Csuri began in 1964 to help start the field of computer graphics, art and animation. I was starting to think computer graphics…what does that have to do with what I see in this picture. The next sentence explained it. He created “Threads” by writing code. This artwork doesn’t exist in the “real world”. It only exists in cyberspace. Interesting.

What are you thoughts about “Threads”.

Code of the Quipu “Colors” – Pre Columbian textiles: Part II

Inca Quipu

I did some more digging and found information on the colors that makes up  Khipu or Quipu ~ Pre-Columbian textile. A Peruvian, Inca method of keeping inventory and history pre-written language. I was under the paradigm that the 24 colors of the strings (yarn) were made up of 24 different colors. I now understand that there may have only been six different colors and the other eighteen were combinations created during spinning these six different colors.

My digging lead me to Code of the Quipu A study in Media, Mathematics, and Culture by Marcia Ascher and Robert Ascher. It is a reference book on their findings and even tells you how to make a Quipu. I have to say I glanced at this last section. There was a whole lot of detail. Not a 2nd grade class art project!  So if you want more details….check out the book.

A Study in Media, Mathematics, and Culture

I haven’t (as of yet) found any information on the dyeing process. On to the color for now: Each cord has a color. Color is a part of the quipu’s symbolism. Each quipu’s colorcode relates some cords together and sets others apart. Let’s start with the six individual colors. Take a combination of two solid colors and spin them together with an S twist, giving a “candy cane” effect. Two “candy canes” twisted together using a Z twist gives a mottled effect. Different solid color cords could be joined so part of the cord was one color and the other half was another. What I might call a bar effect, they call joining. Using 6 colors and the various candy cane, mottling and joining effects, allows for a large number of distinctly different colors.

I will continue to look for information on the dyeing process of the six colors. So  stay tuned to a possible part three. If anyone has any information or is able to send me in the right direction,  I would appreciate a heads up.

A Yarn about Wool – Childrens book review

A Yarn about Wool

 

“Farmer Brown Shears His Sheep – a Yarn about Wool” by Teri Sloat. The illustrator is Nadine Bernard Westcott.
This book was recommended by a 4 year old. She understood my yarn making process from having this book read to her. Her Mom calls it a “family favorite”. After having read it, I can see the appeal.

It’s spring at the Brown farm and that means sheep shearing time. He shears all seven of his sheep. Spring weather can be fickle, a mix of warm and cold days. So the cold gets his sheep shivering.

In the meantime, he takes the fleece over to Mr. Greene to wash, comb and card. The next step is to Mr. Peale’s for spinning. Mrs. Muller dyes the yarn. And Mr. Brown knits it. I can’t tell you the end, that would spoil it.

I liked the rhyme of the story and the illustrations were cute and colorful. I especially liked that the spinner was a man and that Farmer Brown knits.

This is a delightful way to introduce children to the process of yarn making. This can be read and reread with pleasure. Especially since children do ask for the same book to be repeated over and over.

Let me know what you thought of the book.

Knitting Nell

Z and S Twist in the Garden

I was in my garden this past week noticing the growth, the plants, put on this summer. What put a smile on my face was nature’s own way of spinning and weaving. Also known as twining. These are vines that encircle vertical supports.

5 Leaf Akebia quinata vine

'Z' and 'S' Twisting Plants

A Z or S twist can sometimes help determine the type of plant you have. For instance Chinese wisteria vines (Wisteria sinensis) versus Japanese wisteria vines (Wisteria floribunda). These vines are beautiful, fragrant and the potential to be very invasive. So a word of caution here: if you decide to grow them you will need to be a hands on gardener. Be ruthless about keeping their growth checked. Prune often. You have a Chinese Wisteria if it is growing in a counterclockwise direction  and Japanese Wisteria if it is growing in a clockwise direction . These do well in zones 4 – 9.

What’s twisting in your garden?

A Sunday of Spinning

Brookfield Craft Center Brookfield, CT

The weather was perfect, 78 degrees with a little breeze and sunny. The sun had the same vibrant orange color as the bamboo top, I had just dyed. I have always found that shade of orange captivating since, when I was younger, my mother let me pick the colors of my knitted sweaters. So when my weaving teacher asked me if I would volunteer to spin for three hours, it was this burnt orange that I took with me. I was excited for the opportunity to spin this up and in such an exciting happening. It was “OPEN HOUSE” at the Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT.

OPEN HOUSE 2009

Sunday, September 6

1:00 – 4:00pm

The campus is comprised of 6 buildings and 8 studios. They have classes in glass, clay, fiber, wood and metal. They also have a gallery.

Two women from my weaving class showed up. One came to weave, The other woman to tour the facility. She took a Tai Chi class, that was given outside. It is an old mill so there is a stream that runs alongside. My teacher (on staff), Barbara Hurley, was there and spun also.

The fiber studio is a nice big very open room that is mostly windows and doors…so the light and fresh air was abundant.  There were two weavers, two spinners and a knitter and a felter, The knitter  (on staff), Chris Berte,  had a scarf in a pillar stitch. I think its similar to the herringbone stitch, beautiful. (I’ll try it and get back to you.) The felter, felted clothes, and had this enormous felted Crow marionette, that could pick things up off the floor.

I answered a lot of questions. Saw a lot of people. Hopefully enticed someone to give it a try. A number of people said they had spinning wheels in their houses, that had been passed down to them. I told them how lucky they were. I was lucky too. I had a delightful day.

The day went by quickly. I got quite a bit spun of my burnt orange bamboo.

“WORLD WITHOUT END” with a Fiber Twist (a book review)

      The children have started back to school and the cooler weather is approaching, so what better way to spend some idol hours then with a book. I read World without End the sequal to  The Pillars of the Earth. Ken Follett wrote these historical fiction novels 18 years apart. The story picks up 200 yrs later in Kingsbridge, England, from 1327 – 1361, during medieval times. The characters are well developed and there are a few plot lines that weave themselves through the 1000+ pages. If you haven’t read Pillars of the Earth don’t let that stop you.
       I enjoyed the book and the various plots. What was an added attraction for me was Caris, the daughter of a wealthy wool merchant, a strong female character. One of her goals was to find the formula for making the “Scarlett” dye used in Italian cloth making. She eventually comes upon the formula using an ounce of madder, and two ounces of alum for every three ounces of wool, after much trial and error. The result is “Kingsbridge scarlet”, a low quality red wool fabric. You get to follow the process from start to finish. During which time the cloth is fulled and teaseled. Wool merchants were imporant in the English economy and trade within Europe. Caris’s business sense lead to many families becoming wealthy, working in the wool trade. She is an incredible business woman, in a time where there was little opportunity for women.

For the fiber lover in you there are fleece fairs and dyers and weavers and a flavor of how life  was for these artisans.
But, this is only one small part of the book that covers: the plague, cathedral builders, politics of the clergy, wars with France, the unscrupulousness of the nobility and that’s all in the first few pages. 🙂
If the number of pages is a stumbling block…a book on tape (for the car) is a great idea.
ENJOY!

Baffin Island: A Norse Yarn

A piece of yarn proves the Norse arrived in North America before Columbus.

The Norse (Vikings) explored Baffin Island (Helluland – land of the flat stones) during the 13th century. Much before Columbus came to the Americas. Baffin Island was inhabited by Dorset Palaeo-Eskimos from 500 B.C. to 1500 A.D. These people wore clothes made from animal skins. Eskimos of this area did not spin fiber or weave. During excavation of the area, a piece of yarn was found. The yarn, 3 meters in length, was identified as a blend of fur of the Arctic hare and goat hair. Patricia Sutherland, Associate Curator of the Canadian Museum of Civilization recognized the piece of yarn as being similar to yarn she had seen before. The previous piece was from an archaeological excavation of a medieval Norse farm in Greenland. Research is continuing to find out more information about the Norse in Pre-Columbian America.

A little bit of yarn goes a long way.