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Fibre and Friends

Fibre and Friends

It’s been a while since I published anything, as I have been going through quite a difficult time.  But I was determined to finish the year with a blog, so this one is a bit of an amalgamation!  Way back in April, I was lucky enough to be invited on a day trip to Wonderwool 2022 by my friend Debbie.  I hadn’t even heard of Wonderwool when she invited me, but when she told me all about it, I couldn’t wait to go!!

For those of you (like me) who have not heard of Wonderwool, it is an annual wool and natural fibre festival that is held in The Royal Welsh Showground, Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, Powys, Wales.  It was 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 has grown over the years, and ‘covers everything from the start to the end of the creative process’.  There are exhibits of sheep, raw and hand dyed fibres, yarn, embellishments, equipment, dyes, books and also finished textile art, craft, clothing and home furnishings.   Basically, it’s a felt and fibre artist’s dream come true, where like-minded people can find almost anything they need, and it instills a feeling of excitement, much like a child in a toy shop (at least that’s how I felt!) Because of the covid pandemic, it hadn’t run for a year or two, but this year was to be the first event since the pandemic, so there was great anticipation of the resuming of this popular event.

 

Around the same time, I had been looking for a carding machine, as I wanted to start making my own wool batts to spin.  Just before my friend invited me to Wonderwool, I had found a lovely Pat Green Carder for sale on Facebook Marketplace, and I had decided to purchase it.  However, the lady selling it (Mary Rogers) lived in Birmingham, England, so I was trying to work out when I could make the drive up to Birmingham to collect it.  As it happened, Mary told me that she was planning to go to Wonderwool, and could bring the carder with her!  Fantastic, I thought… this is definitely meant to be!!  Don’t you just love it when things just fall into place?!

 

Having made all the arrangements, Debbie and I took the drive up to Builth Wells for the day, and boy, was I totally inspired!  When we walked into Wonderwool, I can honestly say my eyes must have lit up!  I really did feel like a child in a sweet shop!!  There was stall after stall of beautiful fibre, yarn, and all things sheep (not to mention other types of fibre, including alpaca, angora to name a few)!!  What struck me first, was the wonderful array of colour.  There were exhibitions of different fibre craft, demonstrations of spinning and weaving, with exhibitors from all over the UK.  We also had the chance to talk to a range of like-minded people, who were happy to share their tips and techniques with us.  Wow, what a wonderful time we had!

 

One of the exhibitors we spent time talking to, was a lady by the name of Edna Gibson, who explained that she had spent time living in Japan being taught the wonderful art of Kumihimo, an umbrella term for several kinds of Japanese braidmaking that were unknown outside Japan until about 30 years ago.  Edna told us that she was instrumental in introducing Kumihimo to the UK.   The term Kumihimo is a composite of two words, ‘kumi’ meaning coming together or group, and ‘himo’ meaning string, cord, rope or braid.  Whilst most of us will have  heard of Samurai,  I didn’t realise that the Samurai armour plates are laced together with cords, traditionally Kumihimo braids, which are also tied around ‘obis’, the sashes used on kimonos.  Edna explained that she was taught Kumihimo by a very skilled Japanese person, and brought her knowledge back to the UK.  The looms used for Kumihimo are known as ‘dai’ or ‘stands’, and are usually made from either wood or bamboo.  All the dai are set up with carefully measured threads (as many as 80 strands of fine silk are wound on each bobbin or ‘tama’).  The weighted bobbins are lifted and moved in specific repeated sequences  to produce each type of braid. Traditionally, silk was used to make braids but today, braiders also use artificial silk or rayon.

  This is my friend Debbie, with the lovely and very knowledgeable Edna.

This shows the two types of dai used.  Apologies for the poor quality of this photo, but it was taken from one of the information boards Edna had put up…

  The top photo shows braiding on a ‘Marudai’ and the bottom photo shows braiding on a ‘Takadai’.

Edna’s braiding…

 

As you can imagine, it was hard not to go on a full-out spending spree at Wonderwool!! There were so many beautiful fibres on offer, not to mention everything else!! I haven’t crocheted for many years, but was inspired by a beautiful pattern, by Janie Crow called ‘Mystical Lanterns’.  I ended up purchasing both the pattern and the yarn!  It’s a work in progress, but I’m enjoying the process!

These show some of the exhibits on show at Wonderwool.  Hopefully, my scarf will turn out as lovely.

 

There were so many exhibits and stalls, too many to include here, but this will give you a flavour of a few of the exhibits on show…

  To be honest, I was so busy choosing fibre to purchase, I didn’t take any photographs of the actual stalls!!

 

At the end of the day, I met up with Mary and her friend, to collect my drum carder.  It was lovely to share a coffee and a chat with her, and she was able to share the history of the carder with me.  We parted the day friends who share a passion for fibre, and agreed we would definitely meet up again at next year’s Wonderwool!  We shared a ‘selfie’ before we left…

 

As I mentioned, I haven’t posted for a while, due to going through a very difficult period in my life, which resulted in me not having the energy or inclination to do any fibre craft whatsoever, so I had not actually even tried out my new carder until quite recently.  But when I felt able to resume my spinning, I found it really helped me in a very mindful way.  I particularly found that spinning brought me a sense of calm and peacefulness, with positivity and joy.

 

My first project was back in October, hence the autumnal colours!  I put together a collection of merino fibre of different colours, with one part of bamboo in a dark shade.  I weighed the fibre first, as I wanted to make two batts of fibre that I could spin ready to weave with.

 

Having never used a drum carder before, this was all experimental but in the end, I was really pleased with how it turned out…

I didn’t want to blend the fibre too much, as I wanted to have the different colours come through when I spun it.  Also, I’d heard about people ending up with ‘mud’, so that was something else I wanted to avoid.  Having blended my fibre to reflect my need, I then proceeded to spin it….

This shows the difference when using a flash (on the left) verses no flash (right).

Once I had filled my bobbin completely, I proceeded to wind it into a ball, so I could ply it from both ends of the yarn.

This is the finished yarn, once it was soaked to set the twist, thwacked and dried…

  I’m quite pleased with the results.  I also feel that my spinning has improved a bit since I posted on her last time!  I’m looking forward to weaving with this yarn over the Christmas holiday period.  Hopefully I will be able to show you the end product in my next blog!

Wishing you all a very merry Christmas and a happy, healthy 2023, from Lisa and Alex 🙂

 

Framed Pieces for Exhibition

Framed Pieces for Exhibition

I hope everyone is not tired of seeing these pieces. But everyone wanted to see them framed and I got them back from the framer and I’m really happy with them. They will be in an exhibition in September at The Purple Pomegranate in Whitefish, Montana, USA. The name of the exhibition is Directions and features four other artists. If you’re in the area, the opening will be September 6th from 6-9 pm in conjunction with Whitefish Gallery Nights.

Flathead Sunset – 11″ x 14″

Up the Northfork – 11.5″ x 14″

Autumn Mountain – 13″ x 18″

Morning Aspen – 13″ x 21″

Stormy Beargrass – 13″ x 22″ (I have shown you two photos because the first one on the left has a bee photo bomb)

Fireweed – 15.5″ x 33″

Also, I wanted to remind everyone that Teri Berry’s Felted Concertina Hat online class is open for registration. You can register here. 

You can learn to make great hats like this one!

Uncommon Threads at Bigfork Art and Cultural Center

Uncommon Threads at Bigfork Art and Cultural Center

I attended the opening reception of Uncommon Threads at the Bigfork Art and Cultural Center in Bigfork, Montana last evening. A couple of weeks ago, I framed or remounted 14 pieces of artwork and entered them into the exhibition. I also included my felt tree at the last moment. The exhibition lasts through September 22nd so if you’re in the area, do stop in to see all the great work.  I didn’t get photos of all the artwork as there was quite a crowd there and it was hard to get photos of everything.

These pieces are by Juliane Ketcher. She uses a variety of techniques in her work including felting.

These three are by my friend Louise Barker. By the end of the evening the one in the middle had sold.

I didn’t get this artist’s name but her company is Rocky Mountain Clothing and Textile Company. The weaving on this is really cool.

This is a large felted piece by Diana Lasa-Blair. Not sure who made the hat, scarf and jacket though.

These are by my friend Sally Glutting. The little red dot on the fly fishing piece means that it sold too!

These felted and beaded pieces are by Debra Pollard.

The needle felted birds and animals are by Ann Keenan.

And then there was my work. If you have followed this blog for a while, I think you will recognize most of the pieces. And if you look closely, there is a little red dot by one of my pieces too! How exciting that all three people in our little fiber art group sold a piece on the first night of the exhibition.

The other portion of the exhibition was an installation which involved many members of the community. I couldn’t get a photo of the entire installation and there was a painting at the top that I didn’t seem to get at all. But the installation was made up of knitting, crochet, felt and other fiber materials. It was really fun because peeking out from various areas were little animals. I contributed a felt rock and a few other pieces which were included in the installation. Thanks to the artists that put this together as it is a really interesting installation and it’s fun to see all the details included.

 

The Midwest Fiber and Folk Art Fair, August 1-3, 2014

The Midwest Fiber and Folk Art Fair, August 1-3, 2014

by Guest Artist/Author Cathy Wycliff (Luvswool)

We, Marilyn (Pandagirl) and I (Luvswool),  had never attended a “fiber fair,” so there were expectations and then the reality of the Fair.  We had planned for many months to attend the annual Fair and met there early Friday morning with great anticipation. The advance program showed photos of sheep, fiber, workshops, art exhibits, bags of fleece, etc., and the Fair delivered all of that except for the sheep. One of the organizers explained to me that August is too hot for sheep, and I guess that makes sense. So, the only live animals were a lonely llama and a couple of angora rabbits. Still, it was an enjoyable experience.

The Fair has been held for 8 years in Grayslake, IL, a far northwestern town in the extended Chicago metro area, and it’s a Fair that celebrates the work of many hands. We saw spinners, felters, and knitters demonstrating their crafts, and there were many workshops offered during the 3-day fair. There were a couple of folk singers and a few food vendors outdoors, but everything else was contained in an air-conditioned building. The majority of the indoor vendors were geared towards knitters, with many beautiful displays of hand-dyed, hand-spun yarns and goods. Neither Marilyn nor I are knitters, so we headed first for a walk around to scope out the lot.

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First stop was the Art Exhibit, which displayed fine fiber art–among them, my own display of five fiber wall-hangings. There were other fiber wall hangings, sculptures and “vintage” handbags (crafted from vintage patterns but otherwise entirely new).

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Cathy Wycliff’s Exhibit

(Cathy had a very prominent display!  It was the first thing to see on our way in.  Very exciting! — Marilyn)

Next up were the vendors, which included some crazy rag rugs, lots of beautiful yarn and bags of alpaca fleece. There were also felted hats  and you’ll notice I didn’t snap pics of the roving, since I was busy buying it. Marilyn and I purchased some fibers we have not previously felted with–including Navajo churro, 100% Organic Polwarth, white Falkland and I bought some black Blue Faced Leicester with silk. Since there was so much yarn, I did pick up some white wool boucle for embellishment, as well as silk hankies, which I have never used.

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As we neared the end, we were able to view the judging of alpaca and llama fleece. Two judges followed a quality control checklist and had to concur on all points.

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Then it was goodbye to Princess Athena, the lonely llama,  and our day at the Fair came to an end. We would love to attend another fair, but next time would like to see sheep–sheep-shearing, sheep-judging, sheep fleeces, border collies herding sheep, etc.  Maybe there’s a trip to New Zealand in our future!

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Bye! Thanks for stopping by.
Call For Entries

Call For Entries

My fiber arts group, Tangled, A Montana Arts Collective, is sponsoring a fiber arts exhibition at my store The Purple Pomegranate in Whitefish, Montana during October. The theme for the exhibition is Shelter and I cordially invite you to apply for the exhibition. I know that lots of our readers do not reside in the US but you are also invited to apply. You would be responsible for the shipping to and from the exhibition so it probably isn’t that practical but I don’t want to exclude international entries.

The information about the exhibition is below and if you have any questions just let me know. You can download the information and an application form here.

Call for Artist’s Submission of Entries:

Announcing:  Tangled Fibers Show—A Fiber-Arts Collection

When: Month of October, 2013

Where:  The Purple Pomegranate, Whitefish MT

Artists are invited to submit applications and jpg photos for a Fall Presentation Exhibit at The Purple Pomegranate Gallery in Whitefish, Montana.

Submission Deadline:  August 15, 2013, for October 1, 2013 Exhibit opening.

Theme of Exhibit:  Shelter.  Shelter is one of the basic needs for all living creatures.  What constitutes shelter?  Is it an actual structure or metaphysical?  From the lowliest tent to a mansion, shelter exists in many forms and has many different meanings.  What does shelter mean to you?

Guidelines for Artist’s submission:

  1. Size:  Each piece of work must fit within 36” long, and 24” wide exhibit space.  It may be 3-D in form. Art must fit through a standard size door.
  2. All art must be an original piece of work, not shown prior to this show and created in the last two years. Artists may submit from 1 to 3 fiber works for the one time, non-refundable application fee of $20.00.
  3. Each piece should be priced for retail sale, with 40% commission being retained from sale of work.
  4. Art must be stable and be easily displayed on a wall or pedestal that supports a maximum of 20 pounds.  No perishable organic material. Art must be structurally sound.  Each submission should be able to be hung from one point of reference on the wall, portable or permanent or placed on a pedestal.  Included with submission should be instructions for hanging or display.
  5. Artist must submit an artist statement, with the application.  Statement must be in context with the theme, Shelter.
  6. Artist will need to submit proof of insurance coverage OR release the Purple Pomegranate from any liability related to harm of the art. Artist is responsible for shipping or delivering the work to the Purple Pomegranate and for sending a prepaid return label FedEx/UPS for pieces to be shipped back to artist.
  7. Jurying: The jury process will include a panel of judges reviewing jpg photos sent by e-mail. Submissions that do not follow rules of entry will not be submitted to jurors. Only entries received by August 15, 2013 will be considered. Works selected for exhibition that are not accurately depicted by jpgs may be removed from the exhibit at juror’s discretion. Works selected are to be available for the entire exhibit. E-mail notification of acceptance will occur by September 15, 2013. Delivery of work September 25-27, 2013. Pick up work  November 1-3, 2013.

As a side note, the piece of green nuno felt that I showed you last week is for my entry for this exhibition. I still have a long way to go on the piece but I have begun and I’m excited about the possibilities 🙂

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