Post-Christmas Teddies

Our Monthly Guild meeting was held on Saturday.

Last autumn, we were asked to create tiny teddies for one of the many Chrismas Trees that are decorated every year in the village church of Brighstone

Here they all are waiting to be returned to their owners. Knitted or crocheted from handspun, or needle felted from fleece.

...................

We also had a talk from Alan Flux, a fashion designer who currently works with the VSO in Bangladesh, India and Mongolia.

He showed us many examples of the needlework, weaving and feltmaking from these regions of the world.

You can read about Alan's work here and see the fairtraded felted bags that are produced in Mongolia here on the Ganesha website.

....................

Spinning and Knitting prduction has been shelved recently in favour of very early Spring Cleaning and/or general Hibernation.

Today it is brilliant sunshine, but the nights are still long and dark. Daylight hours are spent at work toiling over a hot PC and telephone.

Roll on that lottery win!



.

Sunshine, and the Calm after the Storm

Yesterday was an exciting weather day all over the UK with Storm Force winds battering the country.

The BBC had a news reporter down in Portsmouth, and I had phone calls from relatives expecting tales akin to the Hurricane of 1987. Apparently the BBC had reported that the Island was cut off, and that no ferries were operating. This was a touch of media sensationalism, as the Wightlink car ferry was running all day - albeit on an odd sort of timetable.

..........................

Finally I've found my camera lead. So here are some pics from the Guild Christmas party.

First off is Joy, weaving on an Iron Age replica loom that she and her husband built.

Next is the Christmas challenge - to make and decorate a mask using handspun or fleece.



The winner was Carol with her Geisha mask - strung on a woven frame made during a one-day basket making class.



The picture doesn't do it justice.

.

Bright Sunshine

Sun streaming into the office today, and my first post of 2007.

Still not found my camera lead, so I have pictures stranded on there of the Guild Christmas challenge participants and my WIPs on the needles.

...................

Christmas passed quietly, and my planned trip to London was cancelled due to technical problems on the very ferry I needed to take to make my coach connection in Portsmouth. That put paid to any Stash building at John Lewis and Liberty.

I consoled myself with a trip to Dorchester in a howling gale, and bought some Shetland tops to start spinning for a project I have in mind.

I was very restrained in the yarn sales and bought some Rowan Cotton Glace using a refund voucher at John Lewis.

......................

Our first Spinsters meeting on Saturday was affected again by terrible weather conditions. I spent a good few hours listening to everyone's conversations and spinning up some laceweight black shetland (which is really a bitter chocolate colour). I'm beginning to think that the wise words from the Guild ladies is true - once you can spin very finely, you can't go back to thick! I'm hoping that this depends on the fibre you're spinning with..... watch this space.