A Different Kind of Fiber

Leather. Yes, leather. Back in high school a thousand years ago or so, I had a brief opportunity in an art class to make a leather key holder. I don’t remember exactly the technique, if it was tooling or what, but I did turn out a key case with an oak leaf and acorn design and a laced edging. I still had it around up until a few years ago when it sadly went missing. I always remembered what fun I had making it and always planned to revisit the art form.

As usual, life got in the way. It was yet another rabbit hole I didn’t need to go down, requiring an entire new set of tools and equipment. But … it was in the back of my mind. At one point in the early aughts, I bought a Tandy beginner leatherwork kit and won a set of tools on eBay. Still, they sat. And sat. And sat while I involved myself in other, equally fascinating, arts.

And then Covid happened. In March, everyone was sent home to wait. In May, most of us were laid off. I had time on my hands. What better way to spend it than to break out the Tandy beginner’s kit and that box of tools?

That was 2020. Fast-forward four years. In typical ADHD fashion, I started off running before I could walk, made some passable objects, then settled down to seriously study on what I was doing and how to make it all better. I made modern objects (wine totes, beer growler slings). I made fantasy LARPing items (belt bags mainly). And I combined my interest in 18th century living history and began making reproduction items.

This last recently culminated with the creation of a very passable 18th-century-esq portmanteau. For those who will ask, a portmanteau is sort of a cross between a trunk and a suitcase. Not having a pattern available posed a tiny problem but I solved it with a way I had learned from other leatherworkers — make your prototype from paper.

Voila’. A paper and cardboard portmanteau. I started with the end first. They were approximately 10 inches x 10 inches with slightly padded handles. You’ll see where the buckles come in further down.

The leather I chose for this was a 5 – 6 ounce veg-tan, but these ends have an inner piece that is a 7 to 8 ounce to help shore it up. One thing I learned working with leather, there is an architectural element to each piece and sometimes you need to study on how best to support your structure. Once I had the ends under control, it was time to move on to the body.

The body is actually sort of a big roll but grooves are cut along the bottom where it matches up to the side corners. This gives the piece a flat bottom, although there are somewhat smaller portmanteaus that were made round and these were used to tie up behind a saddle. This was a bit bigger!

Partially sewn! I put a kip skin binding around the cut edge of the opening, then began by sewing first across the bottom of the side, then up the front edge. This view is looking inside from the back. At this point, the flap closure is two-thirds sewn in; that is the bit hanging down. Once I sewed in the closure straps, I started sewing the back at the back corner and up.

Voila’ again! The sewing was not so difficult as just making sure everything lined up. Truly, measure twice and cut once in leatherwork as in carpentry!

The portmanteau holds a lot of clothing! The finished piece is about 9 inches wide by 8 and 1/2 inches tall and 22 inches long, so it’s pretty roomy. Overall, I was pretty happy with the way this turned out, considering I just made it up as I went along although I did research every example of portmanteau, historical or reproduction, that is out there. And now that I feel like I know what I’m doing and have the benefit of a pattern (because, of course, I traced all the parts out on paper and took copious notes), I definitely foresee where there is another portmanteau in my future!

Do Your Bit for the Ukraine

There are many artisans based in the Ukraine selling their work on both Ravelry and Etsy. As their work is digital, it can easily be downloaded. This way, there is no need to bother attempting to mail something out of a country at war! Here is a simple tutorial for how to use both Ravelry’s and Etsy’s search features to pinpoint the seller’s location.

For Ravelry (and if it looks different, yes, I use the filter for Classic Ravelry because the new look gives me a headache!), on the Search Patterns page, select Advanced Search, then scroll all the way to the bottom of the left-hand navigation that displays. Select “Designer country” and then from the modal that displays, select Ukraine from the list of countries. Like magic, the search page displays a listing of all designers based in the Ukraine. Pretty cool, huh?

For Etsy, you will enter “digital file” for your search term. This finds all sellers offering digital files. You could expand the search by adding “knitting pattern,” etc., if you really want to target the search. Then selected “All Filters” and scroll down to find the “Shop Location” radio buttons. Select “Custom” and type Ukraine in the form field. Select “Apply” and you are good to go!

Remember, these artisans are facing a particularly difficult time right now, one that we cannot fathom. They have no other way to sell their wares. This is possibly their only way to bring in some much-needed cash. Please do your bit and support our Ukrainian artisans!

Spinning Up Some Kindness

I began spinning before there was an Internet. Well, not much of one, anyway. If you knew what to do, you could get the weather and baseball scores and that was about it. YouTube didn’t exist yet. No Facebook. Certainly no Ravelry. Nada.

So, if you wanted to learn to spin, you were pretty much on your own to find a wheel and find a teacher. I found a wheel without too much trouble. It was one of those seventies’ artisan-made wheels with lovely inlay and Irish tension (although I didn’t know at the time that was what it was called). It wasn’t a toy or a decoration, but it wasn’t a heavy-duty workhorse, either. It was intended to spin but probably made by someone who didn’t themselves know much about spinning. I thought she was beautiful.

Now that I had a wheel, I set about finding a teacher. In that time frame, to find anything meant a trip to the library or reading special publications. Somehow, I discovered a local fiber arts guild and happily went off to their monthly meeting, my beautiful wheel in tow. It was a complete disaster.

I was easily the youngest person in the room. A few people had very high-end wheels with them, many were knitting, one or two had little sample looms and were doing intricate weaving. All were older. The ones that lowered themselves to speak to me generally derided my wheel as a toy and no one correctly identified the tension, although they all told me it couldn’t possibly be a real wheel because none of them (the experts!) could identify the tension. When I asked about learning to spin, they sneered that “it isn’t our job to teach you” and went off in little groups that shot nasty glances my way. Clearly, I was in the wrong place to want to learn to spin!

One kindly woman did come over to speak to me. She admired the wheel without passing any judgment on it and suggested that when spinning, it was easiest to learn on a drop spindle. Once I had drafting fiber under control, it was then an easy (easier!) step to move to a wheel and add in treadling while drafting. I did have a drop spindle, but wasn’t sure how to get it started. She tied on a leader and showed me how to make a half-hitch and start off. That one small act of kindness started me spinning.

I later learned this kindly woman died of a brain tumor not many years later and I mourned her passing. She was the one person who took a few minutes to a.) speak to me kindly, and b.) share her knowledge. Those two small, simple acts made her immortal in my mind. They did something else. Once I was up and spinning on a wheel, I vowed that if I came across anyone who wanted to learn, I would teach them for free and do whatever I could to get them going, and keep them going. A number of new spinners exist because I taught them, and a number have gone on to teach new spinners themselves. I feel my immortality is achieved as my teaching is handed down.

I bring this up because in a spinning forum I belong to, someone new to the group but a long-time collector, began sharing their wheels. Not being an American, he used a term he was unfamiliar with and the abuse began. Not only should he know better, why didn’t he sell his collection so other spinners could use it? And on and on, until he decamped to start his own forum. And so, our collective knowledge of spinning wheels splinters a little, all because someone used a term they were unfamiliar with. Our collective knowledge splinters because someone owns more wheels than someone else, so they must be castigated for it. Our collective knowledge splinters because we chose to not share our knowledge and take someone into our circle.

Actions have consequences. It costs nothing to be kind. The few minutes of time you do spend explaning something may be all the other person needs. In these unprecedented times, don’t be a jerk. Be kind.

And a double-treadle, to boot!

Did I need another wheel? Ummmmm … not really. I’m pretty well-stocked with wheels and am downsizing some papers and household stuff. So another wheel wasn’t really a necessity. But I hadn’t bought a new wheel yet in 2020 so if I was going to buy one, this was certainly a catch.

This turned up on Facebook Marketplace. Usually, a wheel like this turns up many, many miles away but this was local. The photo was a little dark but I could see it was in good shape. And, a double-treadle! The unicorn of Canadian production wheels. And, best of all, the seller wasn’t asking for much money. So, off we went to gather it up.

I couldn’t believe what good shape this was in. The seller had had it for 50 years; her father had bought it for her. She loved Early American furniture and had kept this wheel all these years (I hated to tell her it was 19th century and Canadian!) and said she never was tempted to spin, but just kept the wheel for its architectural integrity.

Her flyer is in mint condition.

The cast iron MOA mount has the little pleats in it and is held on by the coveted “chicken nut.” The beaded edge suggests the makers Laurence or Cadorette. A scrap of oval ink mark matches the oval shape of the Cadorette mark but so little remains, it is difficult to say.

The double-treadle axle is forged, as are the footmen although one is a bit battered and installed upside down. The wood of the upright has a lovely burl in it.

The treadles are pristine along the front. The only damage is a small piece sheared off one side of one treadle. The eye bolt in the other treadle was loose and needs some TLC. The one treadle has a couple of intriguing drops of finish — was the original finish stripped off at one time and some drips not wiped up? Or are these original to the wheel?

Over all, I feel like this was quite a catch. She is clean, her flyer is in mint condition, and her wheel tight and true. I will need to get a driveband on her and see what she spins like, but that is for another day!

Soctober!

It’s Soctober! Are you knitting socks? In a happy accident, I found a perfect autumn colorway and a pattern to go with it.

The yarn is “Hagrid’s Pumpkin Patch” from Bumblebee Acres Farm. The “Little Pumpkins” sock pattern is available free on that recently redesigned knitting website which-name-we-do-not-mention (can you tell I disagree with the way the redesign was handled?).

AND a tiny Soctober monkey! This stitch marker is one of set available from Wee Ones on Etsy; she has a marvelous selection of tiny figures and I do highly recommend her.

A Bit More Spinning

This is another set of coordinated mini-batts from Inglenook Fibers. The colorways are based on different types of owls! I forgot to take a photo before I started, so here are 6 unspun owls and one completed:

And all spun up, here they are:

They averaged out to about 150 yards per mini-skein and I am already working them up into something  hopefully wonderful!

 

Natural Dye Spins

These are spun from Inglenook Fibers’ Natural Dye series.

The braid on the left was dyed with osage orange and saxon blue. The other four are in a colorway called “Elm Leaves.” Next up, the “Honeysuckle” colorway!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m Still Here

Gentle readers, although I am not posting on a regular basis these days, I am still watching over my blog! I am working in a somewhat different direction these days and have just not had the time to work with spinning wheels or with fiber. I do hope to get back to that sometime soon.

And just because I am not posting does not mean I don’t keep an eye on things! Please note — comments are moderated and will not appear unless approved. Even then, I haven’t approved comments as I don’t have time to keep an eye on them. If you have posted a comment about a spinning wheel you have, you can always email me at: thewoolmerchantsdaughter [at] yahoo [dot] com. I may not respond quickly there either, but you have a better chance of getting me there!

Another word on comments — remember when your mother told you if you have nothing good to say, then don’t say anything? Well, that applies here, too! Keep it positive and please, keep it clean! It doesn’t go any further than me, anyway, so why even bother?

I hope you are all keeping safe in these times of Covid. Please remember to wear a mask, practice social distancing, and wash your hands often. I’m hoping all  you fiber enthusiasts are staying home and spinning, knitting, crocheting, weaving, or pursuing whatever other fiber interest you have (I know I left off a few!). Hopefully, we will be back in gear in better times!

Yours truly,

The Wool Merchant’s Daughter

 

Colorwork

Learn colorwork, they said. It will be FUN, they said.

Well, it is FUN, to some extent, but mind-boggling. On size 3 needles, in KnitPicks Palette yarn.

Onwards and upwards!

 

Inspiration

Have you knitted an Inspira Cowl yet? This pattern, available free on Ravelry, is positively addictive. It is an easy knit and a good way to ease yourself into colorwork. And it provides endless variety, given the endless variety of yarn out there!

Malabrigo worsted, Plymouth Tangiers cotton, and Lion Brand Amazing:

Three yarns, two of them self-striping, on circular needles.

There is a certain fascination in watching the pattern build and grow. And if you make a mistake, it is of little consequence, because it easily conceals itself! I liked mine so much, I made this for a friend:

I do like to make one solid base color with the other colors mingled in. And for practicing your colorwork technique, it is an excellent pattern to teach you how to carry your yarn and balance your tension. If the inside is as good as the outside, you’ve got the hang of it!

You will keep making these, over and over, stashing busting or trying out new yarns. Just make sure to take photos, as several of these have now gone out into the world and I forgot to record them! But this pattern gets a big thumbs up from The Wool Merchant’s Daughter!