1. hobbies and interests
2. arts and crafts
3. knitting

Clippings
June 2012, Vol. XLVIII, No 5
Queensland Spinners Weavers and Fibre Artists Ltd
Meetings: Fibrecraft House, 12 Payne Street, Auchenflower QLD
Mail: PO Box 924, Paddington, QLD 4064
Phone (answering machine): (07)3371 0009 Facsimile: (07)3371 0177
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.qldspinners.org.au
General Meeting
10.00 am
10.30 am
11.00 am
11.30 am to 1.00 pm
1.30 pm to 3.30 pm
General Meeting
10.00 am
11.00 am
11.30 am to 1.00 pm
1.30 pm to 3.30 pm
Tuesday Group
10.00 am to 2.00 pm
Noon to 12.30 pm
Wednesday Group
10.00 am to 2.00 pm
Noon to 12.30 pm
Night Owls
6.30 pm to 9.00 pm
Weavers Group
9.30 am to 1.00 pm
Machine Knitters
10.00 am to 2.00 pm
Hand Knitters
10.00 am to 2.00 pm
Felters Group
9.30 am to 2.00 pm
Basket Cases
9.30 am to 4.00 pm
Crochet Group
10.00 am to 2.00 pm
Experimental Dyers
9.30 am to 1.30 pm
Book & Paper Group
9.30 am to 4.00 pm
Saturday 2 June
Morning tea and social time
Talk TBA
Announcements and Showcase
Shop & Library are open
Craft time
Saturday 16 June
Morning tea and social time
Announcements and Showcase
Shop and Library are open
Craft time
Tuesday 5, 19 June
Craft and Discussion
Emporium open
Wednesday 13, 27 June
Craft and Discussion
Emporium open
Wednesday 6, 13, 20, 27 June
Craft and Discussion
Wednesday 6 June
Discussion
Tuesday 19 June
Craft and Discussion
Wednesday 20 June
Craft and Discussion
Thursday 14 June
Craft and Discussion
Sunday 3 June
Craft and Discussion
Wednesday 13 June
Craft and Discussion
Friday 8 June
Craft and Discussion
Monday 11 June (Queen B’day)
Craft and Discussion
Office Hours
Fridays only: 10.00 am to 4.00 pm
Phone/answering machine:
(07)3371 0009
Facsimile: (07)3371 0177
Email: [email protected]
Welcome to all new members
Contributions for Clippings
If you would like to submit an item to
Clippings, please direct these to the Editor
by phone, fax or email as above. You may
also drop off your submission in the Clippings tray in the office at Fibrecraft House
or contact the Editor directly on the below
phone number or email.
Congratulations to Di Williams who
won the Lucky Saturday draw for May.
Pushpa Ginige - Sinnamon Park
BOARD MEETING 14th June 2012
Clippings
Folding
Please be very cognizant of the timeframes
for submission, as we have deadlines for
proof reading and printing.
Jenny Woodrow
Telephone: 0417470509
Email: [email protected]
Thank you to the wonderful folding team
who have been coming to the folding
days.
Clippings Dates and Deadlines
July issue copy due: Fri 15 June 2012
July issue fold / post: Fri 29 June 2012
Please come along and help - many
hands make light work. There is no
meeting fee and we supply the morning
tea!!
Clippings advertising rates
Full page $75
Half page $40
Quarter page $25
Small display ad $3 per column cm
Small non-display ad $0.25 per word
Whole year ad 11 ads for the price of 10
Next date: Friday 29 June 2012
Approximately 9.30am to 11.30am
QSWFA Membership Fees
Joining Fees
$10
Ordinary Membership
$45
Country Membership *
$35
Group Membership
$60
Family Membership
$55
Student Membership
$35
Pensioner Membership
$35
Pensioner Family Membership
$35
Late Renewal Fee (after Aug 31) $5
Kitchen Roster
The June / July kitchen roster will rely
on everyone to wash and dry their own
cups and spoons and put them away in
the cupboard.
If you are a city member and your surname falls between D and G please help
with the set up and clean up of the
kitchen, including empty coffee grounds,
put the rubbish in the outside bin and
replace bin bag.
Thank you
*Conditions Apply
2
From the President’s back deck…..
Sitting here after a lovely mother's day. My children have driven off to their homes and it is
just Colin me and the cats and birds.
Once again our board meeting went well with lots discussed and plans made. The biggest
issue is of course that the roof is being replaced later this week. We have also accepted a
quote to have the large trees at the rear of the property clipped back and some removed
altogether as recommended by the maintenance plan. We will be discussing this with the
back neighbor as the fence will have to be replaced as well. These trees not only put a
large amount of leaf litter into the gutters causing problems with rust and overflow, but also
have a nasty habit of entering into the plumbing and sewerage lines. This of course is to be
avoided at all costs. So lots of activity over the next little while.
From all reports Amanda is doing an amazing job with Open Day with all stall spaces being
booked. I am really looking forward to the singing talent lined up to entertain us as well.
We have a special fundraising quilt for raffle this year and the tickets have been produced
by Lindy Boshler. Thank you so much for this Lindy, they look fantastic. we will be taking
them to the EKKA as well hoping to raise money for RFDS as well as our roof appeal. We
have raised a little over $4000.00 in three months towards the roof, so well done to the
fundraising committee. They are very focused and have other things planned. Thank you
everyone who has been donating, it is all really appreciated.
Our board is trying to raise the profile of QSWFA as much as possible so that we can continue to support and encourage new members. With this in mind we are looking for someone who could attend some meetings on our behalf for BVAC. I believe Phillipa mentioned it
at a previous meeting. We are very interested to be involved as we see it as a great opportunity to be with other like minded people and organizations. We need someone who can
attend meetings in the day. Please consider this and if you have any questions please approach Phillipa.
Another matter raised to the board is the need to update our key register. It is very important for our insurance coverage. If you have a key to any part of the premises could you
please make sure that it is in the key book. It is unfortunate that we have to be so meticulous, but over the years there have been keys cut that have not been entered into the system. Our insurance could be voided if we cannot account for all numbered keys. Not a
situation that we would ever want to face, I am sue you agree.
Onto a more enjoyable topic. Our camp is coming up and Gillian and Paula are looking for
help with our little gifts. This year we are having an Australian theme and they would like to
have gum leaves and gum nuts made out of anything you can imagine. I always look forward to seeing what people have come up with on a theme. Camp forms will be coming to
you soon. Please come and join us for this great weekend at Mapleton.
Colin and I are off for a cruise around the top of Australia for 15 days and then spending a
week in and around Perth, Margaret River etc, so will not be here for the next meeting.
I look forward to seeing every one at Open Day to have a sausage and onions at our stand.
Best wishes, Lindel.
3
Board Members
President
Lindel Kielly
[email protected]
Vice President / Morning Talks
Allison Hays
Treasurer
Gillian Hume
[email protected]
Emporium Co-Ordinator
Visnja Timkiv
[email protected]
Company Secretary
Colin Kielly
[email protected]
Minutes secretary
Vicki Matthews
Fundraising Committee Chair
Julie Coysh
[email protected]
Website Editor
Betsy Alpert
[email protected]
Board member
Cecilia Anguix
Board member
Paula Cockle
Other Contacts - Non Board Members
Office administrator
Jenni Runcimann
[email protected]
Workshop Co-Ordinator
Phillipa Rooke
[email protected]
Librarian
Sue Waters
Camp Committee
Gillian Hume and Paula Cockle
Public Relations
Linda Taylor
Clippings Editor
Jenny Woodrow
[email protected]
Clippings Assistant Editor
Sharyn Kann
[email protected]
[email protected]
From the Editor
Hi All. Thanks so much for all the kind feedback in regards to the last two editions of
“Clippings.” Positive comments make me feel all warm & fuzzy! I have started to go around to different groups to introduce myself and talk to members about what my needs and
requirements
are in regards to timing and content of articles or other items for inclusions in clippings. I am also
enjoying hearing your suggestions on what the newsletter needs and what your needs are in terms
of getting the articles, photos and items to me in a reasonable time frame.
One issue that I have found is that some groups don’t meet until after the “Copy Deadline”
date, which means that articles cannot be written & sent in before that date. That is fine. What I
please ask is that all “Scribes” for the different groups get their items into me, as soon as possible
after the meeting has been held - within a day or two would be great.
The absolute cut off day for submissions each month is the Saturday Before the Last Friday of the
month - eg: this month I need all articles in by 22nd June.
“Scribes” of groups that meet before the Copy Deadline and Members contributing other items
Must have their items submitted to me by the Copy Deadline date as written on page 2 of each
issue. As always, if you have any issues, concerns, or comments to make (positive or negative),
please email, phone me or grab me at a meeting and I’ll be happy to discuss things with you.
Happy Reading! Jenny Woodrow.
Ps: Sorry everything is so squashed this month, and not many photos in the print copy- with
the membership form, I ran out of space! However, if you receive your clippings via email, more
photos are able to be viewed on the digital copy…. Another reason to get yours emailed!
4
Machine Knitters.
At our April meeting, Myra and I tried out my adaptation of the Wingspan scarf pattern (from
Ravelry) that I'd been hand-knitting. I had to do a little maths to work out how to fit this shape,
with its regular increases, onto the bed of the machine - you build it up with short rows, and at the
very end you knit a few rows on all needles before casting off. The one I made was in very fine
wool in pale green, because that's what I had at hand; it would look better, I think, in multicoloured yarn, slightly thicker so it would come out a bit bigger. It would also be worth trying it in
pattern stitches, e.g. very simple tuck-stitch, but I haven't tried this yet. Making this scarf only took
a morning!
Our June meeting will be on Tues. 19th. All machine
knitters welcome - please bring your machine, tools, yarn
&
other necessities with you. Please let me know beforehand if you're coming, so I can know what to expect
and/or bring! You can contact me by email
([email protected]) or phone (3378 9782).
Joan Apthorp.
“Wingspan” done on
knitting Machine.
Experimental Dyers
The Dyers had a fruitful session with Sheila observing and experimenting with a different
method of screen printing using a thickened paste of guar gum and water. Different ways
of covering the screen using fine iron-on vilene with cut outs for the design were tried along
with other resist methods of torn newspaper and masking tape. The next thing was polychromatic screen printing which combines silk screening and painting techniques to produce
watercolour like images, giving multiple colours using a one step process. Open Day preparations were made, cataloguing and pricing items for sale. In June the topic will be shibori
techniques including pole wrapping.
Marion S.
5
From the Fundraising Subcommittee
By the time you read this, we will have a new roof!
We have raised over $3,800 for the roof to date, thanks largely to some very generous donations. A big than kyou to all those who have donated.
The trivia afternoon was a great success and thanks to all those that attended. From the
trivia event and the raffle combined, nearly $500 was raised.
Thank you also for the donations so far for the auction and raffles. There is a box near the
stage to put these items into. We still need more items for auction, these can be craft or
non-craft related. All money raised from the open day raffle this year will also go to the
roof fundraising.
We have set a date for the High Tea, it will be on the afternoon of Sunday 19th August, so
please mark this in your calendars.
TRICIA SMOUT'S MT COOT-THA GARDENS RESIDENCY
QSWFA member Tricia wants to sincerely thank everyone who has made a flower for her
"Flowers of Friendship" project. Hopefully it will be put together in time for her exhibition in
June!
Now she's planning more collaborative projects ... would you like to .....
•
knit or crochet a spiders web to go in the trees in the gardens August ... or even a
long length of cording that Tricia can assemble?
•
decorate an envelope
•
send a photo
•
make a wreath (or part of a wreath)
Tricia will willingly send you more detailed information if you want to participate in any of
these. (see contact details below). She'll be putting details about these projects on her blog
soon.
In the meantime, here's more info on Tricia's activities.
•
Come to Tricia’s exhibition "THE LANGUAGE OF NATURE' at Richard Randall Art Studio,
Brisbane Botanic Gardens, Mt. Coot-tha. 21- 29 June, 10am-3pm
•
Join in the Winter Solstice activities (wreath making on 16,17,18, 23 & 24 June 10am3pm; candle holders on 21 June at 5pm)
•
Visit Tricia at the Gardens on the first Tuesday and third Monday each month
Please contact her if you have any questions, ideas, or offers of help!
phone: (07) 3379 1406
email: [email protected]
website: www.triciasmout.com.au
blog: www.triciasmout.blogspot.com.au
This Page: Ursula’s woven Mat - WIG
Opposite Page: Left: Heathers piece
Right: Visnja’s fabric. - WIG
6
Weavers Interest
At our May meeting, we had 4 apologies. Jenny (Clipping’s Editor) visited us and we
established procedures which should ensure that our various scribes get our report to her.
Jenny would like to have the report as soon after the meeting as possible.
Thanks was extended to those members who responded to Heather’s request, at the
April meeting, to attend the fund raising Trivia afternoon.
It was decided to hold a “Christmas in July” lunch. This is to take place at the conclusion of the July meeting. Please bring a plate to share and a $5 donation.
Ursula had forms for entries to the Craft at the EKKA – entries close on 14th May.
Vishna was the guest speaker at the meeting.
She told of her association with weaving when, as a child, she visited her Grandmother and
other relatives in a small village in Yugoslavia. She displayed many pieces of vintage cloth,
most of which came from her Grandmother. Not only were they hand woven, but they were
woven from yarn that had been hand spun from home grown cotton, hemp and linen. She
also had pieces that she had purchased at markets. Another rather special piece was given
to her by a friend when Vishna was leaving Yugoslavia. It consisted of squares of very old
cloth which was assembled with alternate crocheted squares. As well as the display of these
hand woven fabrics, Vishna gave us an insight into village life as she experienced it when a
child. Thank you Vishna.
A couple of members remembered Heather’s request to bring any examples they had
of old fabrics. A tablecloth that Marion displayed was woven of “grass linen” which it was
decided was probably the name given to rami. Jill retained the end of a leg of a pair of
knickers (all hand stitched) having transformed the rest of the garment into another piece of
apparel. One of Heather’s pieces was a pillow sham fashioned from a flour bag (I well remember those bags!) enhanced with tatting inserts and edging.
Show & Tell:
Ursula wove a small mat in Smalandvav. The Swedish weave is threaded twice, tabby
shafts at the back & pattern shafts at the front- using 16/2 cotton for the warp. The weft
base was 16/2 linen and the pattern weft, a very fine wool.
Heather had a 2m. length of multicoloured fabric woven in Monk’s Belt, destined to become stool tops for her daughter.
Marion will be scribe at the June meeting when we will explore “Colour in Weaving”.
Myrna.
7
Basket Cases
Although it was a long week-end eleven Basket Case members managed to turn up and
have a creative and productive day.
Glenys brought along a number of really beautiful wrap and coil silk baskets. She finished
two more of them using purple recycled sari silk ribbon over rope.
Carmel worked on a coiled basket with help from Glenys
Robyn continued weaving a shape she had started at home. She was using Jasmine vine
from her garden and adding spokes from an unknown palm inflorescence to complete the
piece.
Jan made a table centre with Kentia palm seed spikes and started a set of coasters made
from the cut off ends of the spikes. She was using linen thread which was dyed with coffee.
Sandra worked on a random weave platter using palm inflorescence which she will use as a
display piece at her exhibition.
George twined a basket out of palm inflorescence.
Angela twined a basket alternating fibres – Cat’s Claw, Philodendron, Alexandra palm
flower sheath, Hymenocallis flower stems, on a base of Alexandra palm inflorescence
strands.
Christine created a basketry shape in crazy weave using a whole Alexandra palm inflorescence, horns and all. She is making this interesting shape for the Basket Cases exhibition in
the Richard Randall Art Studio, Mt Coot-tha Botanic Gardens, Oct 19 – 21. (more about this
exhibition as it draws closer).
Nat continued her abstract coiled form from nylon blue and red cord.
Jill worked on her large crazy weave form using twisted inflorescence strands from an unknown palm and Cat’s claw vine. It is large and getting larger, not sure how it will turn out
or what form it will finally take.
Right: Christine
Below: Glenys
Jill
Below: Angela
8
Midweek Spinners
The Midweek group of spinning, knitting and crochet enthusiasts meets on the 2nd and
4th Wednesday of each month and Tuesdays in other weeks. I know it can be a bit confusing to remember this, but the days can be found on the front of each month's Clippings. We
generally start about 9.45a.m. and end by 1.30p.m. As the group is fairly small we are able
to get on with our crafting while enjoying the company (and the coffee!) and generally encouraging one another.
Recently we've been admiring a Babette blanket made by Judi Newbery; this design
uses large and small squares in seemingly random arrangement and many bright colours not your regular Granny-squares, and a project to be proud of and to treasure for many
years.
Jenny Woodrow had been making a set of tea-time accessories as a gift; there's a
knitted tea-cosy, four mug-cosies, two towels with crocheted tops, and various crocheted,
felted coasters. Jenny had wanted to make cosies for tapered mugs, but, after much trial
and error, this idea went into the "too hard" basket and she settled for easier-to-fit cylindrical mugs. She used shades of blue, turquoise and teal. These will enhance many happy teaparties, I'm sure.
And I'd made just a single mug-cosy, as the May KAL project of the "Tropical Knitters"
group on Ravelry. I used mosaic stitch in purple and fuchsia, and fastened the cosy with
star-shaped buttons.
Betty Odell has been spinning a very attractive green blended sliver from the Emporium, and Sandy Harper was spinning some
pretty hand-dyed roving in bright pastels.
If you're free on a Midweek day, you're
welcome to join us!
Joan Apthorp.
Above: Judi’s Crochet blanket
Top Right: Jenny’s Tea Set
Bottom Right: Joan’s Mug Hug.
9
Felters
After a slow start, nine felters enjoyed the day. There was much buzz and discussion about the
workshops that had been attended recently. Geraldine and Debbie both produced pictorial diaries
of their classes, showing before and after photos which were enjoyed by those present. Then it
was down to business as usual.
Sandy was making a mat/rug from brown Corriedale batts, and included some cat fur (from her
cat). The rug was to be embellished with a green climbing leaf motif.
Pam TS re-joined us after a long absence and it was “Happy New Year” all over again. Pam was
working on a scarf made of thick and thin wool, a single ply yarn in shades of turquoise, green and
yellow. The yarns were laid out in an open lattice and the joins were needle-felted (using a xmas
present of Clover needles and block).
Kathy L came to have a chat with everyone, but also had time to make some white felt balls. She
and Pam discussed the easiest way to make them without creases.
Robin worked on some flowers.
Susan was rekindling her interest in felting having tried it 4 years ago. She has jumped on board
with much enthusiasm and after a confidence boosting class with Phillipa embarked on an indigo
wool scarf embellished with silk sliver, mohair curls and wool circles in paler shades of blue. Geraldine helped her layout a fine and even wool coverage.
Geraldine started big and ended small. Her project for the day was a delicate pale blue flower
with 5 sculpted petals for Trisha Smout’s collection at Mt Coot-tha. It could be a water lily or frangipani depending on how the petals are bunched. She called it a structural flower with attitude. Is it
the flower or the lady that has attitude?
Debbie showed us what she had made in Lizzie Houghton’s classes at the Blue Mountains Forum. The two sculpted/folded hats in red and orange were gorgeous, but her grey nuno felted
jacket was to die for. The jacket was made in one piece and had a large array of rectangular silk
fabrics and silk sliver on it. The whole jacket had an ombre effect with pale grey near the collar and
shoulders, darkening to black around the hem. The striped cuffs were whimsical and flared out
from the wrists. This was the result of 5 days of hard work, but it was well worth it to create a
work of art which is light enough for our climate in Brisbane.
Lili was making a red felt necklace embedded with three thin slabs of black and white rock
(volcanic glass called obsidian). This project was a case of “lets see if it can be done”. The piece
had to be felted by hand vibration and manipulation, as the rock slabs could not be rolled in the traditional manner.
Vishnja registered the new library books and everyone took delight in scanning them and dreaming
up new felt projects. Vishnja busied herself in the
Emporium in advance of Open Day.
Jenny Woodrow visited us in her new capacity as
Clippings Editor and gave us a rundown of procedures for the newsletter.
Lili
Right: Pam working on her lattice Scarf.
More Felters photos can be found on page
21
10
Your membership is due 1st July
Please download a membership
form from the QSW&FA website .
Above Left: Beanie / Beret by Joan
Above Right: Another Wingspan by Joan - this time knitted
Below Left: “Vixen” Shawl by Miss Vicki
Below Right. Scarves by Karleen
11
12
Opposite Page: Top Left: Beret’s by… I am not sure! If you know who made them, please let me know. Ta.
Top Right: Naomi’s “Wingspan”
Middle Left: Another shawl of Naomi’s
Middle Right: Naomi’s crochet scarf and Judiths’ knitted scarf.
Bottom Left: Socks & Beanie by Paula
Bottom Right: Felted hat by Jonna
This Page: Above Left: Another Felted hat by Jonna
Above Right: Felted cape by Pam H
Below Left : Felted Shawl by Pam H
Below Right: Judith’s Beanie and Shawl
13
From Top Clockwise: Judith’s Handspun, Pam H’s Felted Bag, Joan A’s baby blanket, A Tea
pot cosy from Judith.
Below: Myrna’s Scarf
14
Showcase
Two meetings to report on this time (21st April and 5th May); I'm going to describe the exhibits by
category rather than by date.
In the way of spun yarn, we saw three skeins by Judith Weller, one of pure alpaca (it had
needed several washes) and two of white wool with streaks of colour added in the spinning. These
are for our Royal Flying Doctor fundraiser, to which Judith is a very generous contributor.
Judith had used her handspun to make various knitted things, including a ribbed tea-cosy in
natural dark brown with three lovely red roses on the top, complete with green leaves. She had
used the same wools to produce two beanies, each sporting a single rose, and a triangular shawl in
a lacy stitch - all for the above-mentioned charity for which Karlene Lewis had made two knitted
scarves from handspun merino, dyed blue with food-colouring.
Paula Cockle made a somewhat different style of hat, with ear-flaps, from hand-dyed, handspun BFL, Navajo-plied in order to keep the sections of each colour to itself. Comparing the even
yarn Paula made for this project with Lindy's singles really shows what a difference plying makes,
though of course we must also take into account that the two spinners were aiming for different
outcomes. Three-ply structure, such as Navajo-plying produces, gives a very rounded and even
yarn. Paula had also made two pairs of socks, one a pair of bed-socks in handspun (lilac and grey),
and one pair of regular socks using "Opal" sock-yarn (pink, fuchsia and grey). Both are medium
woman's size, though the "Opal" socks are a gift for a tall sister-in-law so they have extra-long legs.
The handspun bed-socks will be very cosy, as Paula plied First Editions merino with angora from Ixchelbunny. This yarn is thicker than for regular socks, and was knitted on 3.75mm needles.
Pam Cox had knitted two pairs of "legless socks", for wearing inside running shoes; these
were knitted from the toe up, and Pam has been experimenting with the design.
I had also knitted socks; I used a pattern from knitty.com to make these unusually-structured
socks. The pattern is called "Achilles Heal" (sic); the author's idea was to make truly replaceable
heels which would encompass the whole area that tends to wear
out in socks. You knit the legs first, then the top of the instep,
then the toe, and finally you knit the heel in the round, a bit like
the top of a hat. It is a very strange pattern, and the socks are a
rather odd shape.
Above: Joans’ Achilles Heel socks
Above Right: Pam C’s Socks
Right: Paula & Visnja’s Hats.
15
Showcase (cont)
I've also been knitting scarves, both by hand and by machine, based on the pattern Wingspan, from
Ravelry. I'd bought a ball of "Crazy Zauberball" sock yarn at the recent Craft Show, and thought I'd
check what other knitters had made with this unusual yarn before starting socks with it. The Wingspan scarf seemed particularly popular, and looked fun. It really was great fun, and very easy to
knit, just garter-stitch and short rows, on 3.5mm needles. Then I modified it for machine knitting see that report. These scarves inspired Naomi Tyack to make a variegated green scarf to the
same pattern, using alpaca yarn she'd bought in W.A. She knitted on 3.25mm needles and probably her yarn was a bit thicker; she also used fewer stitches, so her scarf is smaller - just right for
warming the shoulders on a cool evening, or keeping the air-conditioning at bay in the theatre.
Vicki Matthews had made a shawl to the pattern Vixen, also from Ravelry. This looks from my
photo like a triangular shawl, but actually it's a square split up one diagonal - a really good idea to
prevent it from falling off. The yarn Vicki used was a merino/bamboo/silk blend bought for her as a
gift at last year's Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show. It's a subtly variegated, slightly muted green colour, just right for Vicki. (Pictured Below Left)
Naomi Tyack chose green-and-black commercially-spun tweedy silk for a small triangular scarf/
shawl; it's simple garter stitch, very open, done on 5.5mm needles to a Prudence Mapstone pattern.
Naomi is planning an overseas trip and making lots of gifts; another of these was a hand-dyed (by
Aleta), handspun, crocheted scarf made from Optim fibre in a sort of check pattern. The colour is
shades of the sea - muted greens and blues shading to dark grey. In the same photo as Naomi's
crocheted scarf is a pink knitted lace one by Judith Weller, handspun and plied with lurex. (Photo
below Right.)
Two rather fine crocheted exhibits that escaped my camera were (a) a white "Crocodile Stitch" triangular shawl by Linda Taylor and (b) a multi-coloured baby-rug by Julie Coysh. Julie's rug, with
a white background and bright centres, was made up of hexagonal motifs; she used a cotton/wool
blend yarn and 4mm hook. Linda's shawl was made with a 5.5mm hook; the pattern came from Annie's Attic. The unusual stitch pattern had scallops rather like feathers all over, very dramatic; Linda
put a fringe around the edge of the shawl.
Bonnie Anderson had knitted a cardigan for herself in Feather and Fan stitch, using Cleckheaton's
"Vintage Hues" yarn. She had won this yarn in a speed-knitting competition a few years ago and
hadn't liked it much in the ball, but she's very happy with the way it knitted up. She used 5.5mm
needles, and it's a fairly thick yarn, so it would have knitted suitably speedily. Bonnie had also knitted a man's Aran pullover, using 10-ply Bendigo Luxury wool on 4.5mm needles. This was knitted
"in the round", to the general plan given by Elizabeth Zimmermann in "Knitter's Almanac" but with
Bonnie's own interpretation; it's to fit a large, tall
man, but only took four weeks to make.
16
Weaving was represented by two exhibitors. Marja Colquhoun keeps up her production of woven
shawls. This time she'd used a mainly yellow warp, with a variety of different threads including novelty yarns; one shawl was woven using yellow weft while the second used red weft, so she produced two very different shawls from a single warp. This was done in plain weave, with some
grouping around the thicker warps. (Picture Below Left) And I had finally finished the handspun,
handwoven plain-weave baby-blanket I started at the "Bethlehem" pageant of the Indooroopilly
Uniting Church in December. The warp was fine, soft handspun in various muted colours, while the
weft was spindle-spun white merino. I was helped in the weaving by Myra Keay and Emma Phillpotts. We wove a long, fairly narrow strip, which I cut into two and joined with herringbone crochet; I finished the blanket with satin ribbon round the edge and blanket-stitching in purple wool. It
is going to Emma's expected baby.
And finally we come to the felting. We certainly have exceptional felters at QSWFA! Jonna
MacFadyen had made three very different hats, one as a gift, one for the Alice Springs Beanie Festival, and one "just for fun". The most ingenious of these was the double-layered hat in blue, with a
little orange fish peeping through the grid of the top layer. (Photo Below middle). All three hats
were made from Merino wool, and each displays a different style, structure and colour combination.
And Pam Healy had made a knitted, felted bag, a simple rectangular shape with fringe yarn incorporated up its edges; it fastens with a sturdy press-stud. This bag won Pam a First Prize in the
Toowoomba Show. Another First was won with a nuno-felted wrap; I have to confess that I didn't
write down which of Pam's two nuno-felted wraps won the prize, but one was in black, white and
grey, with all sorts of interesting insertions, while the other was in shades of red. And yet another
First was for a russet-coloured cape in more solid felt; this one has silk inlays, and slits around the
borders. One of Pams’ wraps is pictured below, modelled by Jacky.
Besides all this, Jonna had finished the needlepoint piece she displayed as a UFO in February; she
has now finished this lovely floral picture and made it up into a sturdy and decorative carry-bag.
Well done to all!
Joan Apthorp.
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Hand Knitters
At our April meeting our study topic was "k1,
p1 tubular cast-off". This is actually just a oneneedle version of "Kitchener Stitch" (grafting), as
used for toes of socks. It makes a very neat finish
for 1x1 ribbing, with the great virtue of being very
elastic, so the edge of your garment stretches for
putting on and off. Everyone concentrated hard as
they worked on mastering this technique.
We didn't forget to have our "Show and Tell". We saw two sleeveless pullovers - one by
Marlene, knitted from the top down in grey wool, with horizontal stripes of "ringlet stitch",
with a matching beanie, to fit herself, and the other by Laurie, to fit a fairly small doll. Well,
actually Laurie had made two doll outfits, one in which the sleeveless top was paired with a
skirt, and another with matching trousers. These doll-outfits were knitted in 2-ply wool on
1.5mm needles. Marlene's "ringlet stitch" came from Barbara Walker's A Second Treasury of
Knitting Patterns, pg. 136; it is one in which you wrap the wool round the stitches as you
knit them, and Marlene found it challenging.
Annette had knitted a beanie with a musical score knitted into it in intarsia; we
thought it looked wonderful, though she wasn't
entirely happy. And Myra had
finished the "patchwork" baby-blanket she's been
working on for some time; she used Laurie's knitted-off cast-off from our March lesson, and found
it perfect for her purpose.
Our June meeting will be on Wed. 20th;
Susan will help us master the knitting of mitred
corners in garter stitch and Mosaic Knitting. She
has been working hard on preparation of samples
for this, and will guide us with her usual gentle
skill.
Happy Knitting!
Joan Apthorp
Top of Page : The Tubular Cast-off in action.
Above Right: Marlene’s Vest & Beanie
Right: Laurie’s Dolls Outfits.
18
Book & Paper Group
Our meeting in May was a busy and fun-filled day
(as always!).
Show and Tell
Alan had purchased foam stamps and a pop-up
book.
Rosemary showed the papyrus kit on sale at the
Egyptian Exhibition at Qld Museum.
Di bought an African wire, bead and card pin from
Fair Trade.
Marilena and Lena had attended an inspirational talk on eucalypt dyeing by India Flint,
and Lena won a copy of her second book.
Judy showed her encaustic wax boards done at an ATASDA workshop with a USA artist.
Sandra showed her self-published book “The Magic of Monoprinting”.
Nat found an interesting book in the BCC library “Leaves – Myth, Magic and Medicine” and
she and Christine showed the books they made at Jack Oudyn’s workshop at Redlands Gallery.
Elizabeth showed a bag printed with a 65 year old family photo.
Tricia showed the 12 books from her April ‘Plants’ bookswap.
Backgrounds
The topic for discussion was ‘Ideas for Creating Interesting Backgrounds’.
We all discussed the techniques we had used to decorate our collaborative pages. These included dry sponging, stamping, spraying, printing, collage, staining with coffee, photocopying of photos, painting, printouts of computer text and images, and many more.
After distributing our pages, and sharing a delicious lunch, we watched demonstrations of
other techniques.
Christine created a large painting which would then be cut into smaller pages, thus creating abstract coloured sections. (pictured Above)
Marilena explained the peeling paint technique and demonstrated webbing spray. She also
showed backgrounds made from old teabags, papers spritzed with walnut ink, and textures
created from torn masking tape.
Judy dropped alcohol inks onto shiny paper and created
gorgeous swirling blobs by blowing with a straw (photo
She demonstrated how to collage torn papers overlaid with
sewing pattern tissue, and she explained how to stamp and
emboss an image with clear ink, then overlay with waterbased inks to create a coloured background.
June meeting
Our next meeting falls on the Queens’ birthday holiday(11
June), so it will be a free day. Bring your own activity to
work on. On the following Monday (18 June) everyone is
invited to join Tricia at Richard Randall Studio making
wreaths (paper, fabric, basketry, anything!)
Tricia.
19
Dates To Remember 2012
9th June
25th Wool & Natural Fibre Muster, Mudgee
Contact: Bev Leyton, 02) 63727057
Email: [email protected]
19th June
Redlands Spinners & Weavers Open Day 10am - 2pm
Stella Maris Centre, Star of The Sea, Longland st, Cleveland
Contact: Shirley Graham 32068967
21 June
Winter Solstice Celebrations (Free)
For more information phone Tricia on 3379 1406 or email
[email protected] or www.triciasmout.blogspot.com.au
21- 29 June
THE LANGUAGE OF NATURE"
For more information phone Tricia on 3379 1406 or
email [email protected] or
www.triciasmout.blogspot.com.au
29th June - 2nd July
Townsville Show.
20th—22nd July
Bendigo Sheep & Wool Festival
www.sheepshow.com
20th - 22nd July
QSW&FA Mapleton Camp
Australiana Theme
Contact: Gillian Hume or Paula Cockle.
Camp forms can be found in the May edition of “Clippings” or
from Paula or Gillian at meetings or from the office.
9th - 18th August
EKKA (Royal Brisbane Show)
Saturday 2nd June - Morning Talk.
On Saturday, Cindy Ranger from the NRS will come to talk to us. Here is what Cindy has sent us
about her talk:
The National Relay Service (NRS) makes a huge difference, every day, to the lives of thousands of Australians who are Deaf or have hearing or speech difficulties. It is an Australian Government initiative funded by a levy on the telecommunications providers. It gives people the opportunity to communicate by phone more easily with businesses, professional services, friends and family and access emergency services. It also enables carers and health professionals to contact patients in their homes if they have difficulty with hearing or speaking on a regular telephone.
Communication is vital to maintaining people’s confidence, independence and general wellbeing.
To this end, I am looking forward to delivering a brief information/training session to your group on
Saturday June 2. I will cover such areas as:
• Emergency situations
• What is the NRS?
• Training and Support
• How it works
And Provide resources
• Equipment required and how to obtain
• Cost and other benefits to customers
20
CLASSIFIEDS
EKKA FLEECE AVAILABLE!!
There is some fleece at Fibrecraft House that needs to
be washed and spun and if
possible, made into items
for the Royal Flying Doctor
Service/EKKA 2012 project.
Thanks,
Jennie Runciman
FOR SALE
Gimakra 4 Shaft 48” Floor Loom
6 Pedals, 4 Reeds, matching stool
And accessories. Price $1,850 ono.
Ph: (02) 6624 4724
Email: [email protected]
Betty Morton
Debbie’s Nuno Felt Jacket and
Felted Hat - Felters Interest Group
report is found on page 10.
21
Queensland Spinners Weavers and Fibre Artists Ltd.
Workshop Enrolment Form
Send to:
Workshops Convenor - Phillipa Rooke
P.O. Box 924, Paddington, Qld. 4064
For any queries regarding workshops please contact Phillipa Rooke
Ph 3369 2003
Email : [email protected]
Notes:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Non Members welcome!
Price for all QSWFA Workshops $60 members and $80 non-members per day.
All workshops marked “beginners” are $60 per day.
In the event of student cancellation a 50% course fee will be incurred.
In the event of tutor cancellation a full refund will be given.
Two weeks notice will be give of a cancellation of a workshop.
No workshop will be run at a loss.
If you wish to attend more than one workshop please make a copy of the enrolment
form for each workshop.
Please refer to the workshop requirements list to ensure you have all the materials for
the workshop.
Workshops are held at Fibrecraft House 12 Payne Rd, Auchenflower QLD
Enrolment Details
Name:
Address:
Phone:
Email:
Member
Non-Member
Workshop:
Full Fee Enclosed:
22
Saturday 9 June
Felted slippers and Fancy Footwear
with Phillipa Rook
Sunday 10th June
Three Dimensional Felt (hats, bags,
containers) with Phillipa Rooke
Make yourself a warm cosy pair of slippers
or slip-ons in a colour and surface design of
your choice. We will be moulding them to fit
your foot to perfection.
There is a way to build 3 dimensional pieces
and avoid the bulky ‘seam’, and this workshop explores that very particular laying out
method to ensure an even thickness in the
finished article. Shaping and finishing techniques will be covered, as well as the use of
simple but effective implements to produce
a professional finish to your chosen piece,
be it hat,
bag, or other
3 dimensional
form.
Requirement List available on website.
Requirement
List available on
website.
Sunday 17th June
Beginning Spinning
with Karen Alpert
After this course you will understand the
basics of yarn construction. You will learn
the basics of using a spinning wheel and
adjusting its tension. You should be able to
spin a basic 2-ply yarn from wool fibre.
Saturday & Sunday 23rd & 24th June
Cables & Lace Throw – a Crochet
workshop with Chantelle Hills
Requirement List available on website
A textured throw Cushion Cover, using crochet cables and lace patterns.
Sunday 8th July
Using Batts for Felted Bags & Rugs
with Phillipa Rooke
Thick Corriedale wool batts form the basis
for sturdy floor rugs or large sculptural bags
in this workshop. The stronger Corriedale
wool lends itself beautifully to these
uses. We will look at the process for each
of these techniques, and the shaping for
the large bag. Participants will have to
choose one project only.
Requirement List
available on Website.
Participants will learn how to read crochet
symbols and charts, written explanations,
how to translate between American and
British crochet terminology, crochet cables
and crochet lace, all the while making your
own individualized crochet throw. Knowledge of basic crochet stitches is required.
On the day we will learn each of the
stitches and complete a cushion cover, but
there will not be enough time to complete a
throw, but you will leave with all the knowledge required.
Requirement List available on website.
23
REMEMBER TO PAY YOUR
MEMBERSHIP
QSW&FA Membership is due 1st July 2012 for All Members.
Membership Forms can be found on the QSW&FA website.
Please Fill this form out and return to the office, with money, cheque or Credit card details,
as soon as possible.
Memberships may also be paid by Credit Card or Eftpos in the Emporium during Emporium
opening times - a copy of your EFTPOS receipt, along with your completed membership
form, should be handed in at the office.
Any membership renewals paid after 31st August will incur a late fee of $5.
Once you have renewed your membership, your new membership card and receipt will be
available from the box as you come in the front door. You need your card as proof of
membership to purchase at the Emporium, for demonstrating at Shows and Exhibitions, as
well as so people can know who you are at meetings.
Thank you for being a Member of QSW&FA Ltd. Your Membership Fees ensure the smooth
running of our wonderful group and the maintenance of our great property.
If undelivered return to QSWFA Ltd
PO Box 924
PADDINGTON QLD 4064
Newsletter “Clippings”
Print Post Approved
PP408233/0041
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