Clippings
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. 17 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 PRINT POST PP408233/0041 POSTAGE PAID AUSTRALIA
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