Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Tuesday Knitting Group, Textiles and Tea

The knitting group was fun, new member came, learner from Sunday, and we saw good things.

Coming up is a little library display of our finished works, I'll be delivering mine Friday, didn't get it together today.

Here's what I plan to display 


Clockwise from nine o'clock, crocheted cotton scarf, Shetland catspaw lace scarf, notebook with granny square covers, neck gaiter, Tunisian crochet with Dorset buttons, Tunisian lace cowl. 

Here's the blanket from which I got the remains of yarn to make my comfort dolls. Many small balls in bright colors, great for dolls. D, holding her  blanket, gave me her leftovers. She's including it in her display.


and this cowl 


Here's double sided knitting. Remember when I did that ages ago and thought my brain would never recover? This isn't mine.

Now for works in progress 



Beginner crocheters working on granny squares.

Chat included indigenous people, Braiding Sweetgrass, baking bread, reading groups, Recording for the Blind, craft displays, Thanksgiving leftovers and more.

Then home to a pot of tea and Textiles and Tea with Patrice George, pioneer in the introduction of the computer interface in weaving. 

She was an early adopter, taught many designers and professional weavers this new world, and since retiring from teaching at FIT, still makes opportunities for people of all ages to learn weaving, with and without computer interface.

During her career she designed coursework using computer interface for the School of Visual Arts and Parsons, and worked with the UN to set up textile cottage industries  in Jamaica, to create employment.   She started weaving as a teenager, went off alone to Sweden to learn. Intrepid always.



Top right is the first try she ever made with the computer interface, an ikat style trial, after which she never looked back.


Here she is in Sweden, age 17.

And here's the cutting edge moment in 1986 when she, and the cat,  got national attention demonstrating computer assisted weaving at the Museum of American Folk Art, after which invitations to teach and demonstrate began to pour in.

Her commercial fabric designs

Here's a Jamaican sewist and clothing designer who, assisted by Patrice, learned to weave her own cloth, in order to pass on the learning through the UN Jamaica program. She's seen wearing a robe she designed, wove and made.

And here, Patrice in retirement, teaching children the skills and fun of weaving. And samples she created on a small loom, still experimenting.

She sees the next challenge in weaving to employ earth-friendly yarns and dyes, along with technology, in the weaving world.

And, as if that wasn't enough riches in one day, here's what arrived after supper, great timing.



The best fruitcake in the world! Thank you so much, dear friend, for this lovely start to the holidays. 

You know how Mary shouts OMG OMG OMG and runs about in joy? My version, slightly lower key, is to murmur, oh how lovely, isn't she kind, how thoughtful, I love this cake. 

And there's fruit, so it's breakfast. Also dessert. And afternoon tea. Late night snack. All purpose!

Happy day everyone, my Tuesday certainly was.







32 comments:

  1. Mmmmm fruit cake. I can just imagine it moist and luscious.

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  2. Huh, best fruitcake in the world? You haven't tried mine that always comes with the addition of a pinch of love. It used to sell like hotcakes in my late partner's shop in the late 80s.

    I love how on the net, mostly YouTube, people share their knowledge without any financial return.

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    1. Maybe I need a taste test?? Yes, there's not a lot of financial incentive for most people, but they seem to love to share.

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  3. That fruitcake looks delicious -- what a lovely and thoughtful gift! You have so many talented knitters and crocheters in your library group -- good luck with your display! I'm sure it will be interesting to all the other library patrons.

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    1. The library lady is hoping it will encourage people to join in, particularly over this winter, when we'll need the experience of making and keeping calm.

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  4. The cake looks delicious. Such a tasty gift.

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    1. Personally attest to this at this point. Handsome Son is visiting this afternoon, so will no doubt get his share.

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  5. You have some lovely things on display. The show sounds fun!

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    1. The librarian has been working on us for a while to do a display. Mostly we're making for use.

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  6. I bought the fruit for my fruitcakes yesterday. Perhaps this weekend I shall make them. Last night I mentioned this to my husband and he said that although he has never liked fruitcake, mine is all right. I told him that we fruitcake lovers would just as soon the people who are not crazy about it, leave all of it to those of us who are.

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  7. I admire your knowledge. I learned to knit in middle school and produced a pair of socks that I still have here somewhere. I'm happy though that our crochet group may be starting up again.

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    1. I hope so, I know you liked it. And this winter it will be good to have a group.

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  8. That is seriously fruit-rich cake! Fiddle! I meant to make a note of the name - did you see someone on twitter with a quilt made of squares of wool dyed with different sorts of tea?

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    1. It's definitely rich. And since I love candied fruit, it's just right. I left Twitter a while ago.

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  9. You can have all my fruitcake. All, no problem.

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    1. Thank you! All the more for those who like it.

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  10. So many beautiful projects. Lovely colors in the blanket. I love a good fruit cake. How nice you had a new member in your group. I once joined a knitting group as their newbie and found it very uncomfortable. They all had known each so long, I felt like an outsider. Doesn't sound like that the case in your group. Bravo!
    Sandy's Space

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    1. We try to include people right away, and I hope we succeed. Another fruit cake club member!

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  11. Did you make or cover the buttons on that Tunisian Lace Cowl? Those look like serious buttons. If you can get a picture of the final display, I'd love to see it.

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    1. The Dorset buttons on the neck gaiter I made and designed, no two alike. You can see how to make Dorset buttons on YouTube I expect. I think you'd enjoy them, because they're a stitching kind of project. Just find curtain rings and you're set.

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  12. Your library is one of a kind. Can't imagine ours doing such a display. I visited another library the other day and was astounded to see an entire wall of shelving filled with jigsaw puzzles (and Lego kits too). I mentioned it to one of our librarians and she was absolutely horrified at even the thought because apparently she thought the staff would have to count every single piece coming back in before they could send it out again. I assured her that people would be on the honour system and that, if a puzzle turned out to be missing any pieces, the next person in line would report it and the puzzle would be removed from circulation. She was still horrified. Needless to say, I don't think our library will be offering puzzles anytime soon.

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    1. Every public library I've used in NJ does exhibits, some do puzzle borrowing, tool and appliance borrowing, all kinds of music and art events. Your local people are behind the curve!

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  13. I love fruitcake, too. The only person in the family who does.

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  14. The blanket is amazing. How clever.
    The fruit cake looks very yummy. Your set for a while

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    1. The blanket looks like something you'd like doing.

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  15. I'm glad you had such a good day!

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  16. OMG OMG OMG!!! All these beautiful things. Patrice George seems to be a wonder. And good fruitcake!

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    1. She's really a history maker, but so matter of fact and funny that you don't realize it at first.
      My fellow knitters and crocheters are so talented it's fun to be around them.

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