KnitWit: Rantings of a Rabid Knitter

Thank you for all your suggestions on knitting topics. I have started a list and will get to them.

I had a brain storm and thought it would be interesting to look at some of the stories and myths of some of the common fibers we use. I will also talk about spinning the fiber and what makes it different from other fibers. In addition, a short discussion about what the fiber is good for making and what are its pros and cons.

Since it is Summer here (where did Spring go?) in North Carolina, I thought I would start with cotton. I like cotton to wear and to knit with. Cotton is a challenge to spin and I am still working on mastering it.

Here are the wheel and one of the spindles I use for spinning cotton.

The wheel is based on the original spinning wheel designed in India (500 – 1000 AD). It is a hand cranked spindle wheel and is ideal for spinning cotton.

I learned how to spin cotton from the seed around 8 years ago. It is how I imagine cotton was originally spun.

You can see the seed is still in there. This will give you a yarn with more ‘character’ being more uneven.

Cotton has been around forever and ever. Growing wild in the Americas, Asia, and Africa, it was spun for thousands of years. Spinning has been around for over 10,000 years using a spindle. Oldest cotton garment ever found was dated to be over 7,000 years old and was found in a cave in Mexico.

I talk about the history and controversy of cotton in the Americas.

Please let me know what you think.

website: autumnbreezedesigns.com

email: carry.autumnbreeze@gmail.com

voice-mail: 206 666 5775

Thanks. Carry

approx. 24 minutes

 

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