Living together with Ulla a fibre crafter is not always easy. I get dragged along to spinning meetings, various textile exhibitions and I even have to act as her assistant when she runs her workshops and the likes.
Ulla taught me how to spin in 1990 while travelling WA. I really love to sit in front of my spinning wheel and meditate and think about my next master piece to create in my kitchen. Being a chef and cooking all day long in my dreams is a very important craft for me and indeed needed for survival.
Ulla often ask if I would like to take up knitting but I always refuse and refer to my knitting attempts at sea working on cruising ships going to exotic destinations in the world. Not much time for knitting and too tight anyway. Good for making rope to anchor a boat though.
Becoming a settler two years ago after 17 years on the road and joining the local spinning club just made a big change in my life.
All the spinning ladies soon started to ask me what I was going to do with my beautiful hand spun silk. I would quick smart say that I hand it over to Ulla to use for something or for her to sell it.
One day I guess a devil took over my thoughts and speech and I said at a meeting that I was going to take up knitting. Well, what a chock wave hit the ladies. They were astonished as well as puzzled and bewildered. I actually enjoyed that moment. I thought I was pretty smart and I got them off my back.
However when we got home Ulla said to me;” You better take up that knitting or they will laugh at you and they will be even more on your back”.
I could easily see Ulla was 100% right so I took up knitting. Ulla taught me how to knit and I thought that I would like to make a beanie. Ulla had a pattern and I tried to navigate and interpret it. When I saw my finished product I decided to turn it into a hand bag instead of claming it as a beanie.
However when I saw photos from previous Beanie Festivals I decided to follow my first idea and I turned my hand bag back into the Beanie idea as it was supposed to be. I cut the handle in the middle. This way the handle becomes two small belts and if it is a stormy day you can tie them together so that the beanie does not fly off your head. This is my second attempt in my new craft. I call it my “Handbag Beanie”. All my friends too had a good laugh. Happy Beanie Festival.