Gotland Knitting symposium Part 2 (of 4)

The second days highlight was to visit Fardhem spinnery. A machine that came from one of the nestors Alan and Sotenäs spinnery from the Westcoast of Sweden. They started as Havdhem, but folded. And then a whole lot of people bought shares and it is a collective start, and some EC support, these two ladies have taken on the hard work of learning all there is about the machine and producing a very softspun yarn, where all aspects of yarnmaking - from sheep, washing, spinnery and distribution is done at Gotland.
Anyway, a bold attempt that produced a must have yarn.
So at this point I must confess. I have no idea what the lovely ladies names were, and currently I'm to lazy to find that little note. Why? I was so focused on the spinning process. In detail. Like she has to weigh just the amount of wool, that has been prepared with coconutoil (!) and water to the right moistness, and spread it out evenly in a short moment of the machine. bit, by bit, slowly but surely. That is really feeling your yarn!
Then on this picture the hanks are binded by hand. And - a must on two places (easy to forget!). Then a detail on Abba's sillinläggningar (hmm, herring-lids, a little thing from the west-coast) that I just found interesting. You really have to be creative to keep this old machine going. Anyway, I must say I really loved this visit. It brought me as close to the wool as I would like to be. And the two sheep GUTE and Gotlandsk sheep (curiously not the same).

The later has also been called gotländskt pälsfår (meaning Gotlandsk pels or fursheep), but the have redecided on the name. What is curious is that all of them are called lamb's in the local dialect, and a lamb is called a lambkid. And also, both female and male have horns. Wow, now Mary-Lou, a good translation would do, horns? I feel it is like an anti-loop (sorry, had to put in hyphen there, since Im a computer nerd!). Anyway, Gute is the original sort of sheep. Both have great wool, and they breed for wool. Lately that have had focus on the meat, which is a pity (for us wool lovers). What I also learned is that the lambkid (haha) lammunge (Gotl.) fur is not cut the first fall, but saved until february next year, to become extra long. This wool is used to spin directly from (handspin) without carding (swe: Spinna tott!)
Here we can se the fleece getting spun into one thread. A process that must be watched to fix if it breaks. You can also see Marika in her fantastic real bragging-knitted beautiful Ovanåker in Twinni yarn, trying
to avoid my camera (or is it me?)
This last picture is the phase before, where the yarn is cut/moved into fleece-strands. Wow, I realized that handspinning is really a great, just needs some wood and string. Ahh, ok, the screws are metal, but I know they are not necessary. But, yet. In this noise these two ladies work so hard to create a new and novel yarn. I bought Sork (the really thick one), in the different natural shades of grey and grey-white (to difficult to clean the machines from all gray!) also because I alreay have Töis in grey and lime for a sweater (the more common, one-threaded yarn). So, I was happy - But - as you know, I have yarn enough ;-) And I can also spin!

Don't you just love it?
Then we went in the beautiful evening to Huskroken. I never understood that they are behind the colouring of ecological cotton etc.. Great colourplace, but most colourblends just do not agree with me, and - I know how to color wool (I know it is not the same process!) and I really looked for some cotton yarn, I just were not yarn hungry. I have a good stash to take from here. (WOW, what a surprise!). But such a great evening. This is the real Gotland to me. At the coast. The sunset, heat and flowers. But, again. I might have my colour course to close. I'm filled up, content. No more.
For me this colour is like someone just played-Kids stuff, ok for kidsclothes. Maybe doing a neckless. But that is it, again. But, she is a weaver, which I think is an explanaition. Knitting is not always good for superbusy. I think colour and colour-mixes are so personal. It is ok to have different point of viewes. What was curious about this whole knitting meet that it was a very select group that was invited. Well, that is how it is. So what course did I go to? It was called Knit in all directions. And was led by an artist Pia Berglund, who seem to make a living of copying others work (good for her). Like knitting Sushi (found of 33000 hits on the internet for that!), and knitting shoes. And imitating painting from Matisse etc. So I started in - from an artist point of view- bad mood.
I personally think using someone elses pattern "copy", and takes away a bit of the personal touch the whole creation is. An artist should invent "ideas", well, I warmed up. Her idea to make a one day workshop, buying old shoes (smelling badly), and knitting around them were not that bad. Actually, I got into it. Not that I see the process very liberating - since I'm a free spirit. But a lot of routine - pattern bound people really were extatic. And the result - I agree - was great. An exhibition of all our shoes. But now I sit with this stinking thing, and thinking that I wasted my expensive yarn on something that just takes up space. Interesting. Very interesting. So, being the most grumpy participant... well,. The Fardhem Visit was really good for me. Doing something for the waste-basket. At least I worked hard to make my shoe useable. But the thought of doing anotherone, and also having to walk in these high-heels, really makes me anti. So why did I not do the simple way? just a fun shoe? I'm such a serious person, with so little time in life.I do not know. Maybe it is because my very original and extremely poor brother struggle so hard, I nothing is copy about his work. And blogger refused my shoe picture. Something to dwell on later then.