Sooza's Knitting Stuff

The new year is here and for lots of people this means time for resolutions and promises. All around blogland you can read lists of things people want to accomplish in 2009 - projects to start, UFOs to finish, stash or weight to reduce, habits to break, you name, they'll want to achieve it. I'm not fond of this particular custom because let's face it. Most of these resolutions do not even make it into February. So, no resolutions on this blog. I'd like to take the time to contemplate a rediscovered hobby instead.

Back in 2004 I started out into the world of spinning with a drop spindle kit to learn the basics of creating my own yarn. I was inspired by skeins of beautiful hand-spun yarn I saw popping up everywhere on the internet. The idea of spinning my own lace yarn held a particular appeal because commercial lace yarns were hard to come by 4 or 5 years ago. The technique was quickly mastered and I happily spindled away for a while on my plain but functional bottom whorl spindle. I just loved how a simple tool could turn fluffy nothingness into firm thread. The ever repeating motions of turning the spindle, drafting the fiber and winding the finished thread onto the spindle enveloped me in a certain magic. A magic that connected me with all those women across times and continents who used this tool to provide their family with clothes, to make a living from their own hands. Besides, I couldn't help to enjoy the portability of a drop spindle. When others dragged their large spinning wheels to our monthly spinning meet-up I got away with stuffing my tools and supplies into a trusty messenger bag.

With proficiency in spindling grew new desires. My drop spindle was a bit heavy to create true lace yarns and something a bit more fancyful would also not go amiss. But alas, the German market didn't know ANYTHING about artfully turned drop spindles in exotic woods, different sizes, different weights, rim-weighted designs, top- vs. bottom-whorl and such. But thanks to the world wide web a look across the Atlantic turned up craftsmen and craftswomen who were dedicated to provide spindlers with beautiful as well as functional tools for their passion: Jonathan Bosworth from Journeywheel, Stephen Kundert in Wisconsin, Adam Mielke from Mielke's Fiber Arts, Gabe Jaramillo from Cascables Spindles and Elizabeth from Greensleeves Spindles, to only name a few. In no time a small collection of nearly 20 different spindles formed on my shelves. Spindles seem to be a bit like sheep. They like their herd.

The next logical step seemed to be the purchase of a spinning wheel. Weeks of research on wheel designs, wheel makers, wheel diamters, drive ratios etc. followed. In the end a Kromski Minstrel moved in with me. It was love at first sight and the prospect of spinning even more yarn in a shorter time made me giddy. The Minstrel saw a lot of use in the beginning. The wheel is a well made piece of craftsmanship - nice, classical design, sound construction, 4 different ratios to accomodate different fibers and yarns, double threadle. But it wasn't quite the love I felt when I first started out on a simple wooden drop spindle. Why was that? A spindle is so much slower compared to a wheel. The process is one of discontinuity instead of fluent motion. After a while spinning took a back seat to other craft hobbies. It sure was never forgotten and the wheel turned every once in a while or a drop spindle whirled but all in all it was pretty much time for knitting again.



December turned into a busy time for all three of us. I started back into a job, even if only part-time but still kindergarten and other appointments and responsibilites wanted to be scheduled. Besides, after a long time at home with a baby work life is a whole other ball game. By the middle of December I was tired of knitting Christmas gifts and in serious need of a change. I sat on the wheel again and finished some yarn that had sat on the spool for much to long. The funny colors of the Magic Bio Wool yarn made me smile even if spinning the coarse felting wool wasn't all that funny. Filled with a sense of gratification I decided to reward myself with small amounts of nice, colorful roving from etsy.com to do some more spinning. It arrived one by one in letter-sized envelopes. Instead of sitting on the wheel I chose a suitable spindle from my collection because it would make the perfect project for the upcoming holiday travels. For the car I had a sock to knit and for the rest I had my drop spindle. In no time the first 4 ounces of roving - a lovely soft handpainted Bluefaced Leicester fiber - were spun up. And just like all those years ago I felt the magic again. A simple but beautiful tool, the repeating motions, the fiber turning into thread out of practically nothing. What a nifty, practical thing such a drop spindle is. You can stand in the kitchen beside your oven and watch over the pots, stopping the spindle from time to time to stir something. You can walk around to ease pains in you back and still be spindling. No clacking parts to be oiled, no drive band to be replaced. And so many beautiful spindles to choose from. What a joy!

In letzter Zeit ist mir bereits häufiger aufgefallen, dass Blogs, Websites und Foren auf eine Art und Weise genutzt werden, die mir persönlich mehr als unangehm ist. Da werden andere Leute und deren Vorlieben und Eigenheiten auf übelste Art und Weise heruntergemacht, ohne Rücksicht auf Verluste. Und die Verfasser scheinen sich dabei noch nicht einmal der Tatsache bewußt zu sein, dass der jeweils andere diese Beiträge durchaus auch lesen könnte - oder es interessiert die Verfasser einfach nicht.

Die wunderbare Stephanie Pearl-McPhee aka Yarnharlot hat kürzlich einen sehr pointierten Beitrag zu diesem Thema verfasst, den ich überaus lesenswert finde:
> www.Yarnharlot.ca: We are not alone

Sehr lesenswert ist hierzu auch der Artikel "Denn sie wissen nicht, was sie tun" aus der Ausgabe 6/2007 des Magazins brand eins. Der Artikel wird ab Erscheinen der nächsten Ausgabe der Zeitschrift im Volltext online abrufbar sein, aber falls jemandem diese spezielle Ausgabe jetzt schon in die Hände fällt, unbedingt lesen.

Lately I noticed how more and more often people use blogs, websites and message boards to insult and denounce other people in the most vulgar and lowliest way. They say things about people they do not even know in person that they would most likely keep to themselves in a real life environment. And they obviously don't even realize that the addressed person might actually read the their blog/website/post, too - or they do not even care. Whichever is worse.

The wonderful and much admired Stephanie Pearl-McPhee aka Yarnharlot has written a very to the point post in her own blog that I can only recommend as something to reflect on:
> www.Yarnharlot.ca: We are not alone

In diversen Lace-Mailinglisten, Blogs und Foren wurde bereits seit langem gefordert, dass Addi Stricknadeln herausbringen müsste, die besonders für die Bedürfnisse der Spitzenstricker gemacht sind - kleine Nadelstärken mit besonders schönen, definierten Nadelspitzen um diese vermaledeiten "4 Ma. re. zus. stricken" leichter hinzubekommen und nicht ganz so schlüpferig wie die normalen Addi Turbos. Die amerikanische Strickgemeinde tat sich zusammen und forderte den amerikanischen Vertrieb Skacel auf, solche Nadeln herbeizuschaffen. Und voila: Es ist geschafft. Skacel bietet in Amerika ein Produkt names "Addi 'Lace' Circular Needles" an.

Kann man diese Nadeln nun auch in Deutschland kaufen, wo sie ja bekanntermaßen produziert werden?! Nein, weit gefehlt. Sybille schrieb in Ihrem Blog, dass ein Anruf bei Addi ergab, dass die Nadeln zur Zeit ausschließlich für den amerikanischen Markt produziert werden und man sie auf der nächsten Messe dieses Frühjahr auch deutschen Fachhändlern vorstellen möchte. Danach entscheidet sich, ob diese auch hier auf den Markt kommen. Oh Gott, man ahnt schlimmes. Der deutsche Wollfachhandel und das deutsche Verlagswesen sind meiner Erfahrung nach nicht gerade für seine Innovationsfreude und für ihre Marktkenntnisse bekannt. Man kann sie schön hören die Frage "Wer braucht denn so was?" unmittelbar gefolgt von der Aussage "Nein, da gibt es hier in Deutschland doch keinen Kunden für!".

Ich dachte mir, was die in Amerika können, kann ich auch. Also fluchs eine E-Mail an Addi geschrieben, meine Bedenken geäußert und lautstark für einen Vertrieb in Deutschland plädiert. Heute morgen fand ich dann tatsächlich eine total liebe Antwort im Mail-Briefkasten. Wer hätte das gedacht. Ich zitiere hier mal, unter Auslassung der Namen:

Sehr geehrte Frau G.,

es ist toll, dass es noch Strickerinnen gibt, die sich so einsetzen. 

Keine Bange, so wie die Dinge liegen, werden wir weltweit die 

Nadeln anbieten. Natürlich muss man als Hersteller Angebot 

und Nachfrage testen und gegeneinander stellen. Aber wie 

gesagt- wir denken schon, dass die Nachfrage gross ist und es 

nach  der Messe mit der Produktion weltweit los gehen kann.



Freundliche Grüße aus Altena

Gustav Selter GmbH&Co.KG

Hauptstr. 13-15

58762 Altena/Westf.

Tel.02352/9781-24

Fax02352/75571

Jipppieeeee!!! Allerdings finde ich die Floskel "dass es noch Strickerinnen gibt, die sich so einsetzen" extrem befremdlich. Was denken die, wo wir leben?! Wir sind online jeder Zeit erreichbar, setzen Himmel und Hölle in Bewegung um noch dieses eine Knäuel Garn dieser bestimmten Charge zu bekommen, nehmen horrende Zollgebühren in Kauf, um unsere Hände an ein langersehntes Garn oder Buch zu bekommen und tauschen uns weltweit in Blogs über unser Hobby aus. Und ich habe den Eindruck, wir werden immer mehr.

Schreibt doch Addi einfach auch mal eine nette Mail: zentrale@selter.com.

For my English readers just a short abstract on this one. We all know, that customers are a force to be reckoned with. Here in Germany you sometimes get the impression though, that this fact hasn't quite gotten through to the head honchos. Right now Burda discontinues two of our major handcrafts and knitting magazines - Verena and Anna. People don't buy them anymore. Oh my, me is wondering why, with all those boxy patterns, unimaginative designs and people having access to much more fashionable foreign magazines.

The American lace knitting community staged a coup amongst others instigated by knit blogger Grumperina to get Skacel, distributor of Addi Turbos across the pond, to produce a new line of circular needles specifically designed to fit lace knitter's needs. And what do you know?! They succeeded!

Now we want them in Germany, too. I mean, they are produced here, in the mother country of engineering and workmanship! But alas, right now they are manufactured exclusively for Skacel. How dare they. Well, I took Grumperina as my role model on this one and wrote an e-mail to Addi. They kindly responded - to my utter surprise - and informed me, that yes, chances are very good that those needles will be marketed in Germany, too. Of course they have to check supply and demand but they are positive the equation will come out in favour of the lace knitting needles. Yay!