Blog
A Legacy of Shetland Lace
A Legacy of Shetland Lace is a new book released by the Shetland Guild of Spinners, Knitters, Weavers and Dyers. A collection of 21 stunning projects designed by members of the Shetland Guild of Spinners, Knitters, Weavers and Dyers. The book contains everything from scarves and stoles, to wraps and lace tops. As well as the patterns the book has wonderful pictures and explanations of abbreviations, Shetland words to do with knitting, grafting and finishing. Each pattern is supported by a biography of the designer which charts their story with lace and knitting. There are patterns in this book from some of the best lace knitters in Shetland. Hazel Tindall, Mary Kay, Ina Irvine and Kathleen Anderson to name but a few.. The Legacy of Shetland Lace is a modern and contemporary book that encapsulates our lace knitting history in a group of well designed patterns. photo courtesy of the Shetland Museum and Archives Shetland ladies were (and still are) renowned world- wide for their superb knitting skills and their ability to produce designs from their environment and surroundings. Not only did they carry out most of the croft work they also were accomplished hand spinners and would spin a gossamer fine lace yarn which would be knitted into shawls or scarves. These works of art would be sold to the local merchant or knitwear shop and provide much needed income. All the patterns in the book can be knitted with our Shetland Supreme 1 and 2 ply worsted yarns which come in a range of five natural colours, any patterns calling for 2ply can also use our 2ply Lace Weight Yarn which comes in twenty five shades. There is a lovely pattern by Hazel Tindall which calls for Chunky Shetland wool, in which our Shetland Aran BSS16 would be a perfect match! We at J & S are proud to say that we have reproduced such a fine yarn as used to produce these unique garments all these years ago. In conjunction with our local museum we attempted to revive the art of Lace knitting which was becoming a thing of the past. Part of our inspiration was taken from reading in the local archives that Queen Victoria had stockings made in Shetland from Shetland wool. The yarn used was a combed worsted yarn and not a carded woollen spun yarn, the worsted spinning produces a smoother finer stronger thread which captures the unique characteristics of Shetland wool, especially the soft handle required to wear next to the skin. We congratulate the Shetland Guild of Spinners, Knitters,Weavers and Dyers on their superb publication A Legacy of Shetland Lace. Their efforts and skill carries on the distinct culture and heritage of some of the finest knitters in the world. The book is available here for £23.99
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Wovember 2012
It is already half way through Wovember 2012 and we have realised that all has gone quiet on the J&S blog front recently. So to contribute our little bit to this magnificent month we thought we would give you a little sneaky peek behind the scenes here to show you where all your wonderful wool comes from. We start off in the wool-store, which could be described as the hub of Shetland's wool industry with more than 700 local crofters delivering their wool - ranging from bundles of a few kilos to trucks full with a few tonnes in some cases - through our big green doors. We then sort through the bags, fleece by fleece, to separate them into the different grades and natural colours with the finest being used to make fine lace and the toughest for durable wool carpets. The wool is then squashed into bales by our trusty old baler ready to be shipped and scoured, carded, combed, spun and dyed into the cushion filling, combed tops and lace and yarn that we send off to you. Some of it comes back to us transformed into beautiful rugs, carpets, duvets and even the life-changing Vi-Spring beds. We sent off our last load of wool for 2012 yesterday which has left room in the main store to clear out the coloured wool-store and sort each coloured fleece into the different grades, ready to be sent away in the final load of this year's wool season - usually in April - and processed into all of our natural, undyed products. This final 12th shipment will bring this year's total to over 240 tonnes of wool: a total which is usually greeted with a look of amazement from anyone who hears it. When the products finally arrive back here after their long transformation they take pride of place in our shop that is joined onto the wool stores where they first became part of J&S as raw wool. The shop was expanded in 2010 to make it three times its original size and give all of our treasured woolly products room to show off. It is now much-loved by knitters who can rummage around, comparing and contrasting colours to create their very own Shetland Wool knitwear. The shop also doubles up as the mail-room where we make up, package and send out orders from all over the world. This makes it a very busy place every morning until our postie comes just after 12 to take away the parcels. However, we love making up the little woolly bundles so thank you to each and every one of you who has ordered from us and helped support Shetland's wool industry. I just thought I'd end with an image of what makes this all possible. The humble Shetland Sheep with its world-beating wool in its wild, exposed habitat that makes it all so magical.
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Alexander Kumar: Guest Blog - Wool Week
Celebrating wool week: warmest greetings from the coldest place on Earth By Dr Alexander Kumar One year ago I had no idea what I was getting myself in for, as I prepared myself for my departure to the coldest place on Earth - Dome Charlie located high up on the Antarctic Plateau - the world's largest desert and the coldest, loneliest, most desolate and remote place on Earth. And here I stand, still alive with 10 fingers and 10 toes, which have been protected by Shetland's finest. 100 years ago Sir Ernest Shackleton brought fair isle wool to Antarctica. Following his fashion and sense, I decided I would do the same. Jamieson & Smith (Shetland Wool Brokers Ltd.) based Sandra knitted me several bespoke, unique and colourful items which I was fortunate to have through what I now describe as the 'worst winter in the world'. We are completely isolated here for 9 months from February until November. Temperatures dropped below -80 degrees Celsius as the sun disappeared for over 3 months- leaving our European team of 13 alone in the dark. Over the Antarctic winter your senses turn to perceiving in black and white, but now the sun has come back I can enjoy the colours once again and the Shetland Fair Isle designs are wonderful and warm. And in that, because I am still warm, I can leave you with my warmest greetings from the coldest place on Earth, proud to wear like explorers of times gone, Shetland's continuing unique contribution to Antarctic history - happy Shetland Wool Week! To read more about Dr Alexander Kumar's adventures, please visit his website www.alexanderkumar.com
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Shetland's Wool Season kicks off
So we're a month into the wool season, which officially started in June. However, bad weather has meant that it's only just starting to kick off - until now our crofters and farmers haven't been able to get their sheep clipped because of wet, cold, windy days. This isn't terribly unusual, because most folk do only start clipping in July (starting with gimmers - year old lambs - which are usually nearer the house and aren't busy feeding lambs). Despite the slow start to the season, we put over 2o tonnes of wool (known at J&S as 'Load 1') off to the scourers on Friday afternoon. We'll then spin this wool into our J&S yarns, or sell it on directly to our partners like Vi-Spring and The Real Shetland Company. This is the earliest that Load 1 has ever gone out in at least the last five years (we'll need to go and dig in our archived black books to see further back). We're hoping this means that there are more sheep around, and therefore more wool. It will be towards the end of the year, when the season is well and truly over and Load 12 (making the total around 240 tonnes) has left us, that we'll know more about exactly how much wool we've taken in. Fingers crossed. Until then, thanks to you all for your continued support of Real Shetland Wool. Image: Bales of Real Shetland Wool piled to the beams of our wool store on Friday afternoon. Each bale shows weights, grades and identity numbers for traceability of each supplier's clip.
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Real Shetland
We launched an amazing new competition last week... Real Shetland Stories Competition. Capturing Shetland’s history.WIN! Vi-Spring Shetland Superb Kingsize Bed, made with the finest Real Shetland Wool, worth £11,000.A handcrafted Vi-Spring Shetland Superb bed will be specially made and gifted to the author of the Real Shetland Story that best captures an experience or memory of Shetland life in relation to wool.Your story could be aboutA long connection to something wool related - a life spent crofting or keeping warm at the fishing, or making and selling knitwear. A person who wore or worked with wool - a brother who lived in his favourite jumper, a granny who knitted constantly, or a dad who came home from the fishing with his jumper smelling of salt and sea and cigarettes. It might even be about an individual sheep.A single garment - a favourite sloppy jumper worn in the 80s with a pair of DMs, a pair of work socks that have been darned hundreds of times, a Fair Isle allover that sticks in your mind, or the first pair of gloves you ever sold. Your story, memory or experience may be about a place – the bustle on the pier when wool came in and jumpers went out, a spot where shearing was done, winding wool in the kitchen, or a whole community’s connection to wool.Entries will be judged by Shetland Museum and Archives Curator, Dr Ian Tait, along with local storyteller, Davy Cooper, and the Museum’s Textile Curator, Dr. Carol Christiansen. The ProjectThe Real Shetland project brings together the islands’ main wool brokers, Jamieson & Smith, their parent company, Curtis Wool Direct, and Vi-Spring, who are a major customer of Shetland Wool, with Shetland Museum and Archives, Shetland Amenity Trust and Promote Shetland. The project highlights the importance of textiles and crofting to Shetland’s heritage, culture and economic development, and focuses on remembering and preserving knowledge and skills to ensure the future of our wool and textiles industry. These pieces of history will be kept to provide a rich source of information on Shetland life for future generations. Finalist entries will appear in a special edition book. Judge, Dr. Ian Tait said “we’re looking for personal recollections and photos that that bring back strong memories of woollens. The idea is that we gather these evocative stories into a lasting record of wool-related memories. It’ll be a collective “wirsit memory bank!” We aren’t looking for the next world-class author or expert photographer; it is the story of ordinary folk and the part Shetland wool played in their lives that judges will be looking for.”As the world’s finest bedmaker, Vi-Spring knows that real luxury depends on the best natural materials. That’s why their master craftspeople carefully fill each top of the range bed with Real Shetland Wool. Vi-Spring understand that the unpredictable Shetland weather and the largely natural diet of our sheep means that the properties of resilience, warmth, softness, fire retardancy and temperature control are carried right through to their luxurious beds. Vi-Spring also recognises that Real Shetland Wool is special because of the way it is and has always been closely intertwined with daily life in Shetland. Entry Entries should include a small written piece, roughly 100 - 300 words, illustrated with a photograph or drawing. The photograph can be of a person, a place, or depict an event. Include any known names, dates and locations. Photographs can be from a personal collection, or taken from the Shetland Museum and Archives Photo Library (http://photos.shetland-museum.org.uk). You might even want to show us a garment, a swatch, a piece of art, or even a stick drawing. The emphasis is on capturing the story. Winners will be announced at a special event during Shetland Wool Week, which runs from 10th – 16th October 2011. Entries should be submitted with name, address and telephone number to: Real Shetland Stories CompetitionShetland Museum and Archives, Hay’s Dock, Lerwick, ZE1 0WPor Jamieson & Smith, 90 North Road, Lerwick, ZE1 0PQ (where you can view a replica of the prize). Email: realshetlandstories@shetlandamenity.org For more information or to follow the project: www.facebook.com/realshetlandstories Closing date:15th September 2011 Terms and Conditions: By submitting an entry you agree to your story and image being published as a book. All entries may be used for publicity and promotional purposes by competition organisers. Intellectual property rights remain with the author. Judges decisions are final. Real Shetland Stories, in association with Jamieson & Smith, Curtis Wool Direct, Vi-Spring, Shetland Museum and Archives, Shetland Amenity Trust, Promote Shetland. And here's a replica of the prize in our Lerwick wool store (the winner will have one made to their exact specifications). It is seriously the most amazing thing you've ever felt. No kidding. Want one. More pictures to come... x
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seaweed
Shetland Sheep spend their days ambling around the coastline eating heather and seaweed. This diet, along with the weather conditions, is what gives the wool it's lustre, fineness and bounce. We've said this all before but we thought it was about time we paid homage to the humble seaweed (not so much the weather, that can wait for some other time... or maybe never).x
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