on Today’s WOVEMBER WORDS come from Wordsworth who gives a wondrous picture of the place of WOOL in Lakeland life in the early nineteenth century. Originally published anonymously in 1810 as an introduction to Wilkinson’s “Select Views in Cumberland, Westmoreland and Lancashire”, Wordsworth’s “Guide to the Lakes” was later revised and edited by the author and… Continue Reading Wovember Words: Wordsworth on WOOL
on Sheep and WOOL really do get into everything and, if you have purchased a copy of the KNITSONIK Stranded Colourwork Sourcebook you will already know that “everything” even includes a 1930s book about electricity entitled “The Wonders of Electricity”. Published in the 1930s, this book provides fascinating glimpses into the domestic interior of the 1930s… Continue Reading Wovember Words: WOOL and electricity
on This evening we have a gem of a post from Jane Cooper, who will be known to many of you through her amazing work on the Woolsack project and also for the work she does on the Blacker and Beyond and Fleece & Fibre Sourcebook group on Ravelry which celebrates a diverse range of different… Continue Reading The Sheep On The Shore and The North Ronaldsay Spinning Mill
on As WOVEMBERSISTS know, I am passionate about how sounds can be used to connect us to the landscapes, people and animals that are ultimately the source of WOOL. I was therefore thrilled to discover that Cathy Lane – composer, artist and one of my PhD examiners – has also been exploring these connections. Cathy Lane… Continue Reading Wovember Words: sounds and lost sounds
on While writing out the words of my song the other day I went on one of my sporadic quests to locate an image of an actual Berkshire Nott. I am obsessed with this sheep breed because it is the one that was locally important where I now live in Reading, Berkshire. It is now extinct… Continue Reading The Golden Hoof
on Fellow TEAM WOVEMBER member Louise Scollay has insisted that for one of the posts I share the words to the Shetland Wool Week Song. I wrote this song for Shetland Wool Week 2013, and it is an unapologetic celebration of beautiful Shetland Wool. In one of the verses I talk about “huffing the wool fumes”;… Continue Reading Wovember Words: Huff
on I was reading about the history of woollen blanket manufacture in Witney, Oxfordshire, when I came across a curious term: “alnagers”. Further reading revealed that ‘Alnage, or aulnage (from Fr. aune, ell) is the official supervision of the shape and quality of manufactured woollen cloth’ and that alnagers were the official practitioners of Alnage. They… Continue Reading Wovember Words: Alnagers
on About this time last year WOVEMBER became aware of a wonderful new buzz around the Internet; we heard tell of a film-maker seeking support to produce an amazing documentary detailing the lives of a tenant farming family living in Upper Teesdale. Entitled “Addicted to Sheep” and with the support of 167 people & The Heart… Continue Reading Friday night Vi-EWE-ing: ADDICTED TO SHEEP
on Ahead of this week’s Friday Night Vi-EWE-ing, Louise has fallen into the archive rabbit hole again to bring you an early WOVEMBER matinee. Not so heavy on the words, the film in question is Jenny Gilbertson’s silent film, In Sheep’s Clothing (1932) Jenny Gilbertson, nee Brown, was born in Glasgow at the turn of the… Continue Reading Wovember (lack of) Words: In Sheep's Clothing
on As well as here you can find Team WOVEMBER on Facebook and Twitter and on Ravelry. Louise looks at how the world of wool operates in social media and introduces us to some of her favourite Tweeters! Who can remember the times before social media? Although find it odd that things like cassette tapes and dial… Continue Reading The Daily Bleat