Keeping The Chill Out...

Well the winter weather has set into Perth and Granny's been working on a pair of commissioned "wild and woolly" handwarmers - see below! You'll find more warm-me-up Granny wares at the upcoming Made On The Left Cozy Winter Market on July 1o - flyer to follow!

These are an easy ones to crochet - come along to a beginner's crochet class and learn how!

x Granny Funk.

Natural Dyeing Experiment No. 1!

Inspired by the amazing dye garden project I discovered on the New York Textile Arts Center's website (see it here - certainly worth a look!) I decided it was well time to try my hand at natural dyeing. Thanks to Kim Hall from the EtsyLabs for this video on simple natural dyeing.

I used turmeric on calico, jute twine and my own handspun merino wool - see the process and results below!

x Granny Funk

Granny Funk in Fashion Journal - the full scoop!

Here's the full interview from Granny Funk's recent feature in Fashion Journal!


FJ: Why do you think arts and crafts, especially crochet, have come back in such a big way?

GFC: It's an interesting thing, isn't it? I think there's a certain element of nostalgia for a lost past, and I think part of that is that we're so saturated with mass-produced, impersonal consumer objects in our culture that people are starting to say, no, I don't want to be an anonymous consumer. There's a desire for personal difference, certainly, but I think the environmental justice movement has also started to bring the question of ethics into the foreground, and people are starting to ask where things are coming from, what it's costing the earth, and who's being exploited in the process. "Ethical consumerism" is part of that counterculture - but making things for ourselves is probably the strongest way of breaking through that sense of alienation, since it allows for both very personal creative expression and a sense of reconnection with the real costs and joys of making something. Crochet is a very tactile and flexible medium, and I think that fits in with the yearning for connection to real things and with a desire for personal artistic voice.

FJ: How did you learn to crochet? What made you want to teach others to crochet?

GFC: Yes, it's cliche but true - my Grandma taught me. My Dad's from the US and we went on a family trip over there when I was twelve, and she taught me the very basics. I think my first ever project was just long chains which I turned into leashes for two toy lions, and I've picked up a few more skills since then!

My background is in sustainability studies, and it really made me rethink the systems of production we rely upon in our economy. I feel really strongly that we need to re-skill in all that's been lost since just a couple of generations ago and start making things for ourselves again. I've always been a very tactile and artistically-driven person so it made sense that my contribution would be to teach people to use their hands to create practical, beautiful things. It's really satisfying to know that a whole bunch of people now have this skill because of you.

FJ: What kinds of people come to your crochet classes?

GFC: So far it's been mostly women, with a small smattering of gutsy men! Professional women from their twenties to early forties has been my most represented group, and that's confirmed my sense that it's this generation that's really trying to reconnect with practical skills. Sometimes the crochet-unconverted ask me if I'm mostly teaching "grannies" - I tell them no, since the grannies already know everything.

FJ: Can you describe the atmosphere at one of your classes?

GFC: Classes are relaxed and fun! I do lots of classes with beginners, and I know it can be intimidating when you start and you're all fingers and thumbs, so there's no pressure! Each group is different and I've met some lovely people while I've been teaching. I enjoy the way groups can create their own little supportive learning cultures. People continually amaze me, too - someone might spend the first lesson really confused and then bring back a whole bag they've made the next week! I also really enjoy the way each person takes the skill and adapts it to their own sense of aesthetics.

FEATURED!!!

Granny Funk's been featured in Fashion Journal with a bunch of her lovely (and good-looking!) students - hurrah!! You can find the feature on page 14 of the online version here and posted below (click the article to enlarge)!

Granny Funk @ Bike Swap Meet

Thanks to those of you who dropped in on Granny Funk at the Bike Swap Meet! It was a fun day with a lovely atmosphere!! Thanks Bike west crew (especially Angelique for some of these pics!!)

x Granny Funk.

Crochet Bike Bling @ Bicycle Swap Meet 26 March

Come one, come all to the Bicycle Swap Meet on the 26th of March at Russell Square! It's part of Cycle Instead Bike Week activities (which you can find out more about at http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/cycling/20025.asp), and Granny Funk will be there from 10am -12pm giving a free beginner's crochet workshop to make curly crochet bike streamers and bike tag swatches - do come by!!! Materials supplied!

x Granny Funk

And A Little Bit of Lace, Too...

Not wishing to be caught idle over the Christmas break, I decided to forage about the internet for a crochet lace collar pattern - to make something for myself, for a change, and as research for Granny Funk's own soon-to-be-invented crochet collar design. Here's what I made:

You can find the pattern for this collar at The Ongoing Project blog - have a look at the beautiful deep pink they've used there. It's a nice one. I've worked mine in a thicker cotton than they recommend - Bendigo Woollen Mills 8ply cotton, creating a chunkier version. I've also used the pointed-edge variation of the pattern. I'm planning to design one of my own soon - probably with varying sizes of points/scallops.



Happy holidays!

x Granny Funk