Another Bank Holiday On The Horizon

Janie's Friday Feature
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Welcome to this week's Friday Feature Newsletter - the Janie Crow equivalent of a Sunday supplement magazine....

I hope this week's newsletter finds you well and (if you are in the UK anyway) that you are looking forward to another bank holiday weekend. They seem to come thick and fast in the spring don't they - and then we have a big gap through until August before we get another one - it is a bit like London's buses - you wait ages for one and then they all come at once!
 
We had a great time at Wonderwool Wales last weekend and would like to thank those of you who braved the weather and made it to the show. We did have a really great weekend despite the drizzle and it was so nice to see so many of you. Quite a few people came on the stand to chat about last week's newsletter piece (where I talked about using yarn in a more ethical way) and so I was surprised to find that we had received no feedback to the piece in email form. We tend to get a lot of feedback from the Friday Feature every week and so it did seem a little strange for it to be so quiet. When we got back to the studio on Monday we realised that the email in box for Janie Crow had become so full that it had refused to take anymore mail from last Friday onwards, so we soon realised why it had been so quiet!

So, with this in mind, and because this week we have imported a large number of new followers to the newsletter list as a result of the Delft competition, I have decided to leave last week's main feature 'What's Milk Got to do with it?' in this week's newsletter along with all the other features, so that you can get back to us with your comments if you wish. I know that some of you received 'in box full' messages last week, but think that some of you may not have had notification of the problem at all, so please, if you did email us and not get a reply, do resend your comments.
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'We have forgotten how to be good guests, how to walk lightly on the earth as it's other creatures do.'
- Barbara Ward -

What's Milk Got to do with it?

On the occasions that I ventured into social media platforms over the Easter weekend and especially on Easter Monday I saw a lot of chatter about Earth Day and so I felt that the Friday Feature newsletter would be a good opportunity to revisit some of the things I have talked about in the past in regards to the yarn industry, us as knitters and crocheters and what impact our hobby has on the world around us. I would really love to hear your feedback on this piece if you have time to respond.
 
Over the last year or so I have been thinking a lot about the ethical use of yarn. It is a subject that I talked about a few times when I first started writing the Friday Feature newsletter and it is something that I find my mind returns to over and over and yet I still don’t know quite where I stand on this subject or what I can do within my role as a designer in the yarn industry to have a positive effect on the world around me.
 
In this week's piece I want to try and explain my dilemmas and share with you my thoughts on making good yarn choices.
 
There is no denying that we should all be looking at making better choices in regards to pretty much everything in order to be kinder to our planet. Over the last couple of years I have been making some changes to the way I do things, but with many of the new choices I have made, I have then worried that the new decisions are like a drop in the ocean compared to what I could be doing and might not in fact be as positive for the environment as I think they might be.

 
I am going to use milk as my example of how my ‘ethical’ choices present me with new dilemmas: I know it sounds a bit strange to use milk as the example, but I am hopeful that it will illustrate my point perfectly……
 
A few years ago we started having the milk delivered so that we are not constantly throwing away plastic cartons. I found the left over 4 pint milk cartons from supermarket bought milk so obviously wasteful, so it seemed logical to make the switch to bottled milk. I made the choice and I have to say, having the milkman (and it is a man) deliver fresh milk to the door in glass bottles that I then wash and return to him, makes me feel happy and I hope that it is a good, environmentally friendly decision.
 
But then I worry…..
 
Is our carbon footprint in relation to our milk use now higher than it was originally because it is being delivered directly to our door? Are the milkmen being paid enough? Are the dairy farmers getting a bad deal? Are the cows being looked after properly? Should I seek an alternative to my milk delivery? Should I revert to buying supermarket milk and accept that the plastic cartons are sent to be recycled? Should I choose soya milk or almond milk instead, despite the implications that their crops use huge amounts of water and that the milk itself is massively processed and STILL comes in plastic lined cartons? Is milk ethical in the first place?
 
So, as you can see, with just one decision there appears to be so many other things to consider and probably each of you would be able to provide a strong argument for and against my milk choice.
 
For now we will continue to have the milk delivered and I think (as I have already said) that, in the end, I am happy with my choice. Cows milk uses a lot of water to produce but has the added benefit of by products such as meat and leather. We don’t have to recycle plastic waste cartons and my milk delivery, when added to all the others in my area, creates a job for someone. I think this sits well with my conscience and I am happy with my milk choice.... for now any way.

Making a change to the way we get our milk has been one of the small changes we have made, along with reverting back to using bars of soap instead of plastic containers filled with shower gels and hand wash and purchasing recycled loo roll wrapped in paper rather than plastic bags to name a few. These are all small changes that I hope will add up over the years,

But then I worry.....

At the same time as making these changes within my personal and home life, what am I doing, as a designer, to help the environment and what is my industry doing too?
 

On Monday (Earth Day) I saw quite a lot of posts by Indie yarn dyers in particular about the benefits of wool or natural fibres over man made alternatives, with posts suggesting that crafters using acrylic, for example, need to be more careful about their yarn choices. The conversation really got me thinking about the number of dilemmas that come to surface when blanket statements like 'buy less acrylic' and 'choose natural fibres' are aired - and here is a list of the reasons why....

Fibre Content: Acrylic yarns are hugely processed and are basically made from plastic. It has been proven that acrylic fibres shed tiny filaments into the water system when washed and worn. Many 'natural' yarns, such as Bamboo, also undergo an intensive method of production. Cotton is the thirstiest crop on the planet and much of it is produced in very poor countries where workers rights are incredibly bad. And, how exactly should we feel about things like silk?

Production Process: Many wool yarns on the market are in fact sprayed with a plastic solution to prevent them from pilling. If something says 'Superwash' then the chances are that it has been sprayed within the processing method.

And then there is the dying process - another whole bunch of dilemmas!

Big companies have to adhere to stringent rules in regards to the way they use and dispose of dyes and fixing agents. Are these 'rules' adhered to by Indie dyers who are busy creating beautiful colourways of yarns from home? Are these dyers all careful about how they deal with their waste water and dye? Are they using large amounts of cling film and microwave energy to fix the dye in their skeins?

Where are yarns coming from? The current trend for British Wool, for example, has led to lots of it being bought by yarn producers in other parts of the world who process it and resell it as a British product despite it's high carbon footprint and the fact that much of the processing has taken place in another country. Man made fibres are often made in Turkey and the Far East so have an equally poor carbon footprint.

Trends: Fashion plays a key role in what we all, as consumers, are made to feel we need. Indie dyed yarns are currently really popular, but come in at a high price point compared to main stream yarns. Man made fibres are cheaper and more commonly available. They are more consistent and more easily replaceable should we run out or need to make any changes to what we are working on. I guess this point also leads onto materialism, something I am going to touch on a little further down this post.

Is there a snobbery linked to yarn use? Or is that a whole other conversation?

OK, so LOADS of dilemmas for all of us and I hope that some of the things I have said might help you to make your yarn choices a little more consciously, but increasingly I feel that as a designer, I have an obligation to look at these points a little deeper...

As a crochet designer I do not produce an actual commodity. I am not a yarn producer, but I am supported by quite a few; some of them are mainstream and some of them are smaller Indie dyers. Whilst I do not create an actual item I do, via my crochet and hand knit patterns, create a reason for people to want to purchase yarn. Does my design choice in my patterns therefore mean that I am responsible for creating a ‘want’ in more people for acrylic yarns, or are people making their own choices based on my yarn suggestions? Are crocheters substituting man made mixes for wool or other natural yarns or are they sticking to my suggestions and therefore are my designs creating a desire for more and more plastic?

This is a huge dilemma for me, but I can see that going forwards I have to really think about my yarn choices, and therefore the choice of anyone else who uses my patterns.

I totally understand the backlash against man made fibres, but, if people are making things to last and which they will have for a long time, does that make it OK to use them?

I find the ‘don’t buy acrylic’ comments a little difficult to digest too. We all have a budget, some have a bigger one than others and as crochet is particularly yarn hungry a big project can get expensive. The speed of crochet is a factor as well as projects take less time to complete. This is a topic that came up quite a few times in the conversation we had on my Instagram feed a few weeks ago and is another whole kettle of fish!
 

So, what is the answer?

To be totally honest, as usual I am undecided. In regards to my design, I fluctuate between only ever wanting to use high end natural yarns, to falling in love with a new yarn with man made fibre content! So I guess that for me, like with my decision to get the milk delivered, I am going to go for the slow and steady approach and make a few small changes over a longer period of time rather than make drastic changes that will present me with more and more dilemmas.

I have considered creating generic patterns that do not favour a particular yarn, but simply state the yarn weight and give a general idea of colour. Do you think this is a good idea, or would I simply spend my life emailing people the list of yarns I used in my crocheted sample?

If you are also thinking you might want to make a few changes, then here are a couple of suggestions that might help:

If you are used to doing speedy repeated stitch blankets, for example, then you might want to consider doing something a little more complicated that will take more time and therefore use less yarn in the long run, while also pushing your skill level.

I am not going to say don’t buy acrylic, but I will suggest that you buy less of it. Actually, I am going to say buy less of EVERYTHING! We are constantly being told we need stuff when we don't, so try not to be tempted by the pressure to have more and more. The word 'stash" in regards to yarn is a new concept and is one that our Grandparents generation certainly didn't use. I am pretty sure my Grandparents never had a stash of anything in their whole lives, instead things were reused and everything was thought about before it was thrown away.
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Do a bit of real stash busting! (Mystical Lanterns is the perfect choice for this!) Try to really think about your yarn stash and ask whether or not you actually need to be buying more. Look through your stash before you go out to a show or a store and use up part balls and left overs within new projects.

It might also be a good idea to mix your projects up a bit. Maybe, if you are on a tight budget you could choose to work on an acrylic project, but, while you are working on that one you could be putting some pennies away over a few weeks in order to save up for a project that will use higher end yarns next time round?

Going forwards I am definitely going to be more careful about my yarn choices, but I think that we should all be wary of feeling guilty in regards to the choices we have made, or will make again in the future. One of the reasons I have chosen to work with lots of yarn companies over the years is that I feel each project is suitable to a different yarn and I don't see why your choices as consumers should be any different.

This has been a long main piece this week and I am sure that in places I have repeated myself and waffled a little, but if any of it strikes a chord, or you want to discuss a particular part, please get in touch.

* Just a quick word in relation to the images I have used in this piece. I chose the images of yarns from various on line stores purely because I think they are lovely images and not for any deeper reason. If you click on the images you will be taken to the linked web store. I chose the image of the Milkman towards the top of the piece because it reminded me of my Granddad - who was a milkman!

Instagram of the Week
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I found Lindell and Co on Instagram this week. Their images are so divine that I couldn't choose just one!
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Colour Palette of the Week
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Like my Instagram favourite I struggled to decide between palettes this week and so have posted 2 below. Both images come from a store called Ian Snow.
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If anyone fancies getting me the settee (or indeed any of the other items of brightly coloured furniture this store has in stock) then I would be a very grateful recipient!!!!
 

Delft Colouring Competition

Voting in the Delft colouring in competition closed this week. If you took the time to go on the web site and cast your vote - thank you very much! We received a huge number of votes and will be revealing the winners in a few weeks time, so do look out for more information soon.
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When we chose the finalists we made the decision to have all five versions made into blankets as we really liked all of them and obviously couldn't predict which one of my recoloured Delft Blanket designs would be the ultimate winner. I have to say that ALL the finalist's blankets look lovely and I am really looking forward to revealing them to you properly soon - for now you will have to make do with the teaser image above!

The three winning entries will be included in an updated version of my brochure pattern from the summer time onwards and the colour ways for all 5 finalists will be available as downloads from my web site then too.
 

Tip of the Week

​I realise I have been a bit lax in regards to tips and had completely forgotten that my aim had been to include a tip a week in the newsletter. I think I deleted the boxes one week when I didn’t have a tip and completely forgot to put it back in!
 

So this week I have a very quick tip for you in regards to the way you choose to work through a pattern.

Patterns are usually written in a certain order. Knitting patterns for garments, for example, start with the body, progress to the sleeves and finish with the making up instructions. My patterns tend to have the main motifs first, followed by the filler or half motifs.

Just because a pattern is written this way doesn't mean that you always have to follow the order of making.

Analyse a pattern before you start and work out which parts of it are suitable for different times. For example sleeves and easy bits of crochet would be perfect for journeys or for working on in front of the TV, whereas harder bits may need a little more concentration and therefore might be better off made at a time when you know you will not be disturbed.

I also always suggest that garments are put together as you go along, rather than all the making up happening at the end of the project. It is also a good idea to make repeated motifs for large projects like blankets in a production line fashion rather than one at a time. this way you are more likely to memorise the pattern and end up with all your motifs the same size.
 

It's nearly the weekend!

I will be heading out to the West of Ireland on Sunday to accompany a group on an Arena Stitchtopia tour. I am really looking forward to the 6 day trip and have been busy brushing up on my knitting skills in preparation. It has been a really long time since I worked a knitted cable design and so I really enjoyed doing some knitting for a change, even if at times it was a little challenging holding two needles instead of one hook!

The project from last year's Stitchtopia trip to Scotland and the Faroe Islands, the Streymoy cushion cover, is now available as a pattern from my on line store and Just Knots has yarn kits available for this project with the pattern included for free. The pattern is available at retail and trade so you might well find it at your local stockist too or you could take a look at our stockist list to find one near to you.

I am always saying about how quickly time speeds past us. The weeks and months do fly by and I guess that is a sign that we are all busy and happy, but nonetheless it is a bit of a shock when big birthdays seem to appear out of nowhere. The fabulous Mr C turned 50 on Tuesday and so this week has been a bit of an on going celebration of the fact that he made it this far!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ANDY!

I hope that whatever you are doing you have a fabulous weekend and I look forward to seeing you here again next Friday when I will be sharing some images from my trip.

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