I have been growing Cotton in my garden and currently have 4 plants, 3 of which has been producing quite a bit of what is known as Sea Island Cotton.
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| Cotton growing in the garden showing the Bolls |
Excitedly I took a trip to a store in London, Seven Sisters that sold Yarn and other tools that would help me process the cotton.
I never thought that I would get into weaving and spinning but couldn't let the cotton just go to waste. Sea Island Cotton is grown in Barbados, Jamaica and Antigua and has a reputation of being a superior cotton.
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| Sea Island Cotton of Barbados, waiting to be picked |
As a Mixed Media Artist I am always looking for interesting ways to incorporate different materials in my work. With the textiles that I have been working with this is a great way to incorporate the cotton into my work.
Check out the Video
The Handweavers Studio and Gallery is a lovely store to browse and they also have many courses to suit whether beginner or experienced which you can check out HERE.
I spent a good while in the store getting familiar with the different fibers that I can get to practice with, the books they had on display carried a wealth of information. There are so many different terms for the different stages, as a newbie I have a lot to learn.
I didn't realize that there was so many different types of cotton and yarn in general
The staff were very helpful and I managed to spend 2 hours soaking up all the different yarns and equipment they had to offer.
The Handweavers Studio and Gallery has many courses to suit whether beginner or experienced which you can check out.
If you are interested in taking any classes check out Craftsy and their FREE Trial they have some amazing courses!
Craftsy have some Weaving and Spinning courses in their free trial http://bit.ly/CrafAT18 at the moment!
Creative Bug also have a good selection of classes and have a One Month Free Access!
I also found some books and resources on Amazon that will help me with my spinning and weaving skills, you might find them useful too!
Click on the image to check them out in amazon
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| Hand Spinning |
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| Yarnitecture |
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| Hand Weaving Basi |
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| Spinning Hand Dyed Fibre |
I will also be sharing on my Creative Gardener Channel how my cotton is growing in the coming months. You can see 31 of the different plants that I am growing in my garden at the moment.
Who knows you might join me on this journey and feel drawn to spinning and weaving as well. Stay blessed and be a blessing.
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