A Summer of making
In the midst of the heat, the long days, the lack of breeze and the bone-dry air, I’ve been making. Or maybe should I say, because of all this, I’ve been making.
Keeping my hands busy has, in recent years, since I started working with folk traditions and crafts, been a way of keeping my mind engaged in a little world of my own. A world of hope (because creating something, whatever it is, is an act of hope, isn’t it?), of interconnectedness, and of slowness too. In challenging moments, when I have to retreat to regain energy for action, I turn to my many projects.
So this summer has been one of making. My knitting needles have been constantly busy, from custom orders to items for my family and myself. My baskets of fibre are getting lighter, as I spin my way through the endless bags of wool that are starting to accumulate in corners. Blackberry picking is stirring my creativity - this summer, I want to harvest enough berries to last for the whole of autumn, winter and spring, so I’m thinking of ways to preserve these berries beyond fruit butters and jams.
My first summer project was, obnoxiously, a woolen jumper! This was my second time knitting this pattern, Jamie Hoffman’s Milkweed, but this time one size bigger, and was promptly sent off to a loving new home.
This Summer, I also experimented with dyeing wool for the first time. As you may know, my book The Wild Craft contains a project on natural dyeing, which was so much fun to put together! Even though the project was written with plant-based fibres in mind, I followed it for my wool and… it worked! In hindsight, I may have stirred the simmering dye pot a bit too much when the wool was inside, as it felted a wee bit. But I definitely took my mental notes and will do better next time!
Look at the beautiful colors lent by the marigolds from my neighbors’ garden!
I dyed one batch of washed and pre-treated uncarded wool, and also a little skein of spun yarn, which was untreated. Can you see, in the above picture, the difference between the two colors? The raw wool, treated with alum, has a vivid shade of yellow (so rich!), while the skein, which you can spot in the basin, has a much paler color in comparison. Both are beautiful, but I’m obviously much more excited about the first one! Below is the result, after spinning, ready to be knitted into something useful! I did a pair of fingerless mitten for my daughter, and still have a little bit left for another small project.
I’ll definitely be dyeing with blackberries this summer too! But this time I’ll spin the wool first… And dye it after mordanting the final skeins.
Back to knitting! Another little project that kept me company these last few weeks, as we went from place to place, from swimming spot to swimming spot, was this silk top. This was a lovely project! It was rather fast to knit and I just love how cool and light the silk is. So happy about it!
Let’s change gears now… Besides fibre work, this summer I’m experimenting with wild fermented sodas as well… Oh my, I’m hooked! It all started with the Elderflower Champagne I brewed for my birthday party in May. I followed the recipe I learned in The Craft of Herbal Fermentation Course at the Herbal Academy (heads up, if you’re reading this after August 22nd, all herbal programs are on sale!) The recipe is so simple and straightforward, which really gave me the confidence to start exploring with different ingredients. Creating a herbal soda with no added yeast feels like magic. You know when we’re children, and we make potions with herbs and flowers… Except this time, things don’t start too stink after a few days. This time, plant magic actually works! And it all still feels a bit like a mystery, to be fully honest.
Something else that inspired me to explore this further was learning about the folk tradition of fermented drinks in Angola. My grandmother and grandfather have brewed kissangwa in the past, and I’m sure many countless family members before them. While kissangwa is traditionally made using corn flour, there seem to be a lot of variations. I like to think that my ancestors are smiling as I experiment and cross my fingers not to be creating bombs under the sink. My grandmother has promised me a big bottle of kissangwa next time I go visit and I’m looking forward to that :)
If you’re interested in knowing more about herbal fermented sodas, I couldn’t recommend you enough these two folks: Colleen from Grow Forage Cook Ferment, who got me started with a ginger bug, and Serena from Everyday Homestead, who does a lot of fermentation with no added yeast or starter. That’s the kind I’ve been experimenting with! Although, once my ginger bug is ready to be used, I am counting on using it as a starter a lot! Here’s one last resource I just came across.
I’m done with sharing projects for now, but can’t wrap this up without also sharing some things that have kept me company this summer as I worked with my hands - podcasts! You may know I’m an avid podcast listener. The following episodes have marked me one way or another, and I think you might enjoy them too:
The Rabbit Hole, from The New York Times. This is a billiant podcast that listens like an investigation miniseries. The topic? The way the internet algorithms works and lead to polarization and extremism. Well, it’s much deeper than that. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Why We Can’t Pay Attention Anymore, form Vox Conversations, was an enlightnening (and provocative!) conversation on big tech and the monopolization of our focus. So good.
Why We’re Still Postmodern (whatever that means), also from Vox Conversations, was a great listen too, and somehow connects with the previous episode. You’ll see.
And for something completely different, this episode from the 1000 Hours Outside Podcast, on Microadventures, was really inspiring. I’ve been struggling with the feeling that our summer is nothing extraordinary, as we aren’t doing anything super exciting or going anywhere magnificent as a family, and this helped see things differently and be creative about how we spend our afternoons once I’m done with my jobs.
That’s it from me today, friends! Share what you’re making or which adventures you’ve been living, close or far away from home. I’d love to hear!
Have a beautiful, whimsical rest of August,
Cat x
PS. Have you got a copy of The Wild Craft? If you do, it would mean the world to me if you could leave a review in whichever store you bought it from! Thank you! :)