Diabetics R Us

Bluetit1802 said:

Well done @Antje77 It was very brave to go in the canal in the dark.

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Thank you! I think the part with the nettles and thistles was braver, as I quite like swimming in the dark and the water didn't come above my hips. It took way more courage to just sit down in the nettles with my jogging pants

@Antje77 you did great! And I love the pictures. What kind of sheep are they? Cool wool.

@SaskiaKC , they're Drentse heideschapen. Very sturdy sheep. Drenthe is a part of the Netherlands, heide is heather and schapen are sheep. Two years ago I spun some of the wool from those sheep (yes, the same ones as in the picture) and knitted a pair of socks from it

Thanks, @Antje77 .

Those are lovely socks.

SaskiaKC said:

Thanks, @Antje77 .

Those are lovely socks.

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I know! And after I knitted them I saw a future of an unlimited amount of self-spun, self-knitted socks but it turned out I lost my interest after I learned to spin, knit and knit socks. Never got beyond the first hem of a second pair. So I'm back to bought socks and save this pair for special occasions. Good thing I always wear sandals: if I wear my socks everybody gets to see them!

My Mother taught us all how to knit, even my brothers. My sister and I were the only one's to run with it, she becoming a tailor and I went on to self-teach in crochet, xstitch, embroidery and Hardanger as well as basic dress making.
I did try to teach my sons to knit but the only related thing I managed to nag them into doing was sewing on buttons.
My granddaughters were much more amenable, I taught them basic sewing, xstitch, knitting and crochet.
They then dropped all of that in favour of making those (horrible) plastic 'braided' bracelets. Oh well, I tried.

Guzzler said:

I did try to teach my sons to knit but the only related thing I managed to nag them into doing was sewing on buttons.

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When I was in school at 17 or 18 I had ruined my favorite sock by putting my legs on the table with my feet to close to a candle. I had heard of darning socks, although I'd never seen it, so I wanted to find out how it worked so I could mend my beloved sock. Neither my parents, nor my grandmother or aunts knew how to do it (although I suspect my grandmother lied) so I took my sock to school to ask the 'textile' teacher how to mend it. She didn't know either. In the following week I asked all older female teachers if they knew how to darn socks until my sock became a running gag in class. So as a joke I asked our 28-ish, tanning bed brown, musceled, ski-instructor like PE teacher. Class started 5 minutes late that day because he took his time explaining very clearly how to proceed with my sock, and I have worn those socks for years after
A very nice lesson in prejudices it was too!

Antje77 said:

When I was in school at 17 or 18 I had ruined my favorite sock by putting my legs on the table with my feet to close to a candle. I had heard of darning socks, although I'd never seen it, so I wanted to find out how it worked so I could mend my beloved sock. Neither my parents, grandmother or aunts knew how to do it (although I suspect my grandmother lied) so I took my sock to school to ask the 'textile' teacher how to mend it. She didn't know either. In the following week I asked all older female teachers if they knew how to darn socks until my sock became a running gag in class. So as a joke I asked our 28-ish, tanning bed brown, musceled, ski-instructor like PE teacher. Class started 5 minutes late that day because he took his time explaining very clearly how to proceed with my sock, and I have worn those socks for years after
A very nice lesson in prejudices it was too!

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In my Mum's youth it was not unusual for men to knit.

Last year, during his self catering holiday my youngest ended up cooking almost all the meals until he just got fed up and cooked only for himself out of a group of eight friends. Not one of the others could do any more than pour cereal into a bowl or run to a take away. My youngest likes what he calls proper dinners.
I could not teach my sons how to play rugby or do an oil change but I hope that left to their own devices they wouldn't starve.

As to darning socks, if I offered to teach them I'm sure I would get blank stares. There's just too much throw-away stuff about for them to get it.

When I went looking for darning supplies -- needle and thread and an egg? -- a few years ago I couldn't find any and was told they aren't available anymore. Apparently lots of people replace socks nowadays instead of darning them.

My mother taught me to sew but I think she was frustrated by trying -- she was a very good seamstress and could do things like bound buttonholes and smocking and lovely cutwork embroidery but I was not good at even marking darts or sewing 5/8" seams. I'm glad I remember the theory, though, and I can do hand-sewing when I need to.

I can crochet, but there are no yarn shops around here anymore and I never seem to think about ordering yarn online. I need to, and start making cat toys again.

There may be a sewing needle somewhere in this house, but I have no idea where. I do have a red, a white and a black cotton bobbins but they are out of the Ark - I had them when I was at school. I did needlework at school until GCE level. I failed miserably. One dress I tried to make ended up as a wonky pillow case. I can knit. Self taught more or less, but had to stop about 30 years ago due to back problems. I also know how to darn, although I haven't done that since god knows when. Probably 50 years ago. A great aunt taught me. At least, I think it must have been her. She knit all my dad's socks on 3 needles. Or was it 4? I can't remember. Do folk wear woollen socks these days? I can't say I know anyone that does.

My mum couldn't sew but she did a lot of lovely embroidery and tapestries. Clearly, I never taught my daughter to sew, or knit. I am a bad mother.

Many of my Derbyshire ancestors were framework knitters. They rented the huge frames and worked piece work for the factories, knitting stockings mostly. It was very poorly paid.

I met a lady a few years ago, a young woman, who had some angora goats on her small holding. She sheared them, spun the wool on her antique spindle spinner, knitted the wool up into garments, and sold them in a small shop. I bought a scarf from her. It is a bit itchy, but very warm. I also met her goats.

@bluetit I took Home Economics one semester in high school. Sewing. We had to make a pillow cover, a jumper (dress), and something else -- I don't even remember what the third thing was. I did the pillow cover fairly well but Mama ended up doing the piping trim, and the entire jumper so that it would be wearable.

The only time I ever used any of Mama's specialty sewing needles was when our horse pulled one of the straps on his turnout blanket loose and I had to sew it back on. That was a very thick webbing strap on a very thick waterproof turnout blanket and I think I used this HUGE U-curved needle I found in the sewing machine drawer. Maybe it was an upholstery needle, I don't know. It worked well enough on the strap and the blanket but it made my hands very sore! -- I think I needed one of those leather hand-protector things I've seen maybe sailmakers or leather-workers use? But Prince had his blanket back with straps intact.

Good grief -- that was 10 years ago. Sigh.

The jumper looked sort of like this


Prince and his blanket looked sort of like this

SaskiaKC said:

I think I needed one of those leather hand-protector things I've seen maybe sailmakers or leather-workers use?

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I'm not one for detailed needle work of whatever kind but I've had my fair share of mending sails by hand, both using a "zeilhandje" (the leather hand protector thing) and an "speedy stitcher", a pretty nice thing that let's you sew a machinelike stitch. A lot safer too, if you're as clumsy as I am. I once managed to try to push a very thick, blunt, rusty sail needle through 6 layers of sailcloth with the back end of the needle beside the brass reinforcement on the zeilhandje. When something finally gave in it wasn't the sail but the 3 layers of leather plus my skin. The zeilhandje was attatched to my hand by the back of the needle which would've come out on the other side of my hand if it hadn't slid along my bone. Yuck.
You'll understand why I prefer the speedy stitcher over the zeilhandje

Zeilhandje:


speedy stitcher:

Cool pics, @Antje77 .

I just remembered -- I once ran a sewing machine through my thumb and out the other side.

Hmm ... I had totally buried that memory. Guess that was one reason I never really enjoyed sewing!

So it's Can't Sleep Won't Sleep time again. This is all due to getting giddy and excited, you would think by age 60 I would have grown out of being overtired and grouchy like a toddler but Oh no.

Morning all

Lovely blue sky out there this morning.

I crochet & xstitch and I taught my daughter & son to xstitch, Sarah still does but James hasn't for years. Sarah has taught herself to knit (I can't). My mum was a professional dressmaker and she used the "front room" which we weren't allowed in! She used to mainly make wedding & bridesmaids' dresses. When she died we found lots of photos of weddings of unknown to us people in the dresses she'd made.

Hope you're all well today.

Have a good day.

H

When I was a youngster my father insisted that I learned to cook, sew, darn , knit wash my clothes and iron he said these were skills every one should have so they could take care of themselves and be independent and not need other people to do things for them. He was right and I thank him for it.

JohnEGreen said:

When I was a youngster my father insisted that I learned to cook, sew, darn , knit wash my clothes and iron he said these were skills every one should have so they could take care of themselves and be independent and not need other people to do things for them. He was right and I thank him for it.

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In college I dated a guy whose roommate was in the Navy and I remember watching him iron his white uniform. I was very impressed, and also very tempted to bring my ironing over and ask him to do it!

Guzzler said:

So it's Can't Sleep Won't Sleep time again. This is all due to getting giddy and excited, you would think by age 60 I would have grown out of being overtired and grouchy like a toddler but Oh no.

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Oh no, you are right, and just wait 'til you hit 66.

SaskiaKC said:

Oh no, you are right, and just wait 'til you hit 66.

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69 here and still not grown out of it.

Had blood test this morning to check on Kidney function a repeat after one I had a few weeks back all went well no problems this time, but as I was leaving the nurse/health care assistant said see you in four weeks nobody so far has told me this is going to be a monthly thing so has got me wondering.