The Makkin (Knitting) Belt

Well, it's almost 3.30am and as usual I'm up and about amusing myself til' sleep finally takes over again! So I thought I'd keep to my promise and tell you a little bit about the 'makkin' or knitting belt that we Shetland folks use. (Makkin is just our local dialect name for knitting).
Here's a photo of my one. (Also seen in my blog header.)



My one is actually a child's one! I haven't had it since I was a child. I just happened to find it in a charity shop and I've added another belt to it so it can fit me!!
Makkin belts are made of leather, stuffed with horse hair and tightly stitched around the edges to make them very strong and to keep the hair in. The belts are worn on the right hand side of the knitter, who will then put their knitting needle (we would call this a makkin wire) into one of the many holes that are put on the front of the belt. Here's another photo so you can see how it works.....

link to original image

Makkin belts are particularly helpful when knitting socks and Fair Isle jumpers as they are most often knitted 'in the round'. By placing the makkin wire you are knitting with into one of the holes, it immediately stabilizes the wire and the garment being knitted, thus making it far easier to keep the tension on the makkin continuous and stopping the garment from moving around too much.
The older generations of Shetland women would really have been the ones to benefit most from these belts, and of course they date back a long way. You'll see what I mean by this next photo........

An old Shetland postcard
A hardy breed indeed!
This woman has probably walked all the way to the peat hill and back, knitting as she went! It was normal for the Shetland women to do this as their husbands, brothers or fathers were away at the fishing, often for very long periods of time, so they had no choice but to take care of everything else. You can see just how tough these women were. Their hands were the hands of workers. No acrylic nails in those days! Probably no nails here and there!
Here's two more hardy women makkin, 'yakkin' and 'takkin' the peats home!

An old Shetland postcard
Can you just imagine walking, perhaps miles, over a rough track with a 'kishie' of heavy peats on your back, knitting an intricate Fair Isle pattern as you go? No wonder they all had their makkin belts to help out. And remember, it was necessary to be knitting all the time as this was a source of income for them while their men folks were away at sea. Plus, some of the garments would be for the men at sea to help add an extra layer when exposed to the wild Shetland elements. Interestingly, the sleeves of fishermen's jumpers were made a little bit shorter than normal so that the arms could be kept drier and warmer. This was especially necessary in the icy cold waters of the winter season, although thick gloves would have been worn too.
Well, I'm just going to finish off with a cute little photo that I hope will make you smile. I also hope you have found this post interesting and informative. As always, if you have any questions or want to know more about the fascinating islands of Shetland, please comment or email me and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

link to original imageI love this photo!

Shetland Lace

Hi, and thanks for popping by. If this is your first visit, please feel free to browse my blog, comment, follow, request further information etc. I'm open to questions and suggestions as to how I can improve my blog and make it more interesting to you.
Today I'm just going to share with you some details of the next project I have in mind. I'll also be showing you some lovely lace knitting patterns, suggesting a great book on Shetland lace and bringing you a little bowl of colour!!
So let me start with the colour to brighten up the very dull and misty day we have here.
As I mentioned I'm already planning the project I will be doing after I finish my natural coloured Shetland shawl. It's ALMOST finished now and it should be on the stretcher by Sunday at the latest!From there I am planning to make a coloured lace scarf in the "new shale" design. This is what the scarf and pattern look like..........



Now here's my little bowl of colour.....



This particular scarf will have white as the main colour and I'll choose 6 other colours with the white, blended as well as possible to make a nice coloured new shale lace scarf. The colours in the photo have not translated all that well as the lighting today is bad for taking photos indoors. The purple in the middle is a much richer "plummy" purple and the blues are not so "samey" as the photo portrays, but I hope you get the general idea.
This is actually one of the easiest of patterns to knit and was the first one I learned from my mother. If you would like the pattern details please just email me and I'll send them over to you. The scarf when finished measures about 46 inches long.
The pattern comes from a great book called, "The Art of Shetland Lace" by Sarah Don. The book shares the history of Shetland lace knitting, gives basic techniques, shows samples of Shetland lace patterns, some of which I'll share below and also gives knitting instructions for Shetland lace garments. All in all a very informative book and worth having on your shelf for constant reference and inspiration.
Here are four Shetland lace patterns. I'd be interested to know your favourite. You can let me know in a comment below if you like. I'll share some more in my next post.




The first one is "Fern Lace, the next one "Diamond Madeira and 4 Hole Lace", the third one "Lace Cable" which is one of my personal favourites and the Print o' the Wave, a very important pattern to Shetland with it's history of seafaring and fishing.
And isn't this christening gown just adorable.....



I hope something in this post has whetted your appetitie to find out more about Shetland lace knitting. Please ask if you want to know anything. Just click the email icon at the top right of the blog.
Until next time, don't let anyone stitch you up!!!

Three Quarters of the Shawl Finished

I'm very chuffed to say that I've got three quarters of my shawl knitted and I'm quite pleased with how it's looking. I really didn't think when I started it that it would go so well and almost ""boo-hoo"" free!!
Here's a photo......



Today I've been thinking of what I need to get knitted for the local shows this year. Where I live there is a local show that takes place just over our garden fence! Not far to travel to that one. The year before last I came home with 5 rosettes and a trophy. The trophy was for "Best in Show" jam. It was strawberry jam and I think the jar was empty next day!!
Last year I had been ill for several months and didn't manage to get anything made to enter. Hoping this year I'll manage knitwear, chutney, jam, maybe some artwork too. We'll see. The lace shawl and some scarves is my main goal.
Well, I'd better press on. I've got holes to make in some knitting!!See you again soon.
Until then, stretch your boundaries and discover new heights!

Is it a Sheep? No! It's a Horse!!

Well, it's been a busy day. I had the first of my appointments today that I mentioned yesterday. There's something about appointments, even if they're GOOD, that makes me get all worked up and anxious. So, just to ease the stress a little, after the appointment, hubby and I visited a second hand store with a neighbour and look what I came home with!!!



That's right. A rocking horse for the cats!! It also doubles up as a handy 'step' to help them get onto the bedroom window!

Yes, I know I'm daft. But it made me feel really good! Retail therapy for the furries. You can't beat it!

So I'm now off to relax with a book, ready to make noticeable progress with my shawl tomorrow. I may even get a photo of it posted on here.
Stay tuned and keep challenging yourselves to new things. Email me with any photos of your own knitting or wool related hobby and I'll be happy to post them on here if you'd like to share them.
Back soon.

Fair Isle Jumper for Sale

Hi again folks!
For anyone following the progress of the shawl I am knitting in natural shades of Shetland wool, I am happy to report that I am almost finished the third quarter so it may not be too long before it's finished and on the stretcher. But I have several appointments this week that will very annoyingly keep me from my needles!!
However, I would like you to feast your eyes on this gorgeous HAND KNITTED Fair Isle jumper made by my very talented niece Victoria.



Victoria, who is also a brilliant artist, has an exceptional eye for colour blending as this beautiful garment shows. I have never actually seen these colours used together on a Fair Isle jumper before. It is finished to a high standard, both inside and out.
At Victoria's request I am offering this jumper for sale for the very reasonable price of £180. If you do an online search of HAND KNITTED Fair Isle jumpers you will see that they can sell for a much higher price. Machine knitted ones are cheaper for obvious reasons.

The measurements are as follows:-
Underarm to underarm (or as we say in Shetland "oxter to oxter") - 20 inches
Oxter to rib - 14 inches
Back of neck to rib - 26 inches
Oxter to cuff - 21 inches

Here's a closer look at the colours and pattern..........



And I love the way the rib, neck and cuffs are worked..........



The jumper can be sent to anywhere in the world but please contact me if you are interested in buying so I can let you know the postage and packaging cost for your country. And of course because this is a one-off garment it is being sold on a "first come first served" basis so the first person to email me will be given first offer.
Should you have any questions at all please email me by clicking on the sign at the top right hand side of my blog.
Please also let your friends and relatives see this jumper. Someone would LOVE it as a birthday present!! Or even a Valentine gift!
Catch up with you soon. Hopefully with photos of my shawl on the stretcher!
Thank you for popping by. Feel free to leave a comment to say you were here and follow to be kept up to date with all things "woolly Shetland"!
Until next time, keep on clicking!

A Fair Isle Recipe ( Of Sorts!)

Hi again, if this is your first visit to my woolly blog then a very warm welcome. If you are a follower or regular visitor, then thanks for popping by again. You are always welcome back!
Anyone who knows me will be aware of my love of books and my inability to pass by an old Fair Isle garment knitting pattern and I have a great one to share with you today.
Here's the front of it.....



I found this one on a well-known online auction site and just HAD to buy it.
You know how it is!

There are three things I really love about this little leaflet.
First of all, it has those three gorgeous child's beret designs to choose from.
Secondly, there are NO CHARTS!
I know some people are great with knitting charts and even prefer them to knitted instructions, but for me a chart is a little bit like reading ancient history. It's all Greek to me!!!
And finally something that made me smile. I think this is so cute! Look at the picture below and see what they call the 'instructions' for the patterns.....



RECIPES!!!
Isn't that just fab!
I've never seen knitting instructions being called 'recipes' before! But I think it's just so delightful and amusing.

On the back page of the leaflet they advertise 4 other leaflets. Here are the designs for those, plus a close up of the three beret designs.












If you'd like any information on these please email me and I will try to help you out.
I hope you're enjoying my blog posts. Please tell me if there is something in particular you would like me to write about on the subject of Shetland or Fair Isle knitting, wool and sheep.
Until next time, stay on the creative side of the street!!!

A Winter Bargain

Forget all the winter sales! I never go to them anyway. I prefer to browse the charity shops and below is my latest winter woolly treasure!
A pure Shetland wool shawl-collared jumper for only £3.00.
I was so happy when I found this for my husband. He only ever really wears wool jumpers these days as he feels the cold a lot. ( And Shetland winters are unforgivably cold!!)
My apologies if the photo quality and lighting is not the best it could be. We are getting very few hours of daylight now and as we are also experiencing adverse weather conditions, everything looks dark and uninviting. But I hope you like the little fun arrangement I did with the jumper. I have a feeling though that my hubby won't be venturing out with his binoculars, even with the jumper on!!




The bottom photo is nearer to the actual colour of the jumper. It's a lovely coppery rust colour with various flecks through it. All in all a nice find and a great bargain. Back soon. Just off to get a little bird from the jaws of one of our cats!!!

Here's a photo of Madam Magda looking as if butter wouldn't melt in her mouth! Don't be fooled!



Back soon!

Further Progress on my Shawl

Hi, just a quick update today after taking a couple of photos of my progress. I apologize for the pics not being completely blur free but I have a problem with my joints at the moment and I have a little difficulty holding the camera still. Yes, I should have used the tripod!! But I hope you like what you see nevertheless.




The borders are actually sewn together using herringbone stitch once the shawl is completed but I have 'butted' them up to meet each other just to give you the idea of how the colours come together. I'm off to do some more knitting! Back soon!

OO'VE BEEN FRAMED!!

Hi again.
For those reading this who may think the post title is a misprint, or a product of a tired brain, let me explain. In this blog post I'm going to share some of the photos I took when me and my sister visited Jamieson & Smith (The Wool Brokers) here in Shetland. The Shetland dialect word for wool is 'oo'. Plain and simple 'oo'. I could have called it 'Ewe've Been Framed' but there were no sheep inside the building so technically I would have misled you!! Now, joking apart, here are some photos........



No better place to start than with a teapot! This one has a nice Fair Isle cover to it. The pattern is available through J&S.


Spotlight on Pure Wool

I loved going into the wool shed because of the smell of the raw oily wool. It was the real deal! Straight from the sheep and ready for the next step.
Down a few steps from there we went into a part of the building that Oliver Henry, the director of J&S told us used to be the old Police Station many moons ago. He showed us the cell where they put the offenders. No moon shone in there! And we were on our best behaviour for the rest of our photo taking time!
Here are a few photos from that section of the building.....


A hand knitted lace hap draped over an old herring barrel with a photo of a Shetland herring station in the background. I will add a link at the side for those of you who would be interested to see more photos of the herring stations. You can also simply Google "Shetland herring stations".



Oliver told us that you will know pure Shetland wool by the 'wavy' look it has nearer the body. The photo below also shows pure Shetland wool, this time on the surface. I do believe I unintentionally captured some grass in the form it goes in one end and also in it's 'post-processed form'!! Oh well, this is raw wool at it's most organic!!



And something I hadn't seen before was this excellent quality pure wool carpeting made from Shetland wool.The photo below shows a mat made from the same carpeting with the 3 Vementry rams Logo on it. Vementry is a place in Shetland.






Just beside the carpeting was this lovely old rocking chair, probably made in Shetland too, complete with 2 hand knitted lace cushion covers on the cushions. I could have sat in it for a few minutes but I was frightened I missed something!



Some more photos now.....



A beautiful example of an all-over Fair Isle jumper in natural colours. Exquisite when seen in reality!




Snuggly!!!




Just a very small selection of the shades of wool available at Jamieson & Smith, The Wool Brokers, Shetland Isles.



Shawls in natural shades. I love these. They are a work of art and of huge talent. I aspire to produce work like this!




I couldn't resist photographing this old window half way up the stairs that had the wool cones on them. Although I couldn't get the whole window in because of the stair banister I was happy to include the spinning wheel ornament, the three little sheep in the middle and the old vase ( maybe full of spiders by now!!) I love quirky!!!




Fair Isle knitting in the natural un-dyed colours of Shetland wool. There are many very talented Fair Isle knitters on Shetland. I've knitted a little Fair Isle but at the moment I'm trying to master fine lace knitting. One thing at a time!!!




This is a Cockle Shell scarf knitted by Sandra Manson who also designs and knits garments in pure Shetland wool. She is always very welcoming when you enter the shop and has a great way of encouraging people to try something new. She has helped me a lot!!

Well, I'll leave you to have a look at those for now. My next post on here will be a photo of my shawl progress. Until then, stay crafty!!