Shetland Textiles: 800 BC to the Present

Just bought this beautiful book : SHETLAND TEXTILES, 800 BC to the present. Edited by Sarah Laurenson.

I love this because I make Shetland Lace shawls, and it's wonderful to have such a  comprehensive  history of Shetland textiles.

It 'does what it says on the tin' - a comprehensive history of textiles in Shetland from the earliest times to the present day. There are chapters dealing with Shetland Sheep and Wool, with Fair Isle Knitting  and Shetland Lace. I am reproducing here some images from the book - (I don't THINK I am breaching any copyright laws here, since they are mainly images in the public domain that I have seen before).

This is a well-known image of Shetland knitters - I don't have a date for this, but it must  be early in the 20th century, perhaps before the First World War. I have made shawls similar to the one being knitted by the woman in the foreground.

Shetland Lace Shawls drying.

Finally, some Shetland sheep.

Knitting History Conference, Saturday 6 November 2010

LOOPING THE LOOPS
Knitting History Conference, Saturday 6 November 2010
London College of Fashion,
20, John Princes Street, London, W1.

Speakers and Subjects already agreed:

Dr. Philip Sykas, Manchester Metropolitan University:
Silk Yarns for Knitting and their use in Britain.

Debbie Bamford
The natural dyeing of silk yarns.

Susan  North, Curator of Fashion 1550-1800, V & A Museum:
Knitting Backwards? Deciphering the Patterns of Historical Knitting

Dr. Carol Christiansen, Curator of Costume at Shetland Museums
details of the knitted garments found on the 17th century Gunnister man


There will also be a short AGM.

Shetland Lace Scarves

Here are some scarves I made in Shetland Lace wool, using a pattern from the 1950s (I think!)