Felting And Space Exploration - Well, There's A Combination...

Last week, I turned over the page of our family calendar to find that at some point in the fairly recent past, I had allocated myself an afternoon at one of my favourite craft suppliers. I had a few other things to do, but I'd written it on the calendar, so it followed that the visit must take place. Of course.

Wingham Wool Work, in Wentworth (how alliterative) near Rotherham, is a fantastic place if you're at all interested in making anything from wool. They stock a huge range of materials and supplies for spinning and felting, as well as some of their own spun yarns for knitting and weaving, and some beautiful yarns made from such things as recycled sari silk. There's always something new and interesting to buy and experiment with. They also run workshops and textile groups, which I'd love to be able to attend but my current schedule prevents me.

Given that it's a bit like letting a child loose in a sweet shop, and I'm mindful that I could spend an awful lot of money there, I just take cash and restrict myself to a set amount. I also try to figure out what exactly I want to make, so I have an idea of what I want to buy. If I go without at least a loose plan in mind, I find myself completely floored by the choice of colours and fibres. Last week, I went looking for bright coloured wool to turn into felt for bunting. And here's the finished bunting, made from the felted wool:

It cost well under ten pounds to make, and it looks really eyecatching in the window.

I had a few scraps left over, so I made this very fetching corsage, too:

This was simply made from a (roughly) triangular piece, which I rolled up and needlefelted into shape at the back.

If you fancy visiting Wingham Wool Work, they're open on Sunday and Monday afternoons. You can order from them online, too. Visit their website for more details: www.winghamwoolwork.co.uk .

Exploring Space

I heard about a really interesting project on the radio yesterday: it's called Galaxy Zoo, and it's an opportunity to help scientists to study the billions of galaxies photographed by deep space telescopes. The project was started in 2007, with astronomers wanting to get people involved in working through the masses of data accumulated by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Over a million people have since signed up to help classify the different types of galaxies out there in the observable universe, and last night my nine year old and I registered to do it. It's very simple, fascinating and exciting to think that you're contributing to scientific research. Schools can get involved, too. Check out the website if you're interested: www.galaxyzoo.org .