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Crafts
Farm Hack is coming to Wales! Join in 6-7 October at the CSA Gathering
You’re invited to participate in skill shares and farm hacks from 6-7 October 2018 at Tyddyn Teg Co-operative near Caernarfon. A joint event between Farm Hack and the Community Supported Agriculture network in Wales, Frank White tells us more.
Wood durability guide: timber durability chart & database
Our woodworker friends at Gate Expectations have put together this great chart of timber durability for anyone working with wood (1 is most durable and 5 is least). Over to Rob from here.
How to make your own scallop shell candles
Richard Phillips of The Soap Kitchen shares how you can make your very own scallop shell candles at home with just three simple ingredients and a bit of elbow grease…
Interested in building with straw? Don’t miss The Big Straw Bale Gathering!
It’s not too late to join the biggest straw-bale building event of the year this August in Swansea. Jeffrey Hart of SBUK tells us about how you can get involved, learning all about building with straw from an impressive line-up of speakers to hands-on workshops.
The Wool Journey Part 10: using traditional carding machines
In the tenth installment of The Wool Journey with Sue Blacker at The Natural Fibre Company, we learn about the next stage of preparing wool to spin, using traditional carding machines.
Off Grid Festival 2018: another world is possible
Roxy Piper tells us all about this year’s Off Grid Festival, taking place from 9-12th August in the historic Tapeley Park and Gardens in North Devon, with the theme of Seven Generation Stewardship.
Making a netted bag using looped cordage with Ruby Taylor
Ruby Taylor of Native Hands shares how to make a netted bag using looped cordage and explores the history of using natural fibres to produce wild cordage.
How to make a chicken coop from a repurposed plastic barrel
Wooden chicken houses can be a nightmare, especially when they are infested with red mite: hiding in every crack and crevice and tormenting your hens. Those recycled plastic chicken houses can be expensive though and even they have some design flaws!
The Wool Journey Part 9: the first stages of preparing to spin
In Part 9 of The Wool Journey guest blog series from The Natural Fibre Company, Sue Blacker takes us through the first stages of preparing to spin, featuring the Fearnaught machine and more.
How we escaped suburbia by embracing exchange and life on the road
Visual artist Emma Moody-Smith shares the story of how she and her partner Shawn have spent the past 9 years downshifting, swapping suburban England for life in a motorhome and, crucially, embracing exchange. Here she offers insight and advice to others looking to do the same.
How to grow your own woad: from seed to harvest
A natural dye you can harvest from the garden, textile artist Teresinha Roberts of Wild Colours explains how to grow your very own ‘indigo’ woad plant.
The Wool Journey Part 8: wool scouring and drying
In the eighth installment of The Wool Journey with Sue Blacker at The Natural Fibre Company, we learn about the first stage of processing: wool scouring and drying.
Who can afford artisan goods? For truly green businesses, we have to kick the money habit
Hi, how’s business? As an artisan working with wool, January and February are usually peak season for me, but this year they’ve been the worst months on my records, despite the big freeze.
How might hunter-gatherers have lived on this land?
Emily Fawcett explores what it might be like to live like our ancestors, to live the old way, on this land. What would it mean to experience life and the land like the indigenous people of these islands – as hunter-gatherers, to return to the Old Way?
A beginner’s guide to lambing: from tupping to lookering
Adapted from an original post over at Indie Farmer, founder and editor-in-chief Nigel Akehurst shares his beginner’s guide to lambing as smallholders and sheep farmers prepare for one of their busiest times of the year.
The Wool Journey Part 7: uses of different fibre types
Continuing The Wool Journey, Sue Blacker of The Natural Fibre Company explains the uses of different fibre types. It is said that everything of a pig can be used but the squeak and the same is true of fleeces!
Meet madder, woad & weld: traditional dye plants of Europe
In this post, textile artist Teresinha Roberts of Wild Colours tells us all about the top three European dye plants for use in natural dyeing: madder, woad and weld.
The Wool Journey Part 6: grading, sorting and storing of fleeces following shearing
In the sixth installment of The Wool Journey by Sue Blacker of The Natural Fibre Company and Blacker Yarns, she outlines the crucial steps of grading, sorting and storing of fleeces following shearing.
How to identify trees in winter
It’s one thing to identify deciduous trees in summer, with their distinctive leaves on full show, but what about winter? Without leaves, we have to look at other telltale signs. After a bit of practice, it can be easier than you think. Have a go, using these helpful methods, which will make it easier to …
Earth.Food.Love: the story of the UK’s first zero-waste shop
Nicola and Richard Eckersley, founders of Earth.Food.Love, share their journey to pioneering the UK’s first zero-waste shop in Totnes, Devon.