Cording for MAFA 2023
From Kelly Grotzinger:
Whether or not you intend to attend the marketplace or take a workshop at the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association’s biannual conference, we would love for all members who have a FRINGE TWISTER to help our Guild provide a special something in the MAFA attendees’ goodie bags. Find that fringe twister and locate those little bits and bobs of yarn and thread hiding out on wayward spools, leftover bobbins, or in that thrum bag. We propose to provide 100 attendees with 2 twisted cords; matching or not, of various fibers, of various lengths, of various color blends, of various thicknesses. What you twist depends upon your available thrums, bobbins, mini cones’ leftovers. A ‘pair’ will go into a simple package and be attributed to our Guild.
I am asking that anyone who is willing, make 12 to 20 twisted cords of greater than 18 inches, finished. After you successfully find the materials it will take maybe an hour to make enough cords for MAFA and for yourself. All cords can be mailed to me or handed off at the March, April, or May meetings. Please let me know if you intend to make twisted cords, however many. I intend to gather some folks together in May to help with stuffing cords in packages and adding labels. Then it will be off to MAFA. Thank you in advance to all the adventurous souls who discover the wonder of cords!
Whether or not you intend to attend the marketplace or take a workshop at the Mid-Atlantic Fiber Association’s biannual conference, we would love for all members who have a FRINGE TWISTER to help our Guild provide a special something in the MAFA attendees’ goodie bags. Find that fringe twister and locate those little bits and bobs of yarn and thread hiding out on wayward spools, leftover bobbins, or in that thrum bag. We propose to provide 100 attendees with 2 twisted cords; matching or not, of various fibers, of various lengths, of various color blends, of various thicknesses. What you twist depends upon your available thrums, bobbins, mini cones’ leftovers. A ‘pair’ will go into a simple package and be attributed to our Guild.
I am asking that anyone who is willing, make 12 to 20 twisted cords of greater than 18 inches, finished. After you successfully find the materials it will take maybe an hour to make enough cords for MAFA and for yourself. All cords can be mailed to me or handed off at the March, April, or May meetings. Please let me know if you intend to make twisted cords, however many. I intend to gather some folks together in May to help with stuffing cords in packages and adding labels. Then it will be off to MAFA. Thank you in advance to all the adventurous souls who discover the wonder of cords!
Instructions:
Measure out a yard or two of 4 to 6 leftover threads and/or yarns.
Measure out a yard or two of 4 to 6 leftover threads and/or yarns.
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Use a quick release clamp or other c-clamp to vertically mount a dowel or tube or bobbin winder or other narrow diameter pipe. A door handle tends to work too as long as you can angle yourself such that the yarn doesn’t slip off. Do not use a helper’s fingers…..just saying.
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Loop the thread bundle around the dowel and secure each set of ends to your fringe twister pincers/alligator clamps.
Put the thread bundle under tension and start to twist. How many twists? It depends upon the fibers and the number of lengths being combined. You want a tightly twisted cord which does not separate into the various parts when used to secure a hand towel or tying your beater to the front beam or draped around the neck of that apron or ….
Put the thread bundle under tension and start to twist. How many twists? It depends upon the fibers and the number of lengths being combined. You want a tightly twisted cord which does not separate into the various parts when used to secure a hand towel or tying your beater to the front beam or draped around the neck of that apron or ….
Keep the twisted lengths under tension and knot the two lengths together.
When you release the tension and pull the cord off of the dowel, the two lengths will twist around each other. You may need to run your hand over the plies to smooth their twists, from the knot end to the midpoint which was around the dowel.
If I have knotted my ends so that they stay in the pincer and then knotted the twisted bundles together, I trim the set of knots off.
If I have knotted my ends so that they stay in the pincer and then knotted the twisted bundles together, I trim the set of knots off.
