Beauty and purpose in one
Creative Fibre Pahoia spent its first morning meeting in June felting soaps. We transformed bars of soap into colourful additions to our bathrooms. The process of felting causes the wool to shrink tightly around the soap. As the soaps are used, the fibres continue to felt, making for a soft facecloth and soap in one. One of our members took the opportunity to make a set of felted soap pebbles which she plans to have as a permanent feature in a bathroom.
We have been planning our activities for the next few months, and welcome all who would like to join us at the Settlers’ Hall on Ōmokoroa Road. Creative Fibre members aim to explore, create and inspire, with fibre. We share, promote, teach and preserve the cultural activities of spinning, weaving, and wool crafts – knitting, crochet, felting and dyeing to name just some. You name it, if there’s fibre involved, we’re doing it.
There’s a ‘day group’ which meets from 10am – 1pm on the first, third and fifth Tuesdays each month, and sets the first meeting of each month as a learning session. Our ‘night group’ meets from 7pm to 9pm on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month.
The day group will begin July with a session on Nuno felting, a wet felting technique where wool or other fibre is felted with and through an open weave fabric such as silk or chiffon. Water, heat and friction come together to felt the fibre. From August we are looking to develop our spinning skills. Meanwhile the ‘night group’, is continuing its focus on developing knitting skills. They’ve been widening the range of cast on and cast off methods they use.
You’re also welcome to join us for three meetings at either group while you decide whether Creative Fibre is for you. It’s $5 per meeting to cover the hall hire. We look forward to meeting you.
The two groups will come together on Saturday 7th August for an Open Day
from 10am – 12 noon at the Ōmokoroa Settlers Hall. We will have a wide range of items we’ve created on display as well as equipment for spinning, weaving, felting, knitting and crochet. If you’d like to try your hand at any of these, we’ll have people there to help you. In late October we’ll also hold a display at The Carlton Gallery in Katikati.