I would love to sit and talk to this lady for hours and learn from her even though I'm not one of her tribal members I think this is a wonderful art and tradition and needs to keep going
I was scrolling up and down of the "you tube" page when I stopped on her sweet face and pressed to listen. In an instant, i wanted call her my grandmother..... Thanks for jewel of a documentary. Job well done.
Icelandic, Norwegian and Swedish sweaters are done seamlessly and worked in the round. I am also a knitter now, living back in South West England. Earlier this week I taught a 10 year old girl to knit. You are SO right, it's so important that we pass on our traditional skills!
I enjoyed watching and listening to Mary Ellen Joe: Cowichan Knitter. The knitting was beautiful and I loved the Thunderbird and the whale on the sweater she was making.
A lovely interview, Mary Ellen Joe is a really lovely lady, and I hope some of her family do carry on her knitting, it is beautiful/1 Loved the flute background music!
What an inspiring woman! I would love to knit with her. I have taken two classes in this style and it still amazes me how the knitters created these works of art without following a pattern!!! So talented!
I always wondered how large projects were knit before the advent of the great circular needle - of course, I refer only to projects which were not knit in pieces and sewn together at the end, like blankets. But this makes sense; how did I not think of it?! DPNs but used across the length of the work! I agree with everyone else that this was a great interview, and I so loved her laugh. She made me smile. :)
DPNs used to be made very long, as long as needed for a project to be divided in 3 or 4 sections. I'm sure they were probably hand carved back then. I haven't seen any for sale like this in my lifetime, but I've read of medieval knitters using them to knit hose and other garments.
I use to knit when I was 18, my Mother in law taught me. But than I didn't like it anymore so I was taught Crochet & now I am enjoying that much better. Working w yarn is so fun for me.
Such a talented lady, love her stories. She and I are the same age even our sons are the same age, I only wish I could knit like that., Olympia Wa. Rurh
Lovely, lovely method of knitting. How I would love to sit and knit with this lady. I could knit it but its also listening to her stories and that special yarn. Soft but yet very hard wearing and durable. It is very difficult to find this yarn.
This took me back to when I was a girl! I spent a year in Cowichan Bay back in the late 1960's. Mum used to take me to craft shows and the thing I remember was seeing fleece being carded and spun. I remember too seeing all the patterns, the same as you are producing. Could you have been one of the ladies who was processing the wool?
Beautiful lady and wonderful video! Very interesting and wow, it would be great to buy one of her sweaters! Is she still knitting and selling? Thank you, Phil Ives, for posting this!!!
I would like to learn the way to knit this way even though I'm not of this tribe. I Want to help keep their art alive. (No offense meant by my comment. I would like to learn sincerely)
Okay people (not just PHS) - let's think this through. We've knit Ganseys, we've knit Fair Isles, we've knit Arans, and so many other cultural styles for decades with no 'offense' taken for goodness sake. Let's just lose this 'offense' stuff that promotes separation - and share in each others' rich cultures. I've knit Cowichan Sweaters, which we had the privilege of seeing when visiting the Pacific Northwest. Patterns are available. Stop tip-toeing around, dive in and enjoy!! Mary Ellen Joe's stories were thoroughly enjoyable - as are knitting stories from people of other cultures. Don't you see that knitting these traditional styles serves to honor and keep the culture alive?? Is it better to let it die? I'm knitting Loch Ness Monster Socks right now. Should there be a fear offending the Scots? Maybe the Scots want to keep their Loch Ness Monster Legend greedily to themselves? Taking a wild guess - the answers are no and not likely... Didn't Mary Ellen Joe herself say the Cowichan patterns came from England, Ireland and Scotland originally? C'mon everybody - stop this nonsense already!!! P.S. to the ladywolfe - People can get the meaning whether FH Homeschooler or anyone else might use the word 'nation' vs. the word 'tribe'...it's pretty clear. Let us finally seek mercy and grace over (k)nitpicking. Ha! that pun just seemed to happen on its own!!
