Useful site for skills.

http://www.burdastyle.com/techniques

I have used a few of the pictures for help sheets and point some A-level students in the direction of this sight for some higher level making skills. More reliable than some of the dodgy U-tube 'how to' clips.

My favourites from the couture shows so far. Wow.

Wet spinning! In colour!

Knitwear/tailoring/knitwear (or nice example of jaquard knitting/intarsia type stuff)

Junya Watanabe=GENIUS

Helen Hudspith

Useful site for KS3 resources, a bit like this blog but with more resources.

http://www.helenhudspith.com/

I am a control freak and like to adjust everything to suit but I particularly like some of the games on here. Worth bunging in your favourites.

Augmented reality? whats that all about then??

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/57b1fea6-1f55-11e0-8c1c-00144feab49a.html?ftcamp=rss#axzz1BHechP2r

Virtual changing rooms that could change the way we shop online. Blimey.

Yes! Its speedo fastskin!

Well done all you clever trevors who got this, it just looks amazing doesnt it?

What is this?

No prizes, just for fun.

Sandblasting, laser finishing and general stuff about the production of jeans from crop to shop!

I use this clip a lot to show various different things to A-level and GCSE students so I though I would share it with you.

It has some excellent information about denim finishes from about 9 minutes in and clearly shows the production line and cotton crop processing etc.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KZWe0sYglc&feature=related

Then you could follow it with a bit of this video about the ethical issues around buying sandblasted denim which can be extremely hazardous to the people working the factories.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GFV0D1eAH4

I find its always good to make the cross links through the differnt sections of the specification, particularly for those A2 questions.

Knitting keeps gangland kids in US out of detention for a year!

Could somebody convice my senioe management about this please?

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/features/article534059.ece


I always knew it of course!

Ethical fashion and the ETI

A few weeks ago I did an activity with my A-level students that they really seemed to enjoy. I have them for a triple period first thing on a Monday and keeping them awake if this is going to be theory is no easy task. SO, I asked them to go back to the common room and ask five fellow students about their feelings towards where high street fashion comes from, do they really care? and what would make them buy ethical fashion etc etc.

I then show them this video clip and we have a class discussion about their own feelings and the findings of their straw poll.

http://www.youtube.com/user/FEInumber1#p/a/f/2/HoLy5PgsL-s

The other videos on the u-tube channel are also good and not too mawkish so I show them and we discuss, I get them all to make notes from this website too

http://www.ethicaltrade.org/

And of course finish with an exam question related to the whole topic.

Some you tube videos that I use quite often in lessons.

Useful video clips for A-level lessons about wicking properties of some new(ish) fibres like cool max, the Tencel promo is a couple of years old but useful as a starting point from which you can explain how lyocell has developed in recent years.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5_Z_8iqUAw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmcWzSjVegQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X6tsGfIVL8

Nice short article, possible A-level starter?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2011/jan/04/shirt-hides-sweat-patches

Follow the link through to the freshmax website and they will send you a free sample of the fabric too!

More on wicking tomorrow.

Vicuna

The warmest, finest, most expensive and luxurious of all fibres. These little chaps can only be shorn every three years as they dont produce much hair, but what they have got is amazing stuff. They are an endangered species that have to be captured from the wilds of Peru, shorn alive and set free again.
They cannot be legally farmed. The fibre is warmer and finer than cashmere and prices are pretty steep at £1500 for a scarf or £20,000 for a coat.

Truly Ultra-Luxe

Back and blogging

Hello to all I have been having a blog break over Christmas and that but am back and ready to rock (in Textilesey way of course) for 2011.

Where to start? well I have been doing a lot of knitting over the holidays, does anyone have any thoughts about knitting in lessons/clubs/etc? I have tried so many ways to teach twenty people how to knit simultaneously and each one has failed except for sitting in small groups (2-3 max) and showing them. Then watching them have a go and correcting them. I usually have one or two who can do it already and have a go at showing the others. Could webcam attached to my IWB help?

Has anyone ever got further than plain knit? or even the dreaded casting on?