Off-kilter pompoms

Pom poms don't have to be adornments for garments - they can be creations in their own right

We're putting on a workshop tomorrow to show kids the basics of knitting. We don't really know what age the kids will be since it's part of our local Brockley Max community arts festival and people can simply turn up and give it a go. 

Our own experience is that learning to knit doesn't necessarily come easily - but it's pretty addictive once you start. But with lots of things to do on the day and limited attention spans, we thought it a good plan to also offer pom pom making as as option. Pom poms are often used to finish off a hat, bag or scarf and are ideal as a project to take away and complete once your enthusiasm on the day wanes. 

I remember sitting in my bedroom when I was about 10 making pom poms. I haven't done much of it since. With a bagful of multicoloured scraps of yarn, I've experimented with two and three colour pompoms for my pre-event practice. Now I'm thinking of what I can use them for afterwards - ideally something that doesn't lead me back in to the danger zone of flipping through a knitting pattern book and starting a new knit so I've got something my pompom can make complete.

Pom poms can be objects in their own right. Make a few and you've got the makings of an animal body, cut out and glue on felt shapes and give yours a face or attach it to a length of elastic and taunt the cat. But there's one inescapable fact: pom poms always come out spherical. 

Since I like to do different, I'm now trying out asymmetric pom pom making for size. I've figured out that simply shifting the hole off-centre will have little effect on the finished object. So I'm trying elongated shapes instead - long animal bodies and lozenges for legs. I may even make pom pom veg. 

Red, white and blues

I don't know about you, but I'm finding all this British jolliness a bit wearying. Red, white and blue is a cheery trio of colours and I've as fond memories of the 1977 Silver Jubilee as anyone else. We had a lovely street party, the sun shone and I remember being made very welcome by the ladies who were pleased to have a young volunteer for buttering sandwiches before we all tucked in to a vast picnic.

But 1977 was a full 35 years ago and there ought to be some more relevant cultural signifiers than Union Jacks being enthusiastically waved and its familiar motif being spattered across anything able to take a print. The good old red, white and blue is having a dreadful effect on fashion, as a stroll down the aisles of most high street retailers proves. Bed sheets with elongated Union Jacks, floor length and with enormous armholes at the sides are neither maxi dresses or beach cover ups. They're just dreadful.

Last week I witnessed the daubing of the Union Jack right across both windows of one of the most prominently placed pubs in the Leicester Square/Covent Garden tourist zone. Sure enough, when I walked past the next day, not only was the view from the windows completely obliterated, but a giant fry-up and a call to come on in for some Great British Grub was superimposed over the top. We have a tough enough time convincing sceptical overseas visitors about the excellent cuisine to be found in the UK, without reminders of such unhealthy examples. Ok, I'm being a bit of a snob here, but I do think we're playing up our dear old stereotypes when there's no need.

This year's Jubilee is also responsible for an outbreak of bunting - and here I'm guilty of encouraging it as I thought some simple garter stitch pennants in bright colours would be the ideal project for a knitting workshop I'm helping run as part of our local community arts festival.

There are numerous examples of kitschy flowered fabrics snipped into shape and finished with crimped edges - perfect if you want to put on an afternoon tea and serve it on your lawn or in a summerhouse to ladies of a certain age with pressed curls, faces powdered and defiant red lips. I'm afraid I don't know many ladies like that and I'm just as fed up with the tweeness as I am as the giant flags adorning every surface.

Luckily, bunting doesn't have to be kitsch or monarchist - it simply signifies celebration. So while I'm sticking to bunting for its conveniently small size and speediness to create, I'm also slipping in a few non-traditional motifs of my own. After all, Her Maj is Queen of the Commonwealth, which currently comprises 54 countries. That gives us an awful lot more scope than simply red, white and blue.

Brighton knit report

We decided on Brighton for our wedding anniversary. Brighton turned out to have more than its expected share of knittiness. 


I had read in Let'sKnit magazine a couple of issues ago that Cocoon Knits from Hove were running a fundraising campaign involving yarn-bombing a double decker bus. It was to be driven along Brighton and Hove seafront the afternoon of the 20th August. I wasn't sure we'd get to see it, but we lucked out on our drive back from Hove.


Next day, on our way to The Lanes, we chanced upon the Martlett's Hospice shop - the hospice is the charity in aid of which the bus had been 'yarned'. 


Naturally, on spying a small wool selection in the corner, I could resist doing my bit for charity. The fact the yarn's bright pink didn't hurt. 


Further into town we spied a yarn-bombed lamppost and, most importantly, chose our lunch venue based on its knitted Brighton Pavilion display and knitted seagull mobiles. Sold! 


Better yet, afternoon tea was served in teapots clad in the best tea cosies ever! 

Brockley Knits at Brockley Max

I've finally signed up to a Ravelry account, which means I can splurge details of my in-progress knitting frustrations on their forums rather than here. But in a bid to be more sociable with my new-found creativity, I'm making a concerted effort to 'reach out' to other knitters. My Facebook, Twitter and blogging will no doubt reflect this, whereas last year's blogging was more of a show and tell about my gardening endeavours. 

We're putting on a knitting event during this year's Brockley Max festival. On May 30th we'll be knitting and chatting at Mr Lawrence Wine Bar in Crofton Park from 7.30pm. 

Brockley Knits doesn't yet have an identity, so I've suggested we knit this fella as our mascot. You can see more of him at the Jellybums site.

Brockley Knits now has a Facebook page, and I'm hoping to get in touch with other local knitting groups so we can make a broader local event. 

Julia from Knitshop in Lee Green is probably our nearest local yarn shop, so I've asked her along, and I'm hoping the wonders of Twitter and Facebook will yield responses from the Fox & Firkin knitting group and their equivalent in Nunhead. 

Knitting's a lot of fun when shared with friends. Come along and see.