Navajo Weaver Clara Sherman; Carding, weaving and spinning

This past weekend, I stumbled upon this amazing video on Youtube. I liked it so much that I posted it to my Facebook page.

I really enjoyed watching Clara select the wool, card, spin and eventually use the yarn created in her loom. With the quilting group, I was part of, the ladies with the exception of myself were over 60. Many were in their 70s and some in their 80s. They were all happy to see me, since they told me they simply didn’t see “young folks” engaged in simple crafts such as sewing. I really got their attention when I told them I also sewed, made beaded jewelry and was interested in learning crochet. At that time, I did not know how to crochet. I did tell them there were young women (even much younger than I) who were interested in fiber crafts. Ravelry, was one of the places where I’d virtually met some of these ladies. But, I would agree with them, outside of Ravelry, shops, or events that cater to the fiber crowd, I don’t run into many that are into fiber as myself.

Often times I encounter people that tell me they don’t do anything fiber related because they’re not “good at it.” Well, guess what, sometimes it takes practice before you become good at something. Perhaps that’s what’s wrong with some folks today? If they don’t pick up something quickly, they never continue with the task at hand since they’re not good. If you think about it, it’s a bit silly to believe you’ll be awesome when trying something new. You might have to practice numerous times before you become good. That applies with many things, not just fiber related crafts. If I’d have followed that logic and given up, I never would have learned to crochet which took about three or four months before I became decent and I practiced crochet daily.