Craft Gossip

Independent craft blog since 2007

Candles for Light and Heat in Malawi

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While researching the story of William Kamkwamba and his windmill, I learned from Tom Rielly of TED that many homes in Malawi use paraffin as their main source of light and heat. We use candles here for more luxurious purposes such as decor, setting a mood, meditation and aromatherapy.

Paraffin as a main source of light/heat can get dangerous as well and there are many people who get burned from over turned paraffin candles and stoves. For more information on how to prevent paraffin accidents see Paraffin Safety Association of South Africa. Many homes don’t have electricity in Malawi and William’s family had to travel ten kilometers to purchase their paraffin so they could have light.

Once he got his ingenious windmill going it saved them both money and time because it created enough electricity to light several light bulbs in his home. William continues to upgrade his windmill and is presently working on building a more powerful windmill to pump water to irrigate his family’s garden.

Have you read?

Pencil Knitting Patterns

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns! 

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil. 

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn. 

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point. 

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up. 

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.