It's a funny title, isn't it. "The Ancient Art of Thread" and I chose it because almost any type of art-form you can name that involves the use of fiber into thread has a basis in antiquity. Spinning, weaving, knitting, crochet, tatting, nålbinding, kumihimo, and sprang were all invented by various people of varying cultures in response to a need to cover our bodies and protect ourselves from the elements combined with a desire to be admired for our ingenuity, talent, and ability. I have recently expanded my abilities to include direct knowledge of several of these skills, which are now generally considered to be more of an art than necessity.
For the homesteader, I personally would recommend learning at least spinning as well as one of the other methods of creating fabric. Several of them can be done with a miniscule budget and all are very useful skill sets to have.
Spinning is the act of turning fiber (animal, plant, or man-made) into thread or yarn. It can be made using a spindle or a wheel, but all involve the process of twisting the fibers together to create long cords, then twining the cords together to create thread or yarn. You can successfully spin yarn with a home-made spindle or an expensive custom-made ornate spinning wheel. Wheels come in differing shapes and sizes, from the giant Great Wheel or Walking Wheel (you stand and walk back and forth, spinning the yarn onto the spindle of the wheel) or a modern upright 2-treadle wheel. All of these will allow you to create the materials for the other art forms.
Weaving is probably one of the oldest methods known for creating fabric. It seems to be one of the least common thread-art forms in use today. Probably because when most people think about weaving, they picture enormous floor looms taking up half their living space. I have only recently delved into this form myself, but I can tell you from experience that weaving tools do not need to be expensive, especially if you or someone you know is handy with wood and some nails. My current favorite weaving tool is called a tri-loom because it's in the shape of a right triangle. It's primarily used to create woven shawls, but the triangular pieces can also be stitched together to form other shapes of different sizes. Another type of loom, which is a mid-range as far as size and cost goes, is the rigid heddle loom. These can create a variety of fabrics and are very easy to learn to use. With almost no instruction (except a little web research to learn terminology and basic techniques), I was on my way to weaving several dish-cloths on the loom.
Knitting is another very old method of creating fabric. In my opinion, it's one of the easiest for a beginner to learn because once you have set up all of your loops, they will be there in front of you, unless you drop one or inadvertently create an additional loop. The fabric resulting from knitting is very stretch and thicker than weaving. You can learn to knit online (knittinghelp.com), though I would recommend seeking out a teacher if you have difficulty comprehending the stitch. There are only 2 basic ones in this art, the knit and the purl, master them and you can make a wide variety of items. It's generally very easy to find teachers and/or classes for knitting since it's a very common thread skill.
Crochet is actually one of the younger forms of thread art. The fabric resulting from crochet was once referred to as "poor man's lace" because it was created to resemble lace, but produced similar results far more quickly. For speed, crocheting cannot be beat. However, it does use up nearly twice the yarn as knitting over the same area of fabric. The stitches generally result in a thicker, less flexible fabric. As for expense, crochet is probably the most cost-effective thread art that exists today. Since you literally need nothing more than a hook and a ball of yarn to create a wide variety of items. You can learn to crochet online as well (http://www.nexstitch.com/Tutorials.html). Though again, seeking out a teacher to help you should be as easy as finding a yarn or major craft store near you.
The next few are a little more obscure in the grand scheme of things, and if you've heard of them, you are ahead of the general populace!
Tatting is the method by which lace fabric is primarily made. It tends to be rather tedious and time consuming, uses a tool referred to as a tatting shuttle, and results in some of the finest, most delicate-appearing fabrics ever created! This is an art form I have not developed an interest in pursuing for myself. However, it was one my mother showed a desire to learn as apparently it was an art that her own grandmother performed. My knowledge of this art form is very limited, so I won't comment further.
Nålbinding is another ancient form of thread art that many believe pre-dates even knitting! It is Scandinavian in descent and involves the use of a long piece of thread, a large needle (usually wood or bone, but any large yarn needle will do the job nicely), and your thumb. It involves creating a series of loose knots or loops that intertwine to create a thick, springy fabric. I feel that it's use is slightly limiting however, I have not seen items other than hats, mittens, and socks created in this manner. The art form does require you to use wool yarn because you are working with long, but still limited, lengths of the yarn that must be 'spliced' together as move along the piece you are creating. Learning this form of thread art can be challenging since most of the tutorial videos explaining the method are in Swedish or Finnish! I myself am only just beginning to learn this fascinating art.
Kumihimo is another form of weaving that I've only recently learned existed. It apparently originated in Japan and is a form of complex braiding that yields exotic ropes and cording. In modern times it requires very little in the way of tools to produce fascinating results. This is a method I have not yet pursued, nor do I personally know anyone that uses it.
The final form of thread art I want to talk about is called Sprang and is not one I have ever made an effort to pursue. Also I have known only a single person that really uses this method. It's a form of weaving that is probably the most simple and cost effective in existence since the 'form' used to create the fabric is a piece of cardboard and once you have wrapped your threads, they become your working threads as well. perhaps one of the reasons this form of thread art is not more popular is the extreme limitation of the resulting fabric. As far as I know, only bags and hair nets have been mentioned as the use for fabric made with the sprang weaving technique. The fabric that results is very springy as the threads are twisted, or braided around one another.
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