Transition Circle West - 23 March

Our new format of two meetings a month seems to be working well. We had a lovely meeting of textiles work, getting on with projects we had and sharing tips and ideas. Our second meeting was a lively discussion of low carbon holidays, and what a long list of ideas we came up with! From Couch surfing to retreats, Cycle touring to RSPB residential volunteering there is a massive array of possible low carbon holidays in the UK. All of our ideas will be put into the resources section of the Transition Norwich website for others to peruse. We also discussed the ethics of international travel - flying, freight ships, voluntourism and slow travel - its a complicated moral maze, but low carbon options often end up being more memorable in the end.

Next month we are going to be concocting lotions and potions in our herbal remedies meeting on Tuesday 8 March and then we will be exercising our minds with a short talk from Ben on sociocultural evolution and its relevance to transition, followed by a discussion, on Wednesday 23 March. Kerry Lane

Anyone in the west of Norwich, who is trying to reduce their carbon footprint is welcome to join us, just get in touch with Helen on mshelenpallett@gmail.com.

NR3 - Neighbourhood Meeting - Monday 24 May

NR3 – Neighbourhood meeting - Monday 24 May
Seed swapping grew into tree swapping at the last NR3 meeting. I came home with 4 saplings and a tray of beetroot! Thanks to Greta for hosting and supplying us with drinks while we put the world to rights.

Our next meeting is at Karen Steadman's art space on 27 St Augustine's Street on Monday 24th May at 7 pm. We don’t have a theme as yet but maybe something eco-crafty? Speaking of which her event called Let's paint the town green is on Saturday 8th May. You meet at St Augustine's Church at 2.30p.m. for the parade or 5.30 at the hall to celebrate all the garden sculptures coming together. Contact Karen on 0770 848 5998 for more details.

She is having some regular craft evenings at her space on Thursday evenings starting on the 29th April for three weeks. These are at 7p.m. and you can come and do anything creative.
Lastly, if you have not exhausted your creativity at Karen’s then you can join the knit with pride project by knitting squares to show your support for the LGBT community. They will be joined to make a mammoth woolly to hang off the city hall balcony on the day of Norwich pride festival in July. (helenofnorwich/NR3)

Free wool can be got from Anna's Farm Stores, 125 Magdalen Road and details of Knit-Ins are on the website www.norwichpride.org.uk. For more info about knitting nights www.artoftheordinary.co.uk

Reskilling: Clothes Swap and Mending Sessions- Saturday 22 May
The idea of our Reskilling textiles sessions is to provide tasters of a skill that may then launch you off into a whole new area, or just give you the basics you need from time to time.

Mending and altering clothes: we will be having an ever popular clothes swap, followed by a session to learn how to mend or alter any new clothing that you have acquired, plus anything else that you have brought along, without using a sewing machine. This event is happening on Saturday 22nd May from 11-3 and will include a bring and share lunch. It will be a free event and all abilities and body shapes are welcome (10 spaces available).

Knitting: there are a plethora of Knit-Ins happening around the city where everyone is very welcome and you can learn the basics or pick up some good tips:

1. To celebrate Norwich pride this year, artist and transitioner, helenofnorwich is encouraging everyone to knit a square that will be joined to make a giant rainbow scarf. The idea is that everyone can show their support for pride in this simple way. To find out more about how to knit a square and knit-ins that are coming up visit http://www.norwichpride.org.uk/ (also see NR3 entry below)
2. Another transitioner Karen Steadman is hosting some knitting nights on Thursday 6th May and 13th May, 7-9.30pm at 27 St Augustine's Street, all abilities welcome. For more info http://www.artoftheordinary.co.uk/

Both sets of events will provide some materials if you don't have your own.

Rag rug making session: Monday 17 May,7.30-10.00pm in Karen Steadman's craft space, 27 St Augustines Street (5 spaces left) learning the art of making rugs from rags! This event is free, but booking a space is necessary so we have enough tea and equipment.

Spinning: we are currently trying to organise a session to learn the basics of spinning with a spindle. (Kerry Lane/Reskilling)

The finalised details will be sent round the theme groups and booking will be necessary on all but the knitting sessions. For booking and information contact Kerry: kezereky_the_first@hotmail.com

Above: Knitting squares by helenofnorwich; dressmaking by Elena Judd; Heart illustration by Elena Ray

Reskilling: Textile Workshops

The Reskilling group wants to (re)learn the multitude of skills that will be needed for a sustainable future. In the past year we have had craft stalls at green christmas markets, visited the Weird and Wonderful Wood fair for inspiration and helped organise the summer party. Our next endeavour is a series of Reskilling workshops introducing some of the basic skills requested in the skills survey we carried out earlier this year. The focus of the first six of these sessions is going to be on textiles, running in late April and throughout May, led by a variety of people from both within and without the group.

To begin with we want to know who is interested in each workshop, so please email Kerry (kerezereky_the_first@hotmail.com) if you might like to attend any of the sessions (numbers will be limited and there may be a small fee for some of them) and whether you have any particular preferences for days and time during the weeks.

The possible sessions so far are: Knitting - the basics and then a follow up session; Spinning wool - with an emphasis on spindles rather than wheels; Clothes mending/altering - the basics and answering queries; Clothes making - an introduction to making 'comfy trousers'; Rag rug making - start to produce your own rug with help. (Kerry Lane)