by James Fox (Penguin Audio, 2025) I spend a lot of time working quietly with my hands, and find that a good audiobook or podcast can be an excellent accompaniment to the hours spent at the spinning wheel or weaving loom. It’s a real opportunity to keep learning and be curious about the world beyond our doorstep, and my current audiobook choice is testament to this. I’ve just been listening to an unexpectedly fascinating description of Britain’s last working bell foundry in Loughborough,...

Someone asked me the other day, ‘What’s your favourite thing to spin?’ Without hesitation, I replied ‘Blue Faced Leicester.’ I love its softness and willingness to be spun finely, the array of subtle natural colours and even appreciate the nominative nod to the city of my birth! However, it got me thinking about wool. When demonstrating spinning, I often talk to people about the benefits and qualities of wool that make it such a useful and valuable material, so thought I should delve a...

The quiet, meditative actions of handweaving often allow room for thought and reflection. While weaving the other day, I was reminded of a passage of ancient Hindu scripture, where the brilliant female philosopher Gargi questions the great sage Yajnyavalkya about the nature of the universe and existence, and uses weaving as a metaphor to explain the interconnectedness of all things. Starting with water, Gargi asks a series of questions about what the various parts of the universe are woven...