by Gillian Crowley –
A soft woven blanket captures West Coast ambiance in muted turquoise and green. An intricately knitted sweater combines indigo with other colours of the rainbow. These are just two of several items on display in Helen Thomas’ loom and spinning room in North Saanich. A spry 88-year-old, Helen is a long-time knitter and weaver, starting in World War II when knitting was considered a necessity.
Helen is now a life member of the Victoria Hand Weavers and Spinners Guild and a long-time member of ArtSea (previously the Community Arts Council of the Saanich Peninsula). She says, with understandable pride: “Weaving and knitting have now become recognized as an art form.”
Originally from Wales, Helen first learned to knit at age eight under her mother’s tutelage. She recalls that during the war unprocessed wool would be delivered to the schools to be knitted into socks for the soldiers. She says, “It was called wool ‘in the grease’ and I can still smell that awful stench of lanolin mixed with who knows what!”
She and her husband Les moved to Canada in 1954. They started out in northern Alberta and then spent two years in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT where Les taught school. Helen immediately set about learning from the local Inuit women how to tan hides, chew sinew to soften it for thread, and sew parkas and mukluks. She says: “In return, I taught them to knit so that we learned from each other.” At that time in the far north, the ability to make warm clothing and footgear was essential, as supplies arrived only once a year by ship.
After living more than a decade in Northern Alberta, the couple decided to move to Victoria in 1974. Knowing Helen’s love of knitting, Les bought her a small hand loom to try weaving. She says she immediately fell in love with the techniques and the variety of possible colour combinations. Two years later she had purchased a large loom and was busy turning out rugs, blankets, shawls and smaller items such as shoulder bags and table linens. Helen also spins her own yarn from carded fleece and at one time dyed her own yarn. This hobby/artwork is obviously a labour of love as it takes her about 50 hours to spin enough wool to knit an adult’s sweater.
From 1987 to 1997 Helen enjoyed selling a range of woven and knitted goods each summer at the Swartz Bay ferry terminal when outdoor space was made available for local artisans. “Visitors really appreciated being able to buy local arts and crafts,” she says.
As Helen demonstrates how she sets up the warp and weft of the loom, it’s clear she loves to engage people in her love of this fibre art form. She’s delighted there’s an increase in younger people, usually women, taking up knitting and weaving. “I think it relates to the younger generation’s interest in holistic living, including using natural fibres and making what you need.”
Helen is still active in the community as both an artisan and a mentor. Each year she is part of ArtSea’s Fall Studio tour and the Artisan show and sale at the ArtSea Gallery. A long-time member of the Deep Cove Weavers, she enjoys meeting regularly with other weavers. On warm summer Tuesdays this group can be seen demonstrating their spinning skills outside the ArtSea Gallery in Tulista Park. Helen has also demonstrated her weaving techniques at the Gallery, Sidney’s Abbeyfield seniors home and the Shoal Centre as her way of contributing to the community. In 2013 she was given the Hearts of the Community award for Service to Seniors by Beacon Community Services in Sidney.
This gracious octogenarian is still fully engaged in her fibre art. Most days she’ll spend at least four hours a day either knitting or weaving, with her big tabby cat at her feet. Or, she’ll relax watching TV while she spins. Casually she mentions: “Oh, I usually read while I’m knitting … ” For this left-hander who could barely knit an afghan square in Girl Guides, my admiration knows no bounds.
Photo by Gillian Crowley.
