Transcript
Speaker: Hello, and welcome to Curious Objects, brought to you by the magazine Antiques.
Speaker: I'm Ben Miller.
Speaker: This is the podcast about art, decorative arts, and antiques, the stories behind them, and what they can tell us about the people who came before us.
Speaker: My guest today has a very unusual collection, and it's a type of object that we've never had on Curious Objects before, but you've definitely seen it before.
Speaker: In fact, it's rather iconic.
Speaker: And one reason I think it's such an interesting kind of collection is that these objects are actually tools.
Speaker: They were used to create other objects, some of which definitely have been on Curious Objects before.
Speaker: So, in a way, this episode is a little bit meta.
Speaker: We're talking about spinning wheels.
Speaker: You know the type.
Speaker: If you haven't seen a picture of one in a medieval illuminated manuscript, you might have seen Gandhi sitting at one spinning yarn.
Speaker: Or the girls in Wagner's Flying Dutchman singing while they spin.
Speaker: They've been around for centuries, maybe millennia, but...
Speaker: Collecting them as artifacts is still a relatively unexplored field, but, as luck would have it, listener Nicole wrote in to tell me about someone doing just that.
Speaker: Collecting antique spinning wheels while also using them, and keeping that craft tradition alive.
Speaker: That person is heavenly Bresser.
Speaker: She runs what she calls a wonderful world of fiber arts, spinning yarn, teaching classes, studying craft history, and of course, finding and restoring wheels.
Speaker: I'm really excited to pick her brain, so let's get right to it.
Speaker: Heavenly, are you ready for some rapid fire questions?
Speaker: I am.
Speaker: Let's do it.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: What's the oldest spinning wheel you own?
Speaker: I believe I have a wheel that is late 1700s.
Speaker: That one is a recent acquisition in my collection.
Speaker: And I actually did some repair work on that.
Speaker: So hopefully we'll talk about that a little bit later.
Speaker: That's exciting.
Speaker: What's the biggest spinning wheelie that you've ever used?
Speaker: The biggest spinning wheel that I've ever used would be the pendulum wheel that I own.
Speaker: And it also is my favorite wheel out of my collection.
Speaker: And this is going to be our curious object today.
Speaker: So we're going to hear a lot more about that one.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: What about the smallest wheel?
Speaker: Oh, the smallest wheel that I have is actually an e-spinner.
Speaker: So that one's on the modern side of things.
Speaker: And yeah, for E, that really stands for electric spinner.
Speaker: And I use it.
Speaker: I usually use that one for making samples for some of the classes that I teach.
Speaker: Other than that, I'm trying to think what else might be small.
Speaker: I think that's the smallest.
Speaker: How small is it?
Speaker: Um, it's small enough to fit on a very tiny plate.
Speaker: So on tiny saucer.
Speaker: Wow, it's really miniature.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: The biggest reel, how big is that?
Speaker: Oh my gosh, that one, it almost takes up my entire living room wall, which you'll see in the pictures.
Speaker: But oh my gosh, that one is huge.
Speaker: You can't easily transport that at all.
Speaker: Okay, I love the range here from incredibly small to incredibly large.
Speaker: And actually when you're spinning on it, you actually need more room so that the swing arm will actually leave the living room and enter my walkway or my doorway when you first walk into my house.
Speaker: That's incredible.
Speaker: Incredibly long range.
Speaker: Have you ever pricked your finger on a spindle like Sleeping Beauty?
Speaker: No, never.
Speaker: What do you think about that story?
Speaker: I hate it.
Speaker: Really?
Speaker: I do.
Speaker: When I go out to events or sometimes I will do demonstrations for local farm events.
Speaker: And oftentimes people will bring up that story and I would say, it's not as accurate as you think.
Speaker: Really?
Speaker: And then I explain the mechanics of the spinning wheel.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: OK, so that's not something you have to worry about.
Speaker: No, you don't have to worry about pricking yourself on spinning wheels.
Speaker: The only wheel that would have a bit of a point to it would be the spindle wheels.
Speaker: So the pendulum wheel that is the curious object today, that one does have a spindle on it.
Speaker: And the tip of it is not sharp.
Speaker: The tips are actually blunt.
Speaker: So you don't have to worry about pricking yourself or having a...
Speaker: I don't know, a death session.
Speaker: Okay, I think I'm going to use that one.
Speaker: Thank you very much.
Speaker: Are you right or left-handed?
Speaker: I lean right when it comes to handedness with writing.
Speaker: With most things, including spinning, I actually spin with both hands.
Speaker: So it just depends on the wheel, mostly.
Speaker: Really?
Speaker: Are most wheels designed for right-handed people, or does it matter?
Speaker: So the great wheels, and these are sometimes referred to as a wool wheel.
Speaker: Those are
Speaker: will require a person to use their right hand to turn the large wheel.
Speaker: And then the left hand will hold the fiber and actually spin
Speaker: the fiber onto that spindle.
Speaker: So most of the work, believe it or not, or most of the control is happening with the left hand.
Speaker: So it does help to have some sort of practice using your left hand so you can hold the fiber and actually spin yarn and not drop the fiber.
Speaker: Interesting.
Speaker: Okay, cool.
Speaker: Do you ever sing while you spin or do any other kind of ritual to keep your rhythm?
Speaker: I don't sing while I spin.
Speaker: Singing is not usually in my ritual of spinning.
Speaker: However, I do like to listen to music.
Speaker: So I like to listen to jazz.
Speaker: I like to listen to usually something calm.
Speaker: I don't listen to hard rock while I'm spinning yarns.
Speaker: But I do like to listen to... I would love it if you did though.
Speaker: Yeah, my yarn might come out really interesting afterwards.
Speaker: But I like to listen to things that are calming where I don't, I'm not really thinking so much about the spinning, but I'm actually listening more to the music.
Speaker: So, yeah.
Speaker: Do you think it's time to reclaim the term spinster?
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: I, yes.
Speaker: The answer to that is yes.
Speaker: I would love to reclaim that word.
Speaker: Excellent.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I look forward to your public advocacy organization.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: I need to look into that.
Speaker: I think, I think it's worth a little investigation.
Speaker: What's your favorite museum to visit?
Speaker: Oh, my favorite museum.
Speaker: All of them.
Speaker: I don't think I have a favorite museum.
Speaker: Um,
Speaker: Let's see.
Speaker: I love history in general.
Speaker: So I love just about any museum.
Speaker: One of my favorites in Chicago is the Field Museum.
Speaker: Oh, I love the Field Museum.
Speaker: Yeah, I really like going to that museum.
Speaker: I was born in Chicago in the city and I lived really close to lots of attractions and all of these wonderful places to visit.
Speaker: So it was really nice to be around that at a young age.
Speaker: So I do have a deep appreciation for museums and cultural events, things like that.
Speaker: What artist or crafts person would you invite to dinner?
Speaker: They could be living or dead.
Speaker: Living?
Speaker: Well, I don't want dead people at the table.
Speaker: Well, let's say you could bring them back to life for dinner.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: I was just thinking, I don't think I want to have dinner with dead people.
Speaker: I'm not picturing a zombie dinner here.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: So artist or what was the other?
Speaker: Crafts person.
Speaker: Or craftsperson.
Speaker: It could be somebody who does spinning.
Speaker: Someone who does spinning.
Speaker: If they're alive, you could probably have dinner with them already just based on your network.
Speaker: I would like to have dinner with a woman named Margaret Stove.
Speaker: She's really well known for spinning really, really fine yarn.
Speaker: And I don't know a ton about her, so I would love to talk to her and get to know her.
Speaker: I bet you have a barrage of questions for her.
Speaker: Yeah, I don't know if I have a ton of questions.
Speaker: I like to get to know people behind the art.
Speaker: Just curious how their mind works.
Speaker: Just how they think about things and what made you study that particular field?
Speaker: Like why take an interest in this particular part of the craft?
Speaker: as opposed to some other things you might have been interested in, you know, at some point.
Speaker: So I think I'd have a few questions for her for sure.
Speaker: And I'm trying to think if there's anyone else that stands out.
Speaker: Sounds a little bit like what I'm doing with you right now.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Yeah, exactly.
Speaker: That would be great.
Speaker: Just curious about her.
Speaker: I don't know a ton.
Speaker: So that's nice.
Speaker: Some others I do know quite a bit about or read a lot about.
Speaker: So yeah, I would want to know more about her.
Speaker: What's one book that somebody new to spinning wheels should read to start to understand them and their history?
Speaker: Oh, boy.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Just one book?
Speaker: Let's start with one.
Speaker: We'll stick to one.
Speaker: I think my favorite book in relation to older wheels, antiques, and even some vintage information would be a book by...
Speaker: David A. Pennington and Michael B. Taylor.
Speaker: And the book is titled Spinning Wheels and Accessories.
Speaker: This is my favorite, favorite, favorite book when it comes to looking at the different spinning wheels that are available and seeing the different designs and
Speaker: knowing a little more about the history behind patents and things like that.
Speaker: This wheel pretty much covers a good amount of what most people want to know about the different spinning wheel designs and from different parts of the world.
Speaker: Fantastic.
Speaker: Sounds like a great resource.
Speaker: We'll be right back with Heavenly Breast.
Speaker: As always, I want to take a minute just to say thanks for listening.
Speaker: And thanks for getting in touch and sharing your thoughts.
Speaker: Special thank you this time around to Nicole for alerting me to the fantastic work that Heavenly is doing, which we're about to hear a lot more about.
Speaker: But all of you who take the time to listen and share
Speaker: maybe learn a few things about these objects and join me in connecting to their stories?
Speaker: Well, you are the reason we do this show.
Speaker: So thank you for tuning in and for subscribing to Curious Objects in your podcast app.
Speaker: If you haven't done that yet, I highly recommend it.
Speaker: That's the best way to make sure you don't miss future episodes.
Speaker: And thanks to all of you who have heard an episode and thought, maybe my friend would be interested in this one, or my mom, or my son, or my coworker, and told that person about it.
Speaker: That word of mouth is the single best way for curious objects to grow.
Speaker: We don't advertise.
Speaker: We don't have a paywall for any of our episodes.
Speaker: And so every bit of help that you give us by getting the word out there is honestly...
Speaker: Well, I appreciate it so much.
Speaker: If you do want to get in touch, you can find me on Instagram at Objective Interest, or you can send me an email at CuriousObjectsPodcast at gmail.com.
Speaker: I'd love to hear from you.
Speaker: And with that, let's get back to Heavenly Breznor.
Speaker: So right off the bat, I just want to know how do spinning wheels actually work?
Speaker: Oh, right.
Speaker: So let's start with the basics here.
Speaker: Most people have a picture of a spinning wheel that actually has treadles.
Speaker: So it might be a single treadle or it could be a double treadle.
Speaker: And the treadle is where you would place your feet somewhere near the bottom of the spinning wheel so that you can use your feet to turn the drive wheel.
Speaker: So most wheels have one drive wheel.
Speaker: There are some interesting ones that have more than one.
Speaker: The most wheels will have one drive wheel.
Speaker: And the drive wheel is connected by a drive band.
Speaker: So some sort of cording, which is connected to a...
Speaker: flyer and that flyer has a bobbin which will hold the yarn.
Speaker: So to use a wheel, a person would sit in front of this wheel, put their feet on the treadle, the drivel would turn and that also causes the flyer and the bobbin to turn.
Speaker: And the person would spin or take the fiber that they have and they will attach some sort of yarn to the bobbin.
Speaker: And there's a tiny little hole that comes out of the flyer.
Speaker: So you would attach your yarn to that bobbin.
Speaker: little leader or that yarn that you place onto this bobbin and use your feet to turn that wheel and use one hand to feed the fiber into the flyer.
Speaker: So that is one version.
Speaker: A lot of coordination.
Speaker: Yes, it does require some.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: It does require some coordination for flyer wheels.
Speaker: So that's one type of spinning wheel.
Speaker: The older spinning wheels would be the great wheels where they have the large drive wheel that's powered by your hand.
Speaker: So there isn't a treadle for you to use, but you would use your hand to move the drive wheel around.
Speaker: So you would hold onto a spoke and you would,
Speaker: turn it around in a full circle.
Speaker: And that will drive your spindle.
Speaker: And you would be able to spin your fiber onto that spindle and you would walk as you're doing this.
Speaker: So that's where the great wheel gets the term walking wheel.
Speaker: You would stand the entire time as you're doing this particular movement.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: So you're not only very well coordinated, but you're also getting exercise.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Yes, you are.
Speaker: You're getting a lot of exercise.
Speaker: And the pendulum wheel that we have as a curious object today, it actually marries the two.
Speaker: So it takes the concept of a
Speaker: more traditional wheel that you can sit and treadle in front of.
Speaker: And it takes the idea of the great wheel where you're standing the entire time and it allows you to actually sit down and still use the large drive wheel and spin onto a spindle.
Speaker: You said that you have a spinning wheel that dates back to the late 1700s.
Speaker: How far back in history do spinning wheels go?
Speaker: Spinning wheels go back pretty far in history.
Speaker: However, we don't have a definite date on the very first spinning wheel.
Speaker: Throughout history, we are able to see depictions through illustrations, and we're able to see some wheels basically through drawings and pictures from different cultures, so some images in Asia or some from...
Speaker: India and different places will see some depictions of what the earlier spinning wheels would have looked like, but we don't have a definite date on those particular wheels.
Speaker: So the precursor to the spinning wheel would be the spindles.
Speaker: So with spindles,
Speaker: those are powered by hand.
Speaker: So no wheel involved, no drive wheel at all.
Speaker: And,
Speaker: And those were made with sticks, any found objects, stones.
Speaker: Those were things that were, that could be found in archaeological sites and things like that.
Speaker: So there actually is more information about different types of spindles and those things based off of burial sites, because some of those objects were buried with their owners.
Speaker: As far as wheels go, we don't have...
Speaker: We don't have nearly as much information about the very first spinning wheel, surprisingly.
Speaker: I actually looked into this a few times and I got a lot of different answers.
Speaker: Really?
Speaker: Yes, I looked into...
Speaker: the very first spinning wheel.
Speaker: Some resources will say that in Europe, the earliest record is 1280.
Speaker: Others will say it's somewhere between 1335 to 1340.
Speaker: There are a few resources that mentions that
Speaker: The very first spinning wheel was probably invented in India.
Speaker: Doesn't give a good range of a date, a date range.
Speaker: And then there are a few other sources that mentioned somewhere between 500 to 1000 AD.
Speaker: As you start to research some of the information, you start to get a little confused, trying to figure out where was this, you know, the groundbreaking, you know, idea of having a wheel.
Speaker: Like, who found out about it first or thought to create this really cool mechanism first?
Speaker: And if not first, where are the records?
Speaker: Like hardcore records of the wheel actually being in existence besides having pictures because seeing them in photos will give us an idea that these wheels existed before that photo existed.
Speaker: But yeah,
Speaker: Oftentimes we don't know exactly when the photo was made or taken.
Speaker: You just have pictures.
Speaker: So yeah, so it's just really interesting.
Speaker: If you just do a quick search, you will see so many different dates and different ideas and where it actually started.
Speaker: But most people would agree that it may have been in India first.
Speaker: but we don't know this for sure.
Speaker: Okay.
Speaker: So there's a lot of opportunity for further research.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: So tell me about, let's get back to our curious object for today, which you said is the biggest spinning wheel that you've ever used.
Speaker: So tell me a little more, like, what does this actually look like and how does it feel to use it?
Speaker: All right, so the pendulum wheel, as I mentioned before, is large.
Speaker: It's massive.
Speaker: So it has a diameter of 46 and a half inches.
Speaker: So just let that settle in.
Speaker: That's more than a yard or a meter.
Speaker: It's just under four feet as far as the actual, yeah, the drival diameter.
Speaker: The swing arm, which is the part that holds the spindle, that is almost five feet.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: That arm, yeah.
Speaker: And when you swing, when the swing arm moves away from the wheel,
Speaker: And in the furthest position it can possibly go from the tip of that swing arm all the way to the end of the drive wheel is a little over 11 and a half feet.
Speaker: This is really, it's a room sized contraption.
Speaker: It's incredible.
Speaker: Why is it so big?
Speaker: So I believe it has a lot to do with the maker's idea.
Speaker: So the person that originally made this wheel believed that this design would make it so that anyone spinning on it, they would have more comfort by sitting down.
Speaker: But also having the capacity to spin at a longer distance.
Speaker: I feel as though there's less effort personally as a spinner, um, that you would have less effort with your spinning by allowing the wheel to assist with your, um, spinning, if you will.
Speaker: So I personally think, and this isn't set in stone, but I personally think that it was intended to be, um,
Speaker: easier for the spinner.
Speaker: Now, most, yeah.
Speaker: So there are other people.
Speaker: As long as the spinner has a large garage or warehouse for you to put it in.
Speaker: Or a barn.
Speaker: Or a barn.
Speaker: Yeah, pretty much.
Speaker: And how old do you think it is?
Speaker: So I actually have more information about this wheel, which is kind of nice.
Speaker: I don't have the wheel from the original maker, but I'll tell you a little bit about the backstory about the one that I have.
Speaker: So you ready?
Speaker: You ready?
Speaker: Let's do it.
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: So the spinning wheel that I have is made by a person named Justin B. Waite.
Speaker: And he
Speaker: This guy originally lived in Massachusetts and moved to Wisconsin.
Speaker: And in his late 20s, he decided to purchase land.
Speaker: And that was in 1849.
Speaker: And then he started a company making handbrakes.
Speaker: This has nothing to do with wheels, but I know.
Speaker: Well, of all things.
Speaker: It gets better.
Speaker: So in 1862 was when he purchased rights for the production of a spinning wheel.
Speaker: But this particular wheel was already patented by a different person.
Speaker: So this one was made, the wheel that I have, the original patent was made or given to a guy named Lyman White.
Speaker: And Lyman White received his patent when he was in Pennsylvania.
Speaker: And then he moved to Wisconsin.
Speaker: And this is in 1856.
Speaker: So just, what is it, six years later is when Justin decided to purchase the rights.
Speaker: So he became the patent owner for the wheel that I have.
Speaker: So he made a ton of them.
Speaker: So these wheels are not as rare, although they are really unique looking.
Speaker: They were all that big.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: So some of them had, um, smaller drive wheels.
Speaker: So mine has a really, really large one at 46, but some of them were a bit smaller than mine.
Speaker: Um, but yeah, they all, they were all that big.
Speaker: And, um,
Speaker: These wheels were made.
Speaker: He continued making these wheels in Wisconsin and he made so many of them.
Speaker: So they are not hard to find, but they are hard to find intact with all of the parts.
Speaker: And for mine, I actually had to restore the parts to get it to work and function the way that it does today.
Speaker: Well, I'm not surprised.
Speaker: I mean, I'm imagining in the 1860s, carting these things around on carts or wagon, you know, horse carts or wagons.
Speaker: I mean, you know, getting jostled around, getting stored in maybe less than ideal circumstances, a piece that large is going to be subject to so much stress and risk and turmoil.
Speaker: It's kind of amazing that any of them has survived.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: So I am really shocked when I see some of them for sale or at an estate sale or something like that, because I always hope that they are intact.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Because it's less work for the spinner.
Speaker: However, more times than not, I see these wheels missing their spindle.
Speaker: So the main point of having the wheel is to be able to spin on it.
Speaker: So not having the spindle is a really, really crucial part to the wheel.
Speaker: But also sometimes they are missing their treadle or they are completely missing the swing arm, which is
Speaker: holds the spindle.
Speaker: So, um, trying to restore them, um, can be a bit troublesome, uh, for most because most spinners aren't in the business of restoring.
Speaker: So they just want to spin on the wheel as opposed to, you know, put a lot of work and effort into finding, um, parts for them or finding someone that actually will, um, do the work to restore it.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Talk to me for a minute about- It's interesting.
Speaker: It is.
Speaker: It's super interesting.
Speaker: And one of the cool things about the spinning wheel is how it really dovetails with so many elements of cultural and social and political history.
Speaker: I mean, spinning wheels have been an important element of political protests, right?
Speaker: Like I think about Gandhi famously spinning-
Speaker: yarn in order to show this reduced dependence on British industry, right?
Speaker: Or even in early America.
Speaker: Talk to me a little about the cultural significance and symbolism of the spinning wheel.
Speaker: So with the spinning wheel, each spinning wheel, I find, because I have a ton of them,
Speaker: I find that they have their own charm to them.
Speaker: And I really, I feel as though if I could put myself in the maker's shoes as I evaluate wheels and assess them for others, a lot of times I'm trying to picture in my mind
Speaker: Why would a maker decide to make the wheel this particular way?
Speaker: Or what makes this distinct or special?
Speaker: So many, there's so many answers to that question.
Speaker: And I, I find that the makers took a lot of pride in their work.
Speaker: When I look at the antiques, it, in some cases, you really see intricate workmanship and craftsmanship that's,
Speaker: with these wheels, but also the fixes that came later on, the different repairs that were done in order for people to
Speaker: preserve their wheels so that they can continue to produce the linen that they want for their family.
Speaker: So spinning their flax, most of the older wheels were referred to as flax wheels because of their ability to spin flax.
Speaker: flex into linen.
Speaker: And thinking of these wheels as a really important part of a household is another perspective that I feel sometimes we lose being where we are today, that this was such a significant, you know, spinning wheels were such a
Speaker: a significant part of everyday life for so many households.
Speaker: And the ways that people try to preserve their wheels, whether they used found objects, things that were nearby, just to make sure that thing was still functioning for their home and for their household.
Speaker: It's pretty awesome to think about.
Speaker: And then just thinking of how, um,
Speaker: different communities of people coming from
Speaker: different parts of the world bringing their wheels over to the U.S. and even bringing it to, you know, closer to the Midwest here.
Speaker: Just seeing that they treasured it so much and they tried to keep it, you know, intact when they traveled.
Speaker: And to me, it says a lot about how important this was for them.
Speaker: And it wasn't just something they wanted to leave behind, but they wanted to make sure they...
Speaker: left something for their descendants.
Speaker: So people that
Speaker: would come after them.
Speaker: They would have something that's part of the family.
Speaker: So I find that spinning wheels have way more importance than we tend to think sometimes.
Speaker: It's almost like we have a throwaway culture with a lot of things.
Speaker: And I just find that looking at these spinning wheels and then looking into some of the history, some of the craftsmanship, all
Speaker: a myriad of things, it makes me really appreciate the hard work that others have put into these, the making of them as well as preserving them.
Speaker: And so that also led me into the idea of wanting to repair and also restore them so that they can function really well, but not take away from the history behind them.
Speaker: because these were so important to the people that lived before us.
Speaker: So I find that it's really, really, really incredible, actually, these spinning wheels.
Speaker: Would it be right to say that in the pre-industrial period and maybe even into the industrial period that spinning wheels could be a really critical economic engine for a household?
Speaker: Yes, absolutely.
Speaker: Absolutely.
Speaker: I believe that is not an inaccurate statement, um, at all.
Speaker: Um,
Speaker: I think of the economic value of textiles in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries when the labor that went into the production of the raw materials and then of course weaving and sewing was extraordinary.
Speaker: Absolutely.
Speaker: With how we live now with so many things being mass produced and easily made overnight, sometimes it removes us from the idea that you actually had people that would start from sheep's wool.
Speaker: And would clean it and allow it to dry and then cart it and then spin it and then go through the entire process of, you know, the raw material to a finished object for the household and doing it as a routine.
Speaker: Like it's part of their lifestyle.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah, it really puts a lot of things into perspective.
Speaker: And it's nice that people are starting to open up to spinning more and also appreciating it more.
Speaker: I find that when I do demonstrations and also when I teach and talk to people about spinning and things like that, they want to know more.
Speaker: And then when you share more, they are kind of...
Speaker: Um, I don't know, they kind of like have the jaw dropping, you know, reaction.
Speaker: Um, when we talk about history, especially when you talk to little kids, yeah, their eyes open up.
Speaker: They're like, what that came from that?
Speaker: My clothes?
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So I find that it's really helpful to, um,
Speaker: to sometimes take a step back and look at things from a different timeframe and say, well, if I were alive, you know, 300 years ago, how would I, how would I get through day-to-day life?
Speaker: Like, what would this look like?
Speaker: Yeah, it's really cool.
Speaker: So I mean, this is, I love this whole genre of object because it's the perfect kind of example of a piece that calls our minds back to another time, that makes us think about a different way of life, that makes us think about people who were in so many ways so similar to us, but because of differences in their circumstances,
Speaker: their lives ended up looking really different from ours.
Speaker: And that to me is the magic of antiques, really.
Speaker: And that's, I think, a big part of what drives collectors around all different categories of antique objects.
Speaker: So I'm curious, would you say there's a robust collecting community or market around antiques?
Speaker: I keep saying sewing wheels.
Speaker: Around antique spinning wheels.
Speaker: I would say that that is growing for sure.
Speaker: And I find that I would say having...
Speaker: interviews like this or, um, different ways for people to know more about, uh, the different wheels and things.
Speaker: It really opens people's minds to wanting to quote unquote, save a wheel.
Speaker: And, um,
Speaker: I, yeah, I, I personally feel as though, as though, um, I personally feel as though this has expanded quite a bit.
Speaker: I've done a few interviews in the past about, um, my collection of wheels and I've done a few presentation on the history of, um, several wheels in my
Speaker: current collection.
Speaker: And I find after those types of presentations, more people want to do the same thing.
Speaker: They want to find ways to save a wheel that might be located near them, or they'll look online for auctions and things like that.
Speaker: And
Speaker: I think the idea isn't just, I want to acquire more, but really I want to have a piece of history that I could actually use and find more about this, you know, find out more about this particular wheel.
Speaker: So I think that, um,
Speaker: Having some of these discussions definitely has opened the door for more people to consider the history of these older wheels.
Speaker: Because nowadays we have some groups of spinners feel as though you don't really want to look into older wheels.
Speaker: They're harder to use, they're harder to learn on.
Speaker: There are, you know, a long list of reasons why you might not want to get an older wheel.
Speaker: But then the wheels that are currently available that are modern wheels, there's nothing wrong with them.
Speaker: Even some of the vintage wheels, there are nothing wrong with those wheels, but they cost...
Speaker: So much.
Speaker: So someone trying to get into spinning will have to really invest a ton of money into like several hundreds of dollars into equipment just to see if they like it and see if they're interested.
Speaker: Whereas,
Speaker: Having an older wheel nearby that might need a bit of work and you might need someone to help you get started and know what to look for.
Speaker: It would be a lower cost, but of course it would have some work involved.
Speaker: And for some that could be frustrating.
Speaker: So you have...
Speaker: I find that in our community, for the Five R's community, you have varying opinions on antiques and things, and it just depends on which side you're on.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: That's fair.
Speaker: Although I have to note that your own collection of spinning wheels, including antique ones, is so extensive.
Speaker: It's really incredible.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: I have a lot of wheels.
Speaker: How many do you have?
Speaker: This is like the number one question I get no matter where I go.
Speaker: And my favorite answer.
Speaker: So I'm going to tell you my favorite answer.
Speaker: And this is the truest answer I can give you because I'm trying to keep track of all the wheels.
Speaker: I currently have under 50 as in five zero wheels.
Speaker: Wow.
Speaker: Just under 50.
Speaker: Yeah, I recently, I know, I'm waiting for it.
Speaker: That's incredible.
Speaker: I mean, it's awesome.
Speaker: It's awesome.
Speaker: I, you know, that's, that's a real collection.
Speaker: It is a real collection and it always starts with one and then, you know, it grows.
Speaker: So the idea I have behind the wheels is to one day have a spinning wheel gallery.
Speaker: I considered a museum for spinning wheels, but I am leaning towards a gallery and I want to have a way to, um,
Speaker: display the wheels that I have already restored.
Speaker: A lot of the ones that I have rescued in the most recent years, those need a ton of work.
Speaker: So the restoration work for some of them is quite extensive.
Speaker: So it will take some time to get them, you know, all nice and shiny and ready to go.
Speaker: But my goal with them is to have them all fixed and working and learn as much as possible about each individual wheel.
Speaker: And the challenge is,
Speaker: that I have with some of the history behind the wheels and so many other spinners have this issue as well, is the mystery of the maker.
Speaker: Some of the wheels don't have any identifying marks that will give you an idea of who actually made the wheel.
Speaker: A lot of times we're looking at the style of wheel or the design of the wheel to get some sort of connection to a particular maker.
Speaker: If it's a well-known design, there are communities online that...
Speaker: where you can share pictures of your wheel and ask questions and say, hey, has anyone seen anything like this?
Speaker: This is what I recently acquired.
Speaker: And see if anyone else has some information about their wheel that can possibly give you more information about the one that you have.
Speaker: The other issue besides that, the mystery is that there are so many woodworkers around.
Speaker: Since the making of a particular wheel.
Speaker: So sometimes you might think that you have a wheel that is an original, but it could be a copy of what someone else did.
Speaker: And so...
Speaker: In that case, you have to be really careful to not declare that this is a wheel made by so-and-so because it might not be.
Speaker: Yeah.
Speaker: So it gets a little tricky trying to identify things that are not clearly marked or anything that doesn't have a good record where you can actually go back and look and see information about it.
Speaker: So
Speaker: We often will have to, so people that do research with spinning wheels will have to look into the
Speaker: ancestry records, just so many things to find out how old the wheel could possibly be based off of the makers born in death, you know, that date and seeing if they had, you know, an apprentice or, you know, if it was a family business, you know, all those kinds of things.
Speaker: are part of the research.
Speaker: And I find it to be fun, but at times it can be challenging because you feel like you have a wall.
Speaker: You're like, okay, I got this far, but where do we go from here?
Speaker: So yeah, it gets really interesting.
Speaker: Totally.
Speaker: So for listeners who are feeling curious and maybe want to connect with you or find other communities or sources of knowledge and information about spinning wheels, where would you recommend they look?
Speaker: All right.
Speaker: If they want to connect with me, they could find me on a few of the social media platforms.
Speaker: One would be Instagram.
Speaker: And my handle is heavenlyknitshe.
Speaker: And it's spelled H-E-A-V-E-N-L-Y.
Speaker: And the other half is K-N-I-T-C-H-E-T.
Speaker: So that is Heavenly Knit Shea.
Speaker: And if you want to connect with a community of other spinning wheel collectors, which I highly recommend if you have, let's say you found a wheel and you're not quite sure what it is and you want to see if other people might have a similar wheel or may have more information for you,
Speaker: you can go to a website.
Speaker: It's called Ravelry.com and it's spelled R-A-V-E-L-R-Y.com.
Speaker: And on that website, it's a knitting, crochet, spinning, and weaving community.
Speaker: But there is a section where you can join a forum and the forum is called Antique Spinning Wheels.
Speaker: In that forum, you can post pictures and ask questions.
Speaker: You can also search and see if you can find information about the wheel that you may have.
Speaker: And then let's see other resources.
Speaker: There is another group on Facebook.
Speaker: It is also called Antique Spinning Wheels.
Speaker: You can join that group and you can also share information.
Speaker: your pictures and ask questions and you should be able to search the group.
Speaker: I believe it's a public group, not a private one.
Speaker: So you should be able to search in there and see if you can find more information about your wheel there as well.
Speaker: Fabulous.
Speaker: Heavenly Bresser, thanks so much for joining me and sharing the wonderful world of spinning wheels with us.
Speaker: You are so welcome.
Speaker: Thanks for having me.
Speaker: This was so much fun.
Speaker: Today's episode was edited and produced by Sammy Delati with social media and web support from Sarah Bellotta.
Speaker: Sarah Holt is our digital media and editorial associate.
Speaker: Our music is by Trap Rabbit and I'm Ben Miller.
