Fiber Arts Friday – Growing Silk
I had no idea that you could raise silkworms until I read about it in the Fall issue of Spin-Off magazine. Fiber enthusiast Michael Cook writes about growing your own silk. He says that you can raise them in a plastic shoebox, and that they eat mulberry leaves. I found this to be a fascinating idea, and am thinking of doing it next summer as a home school project.
The kids are always wanting to catch some creepy-crawly thing from the yard, put it in a jar, and bring it into the house to keep. Why not do it with something that we could benefit from, and that we could learn how to raise the proper way? Read more about rearing silkworms on Michael’s website www.wormspit.com
Some suppliers of silkworms and silkworm eggs are Mulberry Farms and Coastal Silkworms which carries some of the fancier varieties. There is also a yahoo group for people raising silk moths and who work with silk http://www.groups/yahoo.com/group/Catherders
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September 18th, 2009 at 6:54 am
Nice worms!! I can just see this awesome yarn spun with Alpaca and Silk, maybe lace weight, then kitted into a lacy shawl. Woo Hoo, a night on the town!!
September 18th, 2009 at 7:40 am
Hey Katy if you do get silk from a silkworm project, I’ll buy some from you. I love blending silk with alpaca, but cannot deal with the cute creepy crawlies.
September 18th, 2009 at 9:05 am
One of my sadnesses when I was a kid was losing the chance to buy a silkworm because I punched Susanne Golden in the stomach (I said I could punch hard; she didn’t believe me and said “hit me” so I did, yeah I was 8). Thank you for the links, maybe I will do this with my son.
Andi´s last blog ..Stu-Stu-Studio
September 18th, 2009 at 10:38 am
I have heard of some Waldorf schools raising silkworms in the classroom but never really researched it further. Thanks for the link. I think this is something we will definitely be trying here too!
Melissa @ Oursuburbanhomestead´s last blog ..Fiber Arts Friday ~ Waldorf Babies
September 18th, 2009 at 12:22 pm
i read that article with great interest. i’m thinking about it, but i feel like i have enough on my plate right now.
plus, i’m not that big a fan of the bugs and stuff. and i’d feel really bad if i killed them or something.
but it’s really interesting and a great idea!
maya | springtree road´s last blog ..My Beloved Squishy – 78 yards handspun yarn
September 18th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
You just gave me something else to think about. Squirmy little wormys would go over wonderfully with the kids.
Amber´s last blog ..A call for hats
September 18th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
No idea you could do this as a home project. Please keep us posted!
TexasRed´s last blog ..Binding for Project Linus Quilt
October 2nd, 2009 at 9:47 am
Silkworms are fascinating and I love the fiber. However, I must confess to an aversion to all things bug-ish so have never had an interest in raising them. But… Oh. My. Goodness. how silk takes dye is fabulous!
Feistywoman Designs´s last blog ..Fingerlakes Fiber Festival
November 15th, 2010 at 12:39 am
I still had no idea that you could grow silkworms until I read this article! I didn’t know where silk came from.. amazing the things you learn on the internet. I’m going to check this out even more.. very interesting.
-Molly
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