[Nfb-krafters-korner] Intro and Questions

Tue Jul 13 00:12:59 UTC 2010

I will definitely do this as I'd love to learn but don't wish to
clutter the list with topics that have already been discussed.  I know
this list has a phone conference but I'm assuming that the classes are
in person.  If so, are any in or near New Jersey?

Thanks,
Eleni

On 7/12/10, slery <slerythema at insightbb.com> wrote:
> Eleni,
>
> Please check out our website (www.KraftersKorner.org) for a list of the
> classes that have been taught previously and that will be coming up. We have
> had a coil basket weaving class in the past and Joyce, our President, has
> taught one or more soap making classes.
>
> You also might want to check the archives for this list since there have
> been several messages regarding how a blind person would measure essential
> oils.
>
> Joyce is currently on vacation this week but feel free to email her directly
> with questions regarding the soap making.
>
> Cindy Sheets, Webmistress
> NFB Krafters Division
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org
>> [mailto:nfb-krafters-korner-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
>> Eleni Vamvakari
>> Sent: Monday, July 12, 2010 5:58 PM
>> Cc: nfb-krafters-korner at nfbnet.org
>> Subject: [Nfb-krafters-korner] Intro and Questions
>>
>>
>> Hi there,
>>
>>   I apologise in advance for the rambling but I feel this
>> will help to explain my situation a bit better.  From here on
>> in, I'll keep my posts short.  Anyway, my birth name is
>> Tiffany, but I intend on changing legally to Eleni, so that's
>> what I'll be using here.  Some of you may know me from The
>> Zone, from Facebook or from other places. I've been totally
>> blind since I was two-months-old.  I'm 26 and from New
>> Jersey.  I'm a college graduate with a BA in sociology and a
>> certificate to teach ESL, which was earned after graduation.
>> While most people feel that I should take a job in an
>> academic, scholarly or prestegius setting, I'm finding it
>> difficult to locate even ordinary work that doesn't require
>> experience, vision, degrees that I don't possess or that pays
>> enough/is close enough as far as travel to interest me, let
>> alone that I'd actually enjoy doing.  I'm not into the whole
>> telemarketing thing either, though I've tried it.
>>
>>   But I love working with my hands and making things.  I am
>> very interested in starting my own business in crafts ranging
>> from basket weaving, to soap-making, to broom/brush making
>> and possibly chair caning, once I learn and feel comfortable
>> doing these things.  I have a friend who's visually-impaired,
>> with enough sight to read regular print but not to drive.
>> Now I've got her interested in some of this as well (plus
>> jewellery-making, which is her own contribution) and she
>> wants to be my business partner.  The broom-making looks and
>> sounds easy enough, But the equipment and supplies are
>> extremely expensive. So I've decided to start out with the
>> baskets and soap, since the supplies are cheap and easily
>> available online.  I found several resources for learning how
>> to weave baskets, but unless I learn with a teacher or touch
>> the type of pattern that I'm supposed to be weaving, I really
>> can't use them.  Several are videos but they're of no use to
>> me since I can't see them.  I've been looking around for
>> schools for the blind that teach these skills, but none seem
>> to exist in America today that have any of these courses.
>> Perkins does but said they could only help me if an agency
>> financed me, which, of course, none will, since I've already
>> gone to college.  This is really frustrating, since these
>> were all so-called blind trades at one time.  To top things
>> off, many blind people insist that I shouldn't do these
>> things as a career because of my background.  I e-mailed a
>> basketry guild, and though they were very nice, they really
>> couldn't really help me from a blind perspective.  But I'll
>> probably join them so that I can take their classes.  But I'd
>> still like to meet some blind weavers, particularly totally
>> blind ones, so that I can learn about any adaptations that we
>> may need (especially with regard to measuring and holding the
>> basket straight), types of weaving that are good for
>> beginners (I've heard coiling mentioned alot), books that
>> would be most useful to us etc.
>>
>>   My friend and I bought two beginner basket weaving kits and
>> a soap-making kit.  I'd already decided to go with melt and
>> pour soap and to stay away from lye, since it can be very
>> dangerous and she agreed.  She made the first moulds, just to
>> see how it was done.  I'd already made soap once or twice at
>> The Diamond Spring Lodge, a place for the blind here in New
>> Jersey, so knew what to expect.  In the second batch, I
>> helped her.  It was really easy and enjoyable.  We used some
>> essential oils that she brought with her and even
>> experimented with the bottom of a disposable cup as a mould.
>> Everything came out wonderfully.  But I'm still trying to
>> figure how I would do this on my own.  That is, how would I
>> insure that the glycerine was properly melted, that the
>> colour blocks (or food coloring if I went all natural)
>> blended properly into the soap, and how I would measure the
>> oil so that I didn't put too much in each batch.  So again,
>> are there any blind soap-makers here who could help me?  As a
>> sidenote, she wove the first basket on her own, again, to get
>> a feel for it.  We still haven't done the second one, where
>> I'll hopefully be doing most of the work.  But when we do,
>> i'll let you know how it turns out.
>>
>>   Neither of us have ever had our own businesses and though I
>> know a few people who are in crafts, this is not their
>> full-time job.  Can anyone give us an idea of how much we
>> could make and which of the crafts that we've chosen, if any,
>> are in high demand?
>>
>> With appreciation,
>> Eleni
>>
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