[Nfb-krafters-korner] beads and stuff Linda

[Blindhands at aol.com]

Linda, 
As you build your confidence and expand out in these areas and test drive  
the exploeration of how tos and I can do it, you may want to dabble  in  
those old time loves of creativity.
 
When I went to India 5 years ago, I had the chance to visit a place where  
the blind had these large floor looms and ran them without sighted help.   
Some of them sat on the floor with their Charka's all weaving and spinning  
cotton to create coasters, napkins, placemats and things like that.  These  
people could not get jobs in the normal industry because they were blind,   
So some how some where they came up with the weaving equipment to do it  
themselves.  Of course the money that was made by their work was next to  
nothing, but they were happy working.
 
That is where my interest started in weaving.  I went to a place in  India 
where all the charkas and kits were made up by hand to provide to the  
schools and they were out of charkas, but promised to make me 2 of them over the  
following 3 days.  One of the diplomats  that were traveling with me  in 
that area promised to get the charkas to me in Moomba where I was flying out  
to that evening.  I did get them and let me tell you the price I paid, the  
2 wooden Charkas and the 3 pounds of cotton I bought for spinning was in USA 
 money $22.  I have read of the briefcase Charka [that is the one I got] on 
 EBay runs between $150 to $200.  They also have smaller ones the size of a 
 book.  
 
All of that  is kinda what got me interested in weaving, but I went  down 
the road of triangle weaving.
 
Joyce