About Fiber Elements
"Grandma's Scholar"(1	Fiber Elements is a brand-new business  with the goal to inspire exploration and innovation in the fiber arts and sciences! Maria Katharina, the owner, is a fiber artist and textile scientist who has long had the vision to "knit together" these two 'loose ends' to produce a uniquely designed fabric: Fiber Elements

Maria's Knitting History

"Es ist Zeit zum Strickenlernen" (time to learn how to knit) announced Oma Maria (my grandmother) one day -- well before I was introduced to the concept  of school.  I don't remember my exact age, but I vividly recall the yarn I was given to practice with: "Topflappen  Baumwolle" (hot pads cotton).  I was to knit hot pads!  After hours of practicing how to cast on stitches, I finally had it down.  Or so I thought! I had my first 30 stitches on the needle and proudly turned the work over to Oma Maria.  It turned out that the loops clung to the needle as if their life depended on it and not another stitch could be knitted.  "Mein liebes Kind" ("dear child"), said Oma Maria, "I'm afraid.....".  Never completing the sentence, she simply took the scissors and cut every laboriously placed stitch off the needle.  Short of complete despair, we abandoned hot pad knitting after the first unsuccessful pair (gaping holes prevented it from ever being put to proper use).  The salvation materialized with Mom's suggestion that wool might be amore forgiving medium.  The change of material resulted in a minor turn of history -- it saved a knitter!

J

(1) Reference: 1892 The Art of Knitting, Piper Publishing LLC, 2003