Hello, Sunshine!
This will not come as a surprise to the people who know me best, but I L-O-V-E random knowledge facts, trivia games, and word games. I grew up watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. My claim to household fame was knowing “The Invisible Man,” with only knowing the category of Title and having the empty tile blocks.
So, in the spirit of mixing things up, I have put together some crafty trivia for this post. There is no need to worry, as this will not be graded. I just wanted to have a little fun and games. Plus, it gave me a chance to do a little more research and expand my own knowledge of the crafty universe. I will post my questions followed by the answers I found with the sources. This will allow you to do some of your own deep diving, and I get to site my sources. Yes, I may be a nerd.
Questions:
1. What were the first sewing needles and thread made from?
2. Which craft helped families survive during the potato famine of Ireland (1845-1850)?
3. What form of crafting is know for sewing layers of material together?
4. Where was the oldest known pottery discovered?
5. What is the name of street art that involves using yarn to adorn a public environment?
6. Where were the oldest known knitted items found?
7. What ancient yarn technique is often connected to the Vikings?
8. Name 3 of the Top 10 hand embroidery stitches.
9. What year did Barthélemy Thimonnier patent the first mechanical sewing machine?
10. What is the most common type of fabric for cross stitching?
11. What craft is defined as a craft in which short segments of yarn are tied to the horizontal strands of a small- or medium-sized canvas grid?
12. How long did it take for Stephen Duneier, the Yarn Bomber, to complete the World Record Granny Square?
13. How old is the oldest know yarn?
14. Believed to have started in Japan, what decade did actual amigurumi dolls begin to appear?
15. Name one kind of wool that is most commonly used in needle felting.
16. What was the most expensive ever sold and what was the price?
17. What animal is represented in what is believed to be the world’s oldest known artwork, dating 45,500 years ago.?
18. What is considered the oldest fabric?
19. Who is named as the mother of crochet?
20. When it comes to yarn projects, what is blocking?
How are you feeling? Confident? A little unsure? Do not dismay. This is all for fun!
Drumroll, please…..
Answers:
1. Around 20,000 years ago, Ancient peoples joined pieces of material using bone and horn needles and animal sinew for thread.
2. During the potato famine (1845–1850) Irish crochet provided a form of sustenance to hundreds of Irish peasant families.
3. Quilting is a method of stitching layers of material together.
https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/an-introduction-to-quilting-and-patchwork
4. Pieces of ceramic containers found in a Chinese cave date to between 19,000 and 20,000 years ago, making these finds from the peak of the last ice age the oldest known examples of pottery.
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/oldest-pottery-comes-chinese-cave
5. A yarn bomb is a form of street art where yarn in any form (knit, crochet, latch hook, cross stitch, amigurumi or simple wrapping) adorns an object in the public environment. Think of it as graffiti, just sweeter and kinder (yarn installations aren’t permanent or destructive).
https://www.craftsy.com/post/how-to-yarn-bomb/
6. The oldest knitted items have been found in Egypt and are dated between the 11th and 14th centuries AD.
http://www.historyofclothing.com/making-clothing/history-of-knitting/
7. Nalbinding is an ancient yarn technique. Nowadays people often connect it to Vikings and Scandinavia, and here in Finland it is sometimes thought to be a speciality from East Finland, although in reality nalbinding has been used almost allover the world.
https://www.en.neulakintaat.fi/17
8. Running Stitch, Backstitch, Split Stitch, Stem Stitch, Satin Stitch, French Knots, Chain Stitch, Lazy Daisy, Feather Stitch, and Seed Stitch.
https://www.craftsy.com/post/hand-embroidery-stitches/
9. In France, the first mechanical sewing machine was patented in 1830 by tailor Barthélemy Thimonnier, whose machine used a hooked or barbed needle to produce a chain stitch.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-many-many-designs-of-the-sewing-machine-2142740/
10. The most common type of fabric is aida.
11. Latch hooking is a craft in which short segments of yarn are tied to the horizontal strands of a small- or medium-sized canvas grid.
https://www.instructables.com/How-to-Latch-Hook/
12. It took over 2 years to complete. World Record Granny Square By the Numbers: 1,311 square feet Over 60 pounds Half a million stitches 30 miles of yarn 9 hours to lay it out
13. The yarn dates from 41,000 to 52,000 years ago and researchers said the cord is made from fibers taken from the inner bark of a tree, likely a conifer.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/09/world/oldest-yarn-neanderthals-scn/index.html
14. The first actual amigurumi dolls appeared at the start of the 1970s.
15. The most popular wool and fibres for needle felting projects is merino and corriedale wools.
https://thegoodyarn.com.au/product-category/felting/felting-fibre-kits/
16. The most expensive painting ever sold is the Salvator Mundi, the Saviour of the World in English, attributed to Leonardo da Vinci. It was painted in the 1500s and sold for $450.3 million in 2017.
17. Archaeologists believe they have discovered the world’s oldest-known representational artwork: three wild pigs painted deep in a limestone cave on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi at least 45,500 years ago.
https://news.artnet.com/art-world/indonesia-pig-art-oldest-painting-1937110
18. Linen is the most ancient of fabrics, with a rich and romantic heritage. Its widely accepted birth as a textile was in Egypt some 10,000 years ago but there is evidence found in pre-historic caves in Georgia that suggests it might have been used as a textile some 36,000 years ago.
19. In 1829, the first crochet pattern was written by Mademoiselle Riego de la Branchardiere. The daughter of a French father and an Irish mother, she is known as the mother of crochet and said to be the creator of the Irish crochet style!
20. Blocking refers to the process of stretching and shaping a finished piece to ensure it is the proper size and shape.
I hope that you found this trivia a bit entertaining! Please feel free to use these as an ice breaker, game, or other fun at your next craft or trivia night!
Sprinkle the world with sparkle! -Kim
ShinySunstar Creations 