As part of the “Made in Lansing” Fall Series two local knitters Cindy McCormick of Grand Ledge and Chris Triola of Lansing will discuss the colorful history of customized knitting and its evolution to computer-enhanced production on a small scale. The talk will be held in the Atrium of Lansing City Hall, 7 p.m., Thursday, September 11 where the Society’s “Made in Lansing” exhibit is displayed.
McCormick will demonstrate the old-time processes of knitting wool socks on a 108-year-old LeGare knitting machine and will discuss how early knitting evolved.
Marvin said at one time Lansing was home to one of the largest manufacturers of mittens in the country, but as technology advanced it was soon replaced by larger mills.
McCormick is the owner of Retro Re-Creations, a firm which is specializes in restoring hand-driven knitting equipment from the 1930s, 40s and 50s. She is also working with a Detroit area company to produce modern recreations of the old-time equipment. Her company motto is “bring back the past and make it better.
Chris Triola
Triola, owner of Triola’s Knitwear Studio and Objects-as-Art Gallery, is an award-winning fiber artist best known for her knit fabrics which are produced in limited edition and made into one-of-a kind garments. Her wearable art has been selected for exhibit and sale at juried national shows and exhibits since 1990 including the Smithsonian and Philadelphia Museum of Art. Her production studio is in Lansing and employs four artisans.-
“Both knitters are outstanding examples of Lansing’s creative economy showing how entrepreneurship can be married to the arts,” Marvin said.
The “Made in Lansing” exhibit is housed jointly in the atrium of Lansing City Hall and at the R.E. Olds Transportation Museum, and features more than 125 iconic products that were made in Lansing over the last 125 years or are still being made in the city. Among the items on display are the iconic Curved Dash Olds and the nerdy pocket protector along with the Bon Kura patent medicine. View the pocket protector image and patent information: http://www.google.com/patents/US2417786
Her pieces have
