All you need to spin your dreams
By Suzy Brown (This article was first published in Issue 9 of tinyStudio Creative Life Magazine) Over the years I have had the privilege of being able to test new products as they come out of Majacraft’s workshop. Most recently, there has been a […]
We are pleased to announce that the upcoming retreat in 2021 is going to be “Living in the Moment with Majacraft.” Throughout this retreat we are going to focus on mindfulness and simplicity through our handcrafts. In our ever-changing world, I think it’s more important […]
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I would like to share with you something I have developed that I think is new and exciting, this is my super duper colour management system for use with the Hackle – one of my favourite Majacraft tools! I started developing this system in mid […]
Did you guess which of our wheels these pretty pedals belong to? They DO look like Rose pedals, or Suzies, or even Aura’s, they could be Pioneer feet but these are Rimu not Ash, so whose can they be? Yes! Our updated Little Gem has […]
A short time ago we released the new updated version of the Pioneer, our entry level spinning wheel. The update has quite a few changes, such as the super handy handle in the stem, the nicer shaped pedals, and the harder wood (moved from Pine to American Oak). This has resulted in a prettier wheel now known as the Pioneer X! One more change we have made, is to now also offer an ‘unfinished’ version (at a slightly lower price) that is ready for you to make your own! You can stain it, paint it, or do what I did and turn it into an artwork 🙂
I would like to share with you two wheels that I have painted up, perhaps this will inspire you! These are both older model Pioneers, but I am looking forward to a much easier job of preparing and painting with the new Pioneer X Creative!
The first wheel I painted was the Galaxy wheel, this is a very simple paint project and I also made a speed video of the entire process. I would encourage anyone to try this, just practice a bit first on some cardboard or scrap wood. I used acrylic paints, and started with a base layer of black. Onto the black I splurged a mix of blues, a touch of fuchsia, and blending in dabs of white. You need to do this while the paints are wet to get the blend. Then I splattered white for the stars.
The second wheel I did was a bit more complicated in the painting. I was very inspired to do something in rich deep greens and the ocean theme seemed perfect for that, and of course how could I resist adding in a mermaid? My Song of the Siren wheel was born! And I thought it was appropriate, how many of us hear the musical call of our spinning wheels even when we are far away? and then we get lost in the depths as the wheel swirls and turns and transports us to another realm 🙂
I again used acrylics for this wheel, which I choose for lightfastness (they don’t fade) and durability. Once completed I also spray varnished both these wheels, the Cosmic Wheel with satin finish and the Siren wheel with high gloss (to glisten like the ocean!). I also made a short video on the progress with this one, it was a much slower creation than the Cosmic wheel due to the amount of detail.
I hope you feel inspired to customise your own wheel! Or if you are looking for a new wheel to make your own (and not take to your beautiful Rose or Aura with sandpaper!) you can’t go past the Pioneer X Creative, you get all the smoothness and top quality spinning experience with this wheel as you do with any of the more expensive Majacraft wheels, plus you have the freedom to make it as unique as you are! Please feel free to ask me any questions about the process or the materials! I am always happy to help 🙂
Suzy Brown
Here we are with Majacraft camp news! We are all set for a new venue next year (Papamoa) with great space, excellent catering, and the beach too! Our tutors are ready for action and are bringing some wonderful and exciting classes for you to enjoy. […]
We are excited to announce a new addition to our range of fibre preparation tools! We have been busy in the Majacraft workshop, and are happy to announce we have a new product to share with you and our customers! The new Majacraft Hand […]
Have you heard the news yet?!At the end of April 2019 we launched a fresh new-look Pioneer, two in fact! The Pioneer X and the X-Creative! This is an update and makeover of our entry level wheel which has proven to be a wonderful workhorse and much loved by those who own them.
Please read on for information about the changes we have made, and we hope you will also enjoy the video that we have made to showcase the changes. We officially launched this wheel at the New Zealand Creative Fibre Festival in the 25th of April where we took it for its first public outing!
We have created a much prettier and more upmarket look to this wheel, which is now constructed of harder wearing American Ash. The pedals, base, and stem have been redesigned with a lovely curvey look that matches up with the rest of the Majacraft range of wheels, and the drive wheel is now a slightly heavier American Ash Veneer.
We have also added a Polymer bearing for the tension knob to give you more control over your spinning, and the conrods will also be made from wood for an overall classy finish!
Best of all is the addition of an inset folding handle that you can easily flip up to carry your wheel with ease!
The other awesome thing is that the Pioneer X will come with two options, the standard ‘X’ with our usual high quality wood finish, or the X-Creative,which is delivered complete but unvarnished, ready for you to customise with your own art, paint, stain, decals, or finish. We think this will be a great option for many creative Majacraft spinners!
Please do check out our video showing all the fab new details!
Please contact your nearest dealer for more information on this great new updated Pioneer! Even though this is our entry level wheel, it is one that will grow with you as a spinner, most Majacraft accessories will fit the Pioneer X so you can access our range of bobbin, flyer, and pulley sizes to best suit your spinning needs.
We hope you will love this wheel and that you will recommend us to your friends and spinning groups as a great option for new and experienced spinners looking to update their wheels!
This year we held two Majacraft camps, one in Australia and one here in New Zealand shortly after. Both were pretty awesome! Majacraft Camp Australia was organised by the very inspirational Janet Day of ‘My Spin on Things’ in Melbourne. We started out on a […]
