A yarn with Paul Farmer Paul Tirler from the Oberstufelshof farm in St. Michele has been knitting since he was 10 years old. Today, at 80 years old and counting, he still makes socks, traditional “Sarner” jackets, hats and gloves in pure sheep wool. A labour of love results in beautiful jackets, socks and other precious winter clothing.
P Text: Barbara Pichler Photo: Helmuth Rier
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Paul’s interest in knitting began at the age of ten when, on witnessing his mother’s fruitless attempts to teach his eight year-old sister to knit, he said “Teach me how to do it!” No sooner said than done: Paul’s mother taught him everything she knew and her son’s talent and, above all love, of knitting were immediately evident. His first
works were a pair of socks: Knit two, purl two… not easy by any means. “At the beginning, I preferred knitting to purling, but with a bit of practice, I even taught myself how to knit a braid cable,” he recalls. Today he laughs when he looks back on the time he spent studying a pattern to knit a pullover. At one time he signed up for a
knitting course but, as the only male in the group, he felt a little out of place. Alongside his farming life, Paul worked as a builder for nearly 30 years. “My wife wasn’t a big knitting fan. She preferred to be outside, and more than anything, she loved being with the cat-
tle. I couldn’t hold a candle to them. Throughout our married life, I was the knitter,” recalls Paul Tirler. Building works all stopped during the winter months, which gave him ample time to knit. For over 70 years now Paul has been knitting pure virgin sheep wool into socks and traditional »
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Former builder Paul Tirler has loved knitting since he was a child.
“Sarner” jackets, items of clothing which look back on a long tradition in South Tyrol where the people have appreciated the value of sheep wool for centuries on end: It is breathable, and keeps your body at a comfortable temperature. The wool for Paul’s socks and jackets comes from the Passiria Valley in South Tyrol. Paul has a sample card of colours and wools with every colour on the spectrum, from white through to black. While he’s clicking away, a sheet of paper on the table beside him is filled with symbols that seem to be a secret code. Paul notes down the number of rows he’s knitted on the paper - a hand with counting helps to keep everything in order.
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While he’s knitting, Paul listens to the radio or watches TV. On the radio, he heard that the Caritas charity organisation was appealing for warm socks for the homeless people in Bolzano. “I’m knitting a pair for them now,” he says. When his hands and eyes are weary, he takes a quick forty winks on the kitchen bench and then gets back to work. Paul can knit a pair of socks in a day, while a Sarner jacket takes a good week. At one time, he used to make rag rugs with scraps of materials. His wife had to put the colours together for him, as Paul is actually colour blind, and red and green are all brown to him. Perhaps that explains his predilection for natural colours. «
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