Fiber
-
Hand Spinning a Worsted Sock Yarn – Slow Cloth
I have one little skein, only about 1/4 of what I’ll need for my socks but I am very proud of it and it was hugely satisfying to create. These socks will certainly qualify as “Slow Cloth“. I am only just learning that there is a movement toward and a name for my own philosophy and passion in the my Fiber Art. I love the notion of slowing down in order to have quality rather than quantity in life. The idea that Fashion should be less dependent on rapidly changing trends and colors (fast money for the rich) and more about quality, sustainability, and thoughtfulness in design and materials. The…
-
More on the Spotted Fleece – Jacob
I thought it was time to post an update to “Spinning the Spotted Fleece”. The sweater now has a name. It will be called Jacob. I will probably do a pattern for it after I’ve knit it in another colour pattern for variety. I’ve had quite a few orders for handspun yarns so the knitting is coming along rather slowly. I’m at the neck shaping. We tried it on and it’s within an inch of exact measurements which makes me very happy. That can definitely be worked out with washing and blocking.
-
Washing Raw Wool Fleece for Worsted Spinning
I have a lovely Polwarth fleece which I imported from New Zealand and I want to spin it worsted, probably for some socks. It’s really very soft with a micron count of about 23 but has a 4 inch staple length so I think I can spin a nice strong and durable 3 ply worsted sock yarn with it. With this fleece I can also spin a fluffy light and warm woolen yarn that will be soft enough for a baby. What a lovely versatile fleece. How to wash a fleece for worsted spinning The goal is to wash individual locks of wool that are all the same length and…
-
Preparing a Raw Wool Fleece for Handspinning
Yesterday I got out one of the wonderful Polwarth fleeces I imported from New Zealand where they are able to produce some of the finest and highest quality wool in the entire world. Polwarth The Polwarth is not a rare breed but its fleece certainly has enough wonderful characteristic to make it a favorite among hand spinners, knitters and those who wear their creations. It is a dual-purpose sheep, developed in Victoria, Australia in 1880; they were first introduced into New Zealand in 1932. It has been crossbred to 75 percent Merino and 25 percent Lincoln. Polwarth wool is similar to Merino in softness but has a longer staple length…
-
Breed Specific and Rare Breed Wools
My new passion! Breed Specific and Rare Wool Breeds. I have always been totally in love with wool – my number 1 favorite fiber without rival. This love of wool has risen to a whole new level of passion with my virtually “meeting” of Deborah Robson and becoming aquainted with her work with Breed Specific Wool and Rare Breeds of Sheep. It all started with a free class on Craftsy Know Your Wool. Highly recommended for anyone with an interest in wool. This sparked some research on the subject of Breed Specific Wools for spinning and knitting and expecially the Rare Wool Breeds. I found a few resources over at…
-
Spinning the Spotted Fleece
The testing and planning for this project may just be the most fun part. I have now washed, carded or combed, spun and knit swatches (or small projects) from 4 of my stashed fleeces. I’ve been working with the multi coloured fleeces this time because I wanted some colour texture in my sweater. This one is a Jacob from Great Britain. It’s for Earl. I considered my choices for working with the stark contrast of the colours in this fleece. I could do a relatively homogeneous blending for a smooth mottled look, I could keep the colour separate and ply a white with a black for a ragg look, or…
-
Alpaca Avenue – Alpaca Fiber arrived today
Woot! My Alpaca arrived today and I’m in heaven. I ordered a few bags to start with just to see how I liked it and I will definitely be going back again. This is beautiful fiber from ladyolivia Alpaca Avenue by Kerstin Kerr on Etsy. So soft and clean and very fine. It was easy to spin into a fingering weight yarn as 2 ply so I’m sure I could do lace or DK with ease even if I had to go to a 3 ply for Worsted weight. Now, I just have to decide what to knit with it. Mittens or fingerless gloves maybe? ideas?
-
A Second “SWatch Cap” Hat
I’m still working on the wool fleeces. I brought 4 of them in and only one was un-usable. It just has so much chaff embedded in the fleece that I find I don’t have the patience or desire to work with this one at all. I’m trying to decide which of the other 3 fleeces I want to use to make the man’s sweater that I have in mind. I need gauge swatches for the measurements but I also need them to see how each of the yarns will perform for me. I know what I want in terms of softness, drape, body, colour and attitude. For my gauge swatch…
-
Quicky Rolled Brim (somewhat slouchy) Hat
Don’t laugh, there were no other heads around and I wanted to show it to you on someone! More photos below :0 Unlike you, I am not very fond of knitting a gauge swatch so … after I spun up some of the fleece I got out yesterday … I decided that I would knit a hat to determine my gauge. I really, quite like it. Great fit and not likely to give me “flat head” and definitely very warm. The textured look from the slubs in the handspun give it a wonderful personality. The simple designs helps to showcase the “hand spun-ness” of the yarn. Order the handspun wool…
-
Washing a Wool Fleece
Today I got out a couple of beautiful fleeces that I had stored over the garage for a few years. They came from a huge sheep ranch in Australia that specialized in raising coloured sheep especially for the hand spinning market. I was fortunate enough to visit for 2 weeks at sheering time, working in the shed and getting my pick of that year’s sheering. It was an oportunity of a lifetime and I will never forget it. Getting out the fleece today made me so happy. They are still perfect! I attribute this to the storage containers we used. They are a very strong cardboard with metal bottom and…
