Recent projects: spinning edition
As I mentioned in the last post, there's been no shortage of fibery activity chez Headless Chicken. The most recent spinning results:
The first pile in that picture is the last of a spinning project for Nancy. It's two plies of hand-painted BFL (a gift from an acquaintence who decided spinning was not for her) and one ply of lovely brown wool from Reflection Farms. There are 4 more skeins of this already in Nancy's hands. It's about aran weight, I think, and turns lovely and puffy when washed, which hasn't yet happened to the pictured skeins.
Next up is some very fine alpaca. This is my latest attempt to spin lace weight. It's not exactly cobweb, but it will do. Those two little skeins in the picture above are about 500 yards. I thnk I'm going to use this for one of the Icelandic shawls in Folk Shawls, just as soon as I decide what other color of alpaca to put with it. The alpaca stash is substantial, so I have choices. (Fun fact: this is exactly the same color as my hair.)
After all that fine and carefully spun alpaca, I wanted something I could spin fast and sloppily. This is a wool/mohair blend I bought from Willow Creek Farm/Dawn's Custom Carding. (They were sharing a booth with Reflection Farms.) I'm guessing that this will bloom a bit with washing because of the mohair content. I've got 6 oz of this, and absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with the finished product. (It's all spun, but this is the only skein that's been plied.)
Also, I'm ordering another spinning wheel from Betty Roberts, this one in the apricot wood of my heart's desire.
Next: a knitting update.
The first pile in that picture is the last of a spinning project for Nancy. It's two plies of hand-painted BFL (a gift from an acquaintence who decided spinning was not for her) and one ply of lovely brown wool from Reflection Farms. There are 4 more skeins of this already in Nancy's hands. It's about aran weight, I think, and turns lovely and puffy when washed, which hasn't yet happened to the pictured skeins.
Next up is some very fine alpaca. This is my latest attempt to spin lace weight. It's not exactly cobweb, but it will do. Those two little skeins in the picture above are about 500 yards. I thnk I'm going to use this for one of the Icelandic shawls in Folk Shawls, just as soon as I decide what other color of alpaca to put with it. The alpaca stash is substantial, so I have choices. (Fun fact: this is exactly the same color as my hair.)
After all that fine and carefully spun alpaca, I wanted something I could spin fast and sloppily. This is a wool/mohair blend I bought from Willow Creek Farm/Dawn's Custom Carding. (They were sharing a booth with Reflection Farms.) I'm guessing that this will bloom a bit with washing because of the mohair content. I've got 6 oz of this, and absolutely no idea what I'm going to do with the finished product. (It's all spun, but this is the only skein that's been plied.)
Also, I'm ordering another spinning wheel from Betty Roberts, this one in the apricot wood of my heart's desire.
Next: a knitting update.
posted by Melinda at 11:15 AM
7 Comments:
Oh, all of them look yummy! I have seen the BFL in person and it is going to make a beautiful item (vest? sweater? I can't recall if Nancy had decided.)
Why a second color of alpaca? will you plie them together, strand them or something else?
Dorothy: The second color of alpaca is because the Icelandic shawls in Folk Shawls use multiple colors. It's a feather and fan pattern, and with stripes you really see the wave (whereas I'm not sure you would in just dark brown). Also, with my wee little attention span, I don't know if I can bear to spin a whole shawl's worth of dark brown, lovely as it is.
oh no! i've now lost track--does /this/ spinning wheel equal another guitar or bike (or both!) for t. or is this owed from his last guitar or bike? ; )
Love your spinning results, hate you for the new wheel. Ok, not really, but I am insanely envious...waaaaaaaa. I'm seriously considering an apple wheel, but the wood she just acquired needs to cure for another 2 years. TWO YEARS! She'll be 73 by then! 73! Then it will take her a year to make it... Good thing she has an apprentice, yes.
I think I have at least another guitar coming to me, honestly. It's the least a longsuffering husband could expect, let alone ask for.
And cutie pie, your hair's much darker than the alpaca yarn, at least as pictured.
BFL makes me think "best frinds for life" then the wooly part of my brain kicked in,...blue faced leister. lol!
spinning question...how the heck do you spin tiny stuff? just practice? is it a wheel ratio thing?
Pretty, pretty yarns!
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