Spinning and new fiber

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A little over a year ago I spun yarn for a warm pair of socks for my mother.  I had some fiber left over that I had sitting in my "someday I'll get to this" craft box.

I needed something to start spinning this week, so I dug out the softest fiber I could find.

I'd say that a merino/tussah silk blend is pretty darn soft.  I'm spinning it as thin as I can with the ultimate plan of making it a lovely 3-ply yarn fit for a cowl.  I'm just in love with this color of green too, it is uncommon.

Speaking of lovely greens, want to see what came to me from Finland yesterday?

This gorgeousness is Polworth from indie dyer Lanitium ex Machina.  When I found this in my mailbox I was surprised to say the least.  First thing I did was text Lisa, my emergency fiber contact, because I had no idea where it came from.  Turns out she was the mystery fiber faerie!  I had a pretty crappy week last week and she went above and beyond to cheer me up.  Thanks again, Lisa!

I hope everyone has a wonderful fiber-filled weekend!

Dyeing Fiber with Food Dyes

I wanted to let you all know that I will be on a trip to Las Vegas for a conference this weekend, so if I'm slow in responding that is why, I apologize in advance!

Before leaving, I decided to dye some roving I purchased a while ago.  It is apparently Cheviot wool, which I have never really experienced before.  I actually ordered this fiber online, and upon opening it up I was really disappointed with how it had been prepared.  Because of the bits of stuff sticking out of it and the overwhelming smell of lanolin, I have reason to suspect that it has not been processed very well.  This was further evident in the fact that it was very difficult to dye.

I dyed part of it using Wilton's food dyes, pretty much the same way as I did in my previous post and I was not completely satisfied with it.  The colors just didn't want to stick!

Once I finish spinning this fiber, I plan on washing it thoroughly and then attempting to dye it again to see how that might work.  Also, I remembered that the awesome Sara from A Year at the Wheel, has tons of tips on how to wash wool correctly, so I may follow her directions and see if that might make a difference as well.

But, if dyeing teaches me anything, it is that sometimes it doesn't go at all according to plan.  I'm looking forward to this fiber as an ongoing challenge that I have to tackle.  Perhaps I will make something I'm truly proud of in the end!

Recent Stash Additions

Last weekend I was lucky enough to get to spend some time with my good buddy Lisa (Wickedly Artsy).  Among many of the other exciting things that you can read about over at her blog, we found some time for some fiber shopping!

I know, I'm a poor student preparing for a huge move, but fiber is just as important as food right?

First we headed over to Wildflower in Manhattan, Kansas, which has a great selection of Berroco, as well as some yarns that I have not been able to find at any other yarn store.  I found some yarn that I have been dying to get a hold of for a while now, two skeins of Mini Moshi (Crystal Palace Yarns) in a muted rainbow colorway:

After that we visited Wicked Stitch in Wamego, Kansas, which is one of my favorite stores because of the amazing fiber selection, friendly people, and adorable location.  It took me a little while to decide what to get because of the overwhelmingly diverse selection, but I ended up purchasing two types of fiber that I cannot wait to spin up.

I went straight for some reasonably priced and super soft Blue Faced Leichester.  I will likely end up hand dyeing this at some point.

I also couldn't resist buying some Romney wool (which I don't think that I have ever tried before).  According to the owner, this is from one of her own sheep, Daisy.  I can tell that this is going to be loads of fun to spin up!

Isn't it wonderful the sort of treasures that can be found at yarn stores across the country?  If only I could visit them all!

Winter Woolfest 2012

On Saturday I was able to stop by the Winter Woolfest 2012 in Wamego, Kansas.  It was definitely worth the two and a half hour drive up there because there was a great turnout!  I was especially surprised by how many vendors there were, considering Kansas does not produce a whole lot of fiber.

The event was hosted at the Columbian Theatre on main street Wamego

right next to The Wicked Stitch, a wonderful LYS that actually stocks spinning wheels!

Not only was the festival filled with local fiber vendors and fiber enthusiasts, but they even had a variety of fantastic classes that were offered for free!  I had planned on attending the one on speed knitting, but my family wanted to explore Wamego and I'm planning on going to squam this summer where Stephanie Pearl-McPhee will actually be teaching the method.

I did however buy a boatload of fiber before I left:

This is 100% undyed alpaca from the super nice people of Alpacas at Wildcat Hollow.  Lisa gave me some of this fiber for my birthday and I loved spinning it so much that I had to buy more.

Some pretty 100% merino wool (yes I bought it just for the colors, just merino is not my favorite to spin with) that was actually not local. --> Thank you to Sara for identifying this as fiber from Frabjous Fibers!

Lastly, 100% mohair from Little Angora House on the Prairie.  This was by far my best buy, not only was it at an amazing price, but the color and the quality is wonderful.  I can hardly wait until I can start spinning it up.

Also, as tempting as it was, we refrained from following the yellow brick road.

Spinning Alpaca

I have still been overburdened with end of semester work lately, but I'm almost done and have so much planned for my month-long break.  I plan on spinning like crazy, dyeing some fiber and yarn for upcoming projects, and finishing some knitting projects I've promised to friends and family.  It will be so wonderful to have some time to slow down and focus on my fiber art for a while without the stress of the lab and classes consuming my time.

Although I find myself horribly busy during the school year, sometimes a certain yarn or fiber comes along that really inspires me and makes me so excited that I find myself sneaking away from my obligations to work on it for a little while every chance I get.  When my awesome friend Lisa sent me some amazing fiber for my birthday, I was so inspired that I very quickly managed to spin it into some lovely handspun.

Natural Alpaca

Spun: December 2011

Roving: 100% undyed alpaca (Alpacas in Wildcat Hollow)

Color: Light brown

Spindle: Schacht 3" Hi-Lo drop spindle (2.2 oz.)

2 ply, ~196.0 yards, 14 WPI (Fingering)

I really love how it came out and I am itching to knit it up into something soft and cozy although I'm not sure what it should be yet.

Have you ever experienced this kind of creative push?

Great Balls of Fiber

I had a difficult time last week  and so I did what I do any time I'm frazzled and in need of a mini vacation.  I went to Webs to stroke all the fiber I could get my hands on (if you have ever been to Webs then you know that is a lot of fiber).

I have come to realize that I have now graduated from moderately obsessed with fiber arts to really obsessed because I'm now buying fiber in the form of huge balls, as you can see below.

For reference, the purple ball (of lovely, lovely silk and merino) is about the size of my head.  The brown ball of Jacob wool is certainly larger than my head.  I'm excited to use these materials to craft truly handcrafted gifts for people I care about, but at the same time I cannot believe that people used to use similar materials to spin the yarn to make clothes with.  Between me and my spindle,  it's going to take forever just for a simple project.

This fiber is all destined to become Christmas presents for some lucky individuals, who lucky for me likely don't read my blog.

Thus begins my first spin to knit adventure!

Spinning, I love it.

I have a close friend who is always pushing me to be better in all areas of my life, but especially in my fiber work.  She challenges me to try positive, new things and I always seem to end up a better person by the end.  I think that we all need more people like that in our lives.  Anyways, recently she made me realize that I never dye and spin fiber in a solid (ish) color.  Armed with my trusty spindle, I set to work and finished this project that I am lovingly calling Lee's Dungarees:

-- Spun: September 2011
-- Roving: 100% BFL Wool (The Woolery)
-- Colors: Self-dyed with Jacquard Acid Dyes
-- Spindle: Schacht 3" Hi-Lo drop spindle (2.2 oz.)
-- 2 ply, ~110 yards, 8 oz., 9 WPI (Worsted (4))

This turned at fairly well and hopefully it will be met with approval. (There! I did it! Hooray!)

Dyeing in the Intense Heat

The weather here in Kansas has been almost unbearable.  It has been a least 100 degrees almost every single day of July and we haven't had rain in my area since the 3rd of July.  So, I have been having a difficult time finding inspiration because everything outside has been brown and dead.
What did I decide to do? Dye roving! I ordered some superwash merino, which after some trouble I ended up being able to wangle into several braids for storage.  Despite the uncooperative nature of the fiber, I'm pretty happy with the product.

My mother declared this colorway "crazy", but I rather like it.

Finally Spinning with Silk Merino

I finally got my hands on a silk merino blend of fiber to spin with.  So far I am loving every second of it even though I only have time to spin about 10 minutes every other day.  I dyed the fiber myself with decent results, it isn't my favorite attempt at dyeing but it isn't bad either.  It is a little too light because I dyed with egg dye tablets.  I'm also a little suspicious of the brown...

 I also quickly mastered the two main methods of braiding fiber.  I'm on the go a lot and free fiber is often a recipe for disaster.  Regular braiding is nice, but doesn't work if you want to keep most of it in the braid.  The chain braiding method is way more practical for me and it still looks great.

Crazy Fiber

This stuff was a little weird to spin with because it has so many different fibers! It was excellent practice for spinning worsted (even though I didn't quite get there this time).

• Spun June 2011
• Roving: Unknown mix of Merino, Tencel, Sea Cell, Milk Fiber, Corn Silk (Fibers 4 Ewe)
• Colors: Blue, Purple, and Green.
• Spindle: Schacht 3” Hi-Lo drop spindle (2.2 oz.)
• 2 ply, ~85 yards, ~2.0 Ounces, 12 WPI (Sport)

The "I cannot believe I made this" moment in spinning.

I finished this yarn last month and was surprised at how nice it turned out.  It almost looks like something machine made!  Now I truly know why spinning is addictive (and dangerous).  Before I know it I will have accumulated dozens of spindles and spent way too much money on fiber (oh wait...already done that).  However resource consuming spinning gets, at least I know that I can make a truly beautiful product.

• Spun May 2011
• Roving: 100% Merino (Galloping Jester)
• Colors: blue and dark purple
• Spindle: Schacht 4” Hi-Lo drop spindle (3 oz.)
• 2 ply, ~300 yards, 14 WPI (Fingering (2))

When life gets busy...spin/knit even more!

My life has been very hectic with some projects coming close to a deadline at work and studying like crazy for the GRE.  Despite all that I have found little pockets of time to work on my spinning and knitting projects.  One such project that I am having fun with right now is this spinning project:

 

I bought this lovely fiber at the Mass. Sheep and Woolcraft Fair last month.  I was drawn in by it's interesting fiber content and bought a small amount (2 oz.) to give it a try.  The label says that it is an unknown blend of merino, tencel, sea cell, milk fiber, and corn silk.  It is very soft and has an interesting texture that I cannot put into words.  I'm attempting a worsted weight because it seems like the only weight that I can achieve right now is fingering.