Perhaps a List Would Be A Good Idea

The Current Project List (Running Post Updated Often)

Mostly this post is to keep track of too many projects.  Some of these are no more than random thoughts, plans laid by mice & men, or half baked ideas.  If it is in red text then the project is done. Links to Yarn & What Knot blog posts and Ravelry pattern pages are provided for easy reference.  

1. 1 lb of Cormo wool spun in the grease
1. "Spinning in the Grease"
2. "Spinning in the Grease - Part Two"
3. "Spinning in the Grease - Part Three (The Final Yarn)"
4. Bobbin One, Two, Three, Four
5. The sweater project (??)
2. Weaving Projects
1. 5 oz of Teeswater wool spun and woven - Christmas present for Mom
1. "I Digress"
2. "What Came off the Loom Yesterday"
1. Cowl for me
1. "What Came off the Loom Yesterday"
2. Christmas present for Mom
1. "What Came off the Loom Yesterday"
3. Hand Woven Table Runner in Rainbow Cotton (Breaking in the the New Loom)
3. "The Textiles from the Account Books of Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare, 1350-1351" 
1. Test of "Apple Blossom" colored wool
2. Test of rayed (striped) twill of various types of wools/sizes/colors 
3. The final list of fabrics to be woven
4. The Golden Fleece Project (Otherwise known as 7 lbs of THAT ROMNEY FLEECE)
1. "The Golden Fleece"
5. Random Hand Spun Yarns
1. The Loud Batt - Mood Swing (this was mentioned very briefly in "the Golden Fleece" post but I need to write up something more when its done.
1. Spun, Plyed, Knitted
2. Screaming Orange Yarn (Alpaca and Silk)
3. Rainbow Yarn (50/50 Merino/Silk)
4. Teal Yarn
6. Random Sewing Projects
1. a curtain for the studio
2. Dress for the little cousin
3. Hoodie for the little cousin 
7. Linen Waistcoat (Jacket) c.1630 based upon extant examples
1. This jacket is almost done. I need to finish writing this documentation.  
8. Half Baked Knitting Projects (By this, I mean half done projects)
1. Scarf out of rainbow cotton yarn as Christmas present for Miss L with a bonus headband
2. A bunny out of handspun for Miss E
3. Cowl out of Noro yarn 
4. Lacy Scarf out of alpaca/silk handspun lace weight
5. Something out of Malabrigo Rasta yarn in super bulky - color Archangel
6. Scarf for my sister in law
9. Round 10 Stitch Blanket project for the house made of handspun (the thing that will never be done - ever.)
1. yarn one (spun - knit)
2. yarn two (spun - knit)

Spinning in the Grease - Part II

I have had a few more thoughts along the way on this project.  I took the time to go though my bag of wool last night to separate out all the nice pieces of wool from the second cuts and tangles.  This was the result.

As you can see the vast majority of the fiber from this fleece ended up in the nicely organized bin rather than the tangles on the right.  In all about 1 oz of tangles were separated.  Remember that is with the weight of the grease in it so its actual weight is less than that.  For a full pound of fiber I think that is rather good.  I can still put that last bit though my drum carder if I need to.  The real credit of course goes to the breeders and sheerer.  

The first bobbin is full now.  As I'm working its very tempting to take a large bundle of fiber in my hands so I don't have to stop very often.  I have found this does not work well with this fleece.  A bundle of wool about the size of a quarter at one end is the most I can really do at one time. Otherwise it tangles and I get waist at the end of the bundle.  This photo also shows how tightly some of the fibers are stuck together at the ends.  Just a little fluffing at the ends and it is fine.  If the fleece were old or had a lot of grease in it this would be a tedious, perhaps impossible task.  The longer the lanolin sits on the wool after sheering the stickier it gets.  Therefore this fleece which was light on lanolin and dirt to start with is able to be spun by this method. 

Actually as it turns out there is almost no veggie matter in this fleece and its very clean. I've had to pick out more hay out of commercially prepared, dyed, top than this fleece. I have a few bundles that are a little dirtier than others but mostly its just really nice wool.  I cannot wait to ply this up and wash it.  

Spinning in the Grease

Over the years I've had a number of blogs and as such this one is no different than the others.  The focus remains on my exploration of history and textiles, preferably but not always, in the same project.

I've been spinning yarn since 2010 when I decided that I should know enough about spinning to demonstrate it to my students of fashion history.  I wanted them to understand how much effort when into many any piece of clothing before the industrial revolution.  As it happens I got addicted to spinning.  It was a perfect blend of artistic talents, productivity, & mediation.  

In the beginning I hated the idea of working with raw fibers; those with the grease still in them.  I still hate the idea of washing a fleece and combing it out afterwards.  It is just not my cup of tea.  So I've begun to investigate spinning wool while the grease is still on the fibers.  Please don't mistake me, some fleeces require washing and processing just to be useful.  Some animals don't, such as alpaca, which is washed after spinning.  In the last two weeks I have bought not one, but two, unwashed fleeces.  Each were picked for qualities that made spinning in raw, not just a possibility, but a better choice then traditional processing in my opinion.  Traditional processing would work but I think I will get a better yarn if I don't wash them.

This first entry are my notes on the first of those fleeces.  

Fleece: 1 pound of Cormo from Foxhill Farm Fibers & Sheep

Color: Buff or light brown

Purchased at: The New York Sheep & Wool Festival, 2014

Staple Length: 4 inches

Grease Content: Light to Medium

Veggie Matter: Very Light (the animal was jacketed) 

Crimp: Light

Sample Yarn Notes: 2 ply, very springy, great drape, came clean in the wash bath with hot water and a light does of Unicorn Scour (the same detergent as you might use on a raw fleece).  I spun it to lace weight to get a two ply fingering weight yarn.  I think this will lend itself to a nice blanket or throw later.  I should also note that the in the grease yarn was smooth before washing and very fluffy after washing.  This is in part, I believe, due to the nature of the Cormo fleece which tends to bloom when washed, even with additional twist in the spinning.

Other Notes: The reason I picked this fleece was that it was very clean from veggie matter, the wool was consistently 4" long throughout the bag, the color was amazing, and the majority of the fiber was in these nice neat clumps (shown above).  Why process this?  The grease was not so bad that it irritated my skin, nor did it smell.  There was not a great deal of dirt or other matter in the wool.  The purpose of combing or carding wool after washing is to get all the fibers unmatted and lined up again.  In the case of this fleece it came that way.  These clumps pulled apart in my hands very easily and pulling off individual fibers for spinning was easy, either from the tip or the side.  I would not want to let the fleeces sit in the bag for a long time or it would mat on its own.  

I was able to spin it very easily from the side, almost like spinning from the fold (see The Intentional Spinner, page 74 for spinning from the fold.)  This is a semi-woolen spinning method that accentuates the natural spring of the Cormo fibers.

I am currently though most of the first 4 oz bobbin.  I do not want to try and ply this yarn from a center pull ball.  I think it would lead to disaster.  I will instead spin a second bobbin and ply it.  Afterwards I will determine how much second cuts remain in the fleece, separate the second cuts and spin the remainder. 

One last additional note: the smell of the lanolin makes the cats want to "groom" the fleece.  Not at all good for the beasties or the fibers.

There will be more to come on this yarn as I work on it.