...then this post would be a lot more interesting.
I've gone to the weaver's cottage and picked up all manner of mysterious soft fuzzy balls:
* bamboo
* white lightning (80% cotton 20% linen, shockingly soft)
* blueface/alpaca
* merino/tussah (silk)
* corriedale
* mulberry silk
* silk/baby camel
They also had some amazingly soft baby alpaca that I did not get. That is for next time.
I am convinced that alpaca and high-grade merino are quite as nice as cashmere, and the only reason cashmere is so pricy is that it comes from literally the other side of the world. This is borne out by the fact that in Malaysia, cashmere is a fraction of the cost (still expensive, but not nearly as pricy as it is here - more like what alpaca costs here), while other fibers like cotton and silk are comparably priced when scaled to fit the general cost of living.
Showing posts with label wool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wool. Show all posts
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
What is OakAndSage up to?
I have been spinning for a bit over a month and a half, I think.
Current (in progress) spinning projects:
* Mixed bag wool/silk/rayon for novelty yarn. I spun about half the gallon bag into laceweight and it is awaiting plying. Ply once, do a segment of the yarn-sampler-scarf, then ply again. I'm considering socks, because it looks like it would make very warm, comfortable socks. Photo to follow.
* Merino respin. My first spinning attempt was some merino that Mothie gave me, and I totally mangled it. Although I could keep it as a record of how terribly I spun back then, it's so chunky that it's easy to pull open and treat as roving. I've spun a large quantity of actually *nice* unplied (as yet) yarn out of just a few inches of the original, and I haven't even had to discard anything. It's interesting watching the yarn get thinner and more even as I go (from 'unusable' towards 'chunky novelty yarn') and I think I'll probably save a foot or so out of the back in a notebook somewhere, if I can get around "But this is quality merino! It could make *yards* of decent yarn instead of a foot of crappy yarn!"
It amazes me how little twist you can put into merino and have it stick together. It's beautiful stuff. I definitely want to spin more merino, now that I know what I'm doing.
Tomorrow I get to go to the Weaver's Cottage and see what new stuff to spin I can find! (I spun half a gallon bag and all that merino in, errr... 3 days. Pity me with your sarcastic pity!)
Current (in progress) spinning projects:
* Mixed bag wool/silk/rayon for novelty yarn. I spun about half the gallon bag into laceweight and it is awaiting plying. Ply once, do a segment of the yarn-sampler-scarf, then ply again. I'm considering socks, because it looks like it would make very warm, comfortable socks. Photo to follow.
* Merino respin. My first spinning attempt was some merino that Mothie gave me, and I totally mangled it. Although I could keep it as a record of how terribly I spun back then, it's so chunky that it's easy to pull open and treat as roving. I've spun a large quantity of actually *nice* unplied (as yet) yarn out of just a few inches of the original, and I haven't even had to discard anything. It's interesting watching the yarn get thinner and more even as I go (from 'unusable' towards 'chunky novelty yarn') and I think I'll probably save a foot or so out of the back in a notebook somewhere, if I can get around "But this is quality merino! It could make *yards* of decent yarn instead of a foot of crappy yarn!"
It amazes me how little twist you can put into merino and have it stick together. It's beautiful stuff. I definitely want to spin more merino, now that I know what I'm doing.
Tomorrow I get to go to the Weaver's Cottage and see what new stuff to spin I can find! (I spun half a gallon bag and all that merino in, errr... 3 days. Pity me with your sarcastic pity!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)