Tour de Fleece 2008

With my work conference last week, I haven't really had much time to post about my progress. I had been spinning every day of the tour. The only day I missed was the first day 'cause I thought it started the next day. I didn't take the rest days to make up for it. So that is even an extra day.

First the goals:

• Spin at least 15 minutes a day, but aiming for an hour or more on days when I have more time

Done. I did spin at least 15 minutes per day. Most days were an hour or more if I had the time.

• Work on getting more consistent quality to my spinning (still a newbie, getting better but not there yet)

Getting there. I definitely am improving a great deal. I have been able to spin some superwash wool really thin and hoping to make 3 ply sock yarn with it. So I have gotten much better.

• Spin some of the superwash wool, merino top & wool locks I have

Spun 2/3rds of the superwash wool. Nice and thin so it should be good for doing a three ply sock yarn if there is enough elasticity in it. *crosses fingers*

I got to the merino top on Sunday, the last day. And spun all 10 oz. of it! Super easy to spin. And very soft. I did it thicker as I want a chunky scarf out of it I think.

Wool locks were interesting. I have only spun up 3 oz of the 8 I have. It is definitely a novelty yarn. But it was interesting intentionally doing thicker & thinner bits. I also left the tips of the locks and spun them so they stick up from the yarn, like little tails. Not what I would usually want, but I like it. Though combing the locks takes a good deal of time. So I don't think I will be buying any more again anytime soon. I will complete the remaining 5 oz. but it may be after a while honestly given how long the 3 oz. took.

• Try Navajo plying... *gulp*

I think I did it right. It looks right. And it is holding together. I really have to thank rexenne's You Tube video for this one - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOVXCHzDRKM It helped me figure it out how to do it in a way that makes sense.

I really thought I put getting to a spinning meetup as one of my goals. I am glad I didn't as I wasn't able to get there. With conference last week, I have had to work late for the week before and the week of conference. So I wasn't able to make it. Yesterday I wasn't able to get there either. *sigh* Ah well.

I was trying to do a day by day report. But I can't given I don't recall what I was doing what days at this point. Ah well. But here are some highlights.

Day 15 & 16

I was visiting some friends who just moved back to the East coast. Hooray! I have missed them terribly. So it is great to have seen them.

I brought along my spindle and the silk hankies I have. I actually got a fair bit done with this (an hour and a half to two hours both days).

The silk is beautiful and the colors look amazing. I am happy that I have gotten a lot better with a spindle. This is much thinner than it was in the past.

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The silk hankie is from The Yarn Tree - http://www.theyarntree.com. It is dyed in beautiful colors. I really love it. And it is silk, so I adore it all the more of course.

I am thinking I will keep this as a single and use it as trim on something. There is only 1 oz.

This did teach me that I really need to buy some silk hankies undyed. It was $19 for the 1 oz hankie I got. Undyed is significantly less.

Day 18

I finished the second of the three singles I need to complete with the superwash wool. I want to create a three ply for socks.

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I divided the fiber up into roughly thirds. I am hoping that it will work out evenly. But I am betting it won't. *chuckle* I seem to excel at having a bunch left on a spool when I am trying to do a 2 ply. I don't suspect a 3 ply will be any easier. *grin*

Day 22

I started the Icelandic locks on Wednesday, the 23rd, day 19 of the Tour de Fleece. Working with locks is definitely interesting. These have been washed. Though there is veggie matter in them for certain. When combing them I was left with black flecks of dirt as well as some other bits of hay and such. It was definitely time consuming having to comb the locks, separate out the ends I wanted to work into the yarn and all.

It is also interesting working on *intentionally* doing thick & thin when I have been trying to get more consistent yarn. The texture in this fiber certainly makes that easier. But it is still odd making sure not to smooth out the lumps and bumps.

I finished the single on Saturday (Day 22). It turned out to be 3 oz total. It is about 140 yds. (I measure the skein length and then multiply by the # of strands. I really don't think a yardage counter would work on this stuff anyhow! *chuckle*)

I am leaving this one as a single. I am hoping it is strong enough. But I just don't think it would work well plied.

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I did wait and washed them the next day along with the Decadent Fibers plied stuff I had on the bobbin since day 11. Yah. I know. I wish I knew why skeined plied yarn & washing it was my sticking point! *laugh*

I also tried Navajo plying with some remaining Decadent Fibers. And I have to say, I think it looks pretty good! I wish the picture really showed it up close. But I didn't get close enough & this fiber is very dark in color. I am surprised. It looks pretty good. However, it was *definitely* overspun. It was very kinky when I washed it. I used a bottle to weigh it down when I let it dry. So it seems okay. But hey, for a first attempt, I am thrilled to death with it.

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And here it is with the rest of the yarn which is 2 ply.

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Day 23

Super productive day. I spun & plied 10 oz. of merino comb top! Admittedly, I was spinning it pretty bulky. But I wanted to try something more bulky. It goes faster and I am leaning towards a scarf for this stuff.

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I definitely want some more Merino combed top. It was easy to work with and drafted very nicely. It would have been easy to make it thinner as well. I just wanted something a bit faster to spin up after making very thin singles with the superwash & dealing with the locks. Sometimes you want to see some results more quickly!

I spun all 10 oz. of this and only ended up with 160 yards! *laugh* So that is definitely different than other things I have been spinning. *grin* The Decadent Fibers I spun was 6 oz. and came out to almost 290 yards. And that is with some of it being Navajo ply! *chuckle*

Overall, I am pretty happy with the final results of the Tour de Fleece. I think I did a good job with my spinning. I met my goals which is good. And my ability has definitely improved a great deal. I am really glad I did it.

Though I will confess, I haven't touched the wheel since Sunday! *laugh* I just wanted a break at this point. I didn't spin at all yesterday and didn't do any so far today. I suspect I will go back to it very soon. But I was kinda happy to not *have* to spin if I don't wanna. *grin*

I definitely have a great appreciation for handspun yarns. And I am learning a lot. Though I also have a feeling that I am not going to be doing a lot of lace & sock yarns. I don't know. I just have this feeling that you can get most of those commercially with much greater ease. Mind you, I might change my mind about that. But at the moment, I am no seeing it. Perhaps when I finish my last ply and actually create the yarn for socks, I may feel differently. I am not sure. (Honestly, I am really worried it won't be elastic enough for socks and that I will be frustrated. But I am trying to stay hopeful that it will work.)

No, I Haven't Dropped Off the Face of the Earth

I really haven't dropped off the face of the earth. Nor have I stopped participating in the Tour de Fleece.

I have a work conference this week. That meant last week was prep for conference and this week is meetings pretty much all day. And then there is getting all the work done that I couldn't do because I was in meetings. *sigh*

I am frustrated as I won't meet one of my goals for the Tour de Fleece. That was to make it to a spinning meetup. Last week I had a doctor's appointment so I couldn't make it. I couldn't go yesterday either. I was actually supposed to see a friend (who needed to use my kitchen-long story). But instead I got stuck at the office anyhow. Ah well.

I have been getting some spinning done each day. I have done at least 15 minutes though more on some days. I even got some done this weekend while visiting friends. I took my drop spindle and silk hankies. I am actually getting better with the drop spindle as well! Woohoo!

I hope to take pics soon.

I am off to meetings all day. *sigh*

The Tour de Fleece Continues

Day 7 Continued - Friday

I pretty much decided that I was going to just ply the natural sliver with itself. But I did spend some time untangling pieces of the silk/merino blend. I may decide that that I will try plying that with itself in hopes that it will work well in combo with the natural sliver.

Here is the natural wool sliver I got at Adirondack Woolery plied:

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It is kinda rough. I think I am still overspinning the fiber some. Though I hope it will loosen up a bit after a soak it and let it dry. But I do think I am getting better at spinning which is good. *smile*

There is a very small ball of the natural wool sliver plied with the merino/silk blend. I really like that one and wish I hadn't messed up the bobbin.

I did spend some time Friday night trying to sort of the merino/silk with some hopes of saving it. I was able to do one decent piece. But the rest are pretty short. I may still try plying it together and seeing what happens. Figure it is better than just wasting it completely.

Day 8 - Saturday

Saturday was a light spinning day as I was out of the house from 10 in the morning til at least 10 at night. I just spun some more of the Decadent Fibers Jelly Roll in the morning.

On the plus side, because I was going to be in the car for a long while, I finally got around to casting on the socks I have been meaning to start since I got my friend's feet measurements.

I wish I knew why I *always* seem to have trouble with casting on 2 socks on 2 circs! Every time I miss it up in some way. But I got it moved into the correct position on the needles. I got the cuffs done which is good. I didn't have a row counter with me so I had to wait til Sunday to start the pattern in the leg.

Day 9 - Sunday

I continued working on the Decadent Fibers roving. I have a lot of this still. So I will keep plugging away at it. I filled the second bobbin. So now I need to ply them which I may do tonight.

Here are the two full bobbins together:

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I decided to try a new fiber. So I picked up the superwash wool I bought from Etsy. The shop is The Ranches Angoras. It is commercial dyed fiber that is blended by the seller. I really like it. Here is a current listing the seller has for sale.

I am surprised. It wasn't as bad as I feared it would be. I am able to draft it out much thinner than other fibers I have done in the past. That may be about my skill level increasing. But it may be because it is much more slippery. So it slides very easily. I have more trouble making sure not to do it too thin that it will break before I can get enough twist into it.

My only concern is the twist might be too tight. Thus, it would take out a lot of the elasticity that is needed for socks. But I figure at worst I will just not be able to use this for socks and make yet another scarf. *laugh*

Start of Day 10 - Today

I did some checking and I think it makes the most sense to do a 3-ply with the superwash wool if I want to try to use it for socks. I am still not sure I am leaving enough elasticity in it given the amount of twist in it. But I am hoping it will work. *crosses fingers*

I divided up the fiber into three equal parts in hopes of creating the 3-ply. It may not work perfectly, but I am hoping the yardage will be roughly equal.

I should get some more spinning in tonight. But I also want to skein off all the wool I plied over the weekend. So I think I need to do that before I start any other spinning tonight. It needs to be soaked.

I am thinking that it makes the most sense to ply the Decadent fibers stuff. I need to get that off my bobbins as well. So it would make sense to do it. But I will see how I feel when I get home. I am on summer hours which means I have to work until 5:45 at the very least. And I have a lot of work I should tackle today that isn't done. *sigh* So it will depends on that too as to what time I get home.