Fiber Play

Last  night as I finished with the chores I took this picture.  I feel so blessed that The Lord painted the sky just for me to enjoy!  And now I will share it with you!  There is such beauty in the skies when the temps are in the teens and the ground is covered with the crispy white snow.


 

After supper last night, I got out the drum carder to start knocking a hole in all the wool that I have washed and ready to work up.   I dyed a few fleeces last summer and had so many special plans for it all...well, as plans go, with good intention, I didn't get my fiber play done.  Oh my!  I feel like a fiber hoarder, my spare bedroom off of my studio is full of washed fleeces. The rack and shelves in my studio have bags and baskets of fleeces, I am surrounded by beautiful colors.   Each fleece is in it's own plastic bag and labeled with the sheep's name and year of shearing.  I sent 6 fleeces to the fiber mill to be processed and two large bags are in the Yukon ready to be taken to the post office for the mill.

Here is an example of a basket of a Border Leicester x Corridale lamb's fleece.  It is so fine and soft!  It just makes me smile to put my hands in it.  I chose to pull out the purples and rose colors to blend on the carder. 

Here are a few rolags in the basket ready for spinning. 

I dyed a BFL fleece in blues, greens, oranges last summer.  It is so soft that I have changed my plans of making socks with it to knitting a stocking hat with the brims knitted out of this soft 2 ply yarn and the crown will be out of a matching solid color...if all goes well, I plan to make a pair of fingerless mittens to match too. 

I did not make any New Year's Resolutions this year.  I asked God to walk with me, to guide me in all things, I ask that I can be a blessing to others and to Him.  I also asked God to take away the anger toward those that have hurt me and my loved ones and to love and pray for those people that have cheated me out of joy over the years.  I also pray that God will forgive me of my sins and forgive me for the times that I have trespassed on others and that they too will forgive me too.

 

Couldn't wait, I had to see what this fiber would spin up like.  I think it will be a lovely yarn.

Luke 6:37 ESV    
“Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;

Playing in My Studio...At the Spinning C Fiber Mercantile

My Spindle collection

The temperatures have been in the 40s-50s, cloudy but mild with a little breeze blowing and I have been going strong all weekend cleaning, washing wool, choring, cleaning on the yard, cleaning up my hay mess, cleaning house, laundry, and I finally gave myself my a reward...I got to go up to my studio and play this afternoon.  Doesn't that sound good?  The only thing is....I have so much wool that I have washed and planned to get to...but have not and I can't work in a clutter!  I have put back a few fleeces for myself to spin and felt....the spare bedroom is full...my studio has wool on all the shelves, in the closet...IT IS TIME TO CLEAN MY STUDIO!  It will soon be time to shear and I will have 40 more fleeces to deal with.



SOLD

I have this clothes hamper running over with hot pink, iris, and some navy dyed wool probably a couple of pounds.  This is BFL/Shetland.   If anyone is interested...email me...I will sell this dyed wool for $20 plus shipping.



#4 fleece,  I washed this fleece yesterday.  It is a beautiful Corriedale/BFL fleece.  It has some vm.   I will sell it for $30 plus shipping.  It is ready to card and spin or dye.  Really a nice wool!

                                                                         SOLD

 

 The carder is out and ready to blend soy silk in with alpaca and a very soft Spinning C lamb fiber.  I love to blend fibers!  and did I tell you that I love color...muted, bright, pastel, primary, secondary...black and white...all of them!



This is three of the heavier yarn that I had spun.  I am going to make another felted bag from a Noni pattern. 



 White Knight's Fleece for Sale  BFL  SOLD



5-6 inch locks of WK's fleece.



I had this fleece held back for myself.  I have several fleeces in the milkroom of the barn and I need to get it cleaned out and get ready for this Springs clip.  I will sell WK's fleece.  I washed this fleece Saturday.  It does have some yellowed wool in this basket and some vm, it is a beautiful fleece.  It is a nice big fleece.  I have not weighed it yet but would guess it to be over 3 lbs.  I do not like to pay postage on dirt and oil so I washed it in very hot water over 180 degrees with dawn detergent and rinsed. 

WK's wool has a luster.

More pictures of the polypay/BFL lamb's fleece

SOLD

Locks of the polypay/BFL lamb's fleece.  Washed this weekend.  Very soft and fine, lots of crimp.

Quite Friday Night at Home Felting and watching videos

Last weekend I started a new knitting bag.  I wanted a carpet bag type knitting bag.  The problem was I decided to add in the checker board pattern and the purse drew in this area.  Not what I wanted to happen but I will use the bag no matter what.
I mixed up a denim color dye and dyed two skeins of my new heavier weight yarn from our sheep.   The knitting went fast.



I knitted each petal separate and the center of the large red flower is crocheted separately too.  I knitted on the trim every night this week.




This is the carpet bag after I put the handles on.



I watched Rita Buchanan's videos on my laptop  while I stitched on the trim of the purse.  I would recommend this set of dvds to everyone. 

I down loaded this emag during the blizzard last week.  I have not tried any of the socks yet.



I also downloaded this emag last week and I am very impressed.  Video, interviews, nice pictures and all in beautiful color.

This week has been a trying week.  I am very tired but working on the purse while watching Rita Buchanan on the lap top and listening to her and the lovely music has been very relaxing and educational.  

I am thrilled with my new yarn from my flock.  It grabbed the dyes quickly and felts easily.  It knits up easily.  I am thinking of sending more fleeces to be processed so I can sell yarn.  I will also be selling fleeces.