Buttercup Yarn

 I have finally finished spinning the buttercup roving and plyed it with Ito raw silk yarn. Here is a picture of the last 2 skeins in the middle.  I have not counted the yardage but I am sure that I will have enough to knit a shawl.  The single skein I finished yesterday is on top. The one I finished today are in the middle. The top one was photographed on a light grey table with an Ott light.  The middle 2 skeins were photographed on a brown couch with an Ott light. This is a perfect example of how background color can modify the look of any yarn. The gray brings out the yellow tones while the brown brings out the white tones and mutes the yellow. 

I skeined the yarn tonight during the Lord of the Rings Trilogy fight scenes. I know fight scenes are part of the book. They are also part of the TV show. That does not mean I have to watch them. Skinning each bobbin took up one fight scene. 

The bottom photo is the start of 4 ounces of super wash BFL. It is obviously still on the spinning wheel.  It is not going to be an art yarn. Since it is a super wash wool, I will be using it in charity hats.  My rationale behind this is that a few hundred years ago this was the normal thing.  It will also give me another one of a kind hat.  Just because the kids may get them from the clothing bank does not mean all the hats have to look the same.  The teachers usually get to pick the hats out for the students, so I try to give each on a unique personality. 

Tour De Fleece

Today I spent 4 hours plying the yarn that I spun over the first days of the tour.  I have decided that Shetland Wool is not pleasant to ply when it is spun to a lace weight yarn. Masham Wool is wonderful as a thick and thin yarn. It’s even better plyed.  BFL is always wonderful to spin and ply.

I am trying not only to spin as much of my fiber stash as possible.  I am also trying to spin as many different breeds of sheep as well.  Each breed spins a little differently.  I am also trying to spin as many British  Heritage Sheep fleeces, batts and braids that I have.

Eight skins were plied today. There were 4 four ounce bobbins and 4 smaller skeins for the 52 Yarn’s to Spin Before You Cast Off Book. I am really too tired to take them all out of their bags tonight, so I hope tomorrow will be ok for pictures.

I think that because of my sore Achilles Tendon I will do most of my Spinning on my classic Louet S-15.  I also found out today that the Louet S-96 in Oak is no longer being made and I will have to settle for an S-95. I also found out that it will not ship until Mid-September.  That means that I will not have it for the Sheep Thrills Fiber Retreat next month. All I can say is it’s a bummer to have to wait so long for a birthday present.

Tour de Fleece 2014

Day 1.  The second picture is a single ply mohair in red and blue.  The first one is a Cloudlover super wash BFL in Neptune's Wrath.