Blending Fiber!

Are you blending fiber for spinning? What fibers are you blending? Do you blend for color or for fiber content? What method do you use?

I plan on using my drum carder to blend some merino roving with alpaca. Just for fun!

Tags: blending, carders, color, drum, fibers, spinning

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Peggy Stuart on October 25, 2010 at 1:07pm

Jus keep them aimed away from your face!

Permalink Reply by Peggy Stuart on December 5, 2010 at 6:10am

I have asked DH for a homemade hackle for Christmas. We'll see if that happens!

Permalink Reply by Victoria Dowding on October 25, 2010 at 12:16pm

One thing I have learned from blending. In my experience the yarn is only as soft as the coarsest fiber in the blend. I bought a "pack of lovely mohair that was blue and it came with wool that was corse and black I blended as I spun and it turned out corse I was very disappointed. (Some day I will put up photos again). Then this weekend I took my brown wool and carded it with cut up pieces of old yarn my mom gave me. It was my grandmothers scraps from crewel work she had done. In my opinion the yarn was not pretty or the least bit soft but it made little pops of color in a tweed looking yarn. I carded out the twist and I worked it first then blended in the brown. I am making fingerless gloves for my sister so she can enjoy the connection.

Permalink Reply by Peggy Stuart on October 25, 2010 at 1:08pm

Good advice, and what a novel idea for blending!

Permalink Reply by cherylbwaters on October 25, 2010 at 1:29pm

Thanks for letting us know. Also hope to see pictures of your "tweed" when you get a chance.

Permalink Reply by Elaine Wenger on November 7, 2011 at 3:10am

That sounds like a very interesting project. I'm thinking, what about all the leftover yarns we all may have. Those partial balls that you really can't make something else with, but can't bear to discard them. I'm sure we all have plenty of that!

Permalink Reply by KnitWhich? on October 25, 2010 at 12:26pm

I am looking forward to blending the bamboo and the angora I just got with something, but I'm not sure yet. The bamboo is already colored, while the angora is white. I'm not planning on blending them together, but each with something else. I will probably mix the bamboo rovings, though. I'm just waiting for the right inspiriation.

I sure would like a drum carder, though. Hand carding is soooo tedious!

Permalink Reply by Peggy Stuart on October 25, 2010 at 1:05pm

Looks like fun!

Permalink Reply by Nutty4Knitting on October 25, 2010 at 4:03pm

What a combination of colors!! Eager to see what you do with them. That roving in the middle, with the Gale's Art tag is absolutely yummy!! I reminds me of a pumpkin patch in autumn, on a gray day.
I hear you about the hand cards. I love having my drum carder for bi projects, but I do stilll use my hand cards when I want more control over what I'm doing.

Permalink Reply by cherylbwaters on October 25, 2010 at 4:11pm

Interesting, Nutty. I've not heard anyone else say they felt they have more control with hand cards.

Permalink Reply by Nutty4Knitting on October 25, 2010 at 4:30pm

It may just have to do with the fact that I've been using those longer than a drum carder, but I don't really think so. I've read some articles in Spin-Off of projects others have done and they used hand cards to do the blending for the same reason. Once my book comes, I may find in it the info I need to do it just a well with the drum carder.

Permalink Reply by Susan the Blue Lake Knitter on October 25, 2010 at 4:37pm

I had better luck blending with hand cards than a drum carder, too. You do have more control as to how the different fibers blend together. With a drum carder, sometimes it is impossible to prevent one of the fibers from pooling in one place and not distributing evenly. IMHO.