Show Off Your Handspun Yarns

This weekend I dyed a batch of Leicester Longwool that I'd had a while... the fiber looks marvelous!

This afternoon I tried spinning this long stuff! And I mean it is long... the shortest lengths are at least 6" long... and some are evenlonger. It wants to be spun finely... it will not go thick at all. It was so hard to spin that I tried making a rolag and that was a little bit better, but still difficult... So I just finished carding the whole pile... well it's only 10 oz. and fits into a gallon zip lock baggie...Here is the first part of the spinning I did today... this will be a very slow process.

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by wendy on April 22, 2012 at 9:51pm

I found this the other day, and found it to be rather interesting. Maybe this will help you achieve exactly what you want. I still think what you spun and knitted to be gorgeous though. :o)

Permalink Reply by PickleSue on April 27, 2012 at 12:16pm

Haha! I just got email notification of this comment of yours, Wendy. Ning must be catching up. :) I enjoyed that link. Thanks for that!

Permalink Reply by Dawn Railsback on April 27, 2012 at 12:57pm

I just got the email for this, too. That is a really informative article and I've bookmarked it for future reference. Thanks!

Permalink Reply by wendy on April 27, 2012 at 11:46pm

It's been so long, I forgot what it was - lol!

Permalink Reply by Nutty4Knitting on April 27, 2012 at 5:24pm

Lovely Dawn!! The mitts and the shawl each have their own unique character and beauty! Great job!

Permalink Reply by robdob on April 13, 2012 at 7:29am

I guess I didn't see that thread, so I'll have to check it out. What I saw is beautiful. I'm still trying to decide what to make out of my yarn I posted a few weeks ago. I have about 154 yards. Probably it'll be enough for a hat or cowl.

Permalink Reply by Dawn Railsback on April 12, 2012 at 9:28am

How pretty! What a great idea to use dandelions!

Permalink Reply by Susan the Blue Lake Knitter on April 12, 2012 at 9:34am

Thanks... and I agree about the dandelions.

Permalink Reply by Beverly Roberts on April 13, 2012 at 8:02am

What part of the plant did you use to dye with dandelions, susan? leaves, roots or flowers?

Permalink Reply by Susan the Blue Lake Knitter on April 13, 2012 at 9:26am

I separated the leaves, roots and flowers, and did a batch of dye with each one. Each piece of roving is a bit different than the others. I'm spinning the 3rd batch right now...

Permalink Reply by wendy on April 15, 2012 at 6:18pm

Did you know you can freeze these dye sources? You can! You will get a different result depending on if you use them right away, heat them and then reheat them, freeze them etc. I have dandelions in my freezer right now, along with some queen anne's lace. My spinning guru told me this past summer that if I removed the red portion of the queen anne's lace, I'd get a completely different color. After looking at that miniscule dot, I decided I didn't have the patience for it.

Cream of tartar has several different affects on the wool while mordanting with alum - 1) it is supposed to help condition the wool, leaving it feeling softer 2) it can make the colors brighter 3) it is acidic. This is all according to lots of reading I did this past summer on ravelry. I've also heard that people are now just using alum, which if used in too great a quanity for the amount of wool you are pre-mordanting, can make the wool feel sticky.

Permalink Reply by Susan the Blue Lake Knitter on April 15, 2012 at 6:41pm

Yes, I knew I could freeze the dye sources, but I have always heard that you get better color from the fresh ones. I have also read that you can prepare your dye stuffs, cook them good, strain out the stuff, and keep the dye infusion (for lack of a better word) in a jar or freeze until you are ready to use it.

I also read that the Cream of Tartar is used with the Alum because it softens the stickiness that the Alum can leave if too much is put into the dye bath.

You should also note, that premodanting is not 100% necessary. Most people do premordant, but you can add it all into one pot at one time, so it does not have to be a two step process.