Tag Archives: handspun

FO Friday: Shiny Black 2-ply

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My Shiny Black Alpaca 2-ply is done and dry. It came out GORGEOUS!

I did get a little aggressive on some part of the plying and even after a bath, some sections are over plied/very energized. I can probably send it back through my wheel in the opposite direction and take some of the crazy out.

It did stay a sport skein. I got 12 wraps per inch (mostly). This 133 gram skein came out to 160 yards. Will make a lovely project. I am thinking of gifting this to a coworker who is retiring that is into fiber. She doesn’t retire until March so I have time to ponder.

Happy Spinning!!

Plying and Pale Ale

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The hubby was in charge of bedtime last night so I had some free and clear time. The singles from my sparkly alpaca FLEW onto my wheel this week. The fiber was very excellently carded and it felt easy to spin.

I poured myself a strawberry blonde ale from a local brewery and started plying. The two bobbins are fairly well matched and I only had a few yards to chain ply at the end of one bobbin.

The skein is resting on its bobbin and waiting for a bath this weekend. Pre washing the yarn looks to be around 11 or 12 wraps per inch. So light DK to sport weight probably? It might change a little after its swim and whack.

Happy Spinning!!

Shiny Alpaca Singles

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I ignored my adult responsibilities and sat at my wheel for most of yesterday. I had finished my Finn yarn and I pulled more fiber from Fiber Flurry to spin. This time it is black alpaca with Firestar mixed in.

This roving is carded very nicely is lovely to spin. It’s smooth and comes out fairly consistently. I have 4.7 ounces of this fiber. I think I will plan to weigh it and spin onto two bobbins for a 2-ply. A single day got me an almost full first bobbin!

Happy Spinning!!

A Fine Finn Skein

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The Finn singles are plied an folded into a neat tidy skein. I need to wash and whack this yet but I couldn’t help but show it off.

This skein weighs about 85 grams so I didn’t lose much fiber during the spinning process. There is still a TON of veg matter spun up into this skein. I’m hoping that some of that falls out during washing. Pre-washing I think I have about 80 to 82 yards of yarn so this is Aran weight.

I will lose some yardage during washing as the yarn plumps up. But that’s normal. It will be an interesting experiment to see how much I lose. I am happy with the tight ply and the overall yarn is pretty consistent. Not too shabby!!

Happy Spinning!!

Plying And Picking

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All three bobbins of my Finn fiber are complete and I moved on to the plying stage!

Even with the fiber having been carded and the singles gone through the wheel once, I am still getting a lot of veg matter out of the fiber. My pants and black shirt were a little messy after my spinning session.

I did end up with a nice plump bobbin of a finished 3-ply. I will let this rest on the bobbin for a day or two and then I will give it a wash and whack to finish the process. I am predicting a nice heavy worsted to bulky finished yarn.

Happy Spinning!!

Two Fine Bobbins

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The spinning has been slow and warm by the fire. I finished the second two ounces of Finn fiber. The bobbins look very similar and I hope this means the yardage is similar.

This fiber is really lovely to spin with. As long as it plies out nicely, I think I will be procuring more Finn from 14 Hands Ranch. Admittedly, I still have the third ball of two ounces to spin. Spinning has been my calm in the year end storm.

Short Days and Warm Fires

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We are past the winter solstice and the days can only get longer now. The holiday season brought some SUPER frigid temperatures and I pulled my wheel close to the fire. This is the Finn I started before Christmas.

I have the second ounce on the wheel and the first ounce resting on its bobbin. This fiber is carded very well and spins wonderfully. I started and stopped several times, but I got there eventually.

I’m still thinking I will put each ounce on its own bobbing and 3-ply the lot. I haven’t done 3-ply a ton so I’m intrigued on how it will turn out. I still have dreams of a stripped bulky handspun sweater in my handspun…..

Happy Spinning!!

FO Friday: Pink Merino Sparkly 2-ply

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My tiny 85 gram batt of shedding merino and sparkle is finally complete and done leaving a trail of fluff in my house! I have a finished Pink Merino Sparkle 2-ply to show for it!

I ended up with an 84 gram skein that made 88 yards. So I lost very little of the original batt despite the fluffy shedding. This skeins is a little inconsistant. Some parts were worsted at 9 wraps per inch and other sections were closer to 11 wraps per inch which is more DK weight.

Still, I’m happy with the skein. I don’t know what I will make with it as it sheds. But for now it will join the precious handspun stash. Now its time to make Christmas cookies!!! Bring on Christmas break 🙂

Happy Spinning!!

Spinning Finn

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I finished the incredibly sparkly and very messy Pink Merino Sparkle 2-ply. I’ll have FO pics to share tomorrow! So I decided to keep my wheel cozy and warm but starting the Finn roving I got at Fiber Flurry.

I have three little one ounce nests. I plan to spin each on its own bobbin and then make a 2-ply if the fibers spins thick or a 3-ply if they spin thin. This is my first time working with Finn so I am interested to see how it turns out with my technique level.

This color would fit nice with some of my first handspun in natural colors. I am still dreaming of a big thick cozy handspun sweater. But we shall see!! Christmas is almost here so I have many many things to do!

Happy Spinning!!

FO Friday: Cotton Candy Yarn

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Whelp, I have another finished skein! This is a VERY energetic 3-ply skein that my 4 year old has proclaimed BEAUTIFUL!

This calculated out to be an aran to bulky weight skein. I got 84 yards in a 78 gram skein. After plying and washing, the yarn is still twisting back on itself. Which means I overplied it. I can run this skein back through my wheel in the opposite direction to let some that relax. But for now, I’m done touching cotton candy and I need to spin something else.

This fiber is great and it was cool for a mystery grab bag, but it’s not my jam. So I feel grateful for the learning experience and I’m on to the next thing!

Happy Spinning!!