Pink Progress

The fair floss - cotton candy - pinker-than-pink fluff is half done. So far it doesn't feel too sweet. It's been lovely and smooth in my fingers, with enough subtle colour variation to keep me interested and a surprisingly "woolly" crimp for a combed merino-lyocell blend.

This little twisty curl, just tickled my fancy. It made me think of squirmy piglets. Not that I've ever really seen piglets in the flesh, but imagining them is fun.

Despite my enjoyment of the first 50 grams, I think I'll card the second half. I can't imagine a garment made entirely from this yarn, so I'm going for variety.

Pink for a Change

I've been spinning my way through the marine coloured tops. After the multi-marle version was finished I did 50 grams of each of the solid colours. There's half a kilo of spinning already. Then I made different colour combinations, mixing the blues together for one and the greens for another. So despite the fact that those colours haven't re-appeared on my blog for a while, they have been in my hands pretty much every day. I have one more combination to do to complete the set, but I've decided to use my drum-carder for that one. It's one of the fierce-looking pieces of equipment that hides out in the studio.

This morning I went to the basket to find a new project. I picked this out.

This definitely doesn't look fierce. It's as shiny and soft and sweet as they come. A merino-lyocell blend from Stranded in Oz. It's one of my previously unacknowledged purchases from the Bendigo Sheep and Wool Show. You know the ones that hide out in the bottom of your bag and don't get counted in the tally at the end of the day because they weren't on the list?

Yes it looks like fairy floss, especially when the tops are split up ready to spin. There is a risk that 100 grams will give me that terrible feeling of too much sweetness. I'm planning to spin it quite fine. I'll spin the first half and see how I go. 

Wool to the Rescue

Earlier this week I vented some of my frustration at the bamboo fibre I was attempting to spin. I'm proud to say, I persisted with it. That sample is done. I even did two versions in the hope of finding a better technique. But it was not to be. Whether I carded it or folded it, the bamboo fibre remained slippery, short and hard to handle. It was a little easier to manage when I folded it over my finger and controlled it with both hands, but I never got to love it.

For my next challenge I have a bamboo-wool blend. After my experience with the pure bamboo, I wasn't looking forward to it. I carefully read the requirements. There was no indication of how much bamboo has to be in the blend. OK, so it's legitimate to use a wool-rich blend. Great! Here it is: 70% wool and 30% bamboo. That's a fair enough blend. The bamboo is definitely there--it's the white stuff in the pic above. Carded on my fine hand carders and just about spun up already. I stopped before spinning this last bit so I could take a shot and post it. The mix behaves like an easy flowing carded wool. Occasionally theres a bit with more bamboo than average and it slips a little. I've had only one breakage. Oh, so much easier. As to the purpose of 30% bamboo in a wool-blend. I dunno! Novelty? White highlights?--I'd rather have silk! Because it's on the list and I have to do it to get to the finish line? That's honest at least.

Back to my wheel. If I can complete the spinning, ply and finish this skein this morning there will be four more on my list. And now I can look forward to the helping hand of wool in two of them.