Sooza's Knitting Stuff

As far as craft hobbies go I always seem to be on one kick or another. Probably mostly because while I might have time to extensively knit I wouldn't manage to do large crochet stuff on top of that AND spinning yarn at the same time. Days with 24 hours only and all that ;-) Lately I've been digging up some of my many spinning projects and I'm attempting to finish at least some of them. Here's what my spinning kick yielded so far.





This CVM fiber has been so much fun. In contrast to the usual industrial preparation this one came in form of roving processed by a small mill. Worked out beautifully if spun with a long draw making for a lofty, airy yarn and quite a good yardage.



Still a lot of fiber to go on this project. This is the first batch of 200 grams in total. The Shetland fiber in form of carded batts worked great on support spindles. Perfect fiber to learn long draw.



Practicing some wheel spinning too. I aimed for a lofty slightly heavier yarn and I got exactly that on my Kromski wheel. The fiber came in form of carded batts.



Not that I would really need another spindle but I could not resist Sheila's offer of a Special Edition spindle in English Boxwood combined with 2 oz. of delicious Merino/Cashmere fiber dyed by Into The Whirled. But since for getting one of those you had to enter a lottery I was also pretty sure that my name would not ever come up. Well, I was wrong. I got this beauty to enhance my spindle collection. And Bosworth Minis are just so adorable. You can't ever have too many of those.

Over the past years indie dyer "Wollmeise" has gained an incredible popularity allover the world. When I first ordered a few skeins of 100% Merino yarn with Claudia it was a small affair with the distinctive, cute flash based Wollmeise website. The page showed yarns in maybe 20 interestingly named, bright colorways that you could order via email. Some knitting enthusiasts spread the word and in short time Wollmeise was a well known protagonist in the young and hip knitting world across Germany.


 
I ordered a few skeins back in 2007 and thought they werequite nice. Great colors, maybe a bit difficult to knit with. Apart from that, the 100% Merino so called sock yarn was useless to me. I had walked holes into a pair of Wollmeise in under 3 months. The second Wollmeise skein stayed the only ones in my stash for a number of years.


 
While I was pretty much ignoring the Wollmeise hype the yarn became higher and higher in demand. The small scale Wollmeise business couldn't keep up with demand. And to makes things even worse with the advent of Ravelry - a social community for knitters worldwide - the Wollmeise yarn became an international hit. Somewhere along the way the Wollmeise online shop went online but the high demand couldn't be met with a steady stock. The weekly updates were introduced where the shop would be stocked once a week and thousands of people were trying to snatch up a precious skein of Wollmeise. It's been a crazy race and the shop couldn't handle all the orders. I rediscovered the magic of Wollmeise yarn when using my second skein for a Beret and matching scarf. When I tried to get my hands on some more Wollmeise I found that things had changed considerably. Ordering became a frustrating experience and people had started to vent their frustration openly. I think it all cumulated in some online auctions where Wollmeise yarn went for immense sums of money. I decided to just give it a rest and not bother with the stress. Up until this day Wollmeise yarn and the whole cult around it divides opinions. People are usually not on the fence about it but are shouting loudly at each other from opposite sides of the fence.


 
The thing is, you can try to resist all you want, Wollmeise is going to seduce you with its lucious colors ;-) There's just something about the yarn that makes even - or especially - the most basic patterns stand out. And the ladies in my knit circle brought so many pretty skeins of yarn and projects to our meetings. They finally had me when Claudia introduced her semi-solid range. So I jumped the wagon again and tried the shop updates again. Some Fridays have been disappointing in terms of yarn or color choices in the updates. But somehow things seemed to have calmed down a bit.


 
Nowadays it's not impossible to at least rescue a few skeins from your basket to the cashier. And then there's always the wild idea of the "We're different" grab bags. The bags contain colorways that didn't quite turn out as intended and you can only choose a yarn type, the color range or opt for a complete surprise. Last Friday I chose to order a small grab bag "Kunterbunt" which means there can be anything. I got a lovely multicolor skein of "We're Different Franz" and one not so hot skein of "We're Different Brombeere". But it might work out nicely as a pair of socks. That's the deal with the grab bags. You never know what you get. And sometimes I'm totally in the mood for a little surprise :-)


 
And what happens with all those pretty skeins? Well, knitting with Wollmeise is certainly different. The yarn is somehow different from other wool yarns. Very smooth. Not very elastic. Almost like cotton. Knitting with it can be a chore sometimes but the end result is ALWAYS worth the bother.


If you haven't had a chance to try Wollmeise yarn I would totally suggest you check the shop for the Friday afternoon grab bag update. Things are bit more relaxed there because not everyone is in the mood for a surprise. So snag yourself a Wollmeise grab bag and check out the 20'000 and then some Wollmeise projects on Ravelry for some serious inspiration. And if you're not interested that's just fine, too. One word of warning though, it's getting and addictive habit very quickly :-)

Spring is slowly making an appearance in our neck of the woods. Very slowly indeed. After a few days of sunny weather and 8°C we're back in the below zero region but thankfully no more snow on the ground. Still a bit of snow in the air and the occasional sleet shower though. Somehow winter doesn't want to let go this year.


 

 

 
Meanwhile I've discovered Russian Lace Spindles and I've been practicing support spinning for the past month or so. They are a curious thing, these support spindles. Traditionally they were used to spin very fine, short fibers like goat down for example. While in other regions spindles like these were used as hand spindles without a special support device in Russia's Orenburg region they were used with support bowls.


 
Spinning on a supported spindle requires mastery of the long draw technique. Which essentially means one hand twirls the spindle and the other hand lightly grips the fiber supply and gradually draws back from the spindle thus creating a thread. Long draw can also be used on a wheel or a suspended spindle. But this long draw and I we've never gotten along all that well in the past. Somehow it goes against the control freak in me. I've always ended up with lumpy, uneven singles that lost it's integrity halfway through the spinning process. Which was fine by me. I could always use short draw and end up with a lovely, even yarn. I've never had the patience to try long enough to maybe get better at it. But with support spindles there is no excuse. No way around learning long draw. So that's what I did. I sat back on the sofa, spinning bowl in my lap and started to practice long draw.


 
The thing with long draw is: You gotta let go. No gripping the fiber supply too tightly. No anxious concentration on making your yarn. I tend to cramp up and try too hard to force my will onto the fiber. This won't work for support spindling. Just let go and let the spindle and fiber do their thing. So far I still have to constantly remind myself to ease up and let go. But sitting reclined in your favourite lounge chair or comfy sofa helps a lot in this regard.


 
Support spinning is fun. It's kind of addictive and a lot more relaxing and slow going than any other spinning method I've tried so far. But a little tuft of fiber will probably get you the most spinning fun you've ever had. And today there are a few very talented wood workers who make such lovely tools, you will be hard pressed to choose because they are all so pretty.

 
Spindle Makers

Lisa Chan from The Gripping Yarn - Lisa's signature are spindles that are slightly more rounded and bit curvier than the classical Russian style spindle. I love her work. The Walnut spindle I got from her feels gorgeous and is an absolute delight to work with. She does mostly custom orders and will gladly try to accommodate individual wishes for a particular wood or weight. Lisa is super nice to work with.

The Spanish Peacock - Mike's spindles come closer to the look of those traditional Russian spindles. Clean, hard lines and a super polished surface as well as beautiful exotic woods are characteristic for his work. So far I've got two of his Russian spindles and they are wonderful spinners.

Ed Tabachek - Ed's spindles have been available longest from all spindle makers I know. I think his work has done the most for bringing support spinning back into the spinning community. His spindles are available in two sizes, the smaller for spinning and the larger ones for plying in the Russian/Orenburg way. As far as I know his spindles are available through certain dealers only. My Tabachek is a large plying spindle that I got from The Wheel Thing. It can be uses as any other support spindle though and is not restricted to plying.

Tom Forrester - Tom's spindles have been around for a while now. I haven't encountered his Russian spindles all that often though. Gemini Fibers lists Russian spindles as part of his spindle repertoire. They very much look like the traditional Russian spindles.

Grizzly Mountain Arts - I've come across this very talented maker of needle and fiber arts tools only recently via Ravelry and Etsy. His work is equisite and his spindles are very much sought after. If you see a spindle appear in his Etsy shop you can be sure it will gone in the blink of an eye. I placed a custom order for a Tibetan spindle with him and was not disappointed in the least. So I guess if you want to have one of Dave's spindles for your collection placing a custom order is the way to go.
 

 

My favourite videos on support spinning

• Spinning on an Orenburg Spindle by Vereteno


• Russian Spindle Techniques by Beth Smith from the Spinning Loft


• Spinning on a supported spindle by Amanda


• Lhamo spins


• Lhamo spins more


• Tibetan Handcraft

Annotation: Nannette's note in the comments reminded me of one spindle maker that I had forgotten in my little article. She is right of course. A Spinner's Lair can be found on Etsy and their speciality is using reclaimed woods and give them a second life as fiber arts tools. They make different kinds of support spindles, matching bowls and regular drop spindles, too.

Snow, snow and look! More snow. Still perfect weather for spinning, knitting and keeping warm next to the heater. Here's some yarn that got finished last week. I'm calling it 'Sunkissed' because someone on Ravelry commented it reminded her of well planted garden with all the flowers in bloom on a bright sunny day in summer with big fluffy clouds in a clear blue sky.
 

 

 

 

 

 

This little shawl is obviously the most knitted project from the newest Knitty issue. As of today Ravelry lists 379 projects and counting. When I first browsed this issue it was this pattern that instantly caught my eyes. And I was totally set to knit it in the original yarn - Malabrigo Lace Merino. Alas, I kinda got side-tracked by one of my older hand-spun yarns though. “Bewitch” is something about a lace to light fingering yarn which I spun back in April 2009. Somehow I thought stripes or color transitions would suit this little scarf/shawl well. As it turned out, pattern and yarn fit each other remarkably well.



And here's how the yarn came to be.






 
Details
 
Pattern: Citron by Hilary Smith Callis, Knitty.com Winter 2009
Yarn: hand-spun yarn, 100 grams/400-500 meters, Slushie's Special Blend from FatCatKnits in colorway "Bewitch"
Needles: 4.00 and 4.5 mm
Size: 120 cm wide

I finished the hand-spun socks last week pretty much in record time. The turned really nice and I've already worn them twice. The yarn got me a pair of mid-calf high socks (when worn they are 34 cm from floor to cast-off edge) that work especially well in boots. They tend to slouch down a bit with wear but I don't mind that. The soft merino yarn might not be ideal for hard wear and the heel and underside of the toes are already a bit fulled (felted would be too strong a word here) after two days of wear. But it looks like this might actually help with durability. I take this as an experiment and see how it turns out. The spinning and knitting process was tremendous fun and both socks getting finished at the same time was just great.



On the spinning front I got a wonderful delivery from Amazon.de today. After months and months of waiting it's finally here. Abby Franquemont's book "Respect the Spindle". The books deals with knowledge and techniques about hand spindles exclusively. It's fun reading and has lots of interesting information about this most ancient and simplest of fiber tools and shows contemporary spinners what great stuff can be achieved if you're open and willing to practice.

It’s been a while since I’ve tried knitting two socks at the same time on circular needles. All I remember is a whole lot of fiddling. I wanted to give this thing another try because ending up with two socks at the same time sure sounds like a cool thing. And besides there's lots of people out there who swear by this method so there's got to be something to it.

So far it’s fun and I’m speeding along. There’s been a bit of fiddling and trial and error involved when I tried to find the right circular needle/s for this job. I went through 3 or 4 different needles from really long wooden circulars to two short circs but in the end the 2.5 mm/80 cm Addi Turbo lace made it. The join is fabulous and makes sliding stitches around effortless.

I'm using a hand-spun 3-ply yarn that actually ended up in the right weight range for socks. It's neither too thin nor too thick. Which was a surprise. It's the first time I did a real 3-ply yarn (as opposed to chain-/Navajo-ply) and I am totally in LOVE with this yarn. Couldn't resist its charms hand had to cast on something right away.


 

 

 

 

 
Fiber: Blue Moon Fiberarts Sheep to Shoe Kit, color "Fire on the Mountain"
Yarn: hand-spun 3-ply, about 420 meters per 120 grams (4 oz)
Spindles: Bosworth Minis in Karelian Birch and Walnut

It's not as if I wouldn't own a sizable stash of yarn and fiber to choose from. How does one choose fiber for the next project anyway? Well, this nice and soft Merino/Nylon top in the tempting colorway 'Magnolia' was calling to be spun as soon I had opened the parcel it came in from Zauberwiese. I divided the combed top in two halves and spun up each half on one of my two latest Kevin Rhodes spindles. Since I had 130 grams of this fiber in total I didn't dare using my wheel for plying because I was afraid the bobbin might be too small for the whole finished yarn and I was really not keen on breaking this lovely yarn. Alas, what's all those lovely spindles for? I knew I could easily fit 130 grams of a fingering weight 2-ply yarn on one of the larger spindles in my collection. The Quad from Tom Forrester did its job beautifully and my appreciation for spindles as a powerful fiber tool even grew, if that's at all possible.

The finished yarn was very beautiful but I wasn't really sure about the color distribution and the barber-pole effect in lots of places. Yet somehow my mind kept coming up with possible projects for this hand-spun. One pattern came up again and again. I took it for a sign and just went with it. Ishbel is a cute little shawl pattern by Ysolda Teague that everyone and their aunt has already knitted if Ravelry is anything to go by. Currently it has 3553 projects and counting. But you know, what can I say, it's what the yarn wanted to become. The kitting was done in about a week and was a delightful and addicting process. I used my new KnitPro Spectra needles in the 4 mm size. The more I knitted with my own hand-spun yarn the more beautiful it became. What a heady feeling to know that you've made this item nearly from scratch. Can only be beaten by knowing the name of the sheep the wool came from ;-)

Here's the story of my Magnolia Ishbel in pictures:


 

 

 

 

 

 

It's been on my Spindlewood Mini spindle for a while now but today the second skein finally got finished. Sunset Fibers' combed top has been spun and plied on the fly to preserve the lovely color sequence. I intend to knit this yarn into a pair of socks to see how well hand-spun yarn holds up. Corriedale is supposed to be fairly well-suited for stuff where you'd want a bit more durability then finer Merino could provide. I'll try and see.



 



 

 
Neuzugänge in meinem Wollvorrat, die ebenfalls diese Woche eingetroffen sind - mehr Lacegarn und noch ein wenig Sockenwolle. Von beidem kann man eigentlich nicht genug haben. Die Knitpicks Garne habe ich bei Die Wolllust bestellt. Das Sockengarn kommt direkt von Claudia von der Dornröschenwolle.


 
Here are some new additions to my yarn stash that also got here this past week. It's some more lace yarn and a couple of sock yarn skeins. You can't ever have enough of either, in my opinion. The KnitPicks yarns were ordered at Die Wolllust and the sock is hand-dyed by Claudia at Dornröschenwolle.

Inspiriert vom Whisper Cardi, an dem ich gerade stricke MUSSTE ich am Wochenende doch noch schnell ein wenig für Nachschub an Lace-Garn sorgen. Nur so für den Fall, dass ich gleich noch einen zweiten Whisper stricken möchte. Er macht nämlich total viel Spaß. Und ein bißchen Auswahl an Farben braucht der Mensch ja auch, also habe ich gleich drei Farbtöne aus der herrlichen Malabrigo Palette bestellt. Vorgestern bei Jürgen Weidner und heute schon bei mir im Stash. So soll es sein :-) Neben dem Garn mussten auch noch zwei Rundstricknadeln in den eher obskuren Größen 3,25 mm und 3,75 mm mit.

I'm totally fascinated by the Whisper Cardi pattern that I'm currently knitting and I'm seriously thinking about knitting a couple of them depending on how the first one turns out. But since my stash is perilously low on lace yarn I HAD to take preemptive measures and order some lace yarn. And you need a few different colors to choose from. Totally justifiable, right?! ;-) I placed my order the day before today at Jürgen Weidner and today the parcel got here and the yarn went into my stash. Yay! Couldn't help adding a pair of circulars in the more obscure sizes 3.25 and 3.75 mm.

Nadelbinden ist eine Technik zur Herstellung von textilen Flächengebilden mit Hilfe eines Fadens und einer Nadel. Beim Nadelbinden wird der Faden spiralförmigen in Schlingenketten gelegt. Diese werden, wie beim Nähen, durch einen systematisch geführten Verbindungsstich miteinander verbunden, wobei jeweils der gesamte Fadenvorrat durch Schlingen gezogen wird. Das Gewirk wird mit einer systematischen Fadenführung weiter aufgebaut und bildet je nach Fadenstärke und Stichvarianten ein unterschiedlich dichtes Gewirk.

Nålebinding (Danish: literally "binding with a needle" or "needle-binding", also naalbinding, nålbinding or naalebinding) is a fabric creation technique predating both knitting and crochet. Also known in English as "knotless netting," "knotless knitting," [1] or "single needle knitting," the technique is distinct from crochet in that it involves passing the full length of the working thread through each loop, unlike crochet where the work is formed only of loops, never involving the free end. It also differs from knitting in that lengths must be pieced together during the process of nålebinding, rather than a continuous strand of yarn that can easily be pulled out.

Als alte Handarbeitstante mit einem Faible für Textilgeschichte bin ich schon häufig mal über das Nadelbinden als textile Technik gestoßen. Das Nadelbinden ist durch archäologische Funde bis in die Jungsteinzeit zurückzudatieren und war nicht nur in unserem Raum verbreitet sondern lässt sich auch im vorderen Orient und in Südamerika nachweisen. Heute sind es wohl vor allem die Enthusiasten aus der mittelalterdarstellenden Szene, die das Nadelbinden als historisch korrekte Art und Weise der Bekleidungsherstellung wiederentdeckt haben, die die Technik pflegen und weiterbringen. Interessant und lernenswert ist es also wirklich, allerdings muss man dazu aus den Anleitungen im Internet erst mal schlau werden.

As an avid fiber enthusiast with a strong interest in textile history I had already encountered naalbinding (or needle-binding) on the internet. It's an age old technique of forming fabric with one needle only and short lengths of thread. It predates both knitting and crochet and archeological funds date back to neolithic age. It was common in Europe as well as in the Orient and South America. Today it's practiced mainly by people engaged in medieval reenactment because it's an authentic technique to create garments other than woven ones. It's all very fascinating really but hard to actually translate written instructions from the internet into thread and a real project.


 
Beim Spinntreffen brachte jemand die Idee auf, doch mal den Bernhard Dankbar - seines Zeichens Nadelbinde-Guru, stets und gerne im Auftrag dieser uralten Technik unterwegs - zu fragen, ob er nicht mal einen Workshop bei uns machen könnte. Und tatsächlich fanden sich genügend Interessenten und ein gemeinsamer Termin. Anita war fleißig am Organisieren und stellte am vergangenen Samstag sogar ihren schönen Garten zur Verfügung. Jede von uns brachte etwas fürs Buffet mit, so dass auch fürs leibliche Wohl bestens gesorgt war. Anitas Gatte sorgte für eine ununterbrochene Kaffeeversorgung, wofür wir ihm alle sehr verbunden waren.

In our monthly spinning group someone brought up the idea of having a naalbinding workshop with Berhard Dankbar who's something of a Guru in the naalbinding field and who's always on the path of spreading the knowledge about the interesting ancient technique. Anita as the fearless leader of our spinster group took the organization in her capable hands and a common date was found and on top of that she provided the location for our workshop - her wonderful garden. All of us 8 gals contributed to the buffet and Anita's husband made sure we were never out of coffee. Which was truly appreciated.


 
Nach einem kleinen historischen Abriss und einer Einführung in die Arbeitmittel gings sofort los mit dem Schlaufenbilden. Einige kannten die Grundtechnik schon und waren entsprechend flott dabei, von anderer Seite kamen ordentlich Flüche und Kraftausdrücke, bis man das Fadengewurstel und die Verschlingungen dann erst mal halbwegs im Griff hatte. Es war auf jeden Fall unterhaltsam und nach einer Weile hatte es jede von uns 8 Teilnehmerinnen kapiert.

After a short historical introduction and some info about the necessary tools we dove into whole loop making. Some of us were already familiar with the basics so things worked pretty fast for them. The rest of us was not only busy with struggling with one needle and a piece of yarn but also with cursing and bitching. But after a time we all seemed to get the hang of it and were getting the better of this darned needle and thread. It sure was a fun experience with much laughter and joy.

Bernhard ist ein ganz reizender Mensch, der jede Menge zu erzählen weiß und das Nadelbinden auf unterhaltsame Weise näherbringen kann.

Bernhard is really such a nice guy and he's got loads of interesting stories to tell. He made learning about naalbinding so much fun.


 
Bernhard drang darauf, dass jeder schon ein kleines fertiges Stück nadelt und nicht einfach ein Probeläppchen. So ist man motiviert und am Ende kommt was Vorzeigbares heraus, das man vielleicht auch noch nutzbringend einsetzen kann. Und so nadelten wir alle fleißig an kleinen Täschchen und Beutelchen und kämpften mit den Tücken der Verschlingungen. Es war anfangs gar nicht so einfach, die Schlingen auseinanderzuhalten und den Weg der Nadel immer richtig nachzuvollziehen. Man kann das Gewirk bei Fehlern auch nicht einfach wieder aufribbeln, sondern muss die Knoten auflösen oder bei mehr Mut einfach was abschneiden. Ein Vorteil von nadelgebundenen Sachen ist nämlich, dass es sich nicht auftrennt, falls mal ein Loch reinkommt.

On Bernhard's instance we did not start with some boring old swatch but chose real projects so we'd be motivated to continue and actually finish something. And in the end you've actually end up with something to show, which is really cool. Soon we were all happily needling away on our little pouch projects. In the beginning it wasn't easy to keep the loops apart from each other and to thread the needle through the loops correctly. You can't just rip back when you've made a mistake but have to undo the single loops/knots one after the other or for braver natures take scissors and cut the mistake away. It's characteristic for naalbinding fabric that you won't get running stitches even if you accidentally rip it.


 
Klassischerweise wurden wohl hauptsächlich Fuß-, Hand- und Kopfbedeckungen genadelt, um diese gegen die Elemente zu schützen. Das aus Wolle genadelte Gewirk wurde wohl im Nachgang oft gefilzt und wurde so wind- und wasserdicht gemacht. Meine beiden unten zu sehenden Erstlingswerke werde ich wohl auch einer kräftigen Wäsche unterziehen, so dass sie verfilzen und ein gleichmäßigeres und nicht-löchriges Erscheinungsbild bekommen.

Historically needle-binding was probably mainly used for head, hand and foot coverages against the elements. Wool fabric was probably felted after needling to create a wind- and rainproof structure. Below you can see two little pouches as my first naalbinding projects. I'll probably felt them to get a smoother fabric that's got less holes.



Der Workshop hat wirklich Spaß gemacht und es war ein wirklich rundum gelungener Tag. Einen lieben Dank an dieser Stelle an Anita fürs Organisieren und an Bernhard für die Einführung in eine so interessante Technik.

The workshop was a great experience and the whole day was so much fun. Many thanks to Anita for doing the organisation part and to Bernhard for introducing such an intriguing technique.

 
Fiber | Faser: Falkland combed top, hand-dyed from FatCatKnits; 4 skeins à 1 oz (150 m/50 g)
Color | Farbe: in ZigZag colorway, violet, pink, magenta, orange, rust
Tools | Werkzeuge: Spun on Bosworth Midi drop spindle, plied on wheel
Prep | Vorbereitung: some predrafting, wound into Andean bracelet and plied from both ends | etwas ausgezogen vorm Spinnen, von beiden Enden gezwirnt mittels "Andean bracelet"
Comment | Kommentar:
FatCatKnits colorways are fun and the Falkland combed top was easy and fun to spin. The resulting yarn is a crazy color mix but somehow the orange and rust seems to find a cool match in the salmon, magenta and violet tones.
Die Färbungen von FatCatKnits sind immer sehr witzig und lebenig. ZigZag als Falkland Kammzug war einfach und angenehm zu spinnen und die so unterschiedlichen Farben ergeben ein witziges Garn. Ich hätte ja nicht geglaubt, dass orange und rostbraun irgendwie gut zu pink und lila passen. Aber es ergibt ein harmonisches Ganzes, wenn auch der etwas schrägen Art.
 

 
Fiber | Faser: Strawberry Field , carded batts from Fiber Monster; Merino wool, a bit of sparkle; 2 skeins à 1.5 oz (120m/75g)
Color | Farbe: red, salmon, fuchsia, white | rot, magenta, lachs, weiß
Tools | Werkzeuge: Spun on Greensleeves drop spindle, plied on wheel | Gesponnen auf Greensleeves Spindel, gezwirnt am Rad
Prep | Vorbereitung: some predrafting, wound into Andean bracelet and plied from both ends | etwas ausgezogen vorm Spinnen, von beiden Enden gezwirnt mittels "Andean bracelet"
Comment | Kommentar:
Again, Fibermonster's batts were a pure delight to spin. The soft merino has just the faintest hint of sparkle in it to give the resulting yarn a bit of a twist. I chose a heavier spindle to get somewhat thicker singles to result in a worsted weight yarn. And it actually worked. There is something to say for having a lot of spindles to choose from.
Wie immer war die Wolle von Fibermonster einfach ein Traum zum Spinnen. Die weiche Merinowolle hat gerade genug Glitzer drin um dem ganzen einen interessanten Kick zu geben. Dieses mal habe ich extra eine etwas schwerere Spindel gewählt, um einen dickeren Einzelfaden zu spinnen. Hat auch tatsächlich funktioniert.

 
Fiber | Faser: Pink Lady, carded batts from Fiber Monster; Colonial Wool, Tencel, a bit of Sparkle; 2 skeins à 1.5 oz (320m/80g)
Color | Farbe: green, purple, pink | grün, lila, rosa
Tools | Werkzeuge: Spun on Forrester Linum Light drop spindle, plied on wheel | Gesponnen auf Forrester Linum Light Spindel, gezwirnt am Rad
Prep | Vorbereitung: some predrafting, wound into Andean bracelet and plied from both ends | etwas ausgezogen vorm Spinnen, von beiden Enden gezwirnt mittels "Andean bracelet"
Comment | Kommentar:
I just love Fibermonster's work. These batts have been heaven to spin and the resulting soft violet color with some added glitz and shine is incredible. Who would have thought that these vibrant and clashing colors would spin into something so subtle. This one calls out to me to become a little lace scarf/shawl or something equally dainty.
Ich bewundere Fibermonsters Arbeit und kann gar nicht genug von Ihren kardierten Wollkreationen bekommen. Dieses Batts waren einfach traumhaft zu spinnen und die resultierende Farbe ist sehr, sehr schön. Aus den knalligen Ausgangsfarben wurde ein weiches Flieder, das durch etwas Glitzer und Schein eine irre Tiefe bekommt. Dieses Garn schreit einfach danach, ein hübscher kleiner Lace Shawl zu werden.