In which I commit to making yarn everyday. . . . → Read More: Yarn Everyday
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Spinning favorite flowers to celebrate Spring. . . . → Read More: Favorite Flowers In which I find myself, in print. . . . → Read More: The Meaning of Green The LocalSpun series is my attempt to share the process from fiber (on the animal) to finished yarn. Each is just a glimpse into a moment in the life of yarn and yarnmaker. Remember these shy little Jacob’s from Rammings Farm? Well, I bought one of their fleeces, brought it home and stretched it out on an old clean sheet in the middle of my living room (too cold outside!) I was pretty amazed at how clean this fleece felt. Unlike the Coopworth, it wasn’t greasy at all ! In fact, it didn’t seem to have any lanolin! Since it didn’t feel sticky, I decided to test out washing it in just water and salt – no soap! I split up the fleece into 3 different pots for washing. The pots were filled up with water and placed on the stove (I’d do this in my . . . → Read More: LocalSpun – Fleece Transformation Ask Tara is a weekly-ish feature in which I attempt to answer your questions about spinning, dyeing or making videos in a tiny apartment. If you have a question, ask it in the comments and I’ll answer it here with either a post or a video! When I posted my first video, on dyeing with Easter Egg dyes in the microwave, quite a few people asked: Can you dye on the stovetop? Short answer: Yes! Long answer: Here’s how: Warning #1: You might want to wear gloves. I never do with these non-toxic dyes, but I don’t mind blue fingernails. Warning #2: You probably don’t even want to use your hands! Get yourself a long poking stick (like a chopstick) and some tongs (so you can flip the fiber) Warning #3: Don’t agitate the fiber! Add the dye, submerge the fiber and walk away! Let it cool . . . → Read More: Stovetop Dyeing Oceanic Just a quick note to let you know that I’m joining a bunch of super-fabulous Fiber Artists to offer Free Shipping for the entire Spring! To find the participating shops, search “SpringFiber0409″ on Etsy. Choose all the fiber-y goodness (yarn, stitchmarkers, spinning fiber) that your fiber-y heart desires and when you check out, be sure to put “Happy Spring!“ in the Message to each seller. Once you’ve paid, the shipping will be refunded. Have a lovely fiber-y Friday! In which some spinners share their Spin-Life with us. . . . → Read More: Ask a Spinner – When do you Spin? Remember the cashmere from Rammings farm? Jennifer had his fiber blended with a little wool (also from her flock) and it turned out to be a lovely, tweedy gray with just hints of brown. This color was too rich to dye or card, so I left it natural and spun it with bright colors. Prairie Sunset is cashmere spun with Hobbledehoy’s Kombucha batt, a fun mix of merino, ecospun and sparkle. Silver Lining is cashmere spun with handdyed mill-ends (available in the Boutique tomorrow today!) I have a smidge of cashmere left…what do you think I should do with it? Should I spin it with another color or try dyeing or carding it? (want to read more about fiber? Check out Alpaca Girl’s Fiber Friday Carnival!) . . . → Read More: Local Cashmere A fun visit to a local farm. . . . → Read More: Local Fiber – Rammings Farm |
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