Plying Finished!
Now that the Cowichan had been tamed I dove into plying like a mad woman! It just felt good to finally finish the russet & gold wool/silk batts. I had spent several weeks in the evenings spinning them into singles and although I liked it, I was getting to the "I've seen this fiber long enough" stage! LOL! I also have to admit that this was one of those cases where something that looks fabulous as a batt doesn't always retain that "look" in the finished yarn. I suppose what I loved about the batt was the marvelous contrast between the two colors and how they complimented each other. What happened in the spinning though, was that the fine silk fiber almost disappeared in the wool so there were no more gorgeous bold contrasts in the finished yarn. It turned more into a heathered russett with golden highlights. What's more, it came out overall lighter in hue than the original batts due to this blending. I had hoped to use it to knit myself a sweater but the finished yarn just didn't suit my original idea. It's a beautiful yarn - and fairly consistent weight throughout too, which I consider nothing short of an achievement! (especially after the last batch). So, after some consideration I decided to list it in my Etsy shop. After all, I don't have to keep everything I spin, just because I've spun it. I'm sure someone will love it more than I do and make it into something lovely.
In the end I made 4 skeins, each weighing between 110 - 128 gms, with 172 to 205 yards each. I chain plied so it's 3-ply and about a Sport weight. I was really, really happy with this! Quite a consistent weight over 2400 yards of singles! And with large lots I've decided to make a few smaller skeins rather than one or two huge ones. They dry faster, for one thing, plus it gives buyers options and is easier for them to wind into balls.
The other thing I found, is that, in spite of the seeming coarseness of these batts (and I still have a few pounds - yes pounds - in pinks and purples) it isn't the fiber that is rough, I think it's residue from the dye. As soon as I soak the finished skeins to set the twist, the yarn comes out surprisingly soft. I suspect the fiber was dyed but not properly rinsed or washed because it's a completely different animal in the finished yarn! This is rather encouraging, because it isn't the most pleasant stuff in the world to spin (remember I described it as 'dryer lint'?). It means that in spite of the unpleasant spinning it becomes some very lovely multi-functional yarn. That having been said, my gaze has turned elsewhere for the next spinning project... (more on that later) - after all those batts I just want to have a bit of fun spinning!
In the end I made 4 skeins, each weighing between 110 - 128 gms, with 172 to 205 yards each. I chain plied so it's 3-ply and about a Sport weight. I was really, really happy with this! Quite a consistent weight over 2400 yards of singles! And with large lots I've decided to make a few smaller skeins rather than one or two huge ones. They dry faster, for one thing, plus it gives buyers options and is easier for them to wind into balls.
The other thing I found, is that, in spite of the seeming coarseness of these batts (and I still have a few pounds - yes pounds - in pinks and purples) it isn't the fiber that is rough, I think it's residue from the dye. As soon as I soak the finished skeins to set the twist, the yarn comes out surprisingly soft. I suspect the fiber was dyed but not properly rinsed or washed because it's a completely different animal in the finished yarn! This is rather encouraging, because it isn't the most pleasant stuff in the world to spin (remember I described it as 'dryer lint'?). It means that in spite of the unpleasant spinning it becomes some very lovely multi-functional yarn. That having been said, my gaze has turned elsewhere for the next spinning project... (more on that later) - after all those batts I just want to have a bit of fun spinning!
Posted by Gloria Patre at 11/15/2009 6:04 PM 
Categories: Yarn, Spinning
Tags: silk yarn handspun wool
Categories: Yarn, Spinning
Tags: silk yarn handspun wool
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