Spinning Mystery Fiber
This lovely pile of shiny goodness has been in my stash for about a year. I bought it from a fairly new Etsy seller who swore it is superwash Merino. If I was a wet-behind-the-ears newbie spinner I would probably have believed her but I've spun a bit too much fiber to accept that label for this stuff now! LOL! It is shiny and smooth with a luster that denies the possibility of it being wool - or at least 100% wool of any kind. It is much smoother than silk without any neps or matted bits of any kind. There is no kemp, no guard hair or anything that might help me in identifying it. I am leaning towards Bamboo fiber or something of the like and if it IS blended with wool then wool is the minority spaceholder! It does not readily cling to itself but at the same time was not difficult to spin so long as I kept a relaxed tension and a fairly high twist.
Of course after I had it spun up it occurred to me I could have put a bit of it in pure chlorine bleach to see what might be left, since chlorine eats wool quickly but I suppose it wouldn't help me to identify any remains except to say yea or nay to the possibility of it being synthetic fiber.
It's such an odd combination of emerald green and what I suspect was supposed to be black but as I spun it, drafting out the black yielded rather a purple-hued broad spectrum grey instead. What's more, when I washed the finished skein the green held fast and a great deal of unspent black dye washed out. Strange indeed! Now I wasn't expecting miracles since it came from a new dyer and when I contacted the seller she was completely baffled as to what the fiber was. I sent her photos, showing her item with some "real" superwash Merino fiber and the difference was clear. She said I should let her know if I ever figure out what it is(!). Pardon my amusement but I laughed about it all day! And no, I can't see myself going back to that shop any time soon....
I spun it very fine and chain plied (Navajo plied) in order to preserve the color changes, as per my usual. I call it Gothic Spring, a DK weight, 316 yds of 3-ply, approx 4.6 oz.
Of course after I had it spun up it occurred to me I could have put a bit of it in pure chlorine bleach to see what might be left, since chlorine eats wool quickly but I suppose it wouldn't help me to identify any remains except to say yea or nay to the possibility of it being synthetic fiber.
It's such an odd combination of emerald green and what I suspect was supposed to be black but as I spun it, drafting out the black yielded rather a purple-hued broad spectrum grey instead. What's more, when I washed the finished skein the green held fast and a great deal of unspent black dye washed out. Strange indeed! Now I wasn't expecting miracles since it came from a new dyer and when I contacted the seller she was completely baffled as to what the fiber was. I sent her photos, showing her item with some "real" superwash Merino fiber and the difference was clear. She said I should let her know if I ever figure out what it is(!). Pardon my amusement but I laughed about it all day! And no, I can't see myself going back to that shop any time soon....
I spun it very fine and chain plied (Navajo plied) in order to preserve the color changes, as per my usual. I call it Gothic Spring, a DK weight, 316 yds of 3-ply, approx 4.6 oz.
Posted by Gloria Patre at 8/8/2011 4:49 PM 
Categories: Yarn, Spinning, Fiber
Tags: handspun yarn mystery fiber
Categories: Yarn, Spinning, Fiber
Tags: handspun yarn mystery fiber
I'm not sure what it might be, but it is pretty, especially after you finished.
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Tencel maybe? Love the way it turned out.
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Well, it's very pretty, whatever it is. I agree with thecomment that it looks like Tencel. I can believe that the black washed out, especially if Jacquard Acid dyes were used. Jacquard black is a fickle dye at the best of time, never mind dyeing a non-wool fiber.
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