Yarn

Retail Therapy

stargrace August 29, 2019 0Comment

This week has been especially stressful for a number of reasons, so I treated myself to three skeins of fiber that should arrive in a few weeks. The first is the one pictured above, from ThreeRiverFarm and I’m very excited about it. I also ordered the following two:

As long as you’ve got a little money set aside, I don’t see any issue with retail therapy, in conjunction with working hard in life. I’m not talking about taking your last $10 and gambling it away, but setting some aside each money to play with on your hobbies to help you relax can be quite nice, and I think it’s important that not every hour of every day be filled with work.

I’m especially excited about the rolags because I’ve never spun with that sort of prep before and it should be an interesting learning experience. I am hoping to get some really neat striping yarns for socks from it but we’ll have to see how that works out in action.

Finished Spinning Llama

stargrace August 25, 2019 0Comment

I finished spinning my 4oz of 100% llama, and I have to say it is just so incredibly lovely. It was prepared amazingly and I had no issues drafting even though I’ve had it stashed away for a few years. I managed to get fingering/DK weight I think for most of it, there might be a few sections that are closer to worsted. I’m working on consistency and spinning fingering weight because that’s what I use most of. This process is one that will come with time and practice. Like any new skill that you’re learning. I’ve been spinning for just shy of three months and some of the people I admire most on instagram have been spinning for 20+ years. I’m hoping that by the time I’ve been spinning for a year I’ll be able to see a noticeable improvement in my yarn.

For now I’m pretty happy doing what I do. The yarn is still fantastic to use, it’s just a bit uneven in places and I need to keep practicing practicing practicing..

Spinning with 100% Llama

stargrace August 13, 2019 0Comment

I’ve been having a great time spinning the merino/nylon blend that I got on sale from knitpicks, but I wanted a break and I love trying to spin new fibers. I settled on a 100% llama braid that I got as a gift a few years back.

Woah.

The staple length is quite long, but the fiber is VERY slippery. I’m spinning it pretty thin, hoping for a fingering weight once it’s finished. I have 4oz total, so I split it into 2oz sections, and then split those sections just slightly to ease my spinning because this fiber sheds unlike any fiber I’ve ever used before. The first day I tried spinning it I felt like I owned a white long haired cat, I was completely covered from head to toe. Now I spin this stuff on the balcony, otherwise it gets EVERYWHERE. Somehow it even managed to get around my kids sippy cup.

Despite the annoying shed factor the fiber is luxurious and absolutely beautiful. I’m having no issues drafting or spinning it thin, I’m spinning from the fold, off the tip, which seems to be my preferred method of spinning. The end product is a very strong very soft yarn with a slight halo (less than mohair, but still a cloud that’s noticeable). I have NO idea what I’ll knit with this. Maybe more gloves?