Slow Living, Good Living

It has been far too long since I have posted.  I post the occasional photo and quick comment to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter (@farm2fingers) but far too long since I blogged.  I started off well, seeking to post semi regularly to help new spinners with information that I had learnt as a new spinner a few years prior.  

Don't think for one minute I have given up the fibery thing.  I still have my sheep, many, many bags of fleece in various states of process and I try to spin a little nearly every day.  But...  life got in the way.

I'm a busy person.  Full time employee in a job that has me potentially on call 24x7 but thankfully only 8-9 hours a day in the office.  However, that office is a two hour commute each way.  I get home at night wanting to spend a bit of time with family but also needing to do the normal home jobs that go with a family and cram in various other volunteer pursuits.  

I think this weekend I finally gained some clarity on why I have been craving time at home and more of a focus on hobby farming pursuits.  I have to date thought busy to be good, not realising that I wasn't taking the time to enjoy what I was doing.  Everything became a task to tick off the "To Do" list.  Over the years I would take on various tasks.  Be it an extra project at work, resulting in me having to spend a little more time in the office or some volunteer community endevour (or three) that would keep me running from one task to another.

Because busy is productive and satisfying right?  Wrong!

This weekend was a long weekend.  Great to spend it at home.  Time spent in the garden (which I have been cleaning up and putting in maintainable order for the last couple of years), planting new rhubarb plants, cleaning up around the house and shed, lunch down the paddock with hubby (he was mowing and we just stopped in the middle of the paddock and ate lunch on the ride on mower), and of course some time with my sheep doing some sheepie maintenance like trimming toenails, crutching and wigging.  I realised why farm life can be slow, or at least appear slow compared to the 'I want it now' culture we seem to have developed into.  What is wonderful is realising that this slow pace is achievement driven and deeply satisfying.

Tasks follow a natural pace and order.
You can't rush a sheep.  Things must be done calmly and gently.  There is no quick way to catch and tip a sheep.  Our Chihuahua tries to rush them and they just run everywhere.  She thinks she is helping, but no.  A proper sheep dog knows when to run and when to stop, wait and move again. 
I tried picking my potatoes too early and guess what?  Only a few teeny potatoes.  I left them a couple more months and voila, lots of good sized potatoes.

You need to plan ahead.
The paddock and yards are a distance from the house.  You must take the time to think and plan what you need, pop it all in a bucket and take it down the yards.  If you forget something, you trudge back up to the house then back down to the yards.  In addition to my clippers and iodine spray today I even remembered to take a rope for the little gate, a hook to hang the bucket on the fence, a coffee and a water bottle for myself.  
You turn the compost over, you add to it.  You improve the soil and prepare the garden for the next crop or planting.  

Things just take time.
One of the biggest causes of taking time is gates.  Yes gates. Opening and closing gates so the sheep don't get out takes time.  I find gates a humbling thing.  Each time you open and close one as you pass through you realise there are no shortcuts.  It unlatches and latches the same way each time.  

So this weekend, some may say I had an epiphany. I think I have known for some time that to really enjoy the things I love I need to spend time on them or with them. So somehow that means removing myself from the things outside my home that keep me busy.  That will be no easy task as I still need to pay the bills and some obligations need to be handed over to others over an extended period.  But with realisation comes the ability to commit to a longer term plan.  So my quest is to change my mindset from busy busy busy to slow living, good living.  This will be a journey and will take time.  Hopefully I will return to this blog a little more often to provide and update on the journey.

Is there a best way to wash raw wool?

I was inspired to write this after reading a comparison of detergent v Power Scour on Nearly There. A blog about fibre things.

https://nearlythere.com/2015/01/24/power-scour-v-dish-washing-detergent-for-washing-fleece/

It was the first result in my search about detergent for washing raw wool.

An interesting thought came to me that there is much advice out there and many experts but sometimes you just have to try stuff yourself.  I'm one of those.

I had some great success using the natural way with the fermented suint method.  However, I don't live in suburbia.  Although the family did limit me changing batches and rinsing stinky wool to times when the wind was blowing away from the house or they were out for the day.  I'm pretty sure the vat gets more smelly with age.

In terms of cleaning power it does work. Leaving the fleece out in the rain for a day or two before rinsing I felt resulted in less rinsing. You do still need to do a couple of hot rinses for best results.  And did I mention the smell!!!

Some people wash locks.  Some whole fleeces.  Your washing method does need to change, to a degree, with how much fleece you are washing and how much time you have.

Personally I find Power Scour expensive when I wash a fleece at a time.  But it is great for small sample batches (eg. A sink full).

Volume washing works best for me with a good detergent.  I use the mid range detergent from Aldi, but anything that is good on greasy dishes works for me.

Depending on the greasiness of the fleece it's seems impossible to get away from one - two washes and two rinses.

So the best way to wash wool is what works for you given your circumstances, facilities and quantity to be washed.

If you are still new to washing fleece, read lots and experiment.  You will soon find a method that works for you.

By the way my current preferred method is soaking in an old washing machine.  Drain and spin.  Remove the fleece to refill the machine and do it again.  Of course hot water is a necessity.

Happy washing.

Postscript......
If you are looking for more reading on washing methods, the following are useful links.

Since posting the above I came across a great little flyer outlining a variety of washing methods (including the smelly one) on the YarnMaker magazine web site.
http://www.yarnmaker.co.uk/fleece/FleeceWashweb.pdf

One of my original learning sites, http://joyofhandspinning.com/how-to-wash-your-fleece/
Washing machine method with pictures, http://gfwsheep.com/washingwool/woolwashing.html

And of course you can search YouTube for a plethora of videos on washing raw wool from locks to whole fleeces.

Happy washing until next time. :-)

Ten ways to improve your fiber photography

http://www.enneacollective.com/ten-way-to-improve-your-fiber-art-photography-now/

Written by Kristi Schueler, this is a great article providing guidance on how to photograph your fibre creations.  Many tips on lighting (natural lighting preferred) and composition that will help you take professional looking shots.

I particularly like the idea of using your fibre in different stages of processing to tell a story.

Looks like I better charge the camera and start practising.  :-)

Happy spinning

Tour de Fleece has ended for another year

Well I am totally disappointed with my achievement (or rather lack of) in this years TdF.

On race days my aim was to spin as much as possible of a BL cross fleece.  But even such a vague goal was set to disappoint.  I have had a very busy few weeks with work, website updates for my local church including photo shoots of the local area, trying to complete an online course (final assessment due this weekend :-o) and organising a teenage birthday party.  All I could manage was two small bobbins even though I spun a little just about every day and prepared fibre on rest days!

My challenge days weren’t too bad with about half of the cotton branch prepped and spun.

What do I think of spinning cotton?
Ugh!!  Cotton is so NOT my favourite fibre.  I know some spinners love spinning cotton but unfortunately I just do not understand them.  Despite the number of YouTube instructional videos I watched I found my fingers sore and my shoulders tense.

• I tried spinning slowly but extra peddles before I let it draw in.
• I tried spinning fast and found I had a death grip on the fibre.
• I ended up spinning 14:1 ratio with about a second per peddle (double peddle wheel).  At least I succeeded in spinning continuously with few fibre breaks.

I will finish the cotton I have but won’t be rushing out to buy more and don’t plan to grow it (I once dreamt of growing my own little patch of cotton).  Then to decide what to do with it.  Perhaps I will ply some of it with the BL cross that I have spun.  It might make an interesting yarn for a toddler beanie or two.  Cotton plus 25 micron BL fibre… sounds like a plan.

Where to from here?

• 2017 TdF – yes definitely and try not to enrol in an online course at the same time!
• Just like the cyclists and other spinners do, I will prepare for the race so I have a mini stash of fibre at the ready with the objective to complete the stash during the race.
• What about the BL fleece? – of course I need to finish spinning this fleece.  There are only another dozen or so fleeces in the shed to spin and I have a further 6 fleeces on their way back from the mill soon.  I will never admit to a fleece overload but storage is becoming a little challenging. 

Until next time,

Happy Spinning

 

 

2016 Tour de Fleece

So many things to do and places to be and so little time to do it all... :-(

I am currently trying to spin up a storm as part of the 2016 Tour de Fleece.  If you don't know what this is about, check out the SpinFoolish team (http://www.spinfoolish.com/tour-de-fleece/).  I think we are one of the biggest TdF teams with people from all over the world.

Basically the Tour de Fleece runs along the same lines as the Tour de France (the famous cycling race).  We have race days, challenge days and rest days (which are usually spent preparing fibre for the next day).  We don't' compete to spin more than the next person, it is rather about personal challenge and commitment.

This year the Tour de Fleece runs from 2 July to 24 July.  My goal is to spin as much as possible from one of my Border Leicester cross fleeces (left).  This is from Charlie and about 24 micron.

The fleece is unwashed, very clean and not a lot of grease. There is about 3-4 kilos.  In reality, I doubt I will get through it all but hey, that is part of the challenge.


On the challenge days I have started spinning cotton from the bolls.  I picked up a branch like the one on the right from a florist in the city.  They are using them in rustic flower arrangements.

I am lightly carding them into small punis which makes the small staple length easier to spin.

So pop back and visit soon and I will try to post some updates on how much I actually succeeded in spinning.

Happy Spinning :-)

Just add an Electricarder...

I wrote this recently for my friends at Electricarder and thought I would share with my readers also.  I hope you find it useful. :-)

Ashford Wild Carder with Electricarder Review

The Ashford Wild Carder is a little power horse for something more glamorous than standard carding.  Whilst only 4” wide, it has been designed with extra long teeth to allow your batts to be bulked up with various fibre, ribbons, feathers and other embellishments.  Because it has a medium carding cloth (72 point) you can still use it to card ‘straight’ fibre which is often a good starting point before creating blends.

As I produce my own fibre, I need to process it to a point before creating any blends or funky art yarns.  At this stage, my wild carder is my only carder so it has to be a work horse for all sorts.  Alpaca fleece will process quickly as it is smooth compared to wool.  Processing wool is a bit slower as the fibres grab together making work for the wild carder a little harder and works your arm cranking the handle.

To lighten my load, the people at Electricarder have built a motor fitted for the Wild Carder.  This is a real productivity boost.  Not only do you card a little faster but you can card more continuously.  

What do I mean by carding continuously?  

You are spreading, stretching, fluffing the fibre up as the carder steadily takes in what you have already placed on the input tray.  There is no need to stop, prepare, load then crank the handle.

Recently I spent a few hours in the shed preparing some Corriedale batts.  They weren’t too chunky/bumpy this time around and the Electricarder motor allowed me to work at about double the pace.

I started with 50grams each of red, blue, lime green and deep green Corriedale fibre.  It had been washed and carded but had been compacted after being in storage for a few years.  The dying and drying process fluffed it up a bit then the next step was to turn it into batts.

Unfortunately I had a camera malfunction so we only have the finished product photos as the work in progress photos were lost when the SD card became corrupted.  The pics below are just under slightly different lighting.  But I digress.

I first carded each colour individually then laid them out and matched up the add-ins.

Each 50 grams made three not too tightly packed batts.  Once I decided what I would add in I split the original batts into three and mixed them up.  This was done to even out the colour.  The red and blue were combined as I was looking for a purple but with the red and blue elements still visible.

Each thinned batt was then stretched width way and length way and spread out on my working table.

Then I loaded up the extras onto each thinned batt.  A little silk, a little more, a little Mohair, and a little more... you get the idea.  Spread these out evenly along the batt, then stack them back together to create one giant sandwich of fluff and colours.  This is then stretched out again and split length ways, then stretched length ways.  You are wanting to stretch it so you can nearly see through the fibre.  This gives you the best consistency.

At this point I turn on the Electricarder motor and begin to feed in the fibre sandwich.  Now depending on how much room you have in you work space (mine is tiny) you can split the batt even further.  But you can do this while the Electricarder keeps working.  There is no stopping and starting to prepare then crank the handle then prepare and crank the handle, you keep preparing and lining up the fibre.  Tidy it up and ensure it is being taken in evenly between the guides then stretch out some more fibre ready to go.  You can take the batts off and put them through again but I like to keep some of the character of the add ins.

I find about half speed on the Electicarder dial gives me good pace and good quality.  If you find the drive band starts slipping you may have overloaded it a little.  Thin out your input and see how that goes.  As mentioned earlier, different fibre will perform differently so have a play and adjust your technique to suit.

Happy Carding J

Blending Boards

Well it has been a while since my last post on fibre preparation tools.  Stuff happens in our lives and I just had to shelve my blogging for a while.  Hopefully I am back on track.

As I mentioned some time ago, I would do a post on blending boards.  Now, I don't own a blending board nor have even used a blending board.  So, I definitely don't speak with authority on them.  However, I have read a lot on them and regularly look them up on the internet.  I am always amazed by the talent of fibre people when working with some of these tools.

There are many companies who make blending boards.  Ashford, Louet, Majacraft, Clemes & Clemes are only a few brands on the market.  Then of course if you can source carding cloth you could make your own if you are skilled in those sort of things.

Essentially it is a board with carding cloth affixed.

Now that doesn't sound too spectacular but the results can be spectacular.  Check out the Ashford YouTube clip (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FenT3pshrU), Fibrehappy's clip with her homemade blending board (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbEKcZk_XZo) or Clemes & Clemes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlmqzEUNMxE).  Or just pop "blending boards" into your favourite search engine or in the YouTube search bar and you will get a heap of options to look at.  (I have watched most of them.)

You will notice that as with many spinning and fibre preparation tools, everyone has their own style and little techniques that work for them.  Please take this as a message that there is no single right way to prepare fibre.  Some ways are better than others but over time you adjust your methods to the results you are targeting.

You shouldn't go past looking at some of the clips about spinning from rolags as these are what you end up with on a blending board.

Why would you want to buy a blending board?

I can only comment on my reasons.  Feel free to add your own reasons in the comments.

• ability to create customised blends
• ability to blend various fibres
• ability to card and blend larger amounts than on hand cards.
• it looks like a little less work on your shoulders.

I hope this has helped you in a small way if you are interested in blending boards.  One is still on my wish list but it may be a while away as I have a lot of fibre to get washed and dyed.

Happy spinning. :-)

Wool Pickers

My swing picker (looks much like this one) is my other medieval torture tool.  Seriously just look at those tines!!

 

There are box pickers and swing pickers.  There are a few manufacturers and also DIY versions on the internet.

With DIY instructions in hand I originally asked a carpenter friend of mine if he would make one for me.  Even he looked wide eyed at all those long stainless steel nails (in the picture) and responded, “you have got to be kidding”.  Well no, I wasn’t kidding, and no, he wasn’t willing to risk injury in his backyard workshop making such a dangerous looking implement. 

So, off to the internet I went again to look for an affordable one.  Eventually I found a lovely lady who was needing to downsize her fibre hoard and fibre implements so a near new one found a new home from her garage to my wool shed.  And I then had a swing picker.

Why did I think I needed a swing picker?
Well firstly it is a bit hard to ‘try before you buy’ many of these tools as they are few and far between.  I hear that many guilds have a selection of tool to try and borrow but as I wasn’t a member of a guild I didn’t have that luxury.  Given I was now processing whole fleeces I thought a wool picker would come in handy.

Do’s and Don’ts of wool picking

• Do use with sufficient clearance between you and anything else.
• Sit back from your wool picker (you don’t want your jumper or t-shirt getting picked!)
• Do understand the ideal set up of your implement.  The spacing of the tines for the type of fleece you are picking is important.  Some implements should always be adjusted with the tines slightly apart, while some are built to interlock the tines slightly as they are offset.
• Do wash your wool before picking.  Alpaca doesn’t need to be washed first as it has no sticky lanolin.
• Do sweep it out VERY CAREFULLY and thoroughly after each use. 
• Don't use out in the open unless it is a breezeless day.  Your fluff will blow away.
• Don't push your fingers too far into the area where the tines are.  (Hopefully this one doesn't need more explaining!)
• Don't use near small children or inquisitive pets.
• Don't overload it.  More is not better and getting too much fibre jammed between the tines makes for a dangerous exercise to sort it out.

What to do with your picked fibre?

• You can spin from the cloud without further processing.
• Use this ‘fluff’ to card or even comb into roving.
• You can dye your fluff but be careful not to agitate it or it will turn into felt.
• You can use your picker to begin the blending process with different coloured fibres.

The benefits of a wool picker?

• It quickly gets rid of small amounts of VM.
• It fluffs up your fibre.
• It can help you begin to blend large amounts of fibre.

What have I learnt about my picker?

It is one of many tools in my arsenal of fibery things.  I really like to process alpaca fibre through the picker as it is the quickest and easiest way to get the VM out.  Feel free to pop your fibre through more than once. 

Useful links

http://www.petlyn.com.au/Fleece-Picker

https://spidersworkshop.wordpress.com/2012/03/23/building-a-wool-picker/

How to use a Fleece Swing Picker - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hg6mTIFHcgI&feature=youtu.be

 

Happy Spinning :-)

 

 

Wool combs

Valkyrie Wool Combs...

Wolverine without the side burns!!!!  Well not quite, but perhaps reminiscent of some sort of medieval torture tool.  These things can be dangerous so make sure your tetanus shots are up to date.

Learning to use these requires careful attention, primarily so as not to stab ones self and draw blood.  And mind you this is VERY easy to do.  But the end result is beautiful roving.

I find the main benefits of using wool combs is to strip out VM and second cuts.  Many people, as you will find if you start looking through YouTube clips, will use combs with a hackle.  I don't have a hackle yet but you can use them with or without a hackle.

I found this wonderful image and at the same time discovered another spinners blog, Barbro's Threads.  I hope you don't mind me using your pic, but in the process I have added you to one of my fav blogs.  So much history and wonderful information.  But I digress...

You can see in this picture, not only the sharp tines of the combs, but the fluffy results achieved.

Another spinner, and just overall handy girl extraordinaire is Rexi R.  My kids love her videos even though they are not yet fully addicted to spinning.   Whilst she is demoing Indigo Hound Combs they are much the same thing and Rexi R brings spinning instructional videos to life.  If you have even the slightest lop sided sense of humour you too will smile at her helpful, practical and amusing videos.  Yay Rexi R.

I watched many videos on using a comb and hackle but since I don’t have a hackle I was struggling to get my technique right if I didn’t attach one of my combs to a work bench.  Then I found this video by Susan McFarland.  Susan shows us how to use the combs safely without having to attach them to a bench.  This is a great video on using hand combs.

Combing is currently my favourite technique.  Well perhaps the technique is not the favourite but the result certainly is.

Yes it takes time, but the results are oh so soft.  You can create little fluffy bumps to spin from or to dye or blend.  And once you get your groove happening it is surprising how fast you can comb a well washed fleece.   I have heard it said that combing is faster than carding.  I suppose that comment is relative to the  size of your carder, but noting blend through a card nicer than well combed fleece. 

It is good to have a variety of fibre processing techniques.  Variety of movement helps ensure you don’t suffer from muscle or joint overuse.  More on the health and safety aspects of spinning in a later post.  You can do a bit of combing, do a bit of dying then blend it on your hand cards or carding machine for another effect altogether.  The possibilities are endless.

Back to combing.  There is probably not much more I can add if you watch the two videos that I have linked in.  These ladies have nailed the technique.

However, a word of advice.  You will find combing much easier if your fleece is well washed.  I have tried combing unwashed fleece and it just turns into a clumpy sticky mess.  My sheep all seem to have a reasonably high lanolin content which is where the stickiness comes from.  You can comb raw alpaca quite successfully as alpaca does not have lanolin.  The same would probably apply to other hair type fibres.  Also, don't overload your combs at least until you get the hang of it.

So that's all on wool combs.  Like everything there are many different brands.  but you may find that only a few brands are available in your country.

Hand Cards

Before I launch into today’s blog, I want to thanks all those wonderful people who put in the time to make YouTube videos.  I use them to learn more about spinning techniques, new knitting or crochet stitches, even how to trim the toenails on my sheep.  Whilst sometimes I wish for a less technology based world I would never find enough resources in my local libraries to supplement my search for woolly learning.  Thank you internet and thank you YouTube’rs.  ;-)

I also love promoting other spinners web sites.  One of the first ones of real value that I found (and all you others don’t think your site is no value, I may have just not found you at the time), is Tulasi Zimmer’s site “The Joy of Handspinning” (http://joyofhandspinning.com/).  Tulasi has a wonderful way of explaining things in the most simple terms and with just the right number of pictures to assist.  Her explanation on how to roll rolags was the only one that made sense to me and I finally got the hang of it.  (And Angora rabbits are definitely part of my retirement plan ;-)

Here is a link to her page on hand carding.  Check it out. 

There are many brands and types of hand cards on the market.  I just happen to have Ashford ones but nearly all the wheel manufacturers also make hand cards.  Essentially hand cards are a flat or curved paddle with carding cloth attached.  It is possible to make your own hand cards if you have skills in that area, although I have found it a little challenging to source carding cloth in Australia.

Teachers and experienced spinners may tell you that there are carders for various purposes.  The downside is that when you are starting out you may not be able to buy tools for all occasions and really when you are starting out there is no need to.  (Remember there are no spinning police here.)

You can card most anything on a basic set of hand cards but be flexible with the results if you are trying this with specialties.  Fibres like cotton card better on finer carding cloth, as does angora (rabbit), ox, possum, silk roving, milk silk and various other fine fibres.  That’s not to say it can’t be done, just the results are a little less smooth the further apart the tines on the cloth are.

I only have one set of hand cards and they do everything for me.

My assumptions about hand cards?

I overloaded them at first.  The more you put on the quicker you are going to be able to process this fleece right? WRONG!! You just end up with a matted mess and lots of neps if you load too much on the hand cards.  (Neps are those little balls of fibre.  Sort of like pills in a finished fabric.)

Load just enough to not clearly be able to see the tines.  Most people find it better to use washed wool.  Trying to process unwashed wool will leave your hand cards sticky with lanolin and over time they get grubby so that when you want to process something fine or expensive you need to overhaul your hand cards back to a presentable state (and that may not be easy).  I’m not saying it can’t be done but most spinners will advise against using hand cards for unwashed wool.  Or at least if that is what you want to do, have a second set just for the nice clean fibre.

I also thought that I would get smooth roving from my hand cards.  Well I haven’t yet.  If I start with roving and am blending it, then yes the results are nice, aligned and smooth.  Processing a washed fleece does not get the same results.  Although I haven’t yet tried cutting the tips of the wool off yet.  (yes this is suggested by some!)

Perhaps my results are a little less than what I expected as I didn’t really understand these tools when I first got them.  But I think we all learn best from trial and error.  My hand carding is slowly getting better as I observe more of what I am doing and learn to adjust my technique to observe different results.

But what do I use my hand cards for?

I initially thought I could use them in the house by my wheel in place of the Wild Carder.  Well the results there were yes and no.

Rule 1 of spinning in my house.... ALWAYS have an old sheet or table cloth under your work area.  Even mill washed roving deposits dust and debris under where you are working.  At least with some sort of covering over the floor you can take it outside and give it a shake between having to vacuum after every spinning session.

So I carded to make rolags.  I blended to make coloured rolags.  I used my hand cards to prepare small samples of fibre or colour blends.  I came to the conclusion that my hand cards are a tool with their own purpose.  They don’t replace my carding machine, my flicker brush or hand combs. 

Some spinners appear to do most their processing on hand cards.  But I am looking for variety in technique and from a health and safety view that is also good.  Hand cards are a different action to carding machines, combs and flickers.  And, variety of action is good for us.  

A handy tip... If you ever go to a show to buy fleece, pop your hand cards in your bag.  I find being able to card a few locks of a fleece will give you a better idea of how it will handle when you take it home to spin it.

So where to now?

With spinning being an ancient craft, developed in different ways, and with different fibres around the globe there is much information to be found and much to be learnt.  In this modern technical age we can and should learn much about our chosen craft.  I have included an extra link to the Ashford clip on hand carding, but time and a suitable internet data allowance will allow you to find many many more resources.

I know Wikipedia often gets a bad rap for being unreliable but their page on Carding is pretty informative for those of you who like a little history and technical info, to supplement the practical “how to” type info.  The post covers all sorts of carding and has some informative links at the bottom if you would like to read further.

So experiment and spin happy.

My Wild Carder

So moving along my spinning preparation journey and the need to gather many fibre toys, I thought I needed a Wild Carder.

The specs and sales pitch straight from the Ashford web site...

Make unique blends for art yarn
- adjustable packer brush
- extra long 72ppsi teeth
- adjustable drum clearance
- lacquered and assembled
- cleaning brush, clamps and awl included
- cards up to 40gm fibre

The Wild carder has been specifically designed for today’s fabulous, fun and funky art yarns. The extra long 72ppsi teeth allow you to include differing fibres, fabric, ribbons, feathers, paper and novelties to create unique blends. The packer brush is adjustable and will control fine, low-crimp fibres and increase the size of the batt. The drum clearance is also adjustable which allows you to set the teeth distance for total control of your fibre.
All nylon bearings ensure it is light and easy to turn. The card cloth has wire teeth with a special protective coating and a flexible rubber backing for long life.
The doffer and cleaning brush are stored on the carder. The carder is strong but lightweight with hand hold for easy carrying. The carder has rubber feet to prevent it slipping. It comes assembled and lacquered ready to use. http://www.ashford.co.nz/newsite/carders/75/carding/wild-carder/moredetail.html

Honestly, the Ashford Wild Carder is a great little tool.  To see what it can do just have a look at this YouTube clip by Ashford.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB32vVuh7xs

When I started spinning, whilst I was processing some raw Corriedale with my dog comb, I also was buying processed roving.  I wanted to dye and blend different fibres and play with all the different textures I could in my learning.  The only problem in doing this is that I was constantly spinning lots of different fibres lots of different ways so may have taken longer than I should have to perfect certain techniques.  But hey, this journey is meant to be a fun one and for someone that is sometimes bordering on obsessive tendencies the freedom I was learning was somewhat liberating.

So back to why I bought a Wild Carder.  I could so see myself blending all manner of fibres into colourful batts and spinning them into wonderful yarns.  And I did plenty of this.  The wild carder became my go to tool.  I bought lots of clean smooth roving and started mixing.  I bought silk; I cut up ribbons; I cut up bits of mill yarn with interesting textures; I blended and coloured.  Whilst I stuck to the script of what the Wild Carder was to be used for (see the specs above) I got great results.

Then I bought my sheep and started trying to process my fibre into roving with not so great results.  It took me a while to figure out that a carder, wild or otherwise, was not going to get small amounts of VM (vegetable matter) out of my washed fleece.  And those grubby tips that sometimes stay grubby after you have washed them stayed grubby even after I carded them.  <sad face>

So I needed other tools.  Or did I need to go back to basics and figure out how to process wool from the very beginning.  After playing with my flicker brush or comb then putting this through my carder I got a much better result.  This was highlighted even more when I partnered up with the people from ElectriCarder to test out their motor for the Wild Carder.  (www.electricarder.com)

I worked the little motor hard.  And then it dawned on me in very practical ways the difference between wool from a sheep and fibre from an alpaca.  (We might discuss different fibre types in the future.)  I could process half an alpaca fleece in very little time through the Wild Carder with an ElectriCarder motor fitted.  The batts were smooth and tons of VM fell out in the process.  In no time I had lots of bumps of alpaca fibre ready to spin.

Wool on the other hand was hard going.  I had the belt slipping, the grubby bits on the tips of the wool were still there, I could only process small amounts at a time before the drum stopped turning.  I returned to the Ashford videos for revision and thinned my fibre input to something resembling cobwebs.

Realisation slowly dawned on me that...

A CLEAN FLEECE + HAND COMBS = WELL PREPARED FIBRE

WELL PREPARED FIBRE + A WILD CARDER = VERY NICELY BLENDED BATTS

Now the hand combs can be replaced by the flicker brush or the comb, but in essence you need reasonably well prepared fibre to start your blending journey with your Wild Carder.  The old adage, "garbage in garbage out" is so true.  You will frequently hear that a well prepared fibre will spin better.  A poorly prepared fibre will take longer to spin as you pick out neps and bits of VM you didn't get out in the preparation process.

Now my batts look something like those in the Ashford video so I am pleased.

But, I continue to chase fibre tools that will make my life easier or just bring a different dimension to my fibre processing and ultimately my spinning.

Until next time, happy spinning.

Dog Combs and Flickers

DOG COMBS

Yep you read right, dog combs. 

When I first bought my wheel I had raw Corriedale fibre and was flicking the tips with a dog comb.  Lock by lock I combed the edges on my trusty piece of black vinyl.  I would comb a few then spin a few.  It was slow work but I knew no better and it was a reasonable result.  I could practise dying with spun wool or individual locks.  I must say, I was pleased with my first skein of lumpy, bumpy, colourful yarn.  I had nicely prepared fibre and spun up something that I could crochet from.  I actually think my spinning was better than my crocheting!!

I had no assumptions as I knew no better.  I was simply enjoying the process and learning the feel of the fibre and how a well combed lock responded verses a no so well combed lock.  I wasn’t inhibited with trying to spin woollen or worsted.  Some I combed the tip then base and spun from the base.  Some I combed the base then tip and spun from the tip.  There were no spinning police just my desire to get better.  Was this right or wrong?  I didn’t really care.  There are plenty of years in my spinning life ahead to settle on puritan ways if I so choose.

I think this was a good learning base as in some respects things got easier as I began to move onto other tools.

FLICK CARDER

A year or two after buying my wheel and still considering myself very much a beginner, I took a spinning class.  Most there, were still learning how to spin a continuous length of yarn.  I had already mastered that but knew there was still much to learn.  Unfortunately, I had Grumpy Teacher who told us there were three types of Alpacas (Huacaya, Suri and Alpaca!) and not so politely (well I felt at least) asked “so what do you expect to achieve out of coming to a beginner class?” :-P I was there to learn.  Whatever there was to learn!  As it turned out I improved my spinning.  I got a taste of a few different fibres, bought a Flick Carder and learnt how to use it.

Again I had no assumptions about the flick carder as I had spent the last while combing all my raw wool with a dog comb or spinning nice smooth roving that I had since discovered on that horrible (haha) site called eBay.

 The flick carder allowed me to prepare fibre much quicker and I think the end result was a little better, although that seemed to depend on the fibre.

 

One piece of advice.... have a sheet of black vinyl or a wooden board on your lap.  A flicker will do significant damage to your clothes over time.

One of my favourite sites I first stumbled across when looking for resources was ‘The Joy of Handspinning’.  Lots of great information on many aspects of spinning and the fibre arts.  Here is a link to one of their instructional videos on the flick carder.

http://joyofhandspinning.com/how-to-prepare-fiber-with-a-flicker-carder/

 WHICH ONE IS BEST?

They both serve a purpose and if you experiment you may settle on a favourite.  A few years down the track on my spinning journey I do find the comb is sometimes better for longer and coarser wool/fibres.  If I want to spin Suri from the lock then the comb is the preferred tool for me.  If I want to spin my Merino or Boarder Leicester in the grease then the flicker will get me through enough fibre in a day to keep me spinning at night for the week.

 If you have the opportunity to try both, do so.  Of course you can buy a dog comb at most any discount store or of course pet store.  A flick carder is a specialist spinning tool so you will have to go on eBay or to a spinning supply web site or store.

At some point I will post a supplier guide of all the places I know where you can buy spinning gear from.  Of course you all have the internet (otherwise you wouldn’t be reading this) and can search away.  But, sometimes they are a little tricky to find.  So anyway, I will post something one day to help you on your way.

Happy Spinning until next time.

 

My Spinning Tools

I thought a series on spinning tools would be useful to many.  I’ve been spinning for a few years and thought my dog comb was as handy as they got, then my hand cards were pretty funky, then a flicker  brush replaced my dog comb for spinning in the grease.  I quickly migrated to a wild carder as my go to tool (and later added a motor).  My current tool of choice is a set of Viking combs.  On reflection I think my tools have journeyed with me and changed as my experience has grown. 

It is often difficult to find useful information on the internet and searching for it can take a long time.  Whilst I certainly haven't used all the spinning tools on the market sharing my experiences with what I have used may help others.  Over time you will lean towards a favourite tool (like I am my Viking combs) but it is not my place to impose expert advice.  A good spinner will acknowledge they are forever learning.  I now see each tool as unique in itself, for a specific purpose and to achieve a different result even if the results are later combined.  Perhaps my way is different to something you have seen on the internet (YouTube is a great place to play and learn), but that doesn't mean I am right, or wrong.

Over coming weeks I will share with you how I have learnt to use my tools, some of the assumptions I made about them (often wrong) and how I see them fitting into the broad range of spinning tools that you will come across.  The focus will be on fibre preparation as the foundation for your end product.

So what is in my tool box?

 

• Viking combs
• Hand Carders
• Flick Carder
• Comb
• Wild Carder (now with Electricarder attached)
• Wool Picker

And I’m sure you wouldn’t be surprised to know that I have a wish list set of tools somewhere in my future (hopefully).  These might include:

• A blending board 
• A motorised triple drum carder

Of course you can always get your fibre professionally processed, but even so, you may wish to have some of these tools handy for further processing.  I have 6 fleece from my best sheep with a processor at the moment and cant wait until I get some nice clean smooth roving back.  In the mean time I will continue to hand wash and hand process my other fleece, into clean smooth roving. 

Happy Spinning until next time...

I finally finished the Tour!

Well it is far too long since I posted a blog and I really have no other excuse than not moving it up enough on my priority list.  I didn't quite finish what I aimed for in the 'Tour de Fleece' but I enjoyed the experience.  (Perhaps embarrassment at not finishing assisted the procrastination that stopped me posting!!)

I finished the ‘Tour de Fleece’ not quite achieving what I set out to but still feeling OK by the end.  I did spin mostly every day even if it was for only a few minutes.  I didn’t get through my 4oz of fibre by the end of the race period, but I did finish it eventually (with a little help from my wheel).

 

Now just what to do with it I’m not sure.  My family suggested I knit or crochet myself a new winter beanie since I seem to have lost my favourite one.  Now just to find that perfect pattern.....

It wont be as long between posts (she boldly says).  I have done some preparation and hope to craft a small series for you on Spinning Tools.  So until next time...

Happy Spinning :-)

Tour de Fleece

I’m sure most of you have heard of the Tour de France.  The cycling race in July each year through towns and mountains and across many countries ending in France.  Well for us fibre focused people there is a Tour de Fleece.  So I teamed up with a bunch of like-minded spinners via the Crazy Sheep Ladies (Spinfoolish) 

I’m sure there were many other groups to join for TdF fun but hey, my kids call me the Crazy Sheep Lady (when they aren’t calling me the Crazy Cat Lady!!) so you can see what I mean by like-minded!!. ;-)  Different groups have different rules, but just like the comment in my plying post, they are more like 'guidelines'.

As a TdF participant we are asked to,

• Challenge yourself.
• Spin.
• Have fun.

So we are now well underway for our Tour de Fleece.  Among other things, we are asked to challenge ourselves.  Some do a challenge on certain days, others like myself have decided on a challenge for the whole Tour.  I am trying to spindle spin 4oz of MissBabs Hand Dyed.  80% BFL & 20% Tussah silk.  I bought this in the USA while on holidays a couple of years ago. 

It is my first Turkish spindle.  Just a beginner one, not fancy, but I do love it and am really pleased with how fine I have been able to spin on it.  Everyone has a spindle preference (well those who spindle spin do I guess!) and mine is bottom whorl.  The Turkish is just that bit more convenient as you end up with a ball ready to ply.

So a bit more on the TdF.  According to my new friends at Spinfoolish, the Tour de Fleece was started on a blog by Star Athena in 2006 as a way of connecting with other spinners, and by the sounds of it, to incorporate her other passion of cycling.  (Check out Ready to get on your bike for the full story.) The relationship is definitely there.  Just type ‘spinning’ into your favourite search engine and you will get plenty of cycling hits.  You usually need to add ‘wool’ to focus your search on fibre things.

From 4 July to 26 July.  We spin, or try to, everyday except the two rest days just like in the actual tour.

So happy spinning peoples and if you hadn’t heard of the Tour de Fleece before then perhaps you can join us in 2016 for a fun ride ;-)

Now back to that spindle.

To Ply or not to Ply or even How Many to Ply?

So many choices...

Now depending on how you started your spinning journey, who and where you received your advice from, you may get the impression that the spinning police are waiting for you to do something your own way just so they can nab you.  They will make an example of you on what YOU SHOULD NEVER DO and you will forever feel bad about breaking the so called spinning rules.

Well being the closet rebel that I am ......

THERE ARE NO SPINNING POLICE AND YOU CAN BREAK WHATEVER RULE YOU WANT!!!

Now that's out there (yikes!!)

As Captain Barbossa (Pirates of the Caribbean) said about the pirates code, "is more what you'd call "guidelines" than actual rules".  The same applies to many things you are told with spinning.

Not all wool needs to be plied.
Not all singles need to be plied only with another single.

Now I am a creature of habit and usually ply two singles.  I just can't bring myself to knit with un plied yarn.  There is nothing wrong with that, its just not my thing.  But after about 5 years of spinning I finally plied three, yes three singles together.  And, they were different fibres.  Alpaca, Border Leicester and Suffolk X.  (A bit out there, <eye roll> but what the heck.)  I recently found out that most commercial yarn is more than two strands plied together so thought I would try it out.  The result was a fuller yarn.  So far I have Tunisian crocheted mittens and want to wash these a couple of times to see how the combination of fibre types go together before I choose my next creation from them.

When you ply your yarn it creates balance and makes your finished product stronger.  Your knitting is less likely to lean to one side and it often seems to even out any lumps and bumps in your singles.  But plying can be used to create something special and unique.  It may be a colour combination that when knitted ends up looking like a tweed.  You may spin fat singles then ply them with something thinner to create particular effects.  You may ply two wool singles and add a cotton metallic thread for shimmer.  The possibilities are endless.  

I have read multiple times Handspun and Intertwined, both by Lexi Boeger.  If you are wanting hints and tips to do something a bit different with your plying (and spinning generally) try to source these from your local library.  Of course if you find you must add them to your collection the usual online book sellers should have them.

The folks at Spinning Daily have produced a how to guide on Plying.  Check it out at http://www.spinningdaily.com/media/p/8590.aspx  And most of all, be daring and experiment.

So if you wonder why you are told to ply your yarn its because that's how it is usually done.  But remember, it is more what you would call a guideline rather than a rule.

Happy Spinning. :-)