Recently I sold a gradient rainbow yarn to a lovely woman through Etsy. This is spun form a merino roving that I dyed up. It was incredibly fun to spin and ply. |
It is really amazing when people send pictures of their finished knits. She used a matching yarn for the complementary mittens. So sweet!
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A few weeks ago I approached fiber artist Vanessa Yvonne of Nessaland about doing a fiber swap. I have always admired the look of her batts and finished yarns. From her posts on Facebook it seemed like we had a lot in common. If we lived closer, we would probably be very good friends. We decided to swap a 4 oz. batt and 2 oz. of assorted locks and other add ins for spinning. We had 3 weeks to complete the swap. This is what I sent: The batt is mostly smooth merino, BFL and silk with added locks, tied up with strips of silk fabric. The add-ins are clouds of picked kid mohair/silk, combed cotton, super curly grey BLF, Dyed blue/purple gotland fleece, hot pink mini sparkly batt, merino top, two crochet iris flowers and silk thread. This is what I got: The batt is merino, silk and alpaca. The add-ins are merino locks, silk hankies, kid mohair, silk ribbons, fabric and a very thin yarn. Drum roll please... This is what I spun: Batt was spun at an even aran weight and the the locks and other stuff are core spun over that yarn. The yarn came out really squishy, puffy and super soft. This is the yarn that Vanessa spun" Here the yarn is core spun with all the locks and goodies spun in tandem with the batt. The the yarn is coil plied. Jellyfish are fascinating creatures.
I love how they glow. Photograph by Jack Pierson The water is a smoothly carded merino, silk and kid mohair locks in a gradient from turquoise through black The jellyfish part is a chunky batt of merino, cormo, sparkle, kid mohair locks, hemp, and faux cashmere I got this postcard during my time in Amsterdam at the Van Gogh Museum.
To show the texture of the bouquet of flowers, I core spun picked locks over the base yarn. The base is a smoothly spun mustard, brown and green to accentuate the background and foreground. Last year I got a beautiful Mohair fleece at the Rhinebeck Wool and Sheep Festival. When I saw this fleece, I marveled at how thick and formed each lock was. When I pulled the locks apart, the bubbly crimp was like kid mohair. It was silkier than traditional mohair, which usually leaves me itching. I realized that I have been purchasing fleeces without processing them and as a result I have a stockpile of spongy, soft, amazing locks sitting on the shelf of my studio. Like so many fiber addicts before me, I made a vow not to purchase any more wool until I dyed and spun some of my bounty. So it begins. I started with an amazing teeswater from the famous Natalie Redding at Namaste Farm. What a joy to spin up the big thick and lofty locks. The dye soaks up easily and there is no vegetable matter, which makes for a soft yarn. Spinning from the lock kept all the texture in the little curls. I love it. I wanted a similar feeling from a yarn spun with an airy mohair fleece. Excitedly, I dyed one pot neon pink and green, another in minty greens and the last, purples and pinks. To prep the fiber, my picker would prove to be the best tool for the job. I liked the way the wool looks when I pull the locks apart. The picker mimics what I do with my fingers, only faster. I can add other fibers such as angora, merino, threads and sparkle to add interest. I opened up the fibers and blended all the different parts while not combing out all the cute curly “Q’s”. I posted my first video (shot by my mom Gail Hadani) demonstrating how I pick and corespin this yarn. Check it out!
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