Saturday, February 26, 2011
It's coming along nicely!
Things are looking great for Pioneer Handspinning! I am excited to announce that I will be teaching spinning classes through the local Community Education department! This is a new offering for them, and the director and I both feel it will be a welcome and successful addition to the program. We will offer a spring season class, break for summer, and then start up again in the fall and winter. Already two people have expressed interest and we haven't done any marketing yet! I am smiling at the chance to share the art of handspinning with my community. Other good news is that I have lined up my first two suppliers - Schacht Spindle Co and Ashland Bay Trading Co. I look forward to working with these companies and others once again.
Tuesday, February 08, 2011
I'll do it!
Exciting news! I have decided to re-start my handspinning business!
Several years ago, I closed my shop because I simply could not handle the responsibility of a shop AND raise my two small children the way I wanted at the same time. They are older now, and a bit more independent, so there is more time for me again. I missed working with the fiber, and also meeting wonderful people in the process, so I decided it was time to begin once again. It is beginning to look like 2011 will be the year for many new beginnings for myself and my family.
Stay tuned for my new website at www.pioneerhandspinning.com!
Several years ago, I closed my shop because I simply could not handle the responsibility of a shop AND raise my two small children the way I wanted at the same time. They are older now, and a bit more independent, so there is more time for me again. I missed working with the fiber, and also meeting wonderful people in the process, so I decided it was time to begin once again. It is beginning to look like 2011 will be the year for many new beginnings for myself and my family.
Stay tuned for my new website at www.pioneerhandspinning.com!
Monday, February 07, 2011
Starting anew
HOLY COW!!! I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted looked at my blog! My how life flies. And I can't say I really had a lot of fun. But alas - it's time for a new beginning. Time to breathe some new life into my fiber pursuits. I hope you stay tuned for what lies ahead.
Monday, June 26, 2006
Scouring fleeces
I finally got busy and managed to get ONE fleece scoured before my son's heart surgery last month. It is a really fine Rambo/ColumbiaX. I did it in two halves (since it wasn't very big) in the laundry room sink - and I did a very Non-Scientific experiment while I was at it.
I washed one half of the fleece in Dawn Dish soap and the other half I used Kookaburra Wool Wash. It turns out that this fleece ended up being much dirtier than I expected, so I thought this might be a good comparison to share. As you read, keep in mind that I was very careful about not over-packing the sink. I used lots of water in relation to the amount of fleece.
The first half, washed with Dawn took 3 washings and at least 5-6 rinses before I considered it clean enough to send to the drying table. With all that washing/rinsing I thought for sure I would end up with nothing more than a pile of felt. It turns out I wasn't too far off - it is slightly felted, but not so bad that I won't be able to save it. Amazingly, it STILL has a lot of sand/dirt in it. The water never really ran clear...
The second half, washed with Kookaburra Wool Wash only took 2 washings and 3 rinses before reaching a similar state of cleanliness. I really noticed how much easier it was for the dirt and grease/lanolin to lift out of the fiber, and also for the cleaning solution to rinse out. The fiber did get a little felted, but again I'm not surprised after the abuse I had to put it through to get it clean.
Comparing the two, this pile of wool seems cleaner to me, and smells wonderful (they use tea tree in the formula which leaves the wool smelling fresh, clean and acts as a moth deterrent) even though it didn't require as many washings as the Dawn half.. . Although the Wool Wash has a hint of lanolin in it, I can't seem to feel it on the fiber. One run through the carding machine will tell me if it will be a problem or not. Kookaburra does make a Wool Scour formula without the lanolin which will be used on the next fleece.
I definitely plan on adding this product to the shop, and highly recommend that you at least TRY this on your next fleece. I'm glad I did, and I will be using it on all my fleeces.
I washed one half of the fleece in Dawn Dish soap and the other half I used Kookaburra Wool Wash. It turns out that this fleece ended up being much dirtier than I expected, so I thought this might be a good comparison to share. As you read, keep in mind that I was very careful about not over-packing the sink. I used lots of water in relation to the amount of fleece.
The first half, washed with Dawn took 3 washings and at least 5-6 rinses before I considered it clean enough to send to the drying table. With all that washing/rinsing I thought for sure I would end up with nothing more than a pile of felt. It turns out I wasn't too far off - it is slightly felted, but not so bad that I won't be able to save it. Amazingly, it STILL has a lot of sand/dirt in it. The water never really ran clear...
The second half, washed with Kookaburra Wool Wash only took 2 washings and 3 rinses before reaching a similar state of cleanliness. I really noticed how much easier it was for the dirt and grease/lanolin to lift out of the fiber, and also for the cleaning solution to rinse out. The fiber did get a little felted, but again I'm not surprised after the abuse I had to put it through to get it clean.
Comparing the two, this pile of wool seems cleaner to me, and smells wonderful (they use tea tree in the formula which leaves the wool smelling fresh, clean and acts as a moth deterrent) even though it didn't require as many washings as the Dawn half.. . Although the Wool Wash has a hint of lanolin in it, I can't seem to feel it on the fiber. One run through the carding machine will tell me if it will be a problem or not. Kookaburra does make a Wool Scour formula without the lanolin which will be used on the next fleece.
I definitely plan on adding this product to the shop, and highly recommend that you at least TRY this on your next fleece. I'm glad I did, and I will be using it on all my fleeces.
Sunday, March 19, 2006
Cayenne
Here is "Cayenne". It's hot, but in the right proportion adds just the right touch to spice up your spinning.
I love how this roving came out. It looks even better spun up. The colors blend beautifully into subtle shades of red/orange and yellow. Bright, but not at all overpowering.
As with most of my painted rovings, I spun this navaho 3-ply, and am thoroughly smitten with the results.
The blueface leicester, which I spun semi-worsted, has such a lovely hand to it, and it's so soft. I can't wait to make something out of this yarn! Hmmmmm, the question is, what does this yarn want to be??? (picture coming soon!)
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