Finally preparing Jazzman for spinning.
CVM x Merino x Columbia.
Bought this fleece at BSG in 2017 because it was still on the sale table near the end of the sale. I had seen it be judged and dismissed for being too fine for the class. Wait, what? Yes, the judge “scolded” the producer for not entering it in the right class and said that she wished she could place it higher, but couldn’t based on the class standard where it was entered. Encouraged them to enter the fine wool class next time.
The most I’d ever paid per pound and a very large fleece, but who could resist a fleece that Judith MacKenzie said was a perfect fleece? It even had a note on it to that effect put on the card by one of the volunteers at the show.
Currently carding some that I called “extra” after washing and sorting last summer. It is a medium to light gray color. It is so soft!
06-26-2024
Finished carding the pound of fleece that was separate from the main fleece, washed, in a box, and labeled “extra.” The 16.75 ounces (475 g) ended up being 14 ounces (397 g) after carding. That’s about 16% waste which I don’t think is too bad.
It still has some lanolin on it and it is spinning really nicely. The singles are relatively fine and I think this is going to have to be a 3-ply. I am going to love this spin even though it is going to take a long time because It will be a fine spin.
07-03-2024
Here is my technique for blending the color of a fleece when carding and spinning.
After I card the batts the first time I then repeat the carding process by taking a strip off of each batt in the pile and feeding it into the carder for the second round. I usually predraft the strip before feeding it in and I usually slowly work my way along the drum rather than feeding it all in to the same place on the carder drum. As I get a strip off the batt I pile it into a second container and go to the next batt until the carder is full. For the next batt I continue where I left off. When I get a strip off of each batt, I’ll pile the batts back in the original box in the original order and start again. If I need to do a third pass through the carder I will continue this technique, but usually two is sufficient for well prepared fiber. Whether or not the colors are well blended at that point will kind of depend on the colors. I have always been happy with the blending I get.
If I want the colors to be unblended, I card twice first to get nicely prepared fiber and then do only one pass on the carder putting the colors together.
For spinning from the batts I do the same thing. I pull a strip off of one batt to spin. When that is on the bobbin I pull a strip off the next batt, and so on. I find this gives me a nicely blended yarn without striking changes in color as I knit. Similarly to the carding, if I wanted color changes, then I could manage the color differently while spinning
08-01-2024
12.4 ounces plied in four skeins. Still have singles on the bobbins and a little bit of fiber left to top off the smallest bobbin.
08-05-2024
Finished plying with just a 4 grams (0.15 ounces) left in the center pull ball I had made after one of the bobbins ran out. Washed in water that was too hot to put my hands in to make sure I got out the remaining lanolin. Skeins are beautiful and soft! I think they will be light fingering to fingering weight and I’m contemplating colorwork, fingering weight pullovers for this yarn.
Handspun
