feels like fleece week around here, eh? at the very least an anticlimactic one ;)
(doesn't fleece week sound rad?)
Babydoll southdown, 8 oz washed by northstaralpacas.etsy.com
Even on etsy I troll for fleece :) I found this listing by North Star Alpacas-- I hadn't heard of babydoll southdown before but my handydandy copy of In Sheep's Clothing said it had little propensity to felt, and then read that it had more microscopic scales than any other wool-- making it good for blending with slippery fibers like angora.
Sounds like a perfect sock blend, eh? :) So again, off to etsy and I found...
Handplucked angora, black french from punkjordane.etsy.com
Handplucked angora, agouti french from punkjordane.etsy.com
Yes Virginia, it *is* as soft as it looks. PunkJordane/Fluffington Farms handplucks her angora rabbits, so the staple length is the same across all fibers and has no second cuts. These are two different types of rabbits but I can't tell the difference by feel-- it's just lots and lots of soft.
And long. Babydoll southdown is a SUPER short stapled wool, like 1.5", and the angora? Like six or seven (!!) Possible to blend with the drumcarder, and I've been making batts-- but the southdown has lanolin left in it (which I knew, the seller said in her listing) and it makes spinning the blend... weird. Very very fine and springy with lanolin tack, but too fine even for a 2-ply sock yarn. I've put that project aside for now... may scour the babydoll southdown again on my own and use it separately with something else. Not sure what to do with the batts I already made... The angora is SO nice, I think I'll take the rest and spin it on its own. Yarnspinner's Tales (a super excellent podcast) has a great epi on spinning angora that has me believing I can do it :) What I'll make with 100% angora is beyond me, but it will be a fun spin.
Happy weekend!
ps! Kristine from A Verb for Keeping Warm wants to know what you're doing for World Wide Knit in Public Day-- leave her a comment and you could win some baby camel/silk fiber (SO nice!) me?! i'll be at robogames 2008. :)
ps ii! for those who have a soft spot for 80s music, amazon has a free download of "if you leave (live)" by OMD today.
(doesn't fleece week sound rad?)
Babydoll southdown, 8 oz washed by northstaralpacas.etsy.com
Even on etsy I troll for fleece :) I found this listing by North Star Alpacas-- I hadn't heard of babydoll southdown before but my handydandy copy of In Sheep's Clothing said it had little propensity to felt, and then read that it had more microscopic scales than any other wool-- making it good for blending with slippery fibers like angora.
Sounds like a perfect sock blend, eh? :) So again, off to etsy and I found...
Handplucked angora, black french from punkjordane.etsy.com
Handplucked angora, agouti french from punkjordane.etsy.com
Yes Virginia, it *is* as soft as it looks. PunkJordane/Fluffington Farms handplucks her angora rabbits, so the staple length is the same across all fibers and has no second cuts. These are two different types of rabbits but I can't tell the difference by feel-- it's just lots and lots of soft.
And long. Babydoll southdown is a SUPER short stapled wool, like 1.5", and the angora? Like six or seven (!!) Possible to blend with the drumcarder, and I've been making batts-- but the southdown has lanolin left in it (which I knew, the seller said in her listing) and it makes spinning the blend... weird. Very very fine and springy with lanolin tack, but too fine even for a 2-ply sock yarn. I've put that project aside for now... may scour the babydoll southdown again on my own and use it separately with something else. Not sure what to do with the batts I already made... The angora is SO nice, I think I'll take the rest and spin it on its own. Yarnspinner's Tales (a super excellent podcast) has a great epi on spinning angora that has me believing I can do it :) What I'll make with 100% angora is beyond me, but it will be a fun spin.
Happy weekend!
ps! Kristine from A Verb for Keeping Warm wants to know what you're doing for World Wide Knit in Public Day-- leave her a comment and you could win some baby camel/silk fiber (SO nice!) me?! i'll be at robogames 2008. :)
ps ii! for those who have a soft spot for 80s music, amazon has a free download of "if you leave (live)" by OMD today.
7 comments:
What about blending some angora with cormo? I just got a cormo fleece from a sheep named Alice and think I might try a little blending experiment with the angora that's somewhere in the fiber stash.
angora's perfect for wrist warmers/fingerless gloves -- keeps your hands toasty, especially at the keyboard. And *that* angora looks amazing!! ... wanders off to etsy ...
That looks so soft, I found my hand reaching toward the monitor to touch it, so soft...
Thanks for the heads-up about the OMD download, I love that song!
The angora looks so soft and gorgeous. I wish I weren't ridiculously allergic to it...
Oh, so pretty! I'm off to get my wheel out now, thanks for the motivation!
I've seen baby doll sheep before and they are adorable! Like little Teddy Bears. Something you might want to consider blending the fleece with is mohair. I've got some nice hand spun of this mixture.
oh my gosh - that angora looks sooooooo soft!!
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