On the Wheel

How Thin Can You Spin?

By Stephanie

Do you remember this?

This is the bombyx silk I was going to spun for the second half of the Tour de Fleece, but…  life intervened and I didn’t manage to get that far.  So, running just a wee bit late, I’ve finally got it on my wheel now, and it is a dream to spin.

Not that silk is always a dream to spin…  Bombyx silk generally has a very long staple length, and that can make drafting a challenge.  The distance that you’re used to holding your hands for drafting wool simply isn’t far enough apart when you’re spinning silk, and it can easily become a struggle as you start tugging at both ends of the same fibers.

A few months ago, I spun pure bombyx silk for the first time in many years and, even though I’ve spun a lot of silk in the past, I realised that my hands had forgotten what to do.  It seemed to take forever to retrain my hands (…or more likely, my brain) and until that moment when it finally clicked, I was pulling and tugging on that silk as if I’d never spun in my life.  As a result, the yarn came out much thicker than I’d wanted and lumpier too.  There’s no doubting it’s beautiful to look at, and the colours ethereal, but because I spun so much thicker than I intended, I just didn’t get the yardage I was hoping for.  It’s come out to a measly 143 yards and I’m really not sure what I could make with it.

So now, as I begin spinning this second braid of silk, I am really focusing on spinning as thinly as I possibly can.  And, it turns out, I can spin pretty darned thin!  Now that my hands (and brain) are back in the groove with spinning silk, this is how it’s coming out…

That is, as long as I don’t get too involved in a scary movie on telly and forget to spin super thin (see the occasional thick bits in the photo below?  Yeah… that was when the film hit a tense spot…).  But overall, this is coming out exactly the way I want it.  And now that I’ve got the hang of it, it is just sooo much fun to spin.

And this time, I hope to come out at the end with a really good length of some truly beautiful, smooth, pure silk yarn.

Hard at Work on the Tour de Fleece

By Stephanie

The Tour de Fleece has been rolling along  for nearly a week and I am having a blast.  It is wonderful to have a real, legitimate excuse to tell everyone that no, I can’t do this or that, I have to spin.  And believe me, I’ve been using that excuse just as far as credibility can be stretched!

Have you been doing that too?  Pushing your other responsibilities (…and loved ones) aside to spend quality time with a some wonderful fiber and your wheel or spindle?  If you’re using SpaceCadet fiber, please do share pictures of your spinning, either on the SpaceCadet Ravelry group or by email.  I’d love to feature it here on the blog!

As well as spending a lot of time on a spindle, one of the things the Tour has allowed me to do is to really make some headway on the fiber that has been languishing on my wheel for far too long.   A few days ago, I went out onto the front porch after the heat of the day wore off (95°F!) and filled half a bobbin before real life called me back in again.

You’ll recognise this fiber from previous blog posts.  Yes, it’s still on the wheel!  But… I kind of don’t mind because it’s such a pleasure to spin these colours.

I’m splitting the fiber (somewhat) evenly into thirds and will then spin it all back together as a 3-ply.  Thanks to all the extra spinning time from the Tour, I’m nearly there!  Here’s the first bobbin…

And when that’s done, I’ll be moving on to this wonderful, shimmery-smooth silk…

Hmmmm…  Do you think I might have a warm-colour fixation?  Maybe it’s the weather!

Dyeing Disasters and Silver Linings: Take Two

By Stephanie

I dyed some fiber in the Sailor’s Warning colourway, but I wasn’t happy with the way it came out.  Don’t get me wrong — it was beautiful — but it just wasn’t quite Sailor’s Warning to me.   It wasn’t different enough to be its own new colourway, but I wasn’t happy putting it in the shop when it didn’t look exactly as I’d intended.

…But how can I waste 4oz of beautiful, soft-as-clouds merino fiber?!?  I can’t!  And besides, I know that, even though it wasn’t exactly perfect as fiber, the colours will blend and soften when it’s spun and it will look gorgeous.

So I am spinning it up, and it will go in the shop as hand-spun.  Keep your eyes open for it!

The Lure of Yarn Photography

By Stephanie

There is something about photographing yarn…

I just love to do it.  I don’t consider myself much of a photographer, but when it comes to yarn, it seems so easy to get really stunning photos…

To put the macro lens on and then get in there nice and tight, really get the detail of the fiber,  so close you can almost feel it…  almost smell it…

And when the light is soft, the sun setting at the end of a glorious summer day…  And when the yarn is pure silk that grabs that light…

And reflects it straight back to the camera, so the light seems to float, the yarn fairly glows before the lens…

Well, I find it really hard to stop taking pictures…

There’s a reason it’s called Yarn Porn!

On the Wheel: Heathered Silk

By Stephanie

Beautiful sunshine and a lovely warm day, I sat in the dappled shade of the trees and spun silk into heathered shades of blue, green, and purple.

Just before I finished and came in, the wind picked up and the skies transformed from blazing and blue to an angry dark grey.  A summer thunderstorm rolled in, and then ended as quickly as it started, leaving everything drenched but fresh again.  Perfect!