Tuesday, 30 Jan 2007
I’ve been hiding her from you for a few weeks now, mostly because I’ve been too overwhelmed to blog coherently. But here’s a picture of my new precioussss:
[photopress:schacht1.jpg,full,pp_image]
She’s a double treadle Schacht Matchless, and although she’s somewhat temperamental, when she’s in a good mood she spins like a dream. I haven’t yet named her, other than to occasionally call her a Bitch Goddess. In any case, I can already see a vast improvement in the quality of my spinning with her. I’m able to spin much more evenly and for much longer stretches of time, and when I do need to stop, she stops on a dime. (I’m not sure if that’s due to the Schacht’s sensitivity, or if it’s simply due to the fact that I’m trying it out in double drive mode at the moment - I’ve heard improved consistency and longer spinning time listed as virtues of double drive before.) Right now I’m mostly frantically knitting on my 8,265,394 WIPs. I have had a little time to play with some really soft and nice BFL. I’m spinning it semi-woolen, with the intent of knitting socks (with stronger, tougher Wensleydale at heel and toe).
Just to make sure this month was a “Hooray for Me” bacchanalia, I also swapped the lovely Melissa for a drum carder:
[photopress:drumcarder1.jpg,full,pp_image]
It’s an older Pat Green - it looks like a Deb’s Deluxe but it’s not; it has the fur drum, though, as far as I can tell, and it seems to work nicely. I also got a burnishing tool from Susan’s Fiber Arts (and Susan is a nice lady!), and it vastly improved the quality of my test batts. Coming up, my first for-reals victim: one of the two Icelandic fleeces that I picked up last month from Woolambia:
[photopress:floydfleece1.jpg,full,pp_image]
I’ve gotten it into my head that sock yarn made out of these fleeces could be really lovely - but who needs four pounds of sock roving? So perhaps I will end up with a sweater and a couple of matching pairs of socks. I just think that the stong tog and the soft thel would make a wonderful combination for socks. There’s one hitch, though. The traditional way of making lopi yarn out of unseparated Icelandic fleece is to very loosely spin it, with barely enough twist to hold the yarn together. That can’t make for the strongest of socks. Any thoughts on what to make with this?
I’ll leave you with a pretty photo of the gorgeous Stargazer lilies that are scenting our entire house - they’re amazing when they’re fully open:
[photopress:lily1.jpg,full,pp_image]
January 30th, 2007 at 11:27 pm
I love you for using the word bacchanalia! It’s almost as pleasing a word as croquembouche, which I’ve sworn to use in every comment.
Mmmm, cupcakes!
January 31st, 2007 at 12:38 am
Gorgeous icelandic! I’m jealous of the drumcarder!
I’ve been spinning a primitive Shetland fleece lately, and had the same notion of making socks with it, for the same reasons. The primitive Shetland is similar to the icelandic, in that it has a dual coat with two very distinctively different fibers. While I found that carding was too rough, and combing separated them, spinning from clean, teased locks has yielded fantastic results! I just have to be careful to make sure I’m spinning a little of each fiber type at the same time, to get the tough/soft yarn I’m going for. Spinning from the fold helps a lot.
Advice on the technique: spin _fast_, with almost no takeup. I haven’t yet got my Schacht Matchless to go fast enough to spin the fine singles I need for these socks. Sock yarn should be a little more tightly spun than, say, sweater yarn. I’m going for 3 ply fingering. So far all my singles have been spun on my ancient antique flax wheel.
And if you get tired of your icelandics, I’ll swap you some for some prepared carded roving!
January 31st, 2007 at 12:48 am
I love your new toy!! (Also like the kitty in the background!!)
January 31st, 2007 at 12:44 pm
Oooooh, congrats on your new girl :) She is beautiful!! And your drumcarder - I am drooling. I had a chance to try one at a spinning workshop this weekend and I’m in love. Can’t wait to see what you do with your new toys!!
January 31st, 2007 at 1:13 pm
I love that your cat matches your fleece.
Stargazers are my favorites- just watch those staining stamens.
January 31st, 2007 at 2:37 pm
Lovely wheel, and yay for drum carders!
I am, however, a bit disturbed by the matching fleece and cat. Come to think of it, the cat looks a bit concerned. Insert thought bubble:
“Oh no! Am I next?”
January 31st, 2007 at 4:50 pm
oooh…she looks beautiful…I am noe getting an interest in spinning yarn, but oh boy, it looks expensive!
January 31st, 2007 at 5:04 pm
Beautiful new wheel, congrats! And the drum carder looks great, already getting to work. :)
February 1st, 2007 at 3:15 am
Oooohhh… she is pretty. How is she working out for you now? And that drum carder is beautiful. Too bad most modern equipment isn’t made to be so visually appealing.