Drum Carding CVM Fiber

/ LDSVenus / 5 Comments

This is an older fiber I purchased maybe about maybe 10 years ago (or maybe it was 3 years ago, lol, I can’t remember)? I made myself promise that before I spun a newer purchased fiber I would spin one of my deep stash, lol I think this one qualifies. I am not finished spinning the camel/silk but that CVM has been on my drum carder for quite a while, so it was calling to me to finish what I had started. The batt, in the front of the picture, is a 59 grams batt that I had started, it’s a little over 2 ozs. So I have the other 1/2 of this fiber to card (in the bag behind the batt.) I think if you click on the picture it will enlarge and you might be able to read what is on the bag, but incase you can’t, it is 4.5 ozs, of CVM (an endangered sheep called California Variegated Mutant – lol the color is mutated not the sheep :P). The natural color is the grey and some of it was dyed, the colors are grey and (if I’m reading it right sezse?) light turquoise. She named the color way Smoke on the Water. Anyway I think it will spin up to be a beautiful yarn. I better get busy, spinning that camel/silk! I’m still knitting on the blue blanket from a previous post, I’ll put a picture in next time so you can see my progress. Plus, I still need to also be working on my Hats for Warmth project for my local homeless shelter. So much to do so little time, because I also wanted to make those knitted color work Christmas Tree decorations I planed as gifts this year. Where does all the time go??? It rained today, but maybe tomorrow I will spin out on my balcony because the weather is cooler :).

I am enjoying the cool down, which might last a couple of weeks, according to the weatherman, but it will heat back up by mid September, sigh. I know there is still a lot of heat out west and hope you will cool off sooner than later. Stay safe.

Camel/Red Eri Silk Update and New Fiber Purchase

/ LDSVenus / 8 Comments

This is so soft to spin, the silk is a long staple but the camel is very short so I imagine the camel might make a slight halo on the finished yarn. Finished the 1st bobbin and started the 2nd bobbin, but haven’t been able to spin on it very much, will spin on it tomorrow, I’m excited to see how it looks when it’s finished and I’m hoping it will be a sport weight. The colors are never correct on my picture on the reds, this is actually looks like a very light orange on my screen, but it’s a bit brighter than shows on my screen. Not sure if it’s my camera or my computer screen.

Opps I might have bought another fiber to spin, it’s called Smooth Bark (the color looks true) from Camaj Fiber Arts, but to be honest I bought it last month and just didn’t get to put it in on my blog. I’m trying to stick with no more new fiber going forward until I’ve spun down some of my deep stash fiber, :D, but we can see how that is going. This is very soft also, but it should be since it’s 40% superfine merino, 20% alpaca, 20% camel and 20% mulberry silk. This shop frequently has very good sales on their fiber. I was thinking it would be the next spin, but I promised myself that if I spin a new fiber, I would also spin a deep stash fiber. So when I am finished with the camel/red Eri silk, I will go diving in my deep stash because I must love them, I bought them :P. Maybe I can find something sparkly or put sparkles on it with my drum carder :).

Hope you all are well, and surviving the hot summer we are all having, just think, Fall will be here in a month or so :).

Tour de Fleece Update and Weather

/ LDSVenus / 14 Comments

1st picture is my progress on the 50/50 camel/red Eri silk for days 16 – 18. This is spinning faster than I thought, I’m around 1/2 finished on the 1st bobbin. Because the silk is very slippery, even tho the camel being soft and short would normally require a very short draw to spin, the length and slippery nature of the silk allows me to draw it out more than a short draw but not a long draw, so it is going faster than I estimated. I love the softness of the fiber as I spin it. I’m trying to not let it be very thin, tho it would be easy to do that, because this is a gift for my previous sister in law, who I feel pretty close to. She has a medical disorder that makes it harder now with tremors to handle smaller things, so I thought if this yarn is more of a heavy fingering or light sport weight maybe she could still knit something with it, and if not, she can just feel the softness of this fiber, which is amazing. I will definitely have to get more of this fiber when Camaj Fiber Arts gets more in! Post Script, my ophthalmologist loved the skein of yarn and said she had had a very hard last couple of days and that this skein of yarn had just made her day! Giving is a blessing for the receiver and the giver :).

Well today was very nice in the upper middle 80’s and less humidity, however you can see where our weather is headed starting tomorrow though next Tuesday. The blue picture is the normal temps and the red one is with the heat index (the dew point and humidity level will be high.) I will be staying inside most of the time. Sunday I will go to church but it’s an air conditioned building and I have a/c in the car so I should be ok :P. Monday however, I’m not going anywhere. August is normally our hottest month of the year, so I shudder to think what next month will be like. Well actually I can imagine, 2 years ago when my daughter had an outdoor wedding in August, it was 118 with the heat index (that’s abnormally and obnoxiously hot for here), yeah, everyone was melting! Told her if I melted she could pick me up with a stick and a spoon and carry me inside to the reception :P. Everyone stay safe!!