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Tuesday 21 February 2017

New Yarn Spin

Hi Everyone
I'm sharing my latest yarn spin today. I've been trying to spin a loose plyed yarn this time and am reasonably happy with what's happened. I do understand the basics of spinning and plying and can produce something fantastic for a short time. When I aim to spin a good length of yarn for a bigger project eg a sweater or large shawl - the whole process proves to be more challenging. I keep,reminding myself, it's only been 6 weeks since I started spinning on a wheel and I need to be patient (not one one my characteristics !).
I'm told by experienced spinners that when handspun yarn is knitted - lots of minor inconsistency issues seem to disappear ! I'm yet to be convinced. I've knitted up swatches but haven't completed a 'spin to final garment' yet.
This latest batch of yarn is a reasonable size, I'm not sure of the 'yardage' but there's 200gm of raw wool. I think the yarn weight is a very light DK weight so I'm hoping I've got as much from the yarn as I can (in this weight). The wool is 100% White Gotland and is a lovely soft and silky yarn. Lovely to spin and relatively easy. I'm not sure how it will be after washing ? In my other spins, all of the yarn has 'bloomed' and is much bigger as a final yarn. I'd rather like this one to stay similar to the unwashed state. This is my first experiment with White Gotland and I do like the wool.

 

Next, I want to dye the yarn. I think I'm going for a green/mustard look. I will mix some dyes in those colours and try and get some slight variation in the finished yarn. I've created a record card for my spin and will hopefully have the ability to reproduce the yarn.
I'd like to make something like a cardigan - perhaps a short boxy style with 3/4 sleeves. If I can find a knit down pattern item and need more yarn, the spin record should help me make more yarn. I can try to reproduce the yarn and add a contrasting block of colour and possibly a slight stitch pattern or I could also go for a shawl  - not sure ?
I'm going to wait and see how the dye job goes, hopefully later today.

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