Fiber Day!

Sometimes I love getting the mail! Today brought my little laceweight millefiori glass spindle from Butterflygirl Designs ( http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5207884 ) and 3 ozs of fantastic fiber called Riot (aptly named-and yes, I totally chose that blend because it went so well with the spindle). Riot is bamboo/sari silk/firestar, and it's gorgeous. Butterflygirl herself told me that this fiber might not spin as fine as I had in mind, but that's okay- I will love it no matter how it spins (or if I have to use a wheel, or a different spindle). I did a test run of the spindle, and in the interest of full disclosure, I tweaked the hook a bit. But I do that with every spindle that I don't make myself- it's a comment on me, not the workmanship. I should have put a penny in the close up shot of the spindle- the whorl is only 1 1/2" across, the shaft is 10", and it weighs just over 1/2 oz. It called me as a work of art (none of the pics do it justice- it's beautifully translucent), but I intend to use it as a tool (standing on carpet only- I take the *drop* portion of drop spindle seriously).

And I got 1 lb of raw cormo multicolored fleece. This wool is beautiful- soft and clean (I couldn't spot a bit of veggie matter) and it smells the way very good raw wool smells (if there was a perfume in that scent, I'd buy it. Not to wear, just to sniff). The color ranges from soft oatmeal to true tan. I test washed a couple of locks, and they came out fluffy and gorgeous. I also spun a couple of locks in the grease (my least favorite way to spin) and washed the short length of plied yarn (in the pic, the unwashed locks are upper left, washed locks are lower left. pardon the lumpy bumpies- I'm not good at grease spinning) and am beyond thrilled by the colors. I am going to wash and card this batch myself (at only 1lb, it's not worth sending out. I'll have fun playing with it). I have no idea what I'll make with this wool- it's not enough for a large project, but it's plenty enough for some great small items (mittens, hat, etc). I will probably sort out the colors and try to keep them separate for spinning. I'll post pics of the process and progress.

But I need to go do some book knitting- so no playing today. At least for awhile.