Tag: wool

July 26: Monday Weaving Project with Hand Spun Jacob Sheep Yarn

Emily Wallace HandwovenLeave a comment

Yesterday, I wanted to work up a quick weaving project using some of my handspun yarn from before the Tour de Fleece. Since I had plenty of yardage, I chose the Jacob humbug yarn that I spun in the spring. I bought the fiber from Hearthside Fibers along with several other wool breeds I hadn’t spun before. My yield for the Jacob wool was 228 yards of worsted/aran weight 2-ply from 118 grams of commercially prepared combed top.

I used a moderately spaced warp (4 ends, skip 2 ends) in order to get the flexibility and drape I wanted since this was a heavier weight yarn.

The finished scarf weighed around 90g and used about 174 yards of yarn.

Weaving with Superwash Merino Yarns

Emily Wallace HandwovenLeave a comment

Both of the scarves below were woven using Round Mountain Fibers Superwash Merino handdyed yarns, but the twist on the second yarn was much tighter and the resulting scarf was much rougher to the touch than the first one. I have a boatload of these yarns, but I’ll be knitting with them in the future.

1st scarf (very soft, but fabric not as stable as I would like)
Very rough feeling for merino, and very unstable fabric

Dorset Horn Handwoven Scarf: Handspun yarn from raw fleece

Emily Wallace Handwoven1 Comment

Raw fleece to finished object: Dorset Horn scarf from Tour de Fleece handspun yarn off the loom this morning (68g; 160 yards (DK/Worsted). 🐑

I really enjoyed spinning Dorset Horn from the raw fleeces I bought from Fiber Curio. I’ve ordered more from another vendor and I’ll post pics upon arrival.

This scarf wove up quickly and I’m thinking about dyeing it with avocado pits in the near future.

Tour de Fleece 2021: Days 1-23

Emily Wallace HandwovenLeave a comment

The 2021 Tour de Fleece ended yesterday (July 18), and after 23 straight days of spinning yarn, I’m ready for a (small) break. My goal for this year’s Tour was to sample some of my raw fleeces and work on raw fleece from the ‘Shave ’em to Save ’em’ project too.

Breeds Spun: Shetland, Icelandic, Jacob/Columbia, California Red/Romeldale, CVM (California Variegated Mutant), CVM/Merino, Shropshire, Dorset Horn, Gulf Coast Native, BFL (Bluefaced Leicester), Navajo Churro, Florida Cracker, & Hog Island.

🐑Tour de Fleece, Days 1-23 : All from raw fleece (scoured/combed or carded) 13 sheep breeds. Yarn yield = 3,813 yards of singles; 850 grams (28.61 ounces) of wool. 🧶

Tour de Fleece 2021: Days 22 & 23

Emily Wallace Handwoven3 Comments

Since I didn’t take rest days during the Tour de Fleece, I decided to spin very small samples on the last two days.

Day 22, Florida Cracker & CVM samples: 18 yds; 21 g; 2-ply bulky

BFL from Cactus Hill Farm (Colorado); 42 YDS; 18 g; Sport 2-ply

Tour de Fleece, Days 1-21 : All from raw fleece (scoured/combed or carded) 12 sheep breeds. Yarn yield = 3,693 yards of singles; 811 grams (28.61 ounces) of wool.

Off the loom: Peruvian Highland wool baby blanket

Emily Wallace HandwovenLeave a comment

One of my cousins is having her first baby in late autumn, so she asked me to weave a baby blanket. She specifically asked for wool, so I chose Peruvian Highland wool that I had woven with before…to keep the cost of yarn low. Ideally, I would’ve woven a wool baby blanket with merino, but the budget wouldn’t allow it, so I went with Peruvian Highland wool instead.

I chose a spaced warp random pattern to add drape and texture to the blanket, and I like the subtle, but interesting results.

Finished measurements are approximately 27” x 40” (after wet finishing and air drying).