Tour de Fleece ends for another year.

Spun 15 minutes per day per machine, 4 machines, so 1 hour minimum spinning per day.  Check.

Finish gray Romney fleece this was the first fleece I bought and it was huge, I have been spinning on it off and on, given it away to beginning spinners, used it with the Jacob last year for a sweater for Christopher. And now at last it is all spun. Check.

Started spinning the Dragon's Blood (wool/alpaca/nylon) that is the 1 1/4 dark red in the pictures.  Check

Continue the White Romney and get it down to really fine singles, with the new flyer. Check.  Still lots to go, but it is spinning nicely now. 

I did not get the Princess Blue Merino Silk started because I found another 8 oz of Garnet and the goal was finish the Garnet and start the Princess blue, and I did finish the 8oz of Garnet I was spinning before the tour, but  I found the other Garnet so started that instead.  

Start the green and yellow cotton from the dyeing exchange.  Check.  And by the end got the cotton spinning mojo back.

While the tour was happening, I have also been working on Surry Hill, 2nd sleeve and 11 inches of the body, so probably I will finish this repeat and join it into one piece for the bodice and done.  Must look for buttons.

Tour de Fleece over half way

 The halfway point of the tour was a rest day, and it and day 12 were used to finish plying up the Merino/silk.  This is 8 ounces, the first half.

 The gray Romney is finished.

 This is the 2 pounds of Dragon's Blood a wool/alpaca/rayon blend.

 The cotton has a full weaving bobbin.

 This is the start of the Dragon's Blood.

 The start of the second half of the Garnet.

I started the White Romney on the new flyer and bobbins, this is the first bobbin.

Tour de Fleece - day 5

 Garnet 2 ply

 Gray Romney

 Green/yellow cotton

White Romney

Tour de Fleece day 4

 Today was spent plying, first the dark Teal superwash 3-ply 106 grams, 393 yds.

2-ply Gray Romney, 172 grams, 287 yds.  I still need to ply the Garnet merino/silk. 

Tour de Fleece - day 3

This is the Schacht at the start of the day.  Bobbin totally empty.

And at the end of the day the bobbin was full of gray Romney.

The CPW at the beginning of the day, and at the end of the day it had a half full bobbin of white Romney.

The Lendrum started with an empty bobbin and ended the day with a full bobbin of Garnet Merino/Silk.

The empty spindle at the beginning of the day filled with green cotton.

Tour de Fleece day 2

 The goal is 1/2 hour on each device.  the 1/2 hour filled the bobbin to about 3/4 full so I went back later and finished filling it.  Total time about 45 minutes.

 the 1/2 hour almost finished the second half of this spindle so I spent another 5 minutes or so and finished it off.  Am starting to get the cotton groove back.

 Filled another bobbin and filling one more tomorrow may just finish this fiber off.  Didn't time it but probably 2 hours.

about 50-60 minutes to finish the second half of the bobbin.

Tour de Fleece day 1

 A small amount of yellow/green cotton, I spent most of the half hour mandatory spinning time taking the large wheel off and cleaning the fiber out and then oiling the bushing.  Works much better now.  I should get back into the grove of spinning the cotton soon. Spinning, as you can see on the Bosworth Charkha.

 Garnet Merino/silk  I had hoped to finish this before the start of TdeF but it is one of those fibers that keep going and going, In the last 3 days I have filled 3 bobbins, (granted they are small bobbins but it is lace-weight) and still have half a bag of fiber. Spinning on the Lendrum lace flyer.

 The last of the fuchsia  that I have pre-drafted or carded.  I will now work on finishing the gray Romney and then maybe do some more Shetland.  Spinning on the Schacht, very,very fast whorl and woolee winder.

1/2 bobbin on the Merlin Tree CPW using the first whorl made by Sistermaide, we are visiting her next Saturday, to pick up the flyers, bobbins, and the new whorl. So the fiber catching to the cup hooks will be done with.  And hopefully the ratios will get closer to the 40's.  This is the only one that I spun exactly 1/2 hour so 1/2 hour= 1/2 bobbin.

Tour de Fleece prep

Preparing to do T de F I have been working on starting with empty bobbins on all the wheels that I plan to use.
The Charkha with its empty spindles, and the yellow and green cotton from a dying exchange of plant fibers of a few years ago. This was dyed by Stashymama.  

 Here are some of the things I finished off in the last few days this is 2, 2-plied skeins of the Shetland experiment.  And a storage bobbin of Garnet Merino Silk, this will be the first fiber to be spun on the Lendrum to finish up the other half.

 The last of the already spun garnet. I am in the middle of winding it off to a storage bobbin here, it is sitting because the battery in the screwdriver gave out and it is recharging,

 More of the Shetland dye experiment, and the first thing up on the Schacht matchless.

 Empty bobbin on the CPW which will be continuing the white Romney,

The remaining Garnet Merino/Silk.


So ready, set, GO!

It's July that must mean

Tour de Fleece is soon.

 This is White Romney.  I have already spun 3 bobbins of it and have 3 pounds left.  I will be spinning this on the CPW using the 30:1 whorl I got from Sistermaide.  I still haven't decided on the plying, must sample.

 This is the remainder of the gray Romney from last year.  there are 20 ounces left.

 Dragon Blood from Pucker Brush Farm.  2 pound of a wool/alpaca/rayon mix in shades of red and purple.  Just luscious stuff and I can't wait to sample it.

Princess Blue merino/silk from Louet lovely blue/gray color, and soft, soft, soft. 8 ounces.

the T de F goal is to finish these, with  possible cotton on the Charkah.

Swatches

 This is some handspun that I spun quite a while ago and have decided to make it up into a sweater.  It is a "kitchen sink" mixture of fibers produced by Maggie Alexander and given to me as a gift by her daughter-in-law Annie Tarbox.  It is soft and an interesting mix of pink/rust/brown knits up nicely.

this is cotton Sonata by Elann.com that I got during a sale a long time ago.  And as soon as I locate some size 9 -16 inch circulars I will get right on it. It is going to be Surry Hill.  I think I will like it.

Different Stripes Six Sox

 The six sox pattern for June and July is Different Stripes.  A fun to knit pattern.  I used my favorite summer sock yarn Paton stretch sock and am enjoying wearing them too.