Spinning Cotton

This is my newest obsession (other than a baby sweater for a friend that I can't stop knitting). All the items you see in this photo were part of the generosity mentioned in my previous post. I've been doing alright using a support spindle, this brown cotton seems to lend itself to lumpiness - that could be result of me learning how to card as well.

For those of you who are not familiar with spinning cotton it is a very short fiber so the support spindle allows me to spin it without putting weight on the fiber which would cause it to break apart. Also cotton fibers don't grip each other like wool fibers, they are slick and slide off one another - these are the challenges to spinning cotton, but I'm enjoying it.

I have also been learning about the natural colors of cotton that are being experimented with. I have yet to research it, but I have some green and brown and I hear that there is blue. If you have any interesting info on this please feel free to pass it along.

So as I make progress on this project I will share it with you, but here is what I am hoping to make once I spin enough cotton (a little less than 2 100 gram skeins) - Ribbed Lace Bolero. So cute, right?

All for now, have a great day!

The stories behind my spindles

Within the past week I have received so many gifts from fellow fiber lovers that my cup runneth over! For today I will share with you my spindle love.

Some of you fellow knitters and crocheters may be familiar with Ravelry. In one of the forums on that site we were all sharing sharing photos of our spindles cause, well, we're addicted. I shared my photo and mentioned that I am in the market for some new spindles, possibly to spin some heavier yarn. A fellow spinner sent me a note saying that she would like to send me two of her spindles that haven't gotten much use since she began using her wheel. From her generosity I received the lovely top whorl spindles with the gorgeous stripes of green, maroon, and yellow. She also generously included some Targhee wool, so squishy, I love it!

The plain spindle you see on the far left is my first spindle, a student spindle. This one I received from the generosity of a fellow Etisan who read that I was interested in spinning. Basically I bought some wool and she threw in the spindle at cost - a dollar something, oh yeah!

Lastly, the two small spindles on the right involve my current project, which I will tell you more about later this week. These two small support spindles are cotton spindles. In our local knitting group and fiber group there is this lovely woman who knows everything there is to know about weaving, knitting, dying, and spinning - needless to say she never gets much done with all of us asking her questions.

Well, last week as we were knitting hats for the hospital I asked her how to spin cotton, and from that conversation she said that she may be able to help me out getting started cause she had a spindle that I could have. I thought - sweet! So Sunday I went over to her house to learn how to spin this short staple and I was blessed beyond my imagination!

Not only had she prepared a basket for cotton spinning which included beautiful brown cotton, carders, card cleaner, a flicker, two support spindles, and boiling tubes to set the cotton, but there was a whole other basket! This other basket over flowed with wool, cotton, an antique carder, and by the end of the visit it also included a swift, a yarn drying rack, two books on natural dyes, AND lichens and onion skins for dying!!!! I forgot to mention she also gave me a whole fleece and gave my friend a loom!

I share this to say I am so overwhelmingly grateful to these women for encouraging me and proving me with the tools to learn more and improve my craft. I am always amazed at how the "crafting community" rises up to support one another and others in need.

I hope this inspires you to reach out, share, and teach others the craft that you so love.

the new Hand Bag

It is here! You asked for it - tah dah. I have completed the recycled silk purse. You may remember awhile back I shared the lack of motivation to complete this bag (and another, which I haven't touched), well on Sunday afternoon I bunkered down and said I couldn't leave the couch till it was finished.

I am very happy with the result, though I don't think I will make another one of these bags. I realize that means I could list it as OOAK, but I always want to leave myself the option to make it again down the road. The bag isn't lined, but it isn't an extremely loose knit so purse items won't be poking out all over the place.

So do you like it? You can find it here in my shop.