Here's a new colorway I mentioned a few posts back.  I'm calling it Hill Country Morning because it reminds me of sunrises in the Texas hill country, where I spent time growing up, camping with my family, splashing in Canyon Lake, sneaking illicit sips of beer at the Wurstfest in New Braunfels while my parents polka danced.  Good times.

And here it is spun up two different ways.  The first is spun then plied using Navajo plying, a.k.a. chain plying, but Navajo sound more romantic.

The second is done in what is called Fractal Spinning, which I learned when I took Felicia Lo's Spinning Dyed Fibers class on Craftsy.  What a great online class!  She does remarkable things with plain spinning of bright colors and I really learned a lot.  It was worth every penny.  Fractal spun yarn will knit up in a self striping pattern.  Which, obviously I have not managed to accomplish yet.  So stay tuned.  Part of the problem is the fiber.  This is Romney, and let's just face it, it's scratchy.  So I'm not sure what to do with it.  If it can't be a hat or a scarf or a sweater, what can it be?  The ball is in your court, yarn.  Speak to me.

Meanwhile, back in the dye studio (a.k.a. my kitchen), I've cooked up another colorway--Cedar Key.  The fiber is 50% merino/50% silk from Ashland Bay and it's downright gregarious.  It keeps me up at night suggesting what might become of it.

Sheep of the Week: the Romney

Let's get this straight, the unfortunately-named Romney hails from the Romney marsh area of Kent, England and has nothing whatsoever to do with that other Romney whose name is setting like the sun on a long summer day...not a minute too soon.

  He is showing off his show ribbons!

  
Anyway, these guys are the Humvees of the sheep world--big, stocky, utilitarian, go-anywhere sheep with long staple wool that's super easy to spin. They produce a LOT of wool and, if you have the space, a Romney or two can really boost your income from fleece.  

Photo courtesy of SkyLines Farm of Idaho.

For spinners, the wool is characterized by medium luster, low grease and minimal shrinkage during fiber prep.  For knitters and weavers, the yarn works up best into hard wearing outerwear--sweaters, hats, mittens, throws. If you're sensitive, you may not appreciate it right next to skin.

I bought some roving recently at Asheville NC Homecrafts shop in the Grove Arcade and dyed it into two new colorways I'm working on...High Desert and Hill Country Morning.  Both have a bit of a heathery halo to them that I haven't seen in my other dyeing escapades. I'm very happy with the fiber, but have my fears about the yarn, just because I really like my fiber soft and snuggly.  Stay tuned for the yarn and a project.  I'll let you know if it's soft enough for knickers.

High Desert

Hill Country Morning