Fiber Arts Friday: Shave 'Em to Save 'Em, Clun Forest

source: Wikipedia

Clun Forest - I had not heard of this breed before joining SE2SE.

My initial dive into the roving yielded an extremely fine yarn.

I realized quickly that I was working from the back end of the roving... so I re-wound the ball and started to spin again.... it's helpful to remember there is a front and back to roving.  ;-)

This was a very nice preparation, with a small amount of lanolin and very little vegetable matter (VM).

The staple in this sample is relatively short at about 1 inch.

My thoughts upon spinning this yarn is that Clun Forest would be nice to include in our alpaca-wool sock yarns.  I like that it isn't as slippery as alpaca or Tibetan Mastiff, and the small amount of lanolin in the roving feels nice on my fingertips.

My thoughts are reinforced in the Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook which describes Clun Forest as an "ideal fiber for making textiles that are both comfortable and able to stand up to some abuse."

I enjoyed spinning this yarn.  I like that it's not as slippery as Tibetan Mastiff or Alpaca.

The single was very energetic, but the plied yarn is much more balanced.

While plying from both ends of the same cake allows for no joins in my final yarn, I think I will split my future SE2SE projects in half so I can ply from two cakes, which goes much faster.

The final yarn is not perfect.... but honestly, what handmade item is?  There are several over-spun portions in the single and my gauge is not as consistent as I would prefer.  I think both are due to me trying to spin thicker than my normal, not having enough take-up, and periodically loosing my concentration.  ;-)

But I love this yarn.  :-)

From the Livestock Concervancy:  The Clun Forest originated in Shropshire, England and were first imported to the US in 1970.  The Clun Forest is listed as Threatened, meaning that fewer than 1000 sheep are registered in the US each year and that the estimated global population is less than 5000.

This Clun Forest roving was sourced locally at the Left Hand Wool Company,

It feels good knowing that I am able to support a local conservation breeder of rare breed livestock.  :-)

Final Yarn: Clun Forest
Single Duration: April 13 - June 2, 2019
Ply Duration: June 2 - June 15, 2019
Date Submitted: June 21, 2019
ounces: 4.625
yards: 283, 2-ply
wpi:  14

SE2SE Status:
Total Breeds: 22
Breeds Sourced: 11
Breeds Spun: 1
Breeds To Go: 21

Months Remaining: 30 (12/31/21)

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Travel Reading, part 6 - Raw Material

After Reading Brotopia, I needed something that was more upbeat.

Raw Material: Working Wool in the West by Stephany Wilkes was just the ticket.

I found this book at Stitches West earlier this year.  I just loved the premise, so it went toward the top of my reading queue.

Turns out Ms Wilkes was the first interview on the Soil to Soil Podcast.  In which, I found her to be engaging and compelling.  So I was really looking forward to reading her book.

It was a slow off ramp from Brotopia.  Ms Wilkes is a former Bay Area Tech worker and mentioned some of the sexual harassment she was the target of prior to making her career change.  Fortunately she quickly got to her shearing experiences and told the story of how Mendocino Wool came in to being.

I appreciate the author telling stories of walking into businesses after shearing all day and describing the looks that shop keepers/clerks would give... as well as how good food can taste at the end of a long day shearing.... and of course, the response from family/friends about how crazy she was to leave a lucrative job for manual labor... and the despair that comes with being stuck in an office all week after spending an entire weekend outside, doing tangible productive work... I feel a kinship with Ms. Wilkes and hope I am able to meet her one day.... shearing people are some of my very favorite.  :-)

One thing I find interesting in the author's story, and have experienced it myself... while farming and shearing tend to be male-dominated, they are welcoming to women... if you are interested in learning, then you get the work.... at least in my experience, the overt sexism is not as prevalent as other industries I've worked in.

Way to Go - Ravelry

I've been a member of Ravelry for a long time.... back when you had to apply and wait to be accepted... more than 10 years ago.

Today, they made a significant announcement (policy link).

Ravelry has always been inclusive, welcoming, and encouraging.  I couldn't be more proud.

Fiber Arts Friday: Estes Park Wool Market, 2019

I haven't been to the Estes Park Wool Market in a few years (2015, 2016, 2017 or 2018).  But after going to Stitches West earlier this year, I wanted to make sure that both Hubba and I went this year.

It was an easy sell.  He happened to meet Henry Clemes of Clemes & Clemes earlier this year, so Hubba definitely wanted to catch up with his new friend.  :-)

I'm so glad we made it.

First of all, the weather was gorgeous!

Second, the market venue is much improved since the last time I was there.  So much that we didn't make it to any of the barns or other activities.

Since it's been a long time goal of mine to have a booth at this venue, not only did we shop, but we talked about the different booths and what we liked and didn't like about how merchandise was presented.

We got a few new ideas, and I think we are on the same page about what presents well.  Now to source the equipment and get a few more batches to the mill.  :-)

As far as shopping goes.  I like this market because it's more than just yarn.  There is a lot of raw fleece and roving available, along with tools, rugs, and other finished objects.

From Clemes & Clemes, I found a packing brush for my drum carder, a diz (it's amazing how hard these are to find), and a Ledbetter shuttle.  Mr. Ledbetter has retired, so his drop spindles and shuttles are now in very limited supply.  I am happy to say that I had the pleasure of meeting both Mr. and Mrs. Ledbetter several years ago, and now have two of their drop spindles and two of their boat shuttles in my tool stash.

I test drove the Clemes & Clemes Modern Wheel, and will most definitely be adding one to my stable.  It's the smoothest wheel I've ever used.

I added Karakul and CVM roving to my stash.  The CVM is an addition to my Shave 'EM to Save 'EM project.  I already had Karakul in my stash (I forgot), but I have not spun it yet and the hair sheep is so very different from the wool sheep handle.... I am quite taken with it... it will not go to waste.  :-)

Then at the very end is a small sample of both Mulberry and Tussah Silk... I've wanted to spin these adjacent to each other.  I have spun Tussah before.

Then a very small sample of Pearl Fiber.  I have not seen this before, so to my stash of unusual fibers this goes.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Fiber Arts Friday: Twined Mittens, part 6

One more post with better photos of my Twined Tibetan Mastiff Mittens.

They have been washed and blocked and the finished mittens have a lovely halo that the yarn does not have.

I find this whole process magical.... what starts out undercoat that keeps my dog warm, is shed when he no longer needs it, then turned it into yarn and a useful pair of warm mittens.  As I write this, he's in the process of shedding his current winter coat.  This is the ultimate in sustainability.

The mittens are quite soft, even if they have a small amount of prickle from the guard hair that made it into the batts.

I love them so much and I can't wait to gift them to my friend... and now I really want to make a pair for myself.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

Things that Work: Functional Coat

I talk a lot about functional coats when I'm answering questions about Livestock Guardian Dogs, and Tibetan Mastiffs in particular.  So I thought I would try to show the benefits of a functional coat.  Not only does it shed easily in the spring, but it is "self-cleaning."

Last week I shared photos of Wilma enjoying mud season.

One week later, this is what she looks like.... no brushing and no bath has occurred.

Nearly everything has sloughed off.

These double, working coats are really quite wonderful.

Fiber Arts Friday: County Fair Entries, 2019

The Premium List for our County Fair was released yesterday.

I already knew that my Tibetan Mastiff Twined Mittens would be entered.

I have a skein of handspun Clun Forest yarn in the process of being plied that I'd like to enter.

I have been thinking about entering my Copperbranch Shawl as well, but the amount of work remaining, may not be accomplished before the end of July.  Per usual, I put together a plan that is doable, but aggressive.

Finally, I have wanted to enter the photo competition, but was never quite organized in time to get the prints made.  So as of today, I have selected the photo I plan to enter... we shall see if I can get it printed and matted in time.... yes, I know that's not a lot, but there's a lot going on in my world right now, and this is pretty low on the list.  ;-)

If all goes well, I'll have four entries in this year's county fair.  I will definitely have one entry, but most likely there will be two.

Happy Fiber Arts Friday!

PodCasts

It's uncomfortable to read anything more in depth than Facebook or Twitter on my phone while I'm on the airport shuttle.  So I have not been reading blogs as much as I would like and for the most part, it's too dark to knit.

I was reminded of the idea of podcasts a while back.  While I have listened to a few over the years, I had not been a subscriber until recently.

I met the people of the Abundant Earth Fiber Mill at StichesWest earlier this year.  They had just started working on their Modern Wool PodCast which is now being published.  As a former teacher, Lydia is an excellent storyteller.

The Soil to Soil PodCast produced by the Fibershed in San Geronimo, California is also quite good.  I learned about them through our own local Mountains and Plains Fibershed.

The Practical Farmgirl of Northwest Guardians is starting a Podcast.  The first episode is here.

The Dropout, produced by ABC Radio, is the story of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos.  This story is still very much in progress, so to listen to how they got to where they are today was interesting.

Do you listen to PodCasts? If so, what do you recommend and why?

Alpacamundo Monday: Mud Season

I've shared most of these photos on Facebook recently, but I think it's important to document the joy that Miss Wilma has while playing in the mud.  :-)

Wilma is currently about 15 mos old and seems to love the mud more than any dog that's come to us before her.  We shall see how good I am at predicting the future, but I suspect Wilma will be a life-long lover of mud season.