The Bump to My Grind

Hello All,

Now that the spring show season is over, Jenn and I regroup, relax, and re-stock.  I was able, for the first time, to purchase what is called a "bump" from our fiber supplier.  This is 22 POUNDS of fluffy, soft, wonderfulness.  I chose BFl for my first bump.  Easy to dye, beautiful to spin and well liked by our customers.

I thought I would share my babies, first pictures.....  Here she is fresh from the postman.  I honestly thought it was gonna be a HUGE box, but alas, no it was a normal/average sized container.

See what I mean, it's sitting in the dry sink so it can't run away as I put out its guts, normal in size.  No fork lift needed to drop this guy off.



I started breaking down this bad boy into 4 ounce balls....... After about  5 pounds and not seeing a dent in the box, I stopped for the evening.  The rest of the bump was placed in it's own snug rubbermaid container to wait until I needed more.

I was attempting to clean stuff up in expectation of my new arrival, remember I was thinking this was gonna be HUGE.  Look how tidy and all the empty bins.....  Since this picture was taken I have removed the gray cabinet (left hand side of the picture) and moved it to another room,  to give myself space for another countertop.  Jenn and I are looking at doing some wholesale, and I wanted to make sure I had enough room to dye in bulk.  Sweet huh? 

Thanks for looking at my baby's pictures ;)
Happy Spinning
DD

Spinning to Knit!!!

Hello All!

 

We have been spinnning like crazy for this kit.  Let me give you some back ground on what I've been doing.

 

This is the green section of my scarf kit.  I've ripped it into sections and laid them out from darkest to lightest.

 

Then I stack them into a large plastic bag from darkest to lightest.  If I can keep them tidy this should lead to a seemless gradiation of color.  Should.......

The same thing was done with the bright pink.  I was kicking myself all thru this process.  See, I threw together this kit at the last minute.  I was so busy dyeing for everyone else I forgot I needed to spin one also.  SO, I was not very careful to get the gradients smooth and there was A LOT of mottling.

 

Normally I don't mind mottling.......it leads to a fantastically tonal yarn, BUT in this instance I needed clean clear non-mottled colors.  Bummer......  That's what I get for rushing the job.......

The yarn singles themselves came out OK.  There was more middle/medium color than anything else.  Because I had to pull the roving apart alot more than normal to get the same colors together.  After the singles were spun, clockwise, I plyed the singles in a Chain Ply, or Navajo Ply, counter-clockwise.

Navajo Plying is the greatest plying technique I've learned.  It allows you to keep colors clean, if that is what your going for, and to make a fluffy well spun 3 ply yarn from just one bobbin.  Don't get me wrong, I love using my lazy kate, my youngest son made it for me.  It stacks one on top of the other and there are tension nuts to keep the yarns from getting tangled.  He even stained the base to match my wheel.  Its just lovely, BUT working from one bobbin to another gives me the freedom of having multiple projects going at once.  Instant gratification and all that.

Here is the green all spun up. Not sure if you can see with this picture how the gradient is heavier on one end.  It's still pretty and soft and squishy and came out to be a little bit bigger than a large DK.  That's a big step for me.  I have difficulty getting the single small enough so that when I 3 ply it, it's not HUGE.  I think it will look beautiful against the bright pink yarn.

OK next step is knitting!!!!! 

Happy Spinning.
DD

Hi All!

It's Tuesday and here are some of the new stuff I'm listing in the shop.  Ususally I don't promote in the blog, but I'm short on time this week. Sorry

 

 

Maelstrom, Merino Wool.  So very cool!!  Will make a killer yarn or felted scarf.

 Zeus, Merino Wool, new colorway.  The colors are a bit deeperr than in the pictures.  I really gotta get a new camera.  Santa?????

Cabbage Rose, Merino Wool.  Soft and subtle the perfect christmas colors.  Red, white and a hint of tan to ground it.

Equinox, Merino Silk Blend.  Deep gold in a continuous gradient out to a dark blue.  Again, damn camera.

Hope you have seen something you'll love.  See you next week.
Happy Spinning,
DD

Fun with Dye

Hello all,

I've been working with my techniques and my mixing.  Seems like my recipe cards are a little old school and need to be updated.  I've been going thru my colorways, slowly, and checking on my dye mixes and seeing if they are easily expandable for more fiber.  I dye in multiples of two right now.  Two 4 ounce hanks of fiber.  For that I have my recipe card......but Jenn is looking at coming up and I want to be able to mix the specific dyes in large enough amounts to cover the pounds of fiber we will be working with.   I don't want to fall short on a dye lot, you can try to re-mix a dye to match, it'll be close but it'll never be exact.

This is what the fiber looks like after wetting and pouring on the dyes and then sprinkled with vinegar and wrapped in plastic wrap.
Dyes blended and placed in their bowls with the appropriate amount of water.





Then it's flipped over and gently manipulated to get the dyes to "chat" , the cool color changes you get where the dyes marry is where the magic happens.  I sue a soft roller and a tilt board, to get my dyes to move about without beginning the felting process.

Mixing bowls are emply and the dyes have merged.  This is a "camo" pour technique.  Named because.........yes! it looks like camoflage. 

Other side, I've purposfully left white patches, they won't stay white once the package goes into the steamer.  The colors will wick over and fill the spot with a interesting translucent shading.

All done!  Steamed and hung out to dry.  I use an old salad spinner to gently take out the extra water.  It helps it puff back up to its original fluffiness.

See where the white has been invaded by the color.....this picture sucks.   The pales portions are a golden tan.  The black broke into a steely dark blue. 

This is the picture that went into the shop.

Soft, fluffy and fantastic color variances.

Mmmmmm, see where the rust and the black meet.........yum!

Thanks for stopping by and taking a quick trip into the dyeing of this fiber.  It's a BFL Silk mix called Jasper and you can find it in our shop.

I'd love to try and answer some of your dyeing questions.  Feel free to comment on this blog or e-mail me at juneprycefiberarts@yahoo.com

Happy Spinning!
DD

And What are you Wearing......?

Hello All!
I have been experienceing a wee bit of split personallity disorder lately. You see when I go to work at my "Day Job" I have to dress in regular office standard. No Jeans....No high sandals....no boobs falling out of your shirt.........You know, the "standard".

Well where I work at my "Night Job" I'm allowed to be a bit more relaxed.......

Here I am getting ready for my preferred job. You can see right off the required glass of wine. No wait, actually its the comfortable shoes that are required. OK OK, I know I sound old and I guess I am but I couldn't do half as much as I do in that workroom without those Klogs. A throwback from when I cooked (food) these shoes ROCK!!!!! No slippage, rubber (no splatter worries here), and com..fort..a...ble. Can't beat them. The pants are sweats, now don't get the wrong idea, I'm not working from home to be a slob. But in some circumstances you need to protect your nice clothes and wear a...... a...... ...a....uniform of sorts. The splatter dosen't happen offen, but when it does it is usually the bottom falling out of one of the dye jars. Ohhh, that stuff goes everywhere. The heat and cool weakens all of the glass, so you gotta expect it. Then there is "The Climb". My workroom is in the basement, the stovetop and steamer are in the kitchen, on the first floor. My hot pads can simmer water but that's about it. Great for mixing dye but dosen't work when heat setting the dye. So On a good day, up and down I go, often.

I look happy and ready to go right? As you see my Apron is KEY!!! My Sister Jenn purchased it from Magickal Stitches on Etsy. What a creation. I love this thing! Gorgeous colors and then it has, like, this vinyl coating. Sorta like the outer covering on a picnic table cloth. Fuzzy inside but impervious to spills on the outside.

Now remember this is the BASEMENT we are talking about. During the winter it rocked! The wood stove and my "warming" room is down there. But during the Spring-Summer it is butt cold. All of the cool winter/spring air left in the house is settling down into the natural air conditioner. Mid-Summer I will be regaleing you with the bonuses of having your work space in the basement, but for now I'm dealing with frost bite. So I have to put on multiple layers. A sports bra - remember the stair climbing! - a comfy shirt - willing or already splatt kissed - and either a sweater or a demin overshirt. this keeps off the chill and allows me to continue to function as my core temperature plummets........... Ok that was my ploy to darling hubby for a space heater, ignore me.....Back on track.

We are getting close to the top. Funky earings. Yes, I dress like a scrub for work but I can still express my unique/moodiness with my jewelry. Yes well..earrings really anything else gets in the way. These are also earings that I LOVE but am too chicken to got out in public with them on. They inspire me. Different earings give me different attitudes......Different works of art. Sometimes I'll wear the latest shawl pin that I'm in love with. I play with fimo too. But that is for another day.

Well, I hope this gives you a small glimpse into who I am and makes you smile.


"Don't cry because it is over, smile because it happened."
-Dr. Seuss

What A Weekend!

Hello All!



We made it thru another weekend at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. I just love going. I met some extraordinary people, Laurie and her daughter, Rem, Ellen and Marge. All of whom asked as their second question - do you have a Ravelry name? We sat in the shade, all strangers, sharing our fiber finds, knitting mishaps and upcoming projects. Such wonderful open people -the sisterhood of the wool.



The crowds, the classes, the food, THE FIBER! It was everywhere you looked. After my fiber diet, I was starved and can honestly say I went a bit nuts. Binged, would be the correct parlayance.



My trip down was bad, 6 hours in a Buick Park Avenue (OLD ONE) with no radio. Yup that is what I said, no radio, no CD, no cassette tape, no nothing!!! I spent the entire time talking or singing to myself. Thank god, most of the people passing me probably thought I was on the phone. Oh yes, and pass me they did, you see because to get the best gas mileage on such a long trip, I was required to go no faster that 70 mph. So there I am, grey haired, sunglasses, trying to see over the wheel (because the seat goes back to the lowest setting after about and hour and you have to re-set it) griping the wheel ( because this huge car floats all over the road), with a spinning wheeel and bags of fiber strapped in the back seat like precious children, talking to myself. Oh yes, I was quite a sight.




We went, like last year, with a group of like minded women, 6 total. That is an experience in itself. The weather was perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. Definately not the steam bath of last year. I took two classes. One with Maggie Casey on Making My Old Wheel Do New Tricks, and any one who read this knows that this is my new wheel and any tricks I could learn would help!
I learned tons!!! What a wonderful lady. I know all sorts of things to tweak on my wheel to get it to make the yarns I'm going for. I evenspun some thin stuff! I was the only one in the class interested in fat singles. Most of the other women were working on fine, cobwebby stuff.




My Second class (on Sunday) was with Jacey Boggs and was Thick and Thin and Coils. If I had not taken the class with Maggie I would have been so far out of my league. Jacey is a fun teacher. By the end of the class I was able to produce a fairly consistent thick and thin and was working on plying (!!!) my coils. Again, I learned masses. Jacey has a way of chanting the steps to help you not only keep your rythm but to remember the steps.

Jacey was very nice to pose for this picture.

Fiber, Fiber everywhere!

Look at all the beautiful colors!

mmm Merino Tencel!

Tess' yarns - Love this vendor!

This is what the workroom looked like when I got home........

Starting from the back of the work table: a box from paradise fibers with merino (2 lbs) and merino-tencel (2.5 lbs), sitting on top of that box is the silk hankies (3 pkg) I bought, and in the paper bag is superfine alpaca (1.5 lbs) and alpaca/angora (1.5lbs) the baskets are left over from the Yarn crawl, I need to find a place for them to live. The smaller box is from Gritty Knits and is merino-tencel (3lbs) and merino (1 lb) and a HUGE hank of foot fetish undyed stuff! Snuggled in there are 16 hanks of Aslan Trends undyed yarn for me to work with for my up-coming TRUNK SHOW at Fresh Purls (more to come on that). The two plastic wrapped balls are Romney (2 lbs) and that ginormous bag inthe sink is some dyed and undyed fleece from my mothers sheep - yes VERY old - with two beautiful hand carding paddles. So when I have some down time (!!!!!) I'm going to try to card some of the fleece. What is that 15 pounds????? Heaven

Oh yea almost forgot the SCORE I made a Kraemer with that fat Bear Creek yarn. It's that brown stuff left hand corner of this picture. I can't wait to overdye it!

OK this is the workroom now, everything put away, everything inventoried and all ready to get to work. We started our Merino Fiber Club this month, I have some custom colorwork to do and get in the mail by Monday. No worries, I have fiber and I couldn't be happier!!!



Comming soon some up dates on the Trunk Show and I'm hoping to have a tutorial up on dyeing. For any of you in the Rhode Island area, I'm teaching a class about dyeing on June 4th if you are interested there are two spots left........



Happy handcrafting!