Wah! Tour de Fleece crash and burn!

For crying out loud. Who decided that spinning in July was a good idea? I haven't spun a speck of fiber since Sunday. I spun in air conditioning, came home, put my wheel down and it's still sitting there with a partial bobbin of alpaca on it. We're going into 90+ temps for the next week and I don't have air conditioning. If I try to spin in this weather, I'm going to end up with more fiber on me than on the bobbin.

That's it! I'm throwing in the towel for another year.

I'm still being somewhat fibery by seeing alpacas at least several days a week. That has to count for something. Right?

Tour de Fleece - Day 5

It's a good thing I'm not actually riding in the Tour de France, because my recent progress would basically involve taking a two day picnic with my bike thrown behind the bushes. Today, I knit a few rows on my never-ending blue cardigan and moved my washed alpaca fiber on the drying rack. That's it. I think I moved my wheel over once so I could pick up my cat.

I solemnly swear I will spin at least one alpaca batt tomorrow.

Tour de Fleece - Day 4

I washed more fleece for the super secret project. I didn't get any spinning or carding done, but I had to work late this evening. I'll do more tomorrow!

Tour de Fleece - Day 3

I celebrated Independence Day by sleeping in, working on fiber stuff and watching movies. It was wonderful! I made a lot of progress today, even while being lazy.

* Finished carding the huge pile of blue roving that's been on the carder for ages. I dyed several pounds of various blues to test a recipe for a custom yarn order. I've been slowly carding it together into batts. I'll eventually add other stuff to the batts and perhaps use them for a larger project. Maybe I'll put them up for sale. Either way, the roving is finally out of the way and I can work on other things.

* Finished washing the sheep fleece! It was a 6.5 pound fleece, so it took a few batches. It's drying now and I'll eventually dye some of it. The rest will be combed and spun in the natural colors.

* Washed a small bit of alpaca fiber for my super secret project.

* Carded several bits of alpaca fiber for my super secret project, plus another batt from a fleece I'm processing.

* Spun two mini-skeins of alpaca for my super secret project. This is the first actual spinning I've done during the tour. Most of my goal is processing the fleeces in my stash, so we'll see how much finished yarn I end up with.

Washed fleece!



Carded alpaca fiber!



I actually spun yarn for the Tour de Fleece!

Tour de Fleece - Day 2

Washed more fleece. SO exciting, I can hardly stand it.

I also helped do chores on one alpaca farm and assisted on another while they gave shots, so my day was rather fibery. My own stash doesn't look much different, but fluff is my life, no matter how I am involved.

Tour de Fleece 2011

Tour de Fleece has begun! My goal this year is to finish processing the fleeces I have in the stash. Not spin. Process.

Day one is dedicated to washing the one fleece I bought this spring. It's a lovely Border Leicester x Wensleydale ewe fleece. I have a dark fleece from her lamb last year already in the stash. Her fleece is soaking in the tub right now and it's coming out a variety of grays from pale silver to pewter.





Prior to the Tour, I also did some weaving.





I knitted a baby blanket and a monkey.





I spun some yarn.



And played with a new alpaca cria at my friend's farm.



All in all, I've been a bit busy since my last post!