Yarn Stash Development?
I’ve been seriously enjoying myself with this spinning thing these last few days. I had a lovely morbid day dyeing with my Mam last week and finishing the first square of my sister’s afghan (known familiarly as “a hug”) and starting the second. Then on Friday evening I found some instructions for dyeing with jelly-crystals so found some protein-based yarn (i.e. wool – the technique doesn’t work on plant fibres apparently).
So over the weekend I enjoyed myself dyeing some wool with jelly.
The Americans apparently have a product called “Kool-Aid” which is used not only for dyeing wool, but dyeing hair too. I had always thought that it was a rather neat idea. Now I know just how much fun it is, although I am really only interested in dyeing yarn really odd colours. There is a certain bizarre satisfaction in converting such chemically enhanced foodstuffs to a subversive creativity. It appeals to my sense of the seriously ridiculous.

Then today I sloped off to another spinning group. I’m rapidly learning that there are lots more of these crafty type associations lurking in strange corners around this city. First of all I learnt a new way to prepare my wool – now my animals will have to wait to be groomed until I can buy them a new slicker brush *g*. Then I got the address for a shop that sells wool for spinning. I am going to be in hog-heaven in a few weeks!
I had been thinking that my sibling’s afghan would be a little boring with just the white merino that I had planned on using for it, then I thought that an edging in a different colour would be nice – especially if that colour was an equally natural coloured wool. Not coloured with dye, but what I am learning is called a ‘moorit’ wool. This is wool from the proverbial ‘black sheep’ that have generally been weeded out of the national flocks because the fleece they produce is already coloured in beautiful shades of chocolate or grey or even blonde and all the shades in between. I am now seriously considering the inclusion of some moorit into this afghan I am making. The question is, how much raw fleece do I purchase to do the job, and is it better to over buy for one project because then I will “always have a bit left over”

Mmmmm, I can feel the early stirrings of a fibre stash beginning …