Word and Image

Posts tagged “Locks

It goes like this

The end point is spinning yarn. A sheep fleece is processed from shearing to spun yarn. You start by sorting and picking it. It has lanolin (grease) that needs to be washed clean. Along the way Colleen took locks to weave into a rug. I combed (carded) the rest and prepared it for spinning. Yarn is the product. Weaving comes next. I know way more than I ever intended to learn. It’s craft. In my wildest dreams I never expected to spin fiber. Fun? I sheepishly replied, “Yes!”


Redeemed

Finished!! Finally! It’s a sheepskin rug woven from the locks of the sheep. It’s been a labor of love. It has been on the loom forever – at least a couple years. Lately, Nutley lounges across the near finished rug. It was his spot… until now. Now that the rug is off the loom, what’s Nutley to do? Lost, he’s simply lost. Colleen rigged an interim solution. Peace reigns. Few enough people understand wool, fiber, and felting. No, my cats lounging on the drying fiber did not felt it. Pfewf!


Yar(w)n

In order to get yarn you start with a sheared fleece. The fleece is washed. It’s turned into roving. Then, it’s spun. After that you knit or weave. If you skip the spinning, you can felt. Felt? The would be pressing the fibers together until they form a sheet of fiber all on their own. Like art, this is the raw material for creating a myriad of things. I’m more interested in the process than in creating art. People like came to buy the raw materials. Sometimes it’s the journey more than the destination. It’s all here. If you know fiber – ie spin and weave or knit – then you recognized the various states I mention. Otherwise, enjoy the patterns and color.