fiber people are notorious enablers.   it's a well known fact.
last winter,  several of us, at the cabin,  got each other excited about wool combing.   soon,  combs were purchased and techniques were learned and much oooohing and ahhhhing was occurring.    and soon after that,  mountains of combing waste started to pile up.

now,  combing 'waste' is a bit of a misleading term.     combing aligns the longer fibers from the fleece,  and removes the shorter fibers and noils.   the long fibers are a dream to spin into what is known as a 'worsted yarn'.    worsted yarn has a very smooth hand and when knitted shows stitch definition very well.   it is also excellent for weaving a smooth fabric which shows pattern definition well.      but the waste,  the shorter fibers and noils,  are able to be spun into a lofty and textured (at least more textured than worsted yarn) yarn known as 'woolen yarn'.   because of its loft,  it's excellent for knitting or weaving where you want to trap lots of air, making for a warmer garment.

so, we took a small mountain of accumulated combing waste out to Stramba Farms Fiber Mill where we picked it, carded it and made it into roving.

this batch was a blend of two diffeernt black finn fleeces from Lisel's flock of rare breed black finnsheep,  and a little white from a local border leicester.   the variation of  color is gorgeous--from a distance it's a medium gray, but close up there is streaking and swirling of the different grays and white.

we have around a pound of this batch.   it's been listed on etsy (see link in the sidebar),  and we'll have some at the cabin in the next week or so.

students!

I had a spinning student a week and a half ago, or so, here at the cabin.  i am a bit tardy,  but i wanted to share photos so she can snag them for herself,  and just because.  :-)

she'd had a lesson a while back,  and wanted to brush up on her skills.   her drafting was beautiful.  not much to brush up there.

the yarn is even and consistent.  she's doing a great job.  :-)

keeping that pesky treadle going....the bane of most every new spinner....





whether you are a beginning spinner or more experience but wanting to learn new spinning skills and techniques,  we have volunteers who would be happy to work with you.   we have several different types of wheels available for learning, or bring your own,  and drop spindles are an option too.    we have a variety of spinning fiber available for purchase,  or you can bring your own.  :-)

to contact us,  leave a comment here,  or email us at weaversofharmony @ gmail.com (without the spaces).

more overshot :-)

gorgeous white on white with a little sparkle.....

red and green for the holidays,  also with a little sparkle...

another finished table runner/dresser scarf.   :-)

Darn Yarn Needles and Thread: Shopping small and small talk

 Today Lisa at Darn Yarn who is just down the road from us, has posted some thoughts which have been on my mind as well.   Thank you,  Lisa.  :-)

Darn Yarn Needles and Thread: Shopping small and small talk: This week the blog is going to be a bit cranky...because I'm a bit cranky.  First of all, the weather forecast said 0%, I repeat 0%, cha...

Weaving Overshot

Overshot is a weave structure which may date back to ancient Persia, although there isn't a lot of documentation pointing to its origins.   It earned it's place in history early in colonial America, though, when it became fashionable for coverlets (also known as coverlids) which were used as a combination blanket and beadspread.   The weaving of overshot coverlets remained popular through the 18th and 19th centuries, with various patterns being popular in various parts of this country.   After the advent of the Jaquard loom, more complicated patterns, often depicting floral motifs or eagles, gained in popularity,  but the simpler overshot patterns which could be produced at home on a 4 shaft loom remained popular among home weavers,  particularly in Appalachia. 

Overshot is a weave structure consisting of a pattern yarn which skips (overshoots) designated warp threads to create various designs.   Between each row of pattern yarn there is a thinner 'tabby' yarn which is woven in tabby (plain weave--over one warp thread and under the next) which holds the pattern threads in place.  Traditionally, the tabby ground would be woven of handspun linen, or later in mill spun cotton once it became easily available,  in it's natural color or bleached white.   The pattern yarn was usually wool,  most often hand spun and dyed.    Most often the pattern yarn was dyed with natural dyes--dark blue from indigo or logwood,  red from madder or cochineal, or brown from walnut hulls being most common.

I became interested in traditional overshot patterns when i was learning to weave in the late 1970's.  Recently several other volunteers here at the cabin became interested as well.   There is currently a flurry of overshot weaving going on in a variety of patterns and materials--from more traditional materials and colors to easy care modern acrylics in decorator and even holiday colors.   :-)  We are weaving smaller projects than coverlets, though.  Most of our recent overshot projects have been intended as table runners or dresser scarves,  and there has been discussion of shawls, scarves and bags as well.    Stop by and see what we're up to.   :-)

a little help from my friends....

an extra hand while threading the heddles is a very good thing :-)

spending the day at the cabin....

a lovely 'pre-haircut' photo :)