Happy

These are skeins of yarn I've spun up from some fiber blending fun I've had since summer 2013. They are spun as  single  strands that would typically be respun with at least one other strand, a process called plying that yields 2-ply, 3-ply, or X-ply depending on how many strands are plied (twisted) together. These were so nice as single strand yarn, known as "singles," that I decided to leave them as is and not ply them. I will use them for freestyle weaving projects such as wall hangings, scarves, and shawls, but not soon. I love looking at these skeins just the way they are. The colors and textures  make me happy. I want to enjoy them like this for a while before I do anything else with them.

Yes!

I found it! After looking for days for the orange and green singles yarn, I found it while I was looking for something else--of course.











These photos really don't do justice to the colors in this blend. The photo below is a little more accurate. It is really pretty. While I was spinning it, I frequently thought of the term "day glow" that was popular for fluorescent colors back in the day (was that the '70's?). I still use it, but my kids think I'm nuts whenever I refer to something like "day glow orange." I don't believe that the folks at the fiber shop had given the color blend a name, so maybe I'll just call this yarn "Day Glow."





I think I'd like to add a little more twist, so before I ply the other two balls, I might redo the two that I've already plied. It just seems that it could use a little more twist. I plied these two balls while I was sitting out in the twilight watching the rabbits in their play pens. The light was not great and what I saw in the light of day the next morning seemed a little loosely plied. I've found that when I knit with yarn with this amount of twist, it seems to split easier, which is very annoying. In the long run, the time it will take to add a little more twist will make up for the annoyance when I start knitting with it.



I thought I'd leave you with this photo of a medley from the herb garden. I keep a little jar on the table on the front porch and put in whatever strikes my fancy. Today we have a little basil, fennel, zinnias, petunias, and surprise lilies. Although my herb garden isn't what it once was because I do not put the time into it that I did a few years ago, the lovely and fragrant things that come out of it always give me a smile and a source for Nature's art.

More Tour de Fleece

This is some green and orange roving that I got at a favorite fiber shop last year. I got it all spun up into singles, but had not done anything else with it. One of my Tour de Fleece goals is to get it plied. I love the mix of colors in this blend. It is a generic wool blend that was done on site at the shop, so the quantity is limited. One of the things that I enjoyed about it is that there are many more colors blended into the roving than just the orange and green. As I spun, I got a little surprise now and then when a hot pink, hot orange, some black, and various other colors would pop up. It has given the yarn more dimension and interest. I plan to start plying it tonight. We'll see how it works up.








I have chosen this lovely aqua wool carded roving, from the same fiber shop, for my spindle spinning during the Tour. I love this color. It makes me think of the ocean or of a rich aquamarine gemstone. It is really nice to spin, too!