Monday, July 15, 2013

Ramblings

Tour de Fleece Update


Finished spinning and plying Blain's fleece, that bag is now empty.

8 bobbins of wool from my wheel, 
8 bobbins of wool,
Take 2 down ply them around,
6 bobbins of wool from my wheel,
6 bobbins of wool,
Take 2 down ply them around,
4 bobbins of wool .......

Now I have that running thru your head???

Actually I had 8 and a half but decided to drop the half out of my lyrics.
So now I have 4 and a half skeins of yarn to wash.

Louet replacement part
Louet wheel is repaired.

Plied yarn from the Ashford bobbins onto the Louet's much larger bobbins.
The nice thing about a dedicated wheel to ply on, I don't have to keep taking the bobbin off and having to readjust the brake.  Once I get  a set up that works for me I don't have to change anything.

My Ashford is a double treadle, the Louet is a single, felt like for part of this tour I was working with a scooter, riding with one foot, pushing with the other.

Definitely prefer the double treadle, more relaxing and easier to get into a rhythm with the double treadle.

Next on my agenda is spinning Alan's fleece, 3  bobbins full so far, and hopefully I will be up to trying to spin an Angora fleece for Thursday's challenge.

It's still hot, hot and hot, now in the 18th consecutive day of temps over 100, many over 105 and several highs of 113.  That's not counting all the other days we have had so far this summer over 100.
Wonderful time of year to be playing with wool.

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Another job I would not want to do in the summer time, 
Wednesday the county was out oiling and graveling the roads.  
The building in the middle of the background is the old neighborhood schoolhouse from years ago.
Did I mention my pastures are dry.


This is one of the Fruitless Mulberry trees I planted in the sheep pasture to provide some shade, could not figure out what kind of bugs were eating the leaves and breaking the branches.
Big, big, bugs .... AKA Squirrels.


I have now sprayed the tree with some lemon and dish soap and water, hopefully it will not taste as good.

Back to the spinning wheel ........... more bobbins of wool on my wheel, more bobbins of wool.


9 comments:

  1. Hurray for the wheel part! And please don't get me started on songs in my head, LOL. And about the mulberry. Have you considered getting some silk worms?

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  2. Morning, happy your wheel is back working, beautiful wool......those naughty Squirrels, always into something their not supposed to be in, Blessings Francine.

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  3. oh, dastardly squirrels! here, the grasshoppers have been eating everything green like mad. i'm so sorry for your drought and heat! sounds like texas 2 summers ago... *sigh*

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  4. Love your spinning wheel but dang you for getting that song stuck in my head! LOL!!
    I hope the lemon and dish soap helps to deter those pesky tree rats!

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  5. What amazing output you're producing doing TdF! On your second fleece? Wow!

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  6. Bugs, gophers, squirrels and heat. Tell me, again, why I'm suppose to like Summer?

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  7. I can't believe you have done all that spinning in that heat! You should get a gold medal for that. I would bet the squirrels are desperate for something to eat - that drought has to make it tough on everyone.

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  8. Your spinning is impressive! So glad you got your repair part.
    Last year we looked almost as dry as you do now. From 2002 until winter of 2010 we were wicked dry. It snowed that winter. The following spring it rained. And rained. And rained. After the flood water receded we had grass. Then last year was dry. And almost this year. Go Figure.

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  9. Duh, why have I not thought to have a plying wheel for big projects. What a brain :-/. You have had a great Tour! I am so happy for you :-D.

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