Living the Home Life

Adventures in the Wool

OK, obviously I didn't forget you, because I'm back, with the same problem, but boy, has my life been interesting. On Saturday, I spent the entire day washing and drying a merino fleece in my kitchen.  I literally had a foot of wool on my counter.  It was a site to behold.  I never realized wool expands to fill all available space.  I somehow missed that law in physics...

Anyway, Sunday night, my father-in-law calls me up and says,"How would you like some free wool?'  Never one to pass up a deal, I say, "What breed?' "Oh, I don't know," he replies."Call her and find out."  So next day, I call this lady, who sounds elderly, and very sweet, and ask her about the wool.  She tells me she has a little of this, a little of that, to include Icelandic, Dorset, Jacobs.  All different breeds.  She has many fleeces, which she keeps under cover, and I can come take what I like, for FREE!

I jump in the car with a box of garbage bags, and rush right over there.  The proprieter of this sheep farm turns out to be a little old lady who had sheep in the living room, chickens in the basement, and dogs running everywhere chasing everything.  We hobble to the barn whre the fleeces are, and I kid you not, the whole room was FILLED chest high with wool, filthy dirty, with hay tossed on top.  I almost fell down.  The good news was, in spite of how dirty the fleeces were, under the mess was some nice stuff.  I picked around in the pile, brought home 2 garbage bags full, and with offers of sheep, horses, and as much dirty wool as I wanted, rushed home with my treasure.

I did wash some up, and after I got out manure, hay, oats, burrs, bugs, bug casings, etc.  It turned out to be nice soft, springy, chocolate brown wool.  The only problem is, it will take forever and a day to process all of this.  By the time I got it clean, it was very matted and felted up, so I probably spent at least an hour or two pulling it apart and fluffing it up, but now that the weather's nice.  I think it will be worth the work, because the really bad parts, like the initial washes, can be done in the yard. 

On a more productive note, I'm getting much better with the drop spindle.  I'm spinning up some of the merino that I dyed red, yellow, and orange into a fine single that I will turn into something - eventually.

Thanks for tuning in to the Wooly Adventure channel yet again.  See you soon.

Wool

{ 08:14, 2006-Mar-28 } { Posted by spinninggrandma }

We have wool here, too. And if I got more, I'd lose my happy home. I have about 10 t0 15 fleeces. I don't envy you washing them. That's the job I hate the most. Next to the carding - but my hands don't card well anymore. I am seriously considering sending them to a factory to be done into rovings.

Enjoy your brown - I love brown and black.

Processing Wool

{ 06:05, 2006-Apr-24 } { Posted by Greenberry }

I only enjoy processing for awhile, and then off it goes to someone else. I love seeing it go, because then there's space for more. Until it comes back!