Much better

That's what merino/bombyx is supposed to look like, as in Not Felted Rope. This stuff is like heaven. Can you see the predrafted stuff in the foreground and right side? It looks almost liquid.

Aaaah.

I am envisioning this as yarn for a scarf to go with my new jacket:

I had wanted to go with more saturated colors but I think this will work. Of course it will be more homogenous once it's spun. The other two bumps, both of which are similar to this but not quite the same, are available at the shop:

I've already started spinning it but I forgot to take a picture. Spinning silk is different from wool. It's got a very long staple and it's slippery. The first bit is a little sketchy, but I eventually got the hang of it.

I also updated the supply of Colonial Superwash sock yarn. I tried to re-create the Blue Jeans colorway of the other day but ended up with something significantly paler. It's nice, but more washed out.

Here are a couple of teasers:

Jam

Away

Hopeful:

Last week, the yarn sold out quickly so I started a mailing list. It's also available at A Piece of Vermont near the bottom any screen. If you would like email notification when the shop gets updated, sign up. You can always unsub.

It's been a very busy week in the dye studio and I'm loving it. Just me, the yarn, the colors, and the iPod. Paradise.

Tomorrow I'll be gone all day at the Shelburne Farms Harvest Festival. My friend Donna goes every year and has asked me to come along and spin and maybe sell some product. I thought I'd better bring some Real Vermonter yarn and fiber with me so I've been dyeing up a storm all week. I have no idea if I'll even sell any, but whatever's left will go up on the website next week.

By the way, if you do order any yarn or fiber today, I may not be able to ship it until Monday. As I said, I'll be gone tomorrow. And I won't have a car for a few days. Bye, bye car!

My lease is up and we can't pick up the new car (also a Matrix, ha) until Monday. Timing is everything.

I am breaking with recent tradition and not posting any Milo pictures today. Rest assured he is just as wild and crazy as ever. This morning, in one swift move, he jumped on my keyboard, pissed off the big cat, and retreated at top speed, spilling my coffee on the floor (barely missing the computer and the spinning wheel). All in under 3 seconds. Kids.

One last thing: This picture is all over the Internet now and for some reason I get an evil chuckle out of it every time I see it. Does that make me a bad person?

 

Comments

[michelle]

That silk looks so nice with your jacket. I'm still attempting to conquer spinning silk - I have the hardest time with it.

Have fun at the festival.

[kim]

That last picture is hilarious. There's something about kids not getting what they want (Christmas Story, anyone?) that is so funny in such a mean way.

[marianne]

yummy yummy fiber...
someday I will have enough room to set up my spinning wheel again... *dreams*

I've been loving the Milo pictures! what a rascal!

the no-pony pic made me snicker. it's the "not yours" box that does it. hehehehe.

[Katy]

I want to roll in that roving. ;)
And hey--we are hoping to test drive a Matrix this weekend. I am guessing that you loved yours, since you are leasing another; any thoughts to add?

[Sylvia]

Silk just takes a little practice, then it will flow. The trick is to use a lot of twist but not make a dense yarn. Your sliver looks beautifully aerated, so you're halfway there. If you draft and introduce twist so the fibers are not all aligned perfectly, then add a bit more twist than you would for wool, it works. The extra twist emphasizes the natural sheen and decreases pilling (yes, silk can pill).

[Andrea (noricum)]

If you are bad, then so am I.

[lisa]

I think that evil chuckle makes you a well-rounded mom!

[loribird]

No, you're not a bad person for chuckling at that (very funny) picture. Or if you are then *we* are, and I consider us to be in good company :D
Yes, the merino-silk top will make the perfect scarf! Isn't it just heaven to spin?

[Carol]

It looks really nice! A roving scarf! Why knit?;) That pic is adorable, poor kid-one day she'll take her revenge. Milo, Milo, Milo....

[Carla]

Yer killin me! That Shimmer roving is stunning. And you know, its very Georgia O'Keeffe-ish (and as you also know, I'm a sucker for anything Georgia! It shall be MINE!) The colors are very much like "Music Pink & Blue II", which hangs in my living room.
http://www.123posters.com/art/o402.htm

Anytime you wanna make a sale from me, just go look at some Georgia paintings, get busy with the dye then email me!

[trek]

Number Guy says, yes, but I say, no.

[janna]

I just bought the last skein of Away -- I was sure there would be none left, so I'm very, very happy. Because you know I need more yarn....

[Kathy]

That made me laugh too.

[Rhonda]

Nice roving...the felted stuff could probably be felted even tighter and then knit into a REALLY chunky scarf...or is it even too thick for that? Either that or you can sell it as purse handles by the yard...just an idea.
Keep the Milo pictures coming! He is so cute!

[Eunice]

drool...drool...must...not...buy...more...fiber.

drat. now i'm that girl who can't have more fiber. :)

[yvette]

Your silk is gorgeous, very cute with your new jacket.

[knittingphilistine]

I love that photo of roving-as-scarf! Who needs all those middle steps of actually spinning and knitting the fiber? Just throw it 'round your neck and go! ;)

It'll be a gorgeous scarf.

[Dorothy]

The top would make a great scarf just like that.

The no pony picture is hilarious!

[Helen]

Milo has competition http://tinyurl.com/2mkhxy

[julia fc]

It's the "not yours" insert on the pony picture that makes it truly evil. Hahaha. I love it too. We can be demented together.