Mohair Glitter Yarn

More of the mohair from James' farm in Donegal.  Washed using really hot water and lots of detergent and then dyed.  I didn't find it very easy to get information about dying mohair but one site said not to boil it as it spoils the lustre and that it takes the dye easily.  I kept the water just under the boil but if I wanted an even dye it would be necessary to soak the fibre really thoroughly before putting it into the dye pot.  I wanted different shades of turquoise so it didn't matter that some was almost white.  I then spun two bobbins of 25 grams and plied them with a glitter yarn.  This is 50 grams and about 140 yards.

I am selling the carded batts on Etsy https://www.etsy.com/ie/listing/544444850/mohair-hand-dyed-and-hand-carded-batts?ref=shop_home_active_1

Wensleydale Locks

The summer has not been easy here in Sligo.  Official records recorded 29 wet days in August not exactly difficult to work out how wet that was.  I know we are lucky compared to many.  we had no floods but try to dry wool!  The summer should be the time when most of the wool gets washed and dried ready to work on over the winter.  My wool shed is full of fleece waiting to be washed and most of what I have done has had to be dried indoors.  Even taking photos can be difficult.  These I took this morning while the sun is out but it was a little early.  A bunch of Wensleydale locks I dyed last week.
Very soon I hope to be in my new workshop which I am looking forward to.  Attached to our house, the wool shed just outside and all my washing drying all in one place.  I will have a little more space too.

Dyeing with Nettles

This time of the year nettles are freely available and they give lovely fast colours.  Here I  have used two different mordants.  Alum with cream of tartar, to give a golden yellow and copper to give dark green. I think nettles need more recognition as a dye plant as they are one of the easiest to use

Knitted Garment in Irish Mohair

I knitted this wee cardigan using the mohair yarn and size 4 mm needles.  To fit a 6 month old baby and thanks Maria for the lovely buttons they are just the job.  I needed just over 50 grams of yarn to complete the cardigan.  The is finish ultra soft and perfect for baby and childrens clothes

Mohair from Irish Angora Goats

I am working in partnership with Strongs Pedigree Angora Goats.  I am processing the fleece and James is farming the goats in Co. Donegal.  We think they are the only angora goats in Southern Ireland. 
I found it difficult to find out much about processing the wool , only that it needs to be washed using very hot water and lots of detergent.  Rinsed in very hot water as well.  The grease needs to be removed .   I have put up a before washing and after picking photo and produces clouds of white fiber when ready to be carded,  starting with the filthy wool that is in the first photo.
Just to make it clear,  mohair comes from Angora goats, angora from Angora rabbits and Cashmere from the under coat of goats from Kashmir.
I will post some photos of the finished yarn

BlueFaced Leicester Batts

BFL batts that I have processed from the fleece.  A slow but very worthwhile job as they are so soft.  My fibre stash is getting out of hand so I must try and sell some.  I have used some of this fleece to nunno felt and the finished scarf is so so soft.  Listed on Etsy
https://www.etsy.com/ie/listing/521228858/bfl-hand-dyed-hand-spun-batts-50-grams?ref=shop_home_active_1

Needle Felted Butterflies

Something new, needle felted butterflies.  These are needle felted onto a pipe cleaner body with wire support in their wings and antennae.  I then gave them little bead eyes.  Each one has a  broachclip on the back.  Fun to make as I can choose any combination of colours and locks.  Sometimes the more random ones work the best.  I first thought of making them in April and now have managed to find the right wire and a good video on line to help me.

Nuno Felt Scarf

Silk scarf felted on both sides with Wensleydale cross and Wensleydale locks. One problem I have doing these scarves is to find a table long enough.   The shrinkage during felting means they have to be very long to start with.  I put wool on both sides as I hate a scarf with a back and front.  This means it takes a lot longer and needs more care to start with

Lanky Ladies

Ages since I have made any of these.  This one is a little more sophisticated than the ones I did before. She is made on an armature so that you can position her.  She sits well but will not stand and has long legs and arms,  hence the name.  Little yellow buttons on her dress and matching bag and shoes

Yarn from The Brazil Wood Batts

Lovely lofty yarn from the Romney Fleece.  I will not be using Brazil Wood again as I have discovered that it is a protected tree

Carded Batts of the Brazilwool dyed Romney Fleece

Brazilwood Dyed Fleece

Romney fleece dyed using Brazilwood.  I used alum and cream of Tartar to mordant the fleece first. Then used some chalk in the dye pot with the hope of getting a red colour.  This lovely copper orange colour is the result.  Rather uneven dye which is probably because there was a lot of lanolin in the fleece.  I washed the fleece using ferment method which does not remove the lanolin

Selection of Yarns, Soay, Grey and Jacob

I have just set the spin on all these yarns today.
Left, is Soay,  a lovely natural brown fleece that is really soft as this was all the under coat of the sheep.  Soay are an ancient breed that sheds its fleece and this has to be gathered off the ground making it difficult to get and difficult to clean!
Middle, is a natural grey fleece that I have mixed with hand dyed silk noil.  I am knitting a chunky cardigan for myself with this.
Right,  pure Jacob that I have over dyed with Gaywool Raspberry.  This is a very effective way to produce Jacob. There is only a certain amount that you can do with grey wool but this brings Jacob into a new dimension giving the yarn a natural heathered look

Weaving Yarn

These yarns are spun from my hand combed pure Wensleydale tops giving a lovely worsted yarn that is very suitable to weave with.  These yarns are about 4 ply and very strong but soft.  They look like silk and I am going to use them to make scarves.  Small quantities for my rigid heddle loom.  Spinning with my hand combed tops is a joy.  Fast and easy, just keep your hands well apart because of the long fibres and use a short draw. 

Suitable to spin into a very fine yarn and of course there is nothing to stop you knitting with them

My New Workshop

This is my new workshop.  Small but all that I need .  It is in the Markree Home Farm complex which is a group of self catering cottages in the renovated farm yard at Markree Castle.  I have taken the smallest which basically is a room with a bathroom.  Removed the bed and put in my big table (great for felting)  My shelves,  all my roving at a glance, and of course my spinning wheels  and I have a small stove and fridge.  Here I can run small, small in numbers, workshops.   I can walk from my house to get to work, collect my dye plants outside the door, almost. Callers are welcome, just check I am at home via phone 086 8198543. I am there most days

Weaving on a Rigid Heddle Loom

Christmas has come very early to my house, with the arrival of this weaving loom.  Ryan very kindly put it together, not as easy as it first appeared and then I was straight into using it.  This is my first piece, a small table runner.   I used natural Galway yarn and then over dyed natural grey yarn that is a little too scratchy to wear.  Delighted with the effect and now to get more items made and to become more skilled

A Flecked Yarn

I am always trying out new ideas and this is the latest.  I have been asked to produce a 'flecked' yarn and after a few different ideas this is the best I can do.  This is natural black Zwartbles wool and the coloured batts are hand dyed silk noil.  I dyed the silk in a steamer a bright turquoise and pale brown.  It is difficult to get the dye to saturate the silk because the silk is like a blop of papier mache.   When it was dry I then carded it several times to separate the fibres. 

Then carded it into the Zwartbles fibre to make this yarn.

Hopefully I will improve it with practice.  

Hand Carding in the Garden

Carding wool is a very dusty job and when I am doing it I have to wear a substantial face mask to protect me from the dust and tiny wool fibres that are in the air.  I feel like someone doing a dangerous scientific experiment and all I am working with is wool!

This afternoon the weather was perfect for doing a few hours in the garden with just enough of a breeze to blow the dust away and not too much so my wool was not flying around the garden.   

This is a lovely grey fleece that I got from a farmer in Skreen.  It is so clean and soft it is a pleasure to work with.  Some of it is heading to Germany next week.

Before I worked with this fleece I carded some Alpaca,  Alpaca is so dusty to work with.  At the moment  I am carding a black fleece and I think that this Alpaca was out in a shower and then had a dust bath before she was shorn the fleece is so dusty that it is almost brown rather than black until I wash it after spinning.

Blue Faced Leicester Locks

A custom order for some B.F.L.  locks in shades of blue and purple. 

This fleece is one that a local farmer had thrown in the back of his shed.  He thought it was useless but it is perfect for locks as they are very fine and tightly curled.  It is very dirty but washes out fairly well.  The tight, fine curls are almost impossible to process to spin with as they knot up into tiny balls but it is lovely as locks.  They separate out easily but I only sell like this as I do not want to spoil the lock definition.

I dye them in lots of about 50 to 60 grams

Yarn from Dog Hair

 I have been a bit quiet recently,  not for lack of work with my wool but because I was having camera issues.   Back in action again.  This yarn is spun from Spitz dog hair which I blended with a little silk and some angora rabbit.  I spun it woollen and as a result it is very soft and has a lovely halo.   At the moment I am knitting it to make a cardigan for the dog owner's grandchild which is due early next year