seek and ye shall...

this morning I went looking for these. They have been patiently hibernating for I won't say how many years, waiting for an opportunity to be spun. Back when I was doing more dyeing, I painted a series of cotton rovings and prepared to combine them á la Deb Menz. These are some already combined and ready for spinning. The rest of the painted rovings were closeby in a separate bag. After the natural green cotton weft project, I've decided that I want to spin more cotton, but I want more color in my life. The natural "green" reminds me too much of archaeological textiles that have been buried for thousands of years. Nice in a way, but. One of the few drawbacks to spinning your own cotton is that, unless I'm way behind, no-one has yet come up with a home mercerization process, and therefore colors on cotton homespun will forever alas be those duller unmercerized shades. Maybe if I were to get a tencel/cotton blend the colors would be brighter? And I could still spin on my charka?

On the way to finding these little balls of color, I came across (partial listing):

50/50 cotton/merino blend, some grey, some blue
some gorgeous honey colored tussah silk roving I forgot I had.
cotton/hemp blend
cotton/flax blends
balls of handdyed hemp roving; ditto linen roving
packages of silk handkerchiefs in vivid fuschia and brilliant blue
cotton/silk roving
an enormous silk bell (or do they call it a cap? I forget-- kind of conical shaped...)
cotton/flax/lyocell blend

And I didn't even open the wool bins. The point is this: dear friends, old and new, whom I may meet at MDSW, I do not need any more fiber to spin. I could work for two years and not spin up everything that I have. If you see me fondling some bundle of relatively ordinary roving with an acquisitive gleam, you may softly whisper "what's in that closet?" or "spun any silk lately?" You may remind me that I don't, in fact, spin or knit much wool because I don't wear that much wool. You may remind me that I have a full-time job. You may remind me that I honestly, seriously, very much want to travel this Christmas. (Out of state. Out of the country). You may remind me that it is not necessary to acquire to appreciate. In short, I truly don't want to purchase any fiber unless it is absolutely one of a kind and exceptional.

Things I might consider buying: Deb Menz' new book, if it's out yet. Cashmere, in a small quantity, because I've heard that it is short enough to be spun on a charka. Spinnable color blends by Deb (got some at SOAR last year and loved them). An exceptional spindle. Silk noil, if moderately priced, for color blending. 100% tencel because I don't think I have any and I'd like to try it. Not all of the above.

And I want to try out as many wheels as I can. I have an idea that there is a great wheel somewhere in my future. (in which the great is defining the type of wheel and not just the quality. Large wheel, small spindle, stand up and spin-- you know what I mean).

Comments

[Bill]

But, Carrie, you neeeeed more luscious fiber for your studio. It's such a small investment for a little piece of happiness. Who knows what fibers could be spun on your charka? And what will pad your weary head on the oh-so-long train ride home? I've heard, for instance, that qiviut makes an excellent travel pillow...

[June]

I like Bill! Carrie, I'll keep an eye on you, but I can't let you come back home empty handed, either! :)

[carrie]

I like Bill too! Though he has a tendency to be a bad influence on my wallet... I'm sure I'll get something, I just want it to be a rather unusual for me something...