crimp

This afternoon a friend of mine brought me some wool from a sheep she sheared last month. I've never worked with raw fleece before. I'm thinking of spinning it on a drop spindle, something soft and not too tiny. I know the inclination is to wash before you spin, but I can't imagine how I would wash fleece in my condo, even though there's only three pounds of it. (The frustrations of living in a city. There is a reason for basements and utility tubs or at the very least multiple bathrooms.) Heretic that I am, I am considering spinning this andean style, in the grease. The friend who gave it to me recommended flicking the tips first to get the worst of the dirt and grass out. It seems ridiculous for me to take home raw wool right now, with so much else going on, but I was seduced by the crimp:

Isn't it gorgeous? I'm not a great spinner and I've always been a prepared-roving person, so I'm enchanted by the separate locks and regular undulations of this fiber. I hope I can do it justice.

Many thanks to everyone who commented on my last post-- it is great to have such nice friends. :)

Comments

[claudia]

If you've got a sink, you can wash that little bit of fleece. Do it in batches. Mesh bags (like for washing nylons) would help. Hot water soak with a little bit of Dawn, A gentle squeeze out and then a rinse with warm water would at least get the worst of the dirt out. Or, just a cold soak would get the dirt out, but keep the grease if that floats your boat.

[June]

Tut tut tut! I've washed POUNDS of fleece in apartments - even in Arlington, I washed everything in the kitchen sink! You can wash locks singly a la Margaret Stove (rubbing them underwater on a bar of Ivory soap), or separate larger amounts (1/4 lb) into little mesh baggies (unfurl a bath scrubbie and use hair ties to close the ends). You can use a salad spinner to extract the water in between washes/rinses! Remember that you have to wash it eventually - whether it's before or after spinning, the grease has got to go!