So you’ve done your Hamsterkaufen (a great German word for accumulating and hoarding food and supplies), and you’ve run out of canned good space, or you are tired of not being able to see what is in the back of the shelf, here is an easy way to make your own stands. Three 2x4s, two in the back, one in the front, make great shelves for canned goods. If you don’t have 2×4 drops laying around in the garage, you might need to buy a 2×4 and cut to length using a hand saw or miter saw. No screws, no fasteners necessary!
I found this article by Kim Caulfield which talks about distaffs for fiber management and has images of ancient distaffs. I love my rosewood distaff, but it doesn’t work well with the rolags I’ve been making when I card fibers. I noticed that the pictures of the distaffs in the article are smaller and made of bronze or glass, so I decided to try to make one out of wire. I had gold colored 14 gauge aluminum wire in my stash and used about 24” of wire.
14 gauge wire and ring mandrel
I used the ring mandrel to form the loop at the end, then twisted the two strands of wire together in a spiral about 8” long. I originally thought that the ring was worn like a wedding ring, but it is really used to stabilize the distaff, so I made the loop bigger than my finger.
Forming the ring and starting the twist
At the end of the twist I needed something to catch the fibers. Most of the ancient examples have a little bird, I think because the beak is sharp and will catch in the fibers. Rather than a bird, I made a spiral. It works well to twist it into the end of a rolag, then gently wrap the rolag around the shaft.
Spiral end
This distaff works so well with the rolags! The aluminum is extremely light, and it holds the fibers well so I am less likely to catch errant fibers in the twist of my yarn. A few fibers do get caught in the twist of wire, but it is a simple matter to free them.
Wire ring distaff in use with rolag of carded alpaca fiber
In the picture above I have an extreme wrist angle because I had trouble getting a photograph showing the fiber, the yarn, and the ring. In practice the distaff makes it easier on my wrist than working without one.
I had to share with you the way the alpaca fleece stays in a blanket after it is shorn off. It brings me joy; hope it brightens your morning. Here is the video!
As I took the tray of sprouts out to the chickens I pulled some weeds as I went and added them to the tray. Some grass (ripped to less than 6” in length), and some henbit (purple flowers). Hello spring!
I took our dog for a walk and heard a terrible ruckus: cats yelling at the top of a tree. Not my tree, not my cats, but the Big Orange Tom is known to us. He is the king of the neighborhood and father to probably half the local cat population. We don’t know if anyone has given him a name other than Big Orange Tom, or if he has people he cuddles (he won’t let us near him). There is plenty of food to be had all along the street, so it is hard to tell if he has a permanent home.
He cornered a neighbor tortie and she was letting him know that she was not interested. He sauntered halfway down the tree and laid on a branch in a total jerk move of cat chess. We checked on them again on the return leg of the walk and they had both scampered, so no rescues needed.
