Tag: spinning

Fiber Study: Banana

On By CarynIn Craft

I assembled my banana fiber study page with yarn made from the stems of banana plants and purchased as combed top from Hearthside fibers.

Photo description: counterclockwise from top left: card from Hearthside fibers that reads “Banana top, Developed in New Guinea, about 8,000 BC, made from stem waste”, unspun fiber, knit swatch, woven swatch, crocheted swatch, sprang swatch, two ply yarn, and single ply yarn

Bananas are believed to have been first cultivated in New Guinea around 8,000 years ago and used for both fruit and fiber. The staple length of the combed top is long, about 8 inches, and the fiber is strong.

Photo description: banana combed top next to a ruler showing around an eight inch length

The fiber was pleasant to spin. I did challenge myself to spin thicker than my default spin, which resulted in more thickness variation, and also subsequently less length. I used up all my two ply yarn in my swatches, and had to piece together bits for my bobbin on the page because I forgot to set aside some at the beginning.

Photo description: same fiber page with the swatches flipped up to show the hand written descriptions

I made unadorned swatches to show the texture in the yarn that was also a result of the variations in thickness. My sprang swatch blocked well and has a lovely horizontal stretch.

Photo description: sprang swatch held expanded with my fingers to show the interlinking between the strands

I would absolutely spin banana fiber again, but I think next time, I would spin thin.

Fiber Study: Camel roving

On By CarynIn Craft
Photo description: fiber study page for camel roving from Oklahoma Mini Mill, (counterclockwise) with a card from the mill, a sample of roving, knit swatch, woven swatch with embroidery, crocheted round swatch, nålbound swatch, sprang swatch, two ply on a paper bobbin, and single ply on a paper bobbin

I assembled my camel roving fiber page! I quite like camel fiber; it is nice to spin, and soft. I would definitely work with the fiber again. In fact, I have two and a half balls of 2-ply yarn with which to plan a project. Exciting. I have also decided to add a synopsis of my blog posts about the fiber to the pages, so I can remember how I felt about the fiber. Now to figure out how to attach the printed pages. I tried some washi tape, which surprisingly doesn’t like card stock much. Hm.

Photo description: same page with the swatches lifted to reveal the hand written descriptions

The roving sample isn’t as perfect as it came from the mill; I liked spinning so much I forgot to leave a bit unspun. The fiber in the box was spun, and then I brushed it back open. Oops.

Uh oh

On By CarynIn Cats, Craft

Well, I thought Thor the cat was mostly interested in wool, but I found this former ball of linen yarn out of its bag and in another room from where I left it.

Photo description: loose tangle of orange colored hand spun linen yarn on the concrete floor in front of a closed door

Here is the culprit, looking pleased with himself on Griffin the dog’s bed.

Photo description: large gray tabby cat in a larger brown faux fur pet bed

I don’t believe he ingested any yarn, and I was able to wind the tangle back into a neat ball without any knots. The yarn ball is back in the project bag, and hung up where the cat can’t stick his head into it. Yeah, I love yarn and I love cats and cats love yarn. It is a timeless love triangle.

A bit of Sprang

On By CarynIn Craft

I used my small sprang loom to make a swatch with hand spun camel yarn.

Photo description: bent branch Sprang loom with interlinked 2 ply camel yarn nearly completed

To finish the middle, I tried a method I saw in a Sprang group that uses an Kitchner-like stitch to secure the warp threads. In knitting, the Kitchner stitch is a grafting method that takes the yarn in a winding path under and over two alternating strands at a time.

Photo description: binding off the Sprang by stitching

I finished the ends by pulling a section of yarn through the loops, doubling it, then wrapping the resulting circle with more yarn, forming a grommet.

Photo description: the end of the sprang swatch formed into a yarn grommet
Photo description: fresh off the loom unblocked Sprang swatch showing the tendency to twist
Photo description: same Sprang swatch laying flat after blocking (getting it wet and pinning it to a drying rack)
Photo description: Sprang swatch pulled horizontally open to show the interlinked warp strands

I quite like the grommet finish for the ends, I’m sure I’ll think of a use for the structure eventually. I don’t care for how messy the center stitches look when the fabric is stretched. I like the chain method less, though. Experiments will continue.

Weaving: camel

On By CarynIn Craft

I used my Clover mini loom to weave a swatch of my two ply hand spun camel yarn. I like to double the warp and I chose a plain weave this time. I start and end my weaving with a twined row to help keep the ends in place.

Photo description: 2 ply camel yarn warped onto a Clover mini loom

To finish, I used an embroidery needle to run the looped warp ends back through the weft on the back. I rather like the ribbed edge created by doing so. I added an embroidered daisy with a stem and leaf because the front looked rather plain. The daisy and leaf are done with a lazy daisy stitch, and the stem is a stem stitch, which amuses me.

Photo description: back of the small woven swatch showing the woven in loops and the back of the embroidery
Photo description: front of the small weaving swatch done in hand spun camel yarn with five petal daisy, stem, and leaf, Missy the dog looking on in the background

It is interesting that the color of the yarn looks different in each picture. In real life, the color is a soft brown quite like milk chocolate. I did try to color adjust the final picture. I suspect the radical difference in backgrounds is the primary suspect for the color shift.