On to May...

Right. Time to update the old blog. It's been languishing the past, oh, 4 months. Now that I am officially selling handspun yarn, handknit items, and soon--carded batts of fiber, I think it's time to dust off the blog.

About three months ago I purchased two adorable French Angora bunnies. A silver-gray doe (Nuit Noire), and a light cream-color buck, Primo Torto. Over the past months I've noticed that they have developed personalities. Nuit (I call her New-ee) is a bit timid, but will always come right up to the door to say hi to me. Torto is very gregarious. He hops right up to the door before I even unlatch it, and insists that I rub his nose/head before anything else occurs. They are about 3/4 through their first fiber shedding, and I've been combing it versus shearing it. As a handspinner, I find sheared bunny fiber tends to have coarse ends where cut. Combing or brushing ensures a better spinning fiber.

French Angora bunnies are smaller than the English/Giant breeds, and therefore have less yearly fiber yield. However, I think I'm going to get at least one, as the fiber yield can be anywhere from 1-3 lbs per year--which is 2-3x more than FA yield.

I finally got new yarns and some knitted hats on my etsy site. Even made 2 sales in the past week! I'm very excited, as I hope this leads to Vtknitboy on Etsy becoming a larger part of my life.

Will try to post more often, as I will be listing yarn, knitwear, and batts (to spin) later!

Cheers!

Alpaca Bunny Smackdown...the results!

First, I'm on Etsy! (My handspun yarn is finally available for you to purchase!) Etsy is a wonderful site where people can buy or sell items that have some aspect of handmade to the products. I'm mostly interested in spinning fiber (to buy and to sell), and I have a lot of items to list. Right now I have four items listed, with about 100+ to go! Please visit me at Vtknitboy on Etsy! -->click here.

Smackdown '09
I'm not sure how to start this post. I woke up one morning to see a bunch of tweets on my tweetdeck (a free program that makes following lots of people on Twitter easier) mentioning me, @vtknitboy! It seems that two of my tweeps (twitter friends, ala "peeps" = online friends) were kind of having a little online back and forth about which fiber was softer: alpaca or angora bunny (can be confusing--prior name for mohair goat was angora goat).

I'm like, ut oh! They wanted me to be an objective judge and help them decide which one was softer. Yikes! The pressure! The conflict! The tension mounted.

The participants and their owners:
Kathryn in Colorado (@alpacamundo on twitter) raises alpacas. Lynn in Ohio (@sheepmama on twitter) raises angora bunnies. They decided to send each other, and me, 1/4 oz of fiber from one of their animals. The task was to spin it (and perhaps knit a swatch with it) and come to a conclusion as to which was softer. I noted that Kathryn's blog had a post about the smackdown where she used the term "better". To me, this was beyond what the purpose of the smackdown was, because the term could include everything from fiber strength, usage, wearability, etc. In my mind, I am just judging these two fibers based on softness. And, before I hear rumblings from the "losing" side, the results here are just for these fiber samples--they are not blanket statements about the entire breed of angora bunnies or alpacas!

Lynn (bunny sample) sent a lovely 1/4 oz of Nougat, a gorgeous chocolate agouti. Dark brown tips fade to caramel with a steel stripe and silver roots. Nougat is a Satin angora. Lynn's blog is here -->blog.

Kathryn sent a sample of Kocoa Moon. Kocoa is a lovely medium brown alpaca. Info and pics are on this blog: click here. Kathryn's blog is here.

Another involved party is @alpacafarmgirl, also known as Katy. Katy raises alpacas in Alabama and I have been lucky to receive some of the finest fleece from her 'pacas. Very nice. She has been involved in this smackdown by organizing little yarn/fiber giveaways all week! You can read about her and enter the contest for a free skein of alpaca yarn here.

So, we have lovely fiber, lovely people. Based on this test, and softness alone, the winner is...

Before I get to that, here are some pics of the fiber, spinning, skeined and a knit swatch.

Alpaca pre-washing. Washed, air dried & lightly carded. Spinning sample.

Bunny precarding (no washing). Lightly carded on handcarder. Spinning sample.

Alpaca spun sample (top), Bunny sample (bottom). Same. One strand of each.

Knit sample 'paca on bottom, bunny top. Close-up of 'paca. Close-up of 'paca w/ bunny halo.

Close-up of bunny. Closer close-up. Sample wraps per inch, showing bunny halo.

Comments:

Technically, from a micron count perspective, angora bunny wool is softer than alpaca.The alpaca sampled was Huacaya, which runs from 14-27 microns; with Royal alpaca 14-20.9, and Strong being 27.7. Angora bunnies rate a 13. I pulled this info from the Internet, so if you, the reader, has more updated information, please pass it on to me. Now, had the sample been Suri alpaca, things might be different. They rate 10-15.

Micron Count:
Vicuna 6-10, Suri alpaca 10-15, qiviut 11-13, angora bunny 13, Huacaya royal 14-20.9, cashmere 15-19, yak down 15-19, Quanaco 16-18, merino sheep 17-23 (but i saw one reference of 12-20), Baby Huacaya 21-22.9, Strong Huacaya 27.

So, as you see, micron count varies quite a bit in alpaca breeds, but I am under the impression that bunnies are pretty consistent. I am not sure which section of Huacaya this sample was from.

As an aside, I'm not an expert on either of these breeds, so please let me know if any of this information is inaccurate or needs updating.

Notes:
Bunny wool needs LOTS of twist to it! It's so dang slippery, even a slightly over-plied sample can slide right out of the twist! I highly recommend really overplying the singles, then ply with about 20% more twist than you think you need. Really. I plied this sample maybe 10% overplied and it ended up relaxing to about 20-30% less twist in the ply. I ended up adding more twist to the sample later on.

More twist and the spinning technique will affect how much the angora yarn will halo. My sample has a good 1/2" halo already! Now, I did spin both sample supported longdraw, which means that it's lighter and airier than shortdraw spun, which would be tighter and more fiber ends would be caught up in the twist. I prefer longdraw because I feel for the most part that the yarn is bouncier, lighter and has more character--but that's just one perspective.

Angora yarn ended up at 22-24 WPI (wraps per inch=see the photo of the bunny yarn wrapped around the yarn needle.), the alpaca 22 WPI. The beauty of both of these fibers is that they can be spun even thinner than this without losing softness.

Alpaca is much stronger than angora. Possibly 3-4 times more. So from a usage perspective, blending some angora with alpaca would be lovely, and I'd add in 20% merino or other soft wool to give the resulting yarn more elasticity and stretch.

One aspect of this particular alpaca sample was it had a lot of VM (vegetation matter) in it; ie., lots of pieces of hay, etc. I don't have a drum carder, so it took a lot of effort to remove as much of the VM as I could. This affected the softness factor somewhat.

I did learn through the 'paca grapevine, that breeders are now focusing on getting more elasticity in the fiber through breeding. Sometimes garments made from 100% alpaca yarn can "grow" on you. However, this can be reduced by utilizing stitch patterns that break up the vertical lines. For example, a basketweave stitch, or a ribbed stitch would pull the garment back to the original shape better.

So, the result...

Angora "wins" by a hare! However, both fibers could be worn against the skin if needed. One plus is both fibers are incredibly warm, anywhere from 2-6 times warmer than wool. (But seriously, once you get past twice as warm, I couldn't tell the difference.) Both fibers are absolutely divine! A little angora goes a long way. One would need only 10% to feel the softness of the angora, and would easily contribute more warmth. I would love a garment made from 60% alpaca, 20% angora, and 20% merino. That would be ideal for socks. For me, a sweater would only need 20% angora, 80% soft wool to make it incredibly warmer than a wool sweater, and with either fiber, a lightweight sweater made out of sockweight yarn would be far warmer than a heavy wool sweater.

As far as the sample/smackdown, these are just my observations, feelings, and reaction.

I would like to thank Lynn (@sheepmama) and Kathryn (@alpacamundo) for thinking this up, and Katy (@alpacafarmgirl) for promoting it on her blog, and organizing the giveaway contests!

Cheers to all! And a special thanks to Kocoa Moon and Nougat! You guys (gals) rock!

Vtknitboy (Chris)

First: A Bit on Twitter....then, about spinning!

J kind of laughs when I go on about Twitter, and tweets from so and so. But, with my updates protected, I am able to accept or decline those who wish to follow me. There are some silly people out there, whose goal, it seems, is to get as many followers as they can get! Some people have hundreds, thousands. Even hundreds of thousands! Then you have celebs with a million plus. Lol. I'm pretty happy with my <200.

On to the crafty stuff!

I haven't been to sleep yet--from last night! I was knitting a clapotis (a French scarf)--click the word clapotis for a link to the first site I found when I googled clapotis. Hmmm. Kind of interesting that this link came up. Kimberly, the author of the blog Knit Whimsies, seems to have disappeared. Last entry was May 2008. This could be a mystery...

I went to bed at 2:30am and couldn't fall asleep, so I just got up and started sorting through all of the fiber (roving and batts to be spun into yarn), and yarn stashed in the closet in the den. I seriously have a lot of yarn and fiber. My goal is to put a lot of the handspun up for sale on my etsy site: vtknitboy at etsy.com. Now, don't go searchin' for stuff now! Nothing's up yet. I'll post to this blog after I get it set up.

I've been playing around with various fibers: mostly alpaca from Maple at Northstaralpacas.com in Michigan. She has fabulous fiber available--check out the stuff she has for sale at her etsy site. You can link to her etsy site right from her blog. Other fibers I've been into lately are soy silk, bamboo, and tencel. I'm really concerned about the use of oil for man-made fibers when there are so many natural plant and animal options in the world.

I'm interested in how these fibers can be sustainable and eco-friendly. I'm pretty sure the yarn made from corn is not a good example of this, as it takes lots of energy to convert it into yarn, and also removes it from the food supply. Soy silk is made from the soy by-product/remains of making tofu. There is also milk yarn! I'm not quite sure how it's made--if anyone has info on the yarn making process for these, please leave a comment or e-mail me!

Here are some of the yarn combos I did last week.

Top pics: attenuated bamboo roving (left); spinning the bamboo (right).

Pics directly at right: checking the twist on the single (left pic); bamboo spun onto the bobbin (right).

The bamboo is very shiny, almost like silk. But way cheaper and eco-friendly! It is very nice to spin. The fiber is attenuated by splitting it up lengthwise, then pulling it out about every 4-5 inches (the length of the fiber). This helps start the drafting process by sliding the fibers along each other. This also helps if the fiber is slightly matted, stuck, sticky, or just compacted a bit. ETA: here's a link to bamboo info: bamboo.

The next set of pics is the baby camel. This is very soft! Almost as soft as cashmere, but about 1/3 the price.

In the pics at right, spinning, on the bobbin, and checking the twist. Because the fiber is so short, it requires a lot more twist to keep it together.

In the next group of pics, the one at the left is the Lazy Kate. The three bobbins, left to right are camel, merino, bamboo. The middle pic is plying, and the pic at the right is checking the twist on the two ply yarn.

The final pic is the skeins of yarn, drying on the clothes rack, after being soaked in hot soapy water (I use an eco-friendly dish soap), then soaked in clear water, then drained and rolled in a clean towel. I give it a good whack, then put it on top of the rack.

New Twitter Friend!

I have become friends with a woman in Alabama, Katy, who goes by Alpacafarmgirl on Twitter. She sent me a sample of fiber from two of her alpacas. She asked me to post about it NEXT week, as she is willing to send out samples of fiber to those interested. In the meantime, I just want to say that it's superbly fah.buh.luss! Her blog is here. She's having a

Fiber Arts Friday & Giveaway!

More on knitting in a couple of days!

-Vtknitboy (Chris)

Spinning Notes

Okay, so here are some pics of me spinning. (note: click on the pics for larger viewing.) Don't laugh! It's in our TV room, which is kind of getting cluttered with all my STUFF. It's not in our cleaner living room, so most of the mess is in here. You'll see lots of knitting and spinning stuff around me. It's like my throne room! Lol. And, it's about 11:30 or midnight, and I think i was watching Indiana returns or something political. Note our beloved rescue kitty Tigger, who is perched on the table next to the wheel--the flyer is spinning--hence the blurred shot. He'll sit there for hours, occasionally swiping at the moving parts of the wheel, or he'll try to bit the knot of the drive band whipping by...

The fiber is something I bought probably 7 or 8 years ago. Now that I'm fundless I'm trying to use up what I have. I bought 1 pound of the corriedale wool with the pretty colors. The single is coming out mostly blueish, with some nice reds and other colors here and there. I also have 8 oz of light grey merino with silk noils.

I have the damnest time with blogger, trying to get the pics to go where i want them! The pics have a mind of their own. It doesn't matter if i choose no format, or even a format. Anyone with blogger have an idea how to place these wherever you want? Maybe I have to have more text than pics so that the text flows around the pics. I'll just have to type more. Oh, I see, if there is enough text to go around all the pics I can place them on the right...duh...

Anyway, the fiber is really long, which is great for doing a wicked long draw. It will probably fluff up a bit after plying and washing (I always wash my skeins after plying and letting them rest). So, I'm spinning for sockweight yarn. I was getting kind of tired last night when I started the second bobbin, which i got 1/2 filled, but my spinning started to suck. It was getting down to laceweight and thinner. One thing I've noted, since I've been spinning so much thinner yarn lately, it's very hard to get back to spinning the way I did in the first couple years of spinning. I've been spinning for over 15 years now. When I attended SOAR '96 or '97 in Smugglers' Notch, Vermont, I took a workshop with the fabulous and talented Rita Buchanan. It was "spinning bulky yarns". What a hoot!

ETA: pic of the two skeins I plied last night. At the right, you can see how the color of the plied yarn is mostly blueish green now. It's wet, but I am hoping it is less blue than green. I have a really cool vest I want to make with it. Vermont Gay Men's Knit Group tomorrow! More on that later...

Have a great day and enjoy the pics!

Spring's Eternal Bliss...or something like that!

It's a lovely day in NW Vermont. Almost 70 degrees f. Here's a little snapshot off of one of our need-to-be-replaced decks... In the background are some birch trees I let grow about 4 years ago. They create a nice light backdrop for the flowering crab tree. The leaves are burgundy red on one side and a coppery tone on the other. They pale to a greenish color in the summer. The blossoms are a light pink. We have another one that stays red/bronze all year, and the blossoms are a darker red. Picture in a couple days when it flowers.

Two or three years ago we had a heavy March snowstorm that broke off the center right leading branch. You can see about 40% up from the bottom the tree now kind of goes to the left. some branches are filling out in the middle and there is one leader that may strengthen....

Spinning: here is a pic of the last three things I spun. Left: is the shetland I got from Carolina Homespun. Really nice. Long fibers, spun up really stretchy, and fluffed up after the wash. In this case, I found that I could spin it thinner than the desired end result. In the middle is the merino/alpaca blend. I got that at Paradise Fibers. It is 70/30 merino/alpaca. I have enough for socks....yum! The skein on the right is the romney wool/angora bunny blend. Maybe only 20% bunny, but it's REALLY soft! I have about 8 oz of each of the fibers.

Blogging: Oh! What to do?! I emailed Zhenya about all the wonderful things in life I want to blog about: knitting, spinning, cooking, Zen, being gay and alcoholic in Vermont, etc. Each one in itself is time consuming. Oh wait! I also have to spend the time DOING the things! Lol. I'll try to do a short blurb about each one, if there's anything going on about it.

Have a great day!