One step closer to a spindle spun sweater

A basket full of singles and two plied skeins, that much closer
to a finished sweater.

It's safe to say I underestimated what, exactly, a spindle spun sweater from raw fleece would entail. I started carding fiber in October of 2015, and the project is still not complete… but it's getting closer!

My first miscalculation was the amount of time it would take to card an entire fleece by hand. Hint: it's a long time, especially when your husband is allergic. I did not see that coming! I've processed other wool around him with no trouble, but something about this particular fleece put him in a bad state.

Generally, I prefer to work with wool outside, so I didn't think it would be a big deal, but the fall of 2015 proved rather rainy. When there was time, there was rain. When there was sun, there was no time, and working inside wasn't an option due to allergens. Still, by summer, I'd made some decent progress, having carded approximately 2/3 of the fleece by hand before crying, uncle, and finishing it on a drum carder. (The original plan was to have the sweater knit by spring to be worn at the festival where the fleece had been purchased. Ha!)

Spinning went in fits and starts, until I realized time was running out. It was going to be a close call as far as having enough fiber, so, at the very least, I had to finish enough yarn to be able to estimate the total yardage by the next festival. I'd seen a fleece from the same sheep available in 2016, so I was banking on there being another this spring if I was short fiber.

As of this week, the singles are all spun, and I have started plying the final yarn. Judging by the first skeins, yardage is going to be tight, but there is room for adjustment in the pattern. The guarded enthusiasm I've had for this project is giving way to actual excitement. I might actually get this done!

Since I've missed almost every deadline set for myself on this, it makes sense to set another one. I'd like to get the sweater knit in time for it to be entered in the fair, for two reasons. The first, if the sweater is done by fair season, I will actually be able to wear it in the fall. The second reason has to do with the fair itself. There are four handspun categories: natural colored yarn, dyed yarn, handspun knit item, handspun crochet item. As it stands right now, my knit item is a pair of socks. I haven't been wearing them to make sure they stay in perfect condition. If the sweater is finished, it will become my knit item — you're only allowed one — and I can wear my socks!

Concentrating on the draft.

Constant exposure made an impression on Ainsleigh, and she demanded to learn to spin. I was less then excited about the prospect, having attempted teach the older kids in the past. It can be very frustrating. However, I'm learning to keep my expectations low and be more relaxed about it. The new approach paid off. It took a few days, and many half-hearted attempts, but when it clicked, it clicked, which really exciting to watch!

While the sweater spin has been commanding most of my time, I do need breaks, and so have been able to work on a few other things. The stormy weather vest is finished, with yarn to spare. More than half the yarn is left, actually. Nothing like that has ever happened to me before!

We celebrated the little girls' birthdays this spring; I browned six pounds of ground beef for the meal, which meant a lot of rendered fat. It seemed a shame to waste it, so I made soap. My waste-not batch, as I call it, is a crazy concoction containing scraps from every batch of soap I've made thus far. It's kind of fun to make left-overs and discards into something useful. Having never used beef fat before, I'm curious to see how it turns out. Regardless, it was a fun experiment.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some plying to do.

Grating soap scraps so they can be added to a new batch.