The Spinning Daisy

Goodness, it has been a long time.

• I keep being busy at work so I don't get to slack off and do personal stuff.
• I've gotten over my fear of ruining pure silk by spinning it. It's turning out to be quite pretty, though I've only spun about half of my first skein.
  
• I received a pair of handknit socks, and loved them so much that I decided to learn how to knit (and to start with socks), after 36 years of indifference to knitting. I started on a toe-up sock, and have just gotten past the heel and am about 2 rows into the leg portion of my first sock.
  
• Shepherds Harvest Sheep and Wool Festival starts in 8 hours!!!

Last year I went to Shepherds Harvest thinking I'd buy one, maybe two fleeces. I came back with the equivalent of 5 from 7 animals (3 full fleeces, 4 half fleeces). I actually worked my way through most of them, one way or another. I also bought small amounts of some of the "weird stuff" - bamboo, ingeo (corn fiber), banana silk, soy, and others I can't even remember. It turns out I don't like the weird stuff all that much. I'd rather spin animal fiber than vegetable or mineral. (But I do like the sparkly stuff.)

I learned a lot from all the things I bought. I know what to expect when I process my fleece. I know some warning signs. I know what types of fleece I like to work with from scratch, and what I would rather buy almost ready to spin. I hope to buy 3-4 this year. I had great experiences with romney and cvm and would like to buy more, and also hope to find a nice BFL fleece. I think I might also try some luxury fibers - already prepped. I don't think I'm ready to try those from scratch yet.

I'll also be taking classes on drumcarding and spinning novelty yarns, and am very excited about both of them.

I'm less excited about the fact that it's supposed to snow tonight.

I promise to post again soon with a full report on Shepherds Harvest and pictures of recent activity.