what fibre for beginer spinner

[Silver Ether]

Ok got my spindle and have been doing the newspaper thing and its fun .. . I want to get real though but unsure of what type of fibre I should begin with. Having had a look round and getting confused ... I thought best get help... I like the look of the natural stuff not dyed. I dont want to have to card and stuff maybe one day so I just want what I think is *roving* I am in uk Is there any wool that easer to work with for a beginer please ...

[ina]

I have been told that Jacob's wool is particularly easy for beginners - can't comment from my own experience, since I've not yet got round to that stage yet... (Only have the fleeces piling up in my cupboard! )

[Silver Ether]

ta
This is the info given for a jacobs top ... Top that means I have to pull it out to a thinnner strip to spin ? yes/no...
What doe the 48-56 quality mean? Sorry if this seem obvious to others ... it aint to me ...

The classic hand spinner fleece. The black and white wool is blended together to produce a mid grey top. 48's - 56's quality, staple length 8 - 15cm.

[Gert]

Hi

The 48's - 56's is a scale called the Bradford count which basically measures the quality of the fibre, It's an old system based on how much yarn a spinner could get from a set amount of wool.

Basically, the higher the number the more yarn you should be able to get from the fleece.

I wouldn't worry about it too much

Gert

[Silver Ether]

Thankyou ...

[Gert]

No problem.

If you give a mention to Gerts Farm on your Blog, I'll post you a carrier bags worth of Southdown wool to play with if you like. You can spin it without carding if you are just practising, just tease it apart as you go along.

Drop me a PM with somewhere to post it to if you want the wool. Best of luck with the new craft.

Gert

[snapdragon]

..............unsure of what type of fibre I should begin with. Having had a look round and getting confused ... I thought best get help... I like the look of the natural stuff not dyed. I dont want to have to card and stuff maybe one day so I just want what I think is *roving* I am in uk Is there any wool that easer to work with for a beginer please ...

you can make 'roving' from a carded batt of Top just by pre-drafting it into a longer sausage. But if you want to spin from rolags then you can just pull a chunk off Top, Sliver or Roving and fold it to make a rolag shape.
I find the manufactured rovings much more difficult to work with as they just 'go through the machine' and you have short and long bits, where when you pull and fluff it yourself you know whats in there

[Silver Ether]

No problem.

If you give a mention to Gerts Farm on your Blog, I'll post you a carrier bags worth of Southdown wool to play with if you like. You can spin it without carding if you are just practising, just tease it apart as you go along.

Drop me a PM with somewhere to post it to if you want the wool. Best of luck with the new craft.

Gert

ooh great ta ... I will send your link to my son he sorts my web thing for me... I can only do certain bits and ask him to add a link ...

Edit ... e-mail sent to him ... also when I got this paper thing done that I am woking on I shall tell tale on some forums that I use ... they like my daftness ... and I will mention and link you in there too...
Thanks again... I like Gerts farm

[Gert]

Thanks for that Silver, very kind of you to spread the word. The Ffeece is going in the post today, let us know how you get on with it.

Cheers

Gert

[Silver Ether]

No problem.

If you give a mention to Gerts Farm on your Blog, I'll post you a carrier bags worth of Southdown wool to play with if you like. You can spin it without carding if you are just practising, just tease it apart as you go along.

Drop me a PM with somewhere to post it to if you want the wool. Best of luck with the new craft.

Gert

Gert How big are your carrier bags I have hust had a parcel as big as a pillow delivered ... Now I know its unlikely thay you will want cash to go to the postage ... I am willing to send cash ... so do you have a small child in your life and I could send one off the pinnys I make as a thankyou or one od my shopping bags for yourself
I would need an addy to. Right off to play

[Gert]

Gert How big are your carrier bags I have hust had a parcel as big as a pillow delivered ... Now I know its unlikely thay you will want cash to go to the postage ... I am willing to send cash ... so do you have a small child in your life and I could send one off the pinnys I make as a thankyou or one od my shopping bags for yourself
I would need an addy to. Right off to play

That's very kind of you, but we agreed on the link etc and you have done that , which is perfect.

If you really want to do something else, then drop a tin of cat food in one of those Cats Protection League collection bins next time you see one.

Hope you have fun with the fleece and let us know how you get on. You'll get used to the smell I promise.
Personally I'm rather addicted too it

Gert

[Silver Ether]

oh I can do the cat thing no problem....

I dont mind the smell at all, the cat is quiet interested too... lol.. oh and I now have waterproof hands and the begining of a spinners blister on my teaseing finger ...


To begin

stage one

..... balls

I know I will improve the difference from the begining till the end of todays in noticable ...Thanks

[Gert]

I'm impressed, that's looking good

[Silver Ether]

Thankyou ... just been haveing a go at knitting with it out of curiosity, apart from sticking on the needles a bit because of the lanolin I am impressed too

[red]

are you going to knit it in the grease too? i wouldn't.....