Shearing Day 2012

Shearing day was last Tuesday, April 17, but I've just now regained enough energy to actually blog about it. It kicked my tush, and we only have 6 animals!!

Sue of The Critter Ranch came to do the shearing, while my friend, Hannah was on-hand as an extra helper, and photographer extraordinaire. A huge thank you to Hannah for all the pictures here!! Another friend, Petra, came by to watch, and was quickly put to work wrangling lambs. Thanks to all of you for such a great day!

 

Starr was her usual prim and slightly haughty self. She pranced into the chute, and then even deigned to allow Hannah to have a picture taken with her. 

Knox was the first of the sheep to be sheared. He's now earned the name ObKNOXious. But we took him down a few pegs once he was naked. Not so tough now, are you?

However, with a fleece like this, I'll put up with him for a while longer! 

We decided that Emerald, the only pregnant ewe left, would go next, and we were in for quite the surprise!

Sue started shearing her at the back, but her wool was really thick and it was hard to get the shears through it. As we pulled the wool up to get the shears through, we realized that Emerald was rooing. Rooing happens in the more primitive breeds of sheep that have survived on their own for hundreds of years. In the Spring, their wool becomes thinner and will easily break off, allowing the sheep to rub against trees or shrubs to pull the old growth off.

This is ideal for hand spinners because we end up with a fleece that has no second cuts in it, and the tips on next year's fleeces will be more natural. It's great for the sheep because their left with a fine layer of new growth.

Emerald has a gorgeous fleece, and now she looks soft and fluffy!

It was time for a lunch break at this point. Look! Me with three bags full!!

First up after lunch was Sparkles. We were able to roo her to her shoulders and then had to shear the rest. I think next year I'll either wait a week or work on parts of the fleece as it's ready to release.

Of course, the star of the day was June. She helped hold her mom in, and inspected the fleece.

 

Petra showed up about this time and helped control "the pests." I don't think she minded too much!

 

We were able to roo Peridot to her shoulders as well. However, she looks the most tender of the three, and she probably could have waited until next week. She's getting limited sun time until she has some wool on her!

Her lambs hung out in a storage box at her head until she was all done.

And again . . . another gorgeous fleece! I love the gray of her wool.

All in all, a pretty awesome day that left me with four gorgeous Shetland fleeces and two wonderful llama blankets. And I couldn't be more thankful for good friends that are willing to work and laugh along with me while I navigate farm life!!

Yummy Fleece

I always have too many projects going, so what's one more?

I recently purchased a simply wonderful BFL-cross fleece; the sheep's name is Aster. Barb Barnett of Barnett Sheep and Wool has been working on crossing breeds to get just the right fleece for her. It's also just the kind I like!

Long staple, but not too long. Soft feel, but still strong. And a gorgeous, silky handle. What more could you ask for?

This is the raw fleece right out of the box.

I washed and carded a handful, and the fiber didn't disappoint. It was easy to prep and then wonderful to spin.

This is 2.5 oz. of singles on the bobbin. I'm planning to spin up a second set of singles to ply with this for a 5 oz. skein of yarn.

The rest of the fleece will be washed, carded, dyed and put up in the shop. I'm just happy to get to play with it so much!

The Trifecta

Really. . . does it get any better than wool drying, sheep and llamas grazing and leaves changing?

Fleece Invasion!

Every day for the past week or two, I've had boxes of fleece delivered to the house. They're starting to take over! It's all for a great cause though: my "Are Ewe Well-Bred?" fleece study is alive and rolling!

So far, I have these fleeces in my house:

3 California Reds, 3 Shetlands, 2 Rambouillets, 2 Cheviots, 3 Gulf Coast Natives, 1 CVM, 1 Jacob, 2 Black Welsh Mountain Sheep, and about 15 more bags full of miscellaneous wool that I've acquired over the past few weeks from local farmers.

Where do I keep it all?

In the hall of my studio:

And in the basement:

(here, you can see the Jacob fleece)

(this is one of the Rambouillets spread out for inspection):

And in the studio kitchen (California Red that I'm cold soaking)

And in the studio (California Red drying)

Doesn't it look like a whole bunch of fun?!

Dyeing Day: A Glimpse into My Studio

Yesterday the whole family was snowed in. We live in Western New York, and my husband was one of the unfortunate souls who spent their night sitting on the highway, as shown on CNN. Luckily, he was able to get home by 9:30 am! He came home, went to sleep, and I sent the little girls off to grandma's for a while (she's next door). Because, despite the snow, and the need for quiet, it was my dyeing day!

I had two of four shippments of wool arrive by yesterday: Clun Forest roving and raw cream and brown Finn Sheep fleece. I was itching to boil something!

I'm fortunate enough to have a separate mini kitchen that I use as my dyeing studio. It hasn't been re-decorated yet, so please over-look the tile and general decor. But feel free to bask in the glorious mess.

My son asked if I felt like a mad scientist while dyeing. I immediately said yes, but I think I'm going to have to tell him I prefer "genius scientist."

Some fleece being dyed-up a nice, blood red (even though it looks orange in this light):

A dirty Finn fleece getting a bath:

Some finished work drying:

Finished rovings drying (good use of laundry baskets!):

And what kind of genius scientist would I be without an arch nemesis?

Dum, dum, dum . . .

LAUNDRY!!!! (said with a shriek of horror) I fought hard against it yesterday, but the war isn't over.

Have a great Fiber Arts Friday! Follow the link to other great blogs about fiber!