So better late than never right? In July I took part in the annual Tour de Fleece that happens alongside the Tour de France.
Tour de Fleece Team Hello Yarn / Southern Cross Fibers 2012
Due to scheduling issues at the boy’s work we ended up being on vacation for the first week or so of the tour. I decided that would be an excellent time for me to work on my spindling skills. So I took my spindle along on Amtrak, around NYC and to Massachusetts. My personal challenge was to spin at least 10 minutes each day. 🙂 Amazingly enough, by the end of our vacation I could actually spin a continuous yarn without constantly dropping my spinde!
Spindling break at High Line Park, NYC.
Spindling break at Penn Station, NYC on our way to Massachusetts to visit family!
On the way home on Amtrak I taught the cutest little boy how to spin on my spindle. He was so fascinated with how it all worked. You could see his mind churning away to figure out how he could do this himself. I sent him home with the bit of yarn he made and a wee bit of fluff to play with. That camel merino blend is so very soft!
Once we got home I settled into working on my big challenge for the Tour, spinning a sweater quantity of yarn. I was really unsure about my ability to accomplish this goal. As one last procrastination before diving in, I spent an evening carding some roving (unrelated challenge) and stripping the 20 oz of mixed bfl to be spun up. The actual spinning up of the yarn turned out to be less grueling than I thought it would be. I was also lucky enough to spend a Saturday at my friend Martha’s home spinning up a storm which continued when I got home. In total I spun 7.5 oz that day! My plan was to spin 2 oz of singles each day so that I would be able to finish spinning by the end of the tour. Since some days I did more than the 2 oz it was easier for me to hit my final goal and have time for plying.
TDF 2012 Day 11 progress photo.
2 oz spun up on Day 12 – Hello Yarn Troublemaker 32 wpi (ish)
All 20 oz of the Hello Yarn Troublemaker on mixed bfl spun up and washed with our newly painted master bedroom in the background. 1835 yds of Sport weight 2-ply. I spun the singles at about 32 wpi.
TDF 2012 podium shot
HY Smells of the Sea – top left 5 batts
HY Heirloom – top right 3 batts
Camel/Merino spindling – 1 5/8 oz bottom left
HY Troublemaker – 20.5 oz and swatch bottom right
I love this challenge and am already looking forward to next year’s challenge. Perhaps if I am not on the road for 1/3 of the tour I may be able to spin up two sweater quantities? 😀
For now I need to work on spinning up some of the other sweater quantities I have this fall. Next on the wheel will be Hello Yarn Seasick. That is once I take care of a few other tasks. 🙂
Hello Yarn – Seasick on Corriedale
