Minutes from November 16th, 2008
Members attending: Joann, Sylvia, Patricia, Angela, Dana, Jackie, Karen,
Kaaren, Mary.
A White Elephant exchange is planned for the December meeting. Check your
stash and decide what you would like to gift. There will be a spinning category
and an "Other" category. Karen has requested "no live animals".
Put your gift(s) in bag(s) and bring as many as you want. You will take home
as many as you bring. This is a good time to bring that fiber you just got
too much of, you decided you weren't fond of spinning, or is a color that
your monitor was not made to accurately depict. A duplicate book, needles,
fibery note cards or other item is also welcome. Please remember our common
bond is our love of spinning.
Show and Tell: Sylvia brought her new Mother Marion Kick Spindle by Jerry
Jensen, Patricia brought her new Mach 1 SpinOlution wheel and the absolutely
huge skein she was able to get onto one bobbin, Dana talked about the bazillion
pairs of knitted clog slippers she has done, Jackie invited everyone to her
open house, Karen had some royal purple mohair yarn spun and the beginning
of a scarf knit for a gift, Kaaren talked about her bag and how everything
goes with orange.
Announcements: Jackie's Open House November 23rd.
North Mississippi Fiber Guild is sponsoring a Nuno Felt workshop April 11th
2009. The cost will be $100. The location is TBA.
Beaded Yarn
For the November program, Mary showed the cable technique for making beaded
yarn.
1. Spin a Z singles approximately the size you wish the finished yarn to
be.
2. String beads on a thread. The thread can be in a contrasting or matching
color. The number of beads is dependant on the length of the finished yarn
and how far apart you wish them to be spaced. You can coordinate or contrast
with the color of your yarn, beads can be varied colors and sizes. There are
no bead police.
3. Tie the single to the thread. Ply the singles S with the bead thread,
spacing the beads at their approximate finished distance. Until you lock them
in with a cable thread they will move. You might want to overply a little
bit. Remember you are untwisting the singles so be sure you are plying the
thread onto the singles before it untwists and drifts apart.
4. Tie another thread to the plied yarn and cable ply in a Z direction. This
thread will secure the bead position so now is the time to adjust the bead
to where you want it.
5. Points to remember:
a. Beads are heavy. If this is for a garment you want to use your yarn as
an accent or place the beads very far apart.
b. Consider the technique you will use. When knitting, you want to space
the beads so they fall evenly (or not if that is your design) in the fabric.
Be sure to do a swatch. For weaving, beads would be most practical in weft.
Spacing could be fluid if the yarn isn't cabled. You would have to think
about which shuttle would work best for you.
Mary
Breed of the every so often club: Montadale
Montadale. A ram fleece, donated by Cary Smith, was opened and arraigned
in the manner in which it was grown, thanks to Jackie. Samples were offered
and taken by members present.
The Montadale is a relatively recent addition to the variety of sheep breeds,
having been developed in the last 50-60 years by E. H. Mattingly. He was interested
in developing a dual use sheep-mutton and wool. His first crosses were a Columbia
Ram over a Cheviot Ewe. After many years the cross of a Cheviot Ram and Columbia
Ewe was tried. The second type was crossed and interbred for 9 more years
to develop a standard breed. 15 more years of testing lamb characteristics
enabled establishing the breed ideal standard.
Rams run 200-275 pounds and ewes 150-200 pounds. Fleece weights run 8-12
pounds accordingly. The wool runs 25-32 microns (48's-58's.) Little lanolin
is produced so you get a 45-60% yield after scouring. The most marvelous quality
of this fiber is it's snow white color.
Mary
Old words
found in the Forgotten English Dictionary...
"snocksnarls:
All of a heap; generally used of entangled thread.
-Walter Skeat's Specimens of English Dialects: Westmorland, 1879
Overtwisted thread, or worsted, run into lumps. The English drove (the variant
forms, snigsnarls, snicksnarls, and snogsnarls) to snocksnarls.
-C. Clough Robinson's Glossary of Mid-Yorkshire, 1876"
from Sandy
Calendar
All meeting refreshments are Pot Luck.
Meeting - Sunday, December 21, 1:30-5pm
- Winter Solstice and guild holiday party.
White Elephant gift swaps: fiber and "other"
Meeting - Sunday, January 18, 2009 1:30-5pm - Roc Day Celebration
