Raw Diet

I now know why my hoodie is so much shorter. I found another ball of the unraveled yarn.

I enjoy having two wheels. I can have 2 completely different projects going at the same time. Or I can have two completely different projects languishing at the same time. This is alpaca from a fleece I bought in IL. I'm spinning it raw, just sort of fluffing the fibers with my fingers.

In doing this I get a very uneven yarn full of dirt. Ewww full of alpaca dirt. But hear me out. The dirt makes the slippery fiber grippy so I can spin the alpaca with little twist. When I wash this yarn it will be a lightly spun yarn full of lumps and bumps and a bit of hallo. It will be perfect for the rustic drop shoulder tunic that I will be knitting from it.

Maybe all alpaca should be spun raw? No. My fingers turn black in the spinning and I have to be sure not to touch my face or anything until my hands are scrubbed. Also, it will be pretty much impossible to get all of the dirt out of the yarn so for the first washes of the sweater will still be getting out dirt. Will it be gross to wear the sweater? I think not because after the 3 or 4 washes of the yarn it will be clean dirt in the sweater.

So all of that sounds rather gross I must be dedicated to getting that yarn. Maybe, but rather I'm impatient. Spinning it raw I got to start it right away. Drum carding alpaca is a long slow job. I would much rather send it out to be processed. That's not going to happen anytime soon either.