Punkin's World: Maryland Sheep and Wool - Part Deux

OK, now onto the fun part of the festival - What I bought!

10 oz of 100% Merino in this Eggplant mix. Soft and lovely. I was running out of money and didn't want to go over my budget so I only got 10 oz. I was tempted to buy the rest of what was in that beachball they had.....This came from Shadyside Farms.

Here we have 8 oz of Blueberry, 70% Merino/30% Tencel GORGEOUS and must be felt to be appreciated. It nearly feels like mink! Sorry, no website. You can e-mail opal@pa.net for inquiries. To die for! Next to it is Shelridge Farms soft touch ultra in a nice...you got it, green!

That's a Kromski niddy noddy that I could use to make smaller skeins.

Here's a 1.5 lb bag of not fully made roving, more like messy batts. 70 sw merino/30 tencel in powder blue, gray flannel and cream. This was from Autumn House Farms and I used my coupon to buy it. An excellent purchase and good price. It just needs tidying up.

I also bought a nicely made cherrywood diz which is also a gauge so I can measure WPIs when spinning. Plus, I bought two Christmas tree ornaments of little sheep handcrafted from real wool and some felt. Very cute. The kids confiscated that out of my loot.

Not shown is a gift for Elizzabetty who couldn't be at the festival this year. I can't give it away just yet because she hasn't seen it yet. I know she'll like it though!

I also recently picked up some more roving, ALSO merino/tencel and some merino/tussah top. It's VERY PRETTY and requires that I practice more with the fast flyer that I got last week.
(not pictured.)

Yes, I finally sprung for the Lendrum fast flyer for my wheel and I'm very excited. So now I have 6 ratios to play with 6,8,10,12,15,17 to 1. If I ever add the 'very fast flyer' that will give me 26, 30, 36, 44 to 1. I could spin any kind of yarn I wanted if I add that one. For now, I'll stick with what I have. It's harder to spin with the fast flyer and I'm not that good at it....yet. It's a pain if it breaks because it's harder to neatly join when the single is so skinny to begin with. HOWEVER, spinning finer with more twist is easier than spinning finer with less twist. Sometimes, my yarn would fall apart because I didn't twist enough. Now, I'm getting the hang of how fast to go and how much twist to add. When I first tried the fast flyer, I got little pigtails, too much twist, now it's better. That was after only one session so we'll see how it goes later today. Luckily, I have some practice fiber that was gifted to me so I can play. I may even make a 3 ply yarn soon! There are 10 ratios on the Lendrum, it's portable, spins smoothly, relatively inexpensive compared to other wheels with these options. In fact, if I ever wanted to add the quill head, that would give me two more ( 6, 25 and 37 to 1!) What more can one ask for?

Speaking of wheels, I did see some really lovely wheels and did get a chance to try the Ladybug! I must say, I thought that I would hate the fact that it's plastic. It's not at all bendable plastic, it's like a cast piece. Hard like a rock yet lighter than wood. It spun smooth like glass. If I had to chose today, I think I would still choose the Lendrum for a few reasons. I'm really a wood person. I saw beautiful handcrafted carved and decorated saxony wheels and pined for a 7,000 square foot Victorian to put them in. However, let's face reality. The Lendrum costs a tiny bit less than the Ladybug and it can fold up to be put away or for travel. The Lendrum is wood. The Lendrum felt more comfy to me (familiarity?) and the Ladybug made me feel like I was wearing scuba gear. PADDLES, huge. Made my feet feel so big! It was so peculiar! I did like the red and I did like the fact that there is a ladybug on all of them. Nothing cuter than that. No buyer's remorse for me.

I wanted to try the Kromski but the lady that was on it wasn't budging and I didn't have alot of time to spend there. Maybe, someday, I'll add a saxony wheel to my collection but it will probably be something used off e-bay and for my daughter to play with when she gets bigger provided she doesn't buy a loom first! :)

Well, time to make banana bread with the bananas that all ripened on the counter while I was away.

I leave you with a picture and a thought: