Washing and Carding

 

After getting the 2 llamas, 2 sheep and the angora goat sheared earlier this summer, one of my goals was to complete the washing and carding, so I could start spinning all this soft wool into yarn by winter.

I finished washing all of my fleeces at the end of July.

I started off doing them outside in a bucket, but found it too difficult to carry water with my knee being sore and weak. So I decided to wash the wool in my bathtub.

But first I cleaned out as much of the VM (Vegetable Matter) as possible. This is my gelding llama Catlinite’s fleece.

Then I dropped the fleece into the bathtub of warm soapy water.

And to save my back, as well as help strengthen my legs, I used my feet to gently swish the fleece in the water until it was completely wet.

After the first wash, the water revealed just how dirty the wool really was.

 

When I drained the water, I kept some mesh fabric over the drain hole, so that wool wouldn’t go down the drain and clog the pipes or cause problems with our septic system. After 2-3 wash and rinse cycles, the water rinsed clear of the wool.

I gently squeezed out the water, and then placed the fleeces outside on my bedroom balcony to dry. Within a day, they were completely dry and ready for the next step: Hand—Carding.

I’m still working on this process and have completed 3 of my fleeces, turning them into tidy rolags ready to be spun, and still have 4 more fleeces to get done.

I attended a Wool Processing Class last year at a local farm that raises Navajo Churro Sheep, so I felt prepared, but I did get a helpful refresher course by watching the following You Tube videos, created by the same, experienced, calming person. So, I’ll just let you watch the videos, if you’re interested in learning how to hand card your own wool.

This video shows how to spin from rolags, using the Longdraw technique. This will be my next step.

Aren’t her videos so calming and easy to understand? This is only my first year learning how to hand spin,  so I’m still on a learning curve. But I’m having fun. I bought a second-hand Louet Spinning Wheel about 6 months ago and am so excited to be able to spin my own wool that I’ve processed from start to finish.

This is another wonderful video, from the same woman. It shows how to spin from rolags, using the Short-Draw.

 

I’ll try to remember to take some photos when I’m able to start spinning all my fleeces. Just be kind. I’m still at that awkward stage where my yarn looks hand-spun (with all the twists and nubbies).

Is anyone else processing their wool now, or making plans to start spinning, or already knitting gifts for Christmas? Can you believe summer is just about over? Where’d it go?! 

From the Tower of,