I am back in spinning class working to improve my technique and thus improve the end product. The class started shortly after my return to British Columbia and it seems this attempt is doing just what I hoped it would. The single ply yarn I have made so far is getting finer and my consistency is improving.
The first time through the class two years ago there was so much to take in and like most in-person craft classes, unless you take copious notes things can easily be missed. I found this to be the case for me and so a refresher course became necessary.
One of the surprises was that the owner of my LYS, Helen, is also taking the class. I have been acquainted with her for years, but spinning together has given us an opportunity to really get to know one another. She has her own spinning wheel as do I so we often sit together for the 2.5 hour class.
Another classmate is very anxious to be able to spin her dog hair. I too have some interest in it so I decided to do some investigating. The staple, or length of a single strand of hair, should be no shorter than 2 inches/5 cm, any shorter and it cannot be spun at all. The shortest will have to be mixed with wool to make something of it. The information below is for others of you to check out if you too are interested in spinning with a pet fur
Craftsy has a post on its blog about spinning pet fur, here.
The Modern Farmer offers tips here.
There are also YouTube videos:
Cat Fur to Handbag
Knitting with Dog Hair
You may not wish to spin your pets fur for yourself, so here are some companies that will do it for you in both the U.S. and Canada. Just click here, here and here to find out what they do and how much it costs.
I did try to spin some fur of old and now departed Mike, the cat, but it was a complete failure. His staple was far too short and even blending it with wool created a the yarn that was very prickly. As the end product was worn, cat hair kept falling out. So I have no interest in spinning my current cats' hair. I will be sticking with wool products for my spinning. But hey if someone I know wants me to give their pet hair a try, I am open to it.
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| Nearly consistent yarn with this black Corriedale roving |
One of the surprises was that the owner of my LYS, Helen, is also taking the class. I have been acquainted with her for years, but spinning together has given us an opportunity to really get to know one another. She has her own spinning wheel as do I so we often sit together for the 2.5 hour class.
Another classmate is very anxious to be able to spin her dog hair. I too have some interest in it so I decided to do some investigating. The staple, or length of a single strand of hair, should be no shorter than 2 inches/5 cm, any shorter and it cannot be spun at all. The shortest will have to be mixed with wool to make something of it. The information below is for others of you to check out if you too are interested in spinning with a pet fur
Craftsy has a post on its blog about spinning pet fur, here.
The Modern Farmer offers tips here.
There are also YouTube videos:
Cat Fur to Handbag
Knitting with Dog Hair
You may not wish to spin your pets fur for yourself, so here are some companies that will do it for you in both the U.S. and Canada. Just click here, here and here to find out what they do and how much it costs.
I did try to spin some fur of old and now departed Mike, the cat, but it was a complete failure. His staple was far too short and even blending it with wool created a the yarn that was very prickly. As the end product was worn, cat hair kept falling out. So I have no interest in spinning my current cats' hair. I will be sticking with wool products for my spinning. But hey if someone I know wants me to give their pet hair a try, I am open to it.
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