Remember all that 50/50 alpaca BFL fiber I turned into batts on the drumcarder? Well, I decided to spin it up so that I could blog about the entire process. So, here are the updated pics.
First, I spun it into a Z-twist singles on my Schacht Matchless wheel. There are 526 yards to 6 oz, probably enough to make a shawl. The white was pretty, but I was inspired by all the fall colors outside to dip into my onion skin bag (I keep a brown paper grocery bag in the pantry to collect onion skins all year long. I get almost a pound a year). I mordant the wool separately with alum, then dye it in the onion brew which has been steeped for about 24 hours. If you want to reproduce this process, I suggest you get a good book on the topic. S gave me Wild Color several years ago and that's the only book I consult. (I don't know why the price is so bizarre on Amazon. It's a good book, but find something cheaper.)
So the pumpkin orange color is gorgeous enough that I think I can pull off wearing an orange shawl. I'm normally more of a green, brown, navy blue, gray sort of person. I'll just be sure to keep it isolated from my scarf and purse, so my husband doesn't think the disease is spreading.
-M
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