FO: Wisp

Remember the Buffalo down I spun last year? It was decidedly a pain in the ass to spin, but I was happy with the finished yarn.

Finding a project for it was another story though. I cast on for several before finding the right one. I kept trying to make a lace cowl with it...it's soft and there was enough yardage to make a big wimple type thing. The problem was that the yarn has absolutely no memory or spring to it, making the lace sloppy looking. It reminded me of the webs that spiders had spun when researches got them flying around on LSD.

Wow man. Just wow. Not what I had in mind.

I finally figured out that a lace cowl was not what this yarn was calling out to be. I had a couple of friends who had made a Wisp, and it seemed like the simple lace structure would do the yarn justice.





It's very lightweight and the lace pattern is stretchy. I need to find some light buttons so this could be buttoned up and worn either as a scarf, möbius, cowl, hood, or wrapped around your neck twice for extra warmth. It's a perfectly simple pattern and a great way to wear a soft, special handspun close to your skin.

I used size 7 needles and knitted until I was almost out of yarn/sick of the pattern and couldn't go on any longer. B is for Buffalo (or Bison) and this is part of my A-Z stashdown. Which, you know...I'm almost done with the letter B.

Spinning: Now with More Bovinae Ungulates!

I have conquered the buffalo.



It was probably the most patience-trying down fibers I've tried spinning. It was fluffy and soft and once the radiator got turned on for the winter it was a stat-icky mess. The staple length was only about a half inch, so i just grabbed handfuls of it, fluffed it up, and spun it short-draw. I mean, really short-draw.

It took me almost a month to spin up all 5oz into singles (granted, I don't spin ever day, or even a very long time when I do get a chance to spin). Laceweight, naturally. It was a very cranky fiber to work with- too much twist made it go snap, too little twist made it fall apart into infuriating little heaps of under-spun fluff.

I think because of the time I spent on this, I expected to be surprised with an overwhelming amount of yardage. Thousands and thousands of beautiful buffalo yarn! Fantasies of making multiple huge complicated lace shawls danced through my head. I'd make one for everyone I know!

Alas, no multiples for me. In the end, when I plied, I got 428 yards. A lace cowl, perhaps? (Ahem, or in this case, a cow-l.)





But I love the yarn just the same. It's drapey and soft (almost but not quite cashmere soft) and despite all the breaks I had, it's much more even than I expected. Once I washed it to set the twist, it got a nice fuzzy bloom to it.



When I did give it a wash, I was surprised at how dirty it was. Bison really like to roll in the dirt, much like alpacas. I had to change the water three times to get all the fine grit out. Dirty buffalo.

Next up in my spinning queue: baby camel and silk blend, which I'm going to card together with some Polworth. I'll keep you posted on how this little experiment goes.

Loop Spin-In

I've been slacking lately on getting up to Loop's monthly spin-in. Last Saturday was a brilliant and sunny autumn day that was perfect for getting out of the city.





I love the little riverwalk the Gaga complex has.





The trees back there were at peak color and just fabulously brilliant.



Naturally, there was spinning going on as well.



B is for Bison (or Buffalo, if you must). I'm spinning some.



It's a great challenge. I have 5oz of the stuff. It's dehaired, but not carded, so I'm just fluffing up handfulls of the fiber and spinning it like that. It's got .5 of an inch staple length and it's super slippery, but it's warm and soft- almost like cashmere. I'm spinning it as finely as I can and I will be 2-plying it eventually. Too much twist and it snaps like a dry twig, not enough and it falls apart. There's no in-between with this fiber, but it lets you know exactly when you've got it right by behaving.



See all the scraps on my skirt? That's what it does. I end up covered with a million pieces of half-twisted bison fiber every time I sit down to spin.

It was a relaxing day with good friends.