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"Snow Crystal"
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View my new offerings at http://www.etsy.com/shop/lianao?order=custom.

I have begun offering fiber to spinners from my local alpaca ranches that supply me with unwashed, uncarded or uncombed, dirty fleeces fresh off their livestock to my studio. I then skirt, wash, comb and re comb until the batt is free from almost all vegetation and short fibers. This is what I offer to my customers at a low price, along with the photo of the alpaca it was collected from.

You can get updates from twitter at http://twitter.com/LIANAOB. Then shop at my Etsy shop to buy your own spinning fibers lovingly prepared for a heavenly spinning experience.

This fiber spins up so softly and produces a strong yet fluffy yarn that is perfect for baby blankets, shawls and scarves that you wish to be light and fluffy but warm. The advantage of alpaca is that few people that have trouble with alpaca the way they will with wool, which tends to be itchy. You will not have trouble with the alpaca because these fibers lay smooth and do not itch the way wool does.

I have Cream, Black, Lt. Brown, Med. Brown and Rich, Deep Brown Alpaca colors available.
They are all from my local alpaca ranches and there is both the Huacaya and Suri alpaca fibers available. In the photos above, the one on the left is the cream Huacaya alpaca combed with a small ball of finished single to show what can be done with this wonderful fiber.

For those projects that require wool, I also have Jacob Fleece available in the raw or processed.

I'm warped but can't weave yet!!!

"Why not?" you ask. Because the pattern I have chosen needs four shafts per pedal and I don't have that many cords. Thank you, Sandy of "Redfish Dyeworks" and "The Weaving Outpost". She is looking to see if she has them so I can begin weaving. Let's hope she finds them or I will have to shop on line and wait for them to arrive.

The pattern I am weaving, once I get the cords on the loom, is a twill variations that caught my eye! It is M and W twill. This makes what looks like interesting float patterns that really show off two contrasting colors. I am making towels for a towel exchange that I mentioned in an earlier blog and I think it will be a long enough warp to really try all the variations plus keep a few towels for me, instead of handing them all over to the exchange.

I have a 3/2 cotton in Spice as the warp and some beautiful 3/2 cotton in Desert Sand as the weft. I also want to try on with my bamboo yarn in Robin's Egg Blue. It is my favorite color and I just love working with Bamboo in towels because it makes them antimicrobial and so soft to the touch you don't mind drying the dishes by hand! I can't, however, use the bamboo for the exchange because I am limited to linen, cotton, cottolin, ramie or hemp. I may also try the linen that I have but the size is off. It is much finer than the cotton and it may be overwhelmed by the cotton. We'll see. I will photograph the samples and let you judge.

Next blog will contain photos. Look for them and let me know which one you like best!!!

Birthday Party Means Rewards for You.

I am off to my favorite client and dear friends' home for my birthday party tomorrow. Such fun. I was a newbie and Andrew and Donna saw my very first Christmas Ornaments and bought all of them. It was my first sale, it was my joy to see them so excited and I am looking forward to seeing their new home, newly remodeled. It is so fun to see them.

To arrive at their home for the first time, I want to bring them a house warming present and they want something made by me. It is such a hard thing to know what will fit their life style and decor. I am sure they will be kind about anything I bring, but I want it to be something that won't just take up space. I need to think about this for a while. But I will be back to let you know what I've chosen and you will have a chance to comment and win a similar item of your color choice.

The drawing will be at the end of the week and be randomly chosen from all submissions.


More to come, today!!!


Liana
Lianasloom.com

My First Finished Handspun Ball of Yarn

Why First you ask?

It is the first full ball of yarn ever produced from my handspun yarn. Until now I have always spun just enough to make a skein of yarn averaging around 75 yrds. per skein. Nothing to write home about. Most spinners, even new ones, manage to make these skeins and I am no exception. It is with great joy that I managed to spin enough to sell. This ball of yarn is 177 yrds. and it is a 2 ply blend of Super wash Merino, Silk, Bamboo and Firestarter (used to make the yarn sparkle).

How did I achieve more yarn this time than all the other times? My secret is a wonderful spinning contraption called the "WooLee Winder"! The reason it works so well making a larger quantity of yarn is because of it's design that fills the bobbin evenly. The bobbin fills smoothly with no hills and valleys to shorten your yardage, instead you find a steady, smooth surface of yarn that increases your productivity while shortening your time spent spinning. This decrease in time is due to the fact that the yarn production is never stopped to move the yarn to the next hook so that the spinning can continue winding on. This requires stopping often. With the WooLee Winder instead of a traditional setup, you will also improve the quality of your yarn. With the ability to make a more consistent yarn at a more consistent size, I don't have to stop and lose my train of thought every few minutes. That relaxed meditative state is more easily maintained. I am not saying that it will stop family and friends from interrupting you but then they are always welcome interruptions, are they not?

There is a down side to be considered, however, in making the investment to improve your yarn quantity and quality, and that is cost. The WooLee Winder is owned by one man, Robert Lee and now his son, he has been able to make one for just about ever spinning wheel out there but they are handmade and the bobbins are specially fit to the new flyer.

You can find him at http://www.thewooleewinder.com/

But if you want to see the difference, look below.

This is my WooLee Winder!







This is my ball of yarn, 2 ply 177 yrds. 15 wpi.



This is the single before it was plied.



And finally, this is the amount of yarn I usually achieved from a traditional flyer and bobbin. This is 84 yrds. 13 wpi and not enough to make into a good sized ball.

Invitation to Torrance for SCHG Nov.1st.

In the mail the other day I received and invitation to the SCHG annual Christmas sale in Torrance.
I am planning on going and also plan to bring more of my handspun in larger amounts for projects for Christmas gifts, since a homemade Christmas seems to mean more these days. So if you are looking for a special type of yarn or color, please let me know so I will come prepared with possibilities for you. I will also have reasonably priced handspun jewelry for gifts if you haven't time to make them.

For those spinners out there, I will also have batts of Alpaca fiber combed and ready to spin. I will be demonstrating spinning this very special but inexpensive fiber that will make your knitted or crocheted items softer than wool, easier for some people to wear, who are sensitive to wool, such as myself. This I have received from a local Alpaca Rancher. She raises Huaycaya and I have three color options with rich black, a few shades of white, and several shades of brown available in large quantities. So if Alpaca is what you are looking for to add to your spinning stasch, I may just have what you are looking for. Since I have a large amount of the white I may also bring handdyed colors because I have learned to dye this summmer and it is such fun. There will also be blends available.

If any of these finds tickle your fancy, please join me in Torrance at the annual Christmas Craft Fair, November 1, 2009 at the Torrance Cultural Arts Center, Torrance, CA.

This has been a busy summer so I am looking forward to working on spinning for a break as soon as school starts. It seems crazy to me that things slow down during school. Hope you are staying cool in this heatwave. Happy weaving, spinning, knitting and crocheting!!!

Liana
Liana's LoomEssence
lianasloom.com

Well, I finally did what I've read about respinning. I knew that my singles were not strong enough to hold up to the weaving tension once they were plied. I finally reread the information about energized singles and the fact that they make great collapsible fabric when used as weft. I then learned that those same over twisted yarns when cabled or plied make for a very strong warp. If you are cabling (4 strands, 2 plied and 2 plied, then spun the opposite direction of the plying to get all 4 strands in a strong cabled yarn.), the only advice I can offer is that the strands be very thin and over energized as singles. This makes for a light weight cabled yarn. If you want a yarn that is thicker, then increase the twist and the size of each strand. This makes for a very knit-able yarn. I haven't made cabled yarn for quite some time. I turned all that I made into necklaces with natural pendants and they have all been sold. I was surprised to find I am all out of that yarn. I need to make more and now is the perfect opportunity as I am spinning the silk and camel. I really like the consistency of the blend after I respun it. Photos of the single are below. I will post the one yarn once it is cabled as well so keep in touch if you'd like to see the finished yarn.
May we all find time in our busy lives to enjoy the art of spinning!!!

This is what the single looks like when I let go. The one below is with tension on the end of the string to keep it from plying. And the final photo is of a close-up of my cabled yarn with the ribbon for a necklace. Happy Spinning and Weaving! Liana

Life runs in the fast lane for a short while.

This little blog is because it has been far to long since my last blog. We've have a house full of guests and events. Fun with relatives like a Dodger came. Busy with enrolling our youngest son into a school leaving me feeling like an end of homeschooling is both a blessing and a sorrow. But he assures me that he will see me every day!!! He's 10 and very kind, I pray school doesn't change his sweet spirit. His Daddy is also very kind so there is hope.

I also have been driving a lot for the boys regular actives. Time in between has been spent at a book store and I have found a few good books and magazines to recommend. "Contemporary Loom Beading by Sharon Bateman" is very useful. I have woven many items on several different sizes of looms; a tapestry loom, a Ashford Rigid Heddle, and a Jack Loom from Tom Golding.

However, never have I woven on a beading loom. This book is in depth about the process of weaving on an inexpensive loom from a craft store and it has the appeal of being very portable. I plan to take it with me on these trips and weave a guitar strap for my oldest son. He is taking lessons in school and really enjoys it, he even practices! I will probably blog about this process more once school starts. Here is a picture of the loom I bought for this purpose.