I love linen. Most of my garb is sewn from linen fabric. I have experimented with weaving it. I had tried to grow it (will attempt that again in a few years when I am living at the farm property full-time and can water plants during the dry months). At last, this weekend, I tried to spin it.
The first few yards were rough, as it is indeed very different than spinning wool. However, once I got a feel for a slippery fiber that does not tend to grab its neighbors (doing half of the work for me in the drafting process), it was spinning wonderfully.
Interestingly enough, I found that it seemed to spin most easily on my smaller, low whorl spindles. Normally I prefer top whorl spindles with wide, light-weight whorls. For this, so far, my favorite tool is this spindle with a Sami reindeer antler whorl purchased a couple of years ago from Feed The Ravens/Viking-U-Like. The thread I am spinning is quite fine and I will attempt to ply it to be used as sewing thread. Plying will also be an adventure as I have only ever plied with my spinning wheel, even if the singles yarn was produced on drop-spindles. I will finally make myself learn to ply without the wheel.
The first few yards were rough, as it is indeed very different than spinning wool. However, once I got a feel for a slippery fiber that does not tend to grab its neighbors (doing half of the work for me in the drafting process), it was spinning wonderfully.
Interestingly enough, I found that it seemed to spin most easily on my smaller, low whorl spindles. Normally I prefer top whorl spindles with wide, light-weight whorls. For this, so far, my favorite tool is this spindle with a Sami reindeer antler whorl purchased a couple of years ago from Feed The Ravens/Viking-U-Like. The thread I am spinning is quite fine and I will attempt to ply it to be used as sewing thread. Plying will also be an adventure as I have only ever plied with my spinning wheel, even if the singles yarn was produced on drop-spindles. I will finally make myself learn to ply without the wheel.
And while dyeing is not my first love, I have also decided to experiment a bit with linen dying. I know the fiber does not take to dye as well as wool, but I am determined to get something more than the palest shades out of dyed linen.
For this experiment, I took linen yarn and (after washing with synthropol) steeped it in a solution made from oak galls (that I have been collecting for a year) for 24 hours. The linen went from white to a tawny shade, so I know that it will sadden the final color, but hopefully the final dye will take better over that. Currently it is in the alum mordant, and tonight it will go into a dyebath of madder root. In the photo below you can see the color obtained from the oak galls on both the linen yarn and a swatch of linen fabric.
For this experiment, I took linen yarn and (after washing with synthropol) steeped it in a solution made from oak galls (that I have been collecting for a year) for 24 hours. The linen went from white to a tawny shade, so I know that it will sadden the final color, but hopefully the final dye will take better over that. Currently it is in the alum mordant, and tonight it will go into a dyebath of madder root. In the photo below you can see the color obtained from the oak galls on both the linen yarn and a swatch of linen fabric.
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