Classification: bulky
Yardage: 834 yards
Weight: 634 grams
Construction: 2-ply worsted
Fiber: Polwarth
Colorway: Pomegranate
Dyer: Skein Yarn
My Tour de Fleece yarn is finished! I shared my plans with you at the beginning of the month, and am happy to report that I met my goal – I spun every day (okay, full disclosure: I took 1 day of rest, but the Tour de France riders take 2 so I think I’m good), and I completed my sweater spin. The yarn didn’t turn out quite like the DK to worsted weight that I was imagining, but I am still pleased with it. After my recent reread of The Intentional Spinner I decided to ply with much less twist than I normally use and I really like the results. This yarn is giant and fluffy and will make a soft, warm sweater.
Based on the wisdom of JMM I also decided on a much more aggressive finishing process than usual. I agitated the skeins in hot water and then immediately plunged them into cold before beating them on my porch a bit. They fulled so nicely that the strands stick together.
One practice I love for plying giant spins is pairing up the bobbins so #1 is plied to the last, #2 to the second to last, etc on the way in. It’s a great way to even out inconsistencies in the single. I was very pleased to find the the yarn made from bobbins 3+4 and from bobbins 2+5 was identical in weight and yardage. It feels great that I can create large quantities of uniform yarn, as someone who likes to knit large projects. This yarn is queued up to become a Paloma by Thea Colman – I love seed stitch for this kind of subtle variegation and I think it would be perfect and cozy.
How did your Tour de Fleece go? Did you meet your goals? Spin any yarn you’re particularly excited about?
