Fiber store open

Tried to make it to the Peachtree handspinner's meeting today but the interstate was backed up for miles, so I detoured back to the farm. Can't take all the traffic and development, the country is disappearing. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot. Anyway, the fiber store is open and I am getting fleeces washed, dyed and carded, lots of kid fleeces to shear, fresh raw fleece, cotton, spinning wheels and supplies, and visit the sheep while you are here. Get stocked up on winter spinning supplies, some are predicting a long cold winter, fine by me. What better thing to do than to sit by a fire and spin.

Ruby couldn't wait

Ruby has had a hard time with the heat this summer. Nursing twins and carrying a coat of mohair is tough in this humidity. She just doesn't want to eat grain, and pants with her mouth open. A lot of does have twice the hair she has but they didn't refuse to eat. They just regretted it later. Saturday morning made two days in a row she didn't come to the feed bunk. So I sheared her and checked her eyes, she seemed normal. After shearing she was up and moving and no panting. If our weather continues to be 12 months of summer I will have to change my shearing schedule, either shear three times a year or shear in June which is hard on the shepherd.

How many

How many gallons of water does it take to grow that fleece? Friday evening seemed to be one of the hottest-most humid days of the summer. I stayed out past 10:00 pm filling water tanks, about 500 gallons. Saturday morning they were half full, so I refilled them. Finally a cold front came through even though the rain didn't preceed it. Turned most of the barn fans off. The sheep and goats seem to be happy, heads up, not panting, moving around and butting heads. They have not enjoyed this summer at all. I am wondering if wool sheep will have a future in the south.

A white run

I don't usually like to card white fiber, but this was a special request. Before running white all the drums on the carder have to be cleaned of any dyed fiber, or the roving will be contaminated with bits of color, quite a job. Then I decided to run a white Cotswold fleece from Audry, just watching the fiber run down the infeed was cooling. I will follow with natural colored fleeces, then back to dyed. Natural colored fibers are my favorite but rich dyed wool and mohair will catch the buyers eye first. Still waiting on that cold front to come through so I can get back to shearing, hopefully that will happen some day, soon. Got Lambie Pie, Cormo-Cotswold cross shorn and washed this week. I didn't think the fleece would be usuable but after a good shaking and washing the results are beautiful. Never throw a fleece away until you wash a sample, all the sins might wash away.