The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Community => Introduce yourself => Topic started by: TraceyD on January 13, 2015, 11:57:09 pm
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Hey Guys n Dolls!
Hope you're all well n happyily enjoying your crafts....and the snowy weather :excited:
I'm Tracey, I live in Ystradgylais...no I haven't just mashed the keyboard...there is such a town...small n sleepy, and situated in the Swansea Valleys.
I stumbled across this lovely, interesting and incredible informative site whilst trying to find info and feedback about drum carders. I am finally sick of hand carding...and in search of a reasonably priced carder - looks like we're gonna have to shell out around £300 :o but its gotta be worth it inni? Her-in-doors (as I affectionately call my bf) has said he will buy me one for my burfday - the big 50 coming is up in a few weeks :relief: so I deservea big pressie eh? So I'd like to thank the posters who made comments about their experience with different carders. i think I have setled on getting the Classic Carder in oak. Getting excited just looking at the picture!!
I do all kinds of crafts. I was a fine artist, specializing in oils but suffered a brain injury 7 years ago. After my brain operation, I found it hard to paint because of nerve and brain damage, so turned to textiles - a hobby I'd had since childhood but turned away from after a lot of years working in sewing factories!
Rekindeling my love of textiles i took to embroidery and crochet...the crochet kind of naturally led to wanting to learn to spin my own wool... well, wool from sheep that I prepared myself - not wool I had grown on my own body! I was luckyand stumbled across a farmer on freecycle who was giving away fleece :excited: the only problem was that I took all of the fleece, not just a couple. I ended up with about 10 bin bags stuffed full - I'd say around 30 full fleeces and a few not so complete! Crazy for a complete novice!! I spent the whole summer washing and dying the fleece - well some of it - in the Welsh valleys we don't get many days when its warm enough and dry enough to dry fleeces!! The fleeces turned out to be a right mixture - and VERY DIRTY - some so dirty that I thought the fleece was black - but when washed turned out to be white!! I think those were mining sheep btw!!! :o I don't know the breeds of sheep they came from, some is Welsh mountain sheep - very wirey and tough, but fairyly long. SOme comes from other sheep - lovely and soft and also long. So my freecycle find was lucky. I still have about 10 fleeces in a quilt cover in my store cupboard waiting to be washed. I have heaps dyed nd waiting to be carded and some undyed also needing to be carded. I have done a lot by hand - but tbh, its not very nice to spin as the batts are very short.
I'm teaching myself to spin. Got a nice little wheel off ebay - its ok, but one day I have promised to buy myself a better my fancy one! But to learn, this one is fine. I also drop spin a little. I'm not very good at spinning yet, but I will be one day!!
I felt too...and lino cut...not many crafts I don't do actually!!!
So thats me. I look forward to joining in on this forum, and getting to know everyone! So...hello - and goodnight - tiz all most midnight so I best get to bed!
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Hello and welcome! Phew, I feel quite tired reading about your crafts though. Hope you enjoy TAS - it's amazing how popular crafting has become again - through love not necessity - and especially fleece craft.
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Hello from much-easier-to-spell-Surrey! :wave:
Your experience with fleece sounds pretty much like mine - given loads of fleece and thought 'I'll learn to spin' Tirned out those "free" fleeces have cost me a fortune! And my OH is still waiting for his free sweater!
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A very warm welcome from Devon :wave: You may want to visit Jill Harrison's site, she does amazing things with fleece. Her tawny owl is staring at me as I type :)
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Hello and welcome to the forum for a snowy Carmarthenshire. There are quite a few of us on here who spin. I am currently spinning some fleece from my own sheep that I dyed with natural dyes.
Perhaps I will bump into you if you go to Wonderwool in April.
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Hello from similarly unpronounceable (until you learn the Welsh alphabet) cefnddwysarn. :wave: I am on the spinners UK site on FB and just learning really. And have also just had a classic carder - it will enhance your life :-) can't wait to see some of your art and craft Fiona xx
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:wave: from Shropshire but in Bala at the moment, meeting up with FiB tomorrow for a spinning workshop. :excited: :excited: :excited: As well as spinning (and I have a Classic Drum Carder), I knit, weave and do felt making. Also keep goats.
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Hey Ladies!
Ty for the welcome :)
Worn you out already Rosemary? lol Sorry - I'm hell of a chaterbox!! Yes, I agree, crafting has become very popular (at long last) for years I crafted alone... many of my mates thought I was abit of a looney for doing stuff like makeing my own Chrimb cards - now they're all doing it! We have a thriving craft club in our town - I've taught quite a lot of the ladies to needlefelt, most of them had never heard of it but after seeing me do it they all wanted a go! :)
Yes, greenlife - the free fleece has become a bit of an expense what with the dyesm hand carder and now a drum carder! lol but its all good fun inni?
Hey devon Lady - can you give me the url for Jill Harrisons site please - sounds really interesting!
Hey Bionc! Oh yes Wonderwool!!! I can't wait!!! Missed it last year as it was on the weekend of my daddys' funeral and wake. :( You only live up the road from me inni? Carmarthens not too far away issi?
Hey Fib! So you're up North issi? Can't wait to get my carder, its allordered n paid for now - but her-in-doors has said I'm not allowed it tillmy burfday - end of February!! Rotten git in he?
Hey Mad Goatwoman - Bala is a beautiful area isn't it? fab you are meeting with FIB for the workshop. I have yet to share spinning with a friend, none of mine are interstedin spinning, but I have now found out about th Spinners, dyers and weavers guild in Pontardawe - I am deffo gonna join when my life isn't quite so crazy! Do you do anything with your goat fluff?
Thanks again everyone for making me feel so welcome! :)
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Tracey, if you are ever this way we have a spinners, dyers and weavers group in Llansadwrn. We meet on Tuesday afternoons between 2 and 4pm and it only costs £1.
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Tracey, I've never tried the goat fluff. It's very short though and I suspect that it would be hard to spin. I've not been doing it long. I was a weaver for a long time before that.
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Lesley you could mix the goat fluff with fleece. It should make it easier to spin
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Good point, Sally. It will soon be time to start combing out their winter coats. (I hope)