Part 2

Today I completed the first skein of Fluffy yarn. It's now washed and hanging to dry in the drying area. I have also started the second skein, which is almost complete. I have been a busy girl because I have started washing the second batch of fibre. It's on the second soaking. It has a fair amount of lanolin in it, so I'm thinking it will need a fair few soaks before it's good to go! 

 

The first full skein of Fluffy Yarn.

The whole process is taking me longer than I hoped as I am working full time for a large retailer as well as running this business. 

The two jobs are so very different and yet utilise a lot of the same skills, from customer service to sales promotion, planning and media work. The difference is that at Knatters Knits I get to make something, to create something from raw materials, to design knitted items and after that, when someone buys them, I get to see the delight and joy on their faces. It's this satisfaction of creating and seeing others enjoy my creations that gives that satisfaction that you can't get with any other job, I take something raw and to some people useless and turn it into yarn, fibre or something to use or wear and that's something really special, satisfying and unique. How many people can say that about their jobs?

Rolags, Rolags, Rolags

The next phase of Fluffy's fleece being made into yarn has begun. After a short interlude when I was in Swindon celebrating my daughters impending marriage, I have now begun operation Fluffy with a vengeance. 

The fleece is now in the process of being carded by hand and made into Rolags. Next comes spinning later this evening. That's the part I love the most. As Fluffy's owner and I have agreed to make the yarn purely fluffy, I am spared the extra blending ... Carding combs the fibre and puts it into alignment and adds air, making the yarn more bouncy and springy. The thought of all that carding makes me wary, but I know it will all be worth it, because you can tell, you can really tell when preparation is good or not. I want this yarn to be the best I have ever made, not because I'm being paid, but because knowing the creature it came from makes it personal in a funny kind of way, more real and important in a way getting fibre pre-prepared from a mill doesn't.