In week five I did a random assortment of things. I, of course, spun. I finished up another half-bobbin and plied it together. I never paid attention, but after logging my hours I realized it took me six hours to ply. It never seems like it’s that long and for some reason my brain never sees plying as a large endeavor, but it really is. Not only do I have to wind nearly 1,000 yards of yarn into a center-pull ball, I also have to spin the two ends the ball creates together; controlling the tension of each string and keeping a consistent amount of twist for all of it. It’s kind of intense and not nearly as relaxing as just spinning. But, plying makes the yarn stronger, which is important for warp.
I also spoke a bit about my work in a class my sponsor, Dr. Sarah Williams, teaches. I was pleasantly surprised that people found what I’m doing fascinating. I mean, I find it all terribly interesting, but that’s me. The purpose of me speaking was to help inspire her students for their own individual projects and I hope that I did indeed inspire.
I also received my Murex care package! Inside are Murex shells, dried glands, dyed fiber and fabric samples, and some of the pigment itself. I could use it to dye the smallest bit of yarn…but I kind of just want to keep it as a curiosity- how many people have Murex dye? The person who sent it, Mohammed Ghassen Nouira (here is an article about him and his work and here is the Facebook group where he shares his ongoing dye experiments) also sent me extra dyed wool fiber so I can spin it. It’s not a great amount, but it’s enough to create an adequate amount of embroidery floss. I’m not sure what I’ll use it for, but it will be for something very special.
