Just a quick update before I go play with my lovely fiber some more!

Remember those wide-tooth combs I found at Kroger a while back? Well, I decided it was time to make myself a hackle.

When I told my dad about my plans to make a hackle, he was confused. He associated the word 'hackle' with fly fishing. Typical dad!

No, a hackle, for those not in the know, is like a very long comb that you attach to the edge of a table or something, and you use it to blend fibers.

Above is an example of a hackle. It's essentially a 2x4 with nails evenly spaced, clamped to a tabletop. Well, I suck at nailing evenly or precisely, so I did this the easy way.
Combs, screwed into the side of a breakfast tray! Unfortunately, only after I finished this did I discover that the breakfast tray wobbles diagonally. But it's fine for now!

Now, as you saw in the picure of the nicer hackle above, the way it works is by loading it with fiber. Then you take something with a hole in it, typically called a diz, though many people just use buttons, and you pull the corner of the fiber into the hole. Then you just start pulling and go from right to left. What is pulled through the hole will become a roving. It's pretty spiffy, actually!

So, since I didn't have a diz or any decent buttons, I grabbed something that didn't belong to me and started drilling holes in it.

Tada! Now I have different sized holes, and in a pinch it could be used as a plying guide! Though probably not so much a plying guide. But still. It's a nice thought!

Unfortunately I lost the diz shortly after taking this picture, so I need to go find another of my brother's picks. Drill time!

And that's all from me for now!

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

I just got my roving, yay yay yay!!! I ordered it from Blarney Yarns on Sunday and I got it today, and the nice lady even included a 1 oz sample of some gorgeous green hand-painted roving with it! Yaaaaay! <3>.<

It's so ridiculously gorgeously soft... <3

AND! I went to Kroger earlier and I found a laundry bag there, and they also had these wide-tooth combs without handles that are absolutely perfect for making a hackle, so I'm going to do that soon, hopefully. Also, my mom bought me another book on handspinning (Teach Yourself Visually: Handspinning) and it's REALLY helpful and there's lots of interesting ideas and helpful informations in there. The best part is, it talks about spinning novelty yarns! Jeez, I didn't think I could get any more enthusiastic about spinning but I DID and now I just wanna spin spin spin spin spin! <3

Sorry for such a spastic post, but YAY! My first quality roving! It's so cuddly, I want to curl up with it like a teddy bear!

• 
• 
• 
• 
•