Spin de Fleece 2021 - Pre-Tour Chatter

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I’m going to start with Shetland from my little flock. I’ve just finished combing the first set and have two more to go. Even with my worlds worst shearing I did manage to find something that looks usable.

@PurlgirlButtons thank you :fk:

I’ll be joining. I’m still deciding what I’ll be spinning though. I just dyed some top I might spin as a lace weight single.

Sorry, I forget to check for updates…is there an option for email notifications?

You can subscribe to the thread. and it will show in your notifications that a thread you follow has been updated. I believe that also sends you an email when the thread is updated too. The subscribe button is at the top of the page.

Thank you!

Wow, less than a month to go! [SIZE=16px]Is everyone getting excited ? [/SIZE]

I am trying to get the prize categories nailed down, but only have a few prizes donated so far. If you are able to donate an item (it doesn’t have to be big! or fleece related!) … please post in the Prize Donations thread.

I have a couple of (brand new) old looking oval frames, in boxes. Do you think that would be a good prize ?

Tell me what you would be thrilled to win! Give us some ideas. Do you need foldable scissors ? How about some blank note cards ? Some stitch markers ?
Let us brainstorm what a great prize would be :slight_smile: As I said, it doesn’t have to be big. We would all love a pound of our favorite fiber, but I am just as happy with a 1 oz mini-braid! :slight_smile:

Speak up!

Come on :slight_smile:

Let’s Hear it :slight_smile:

[SIZE=18px]Brainstorming starts … [/SIZE]

[SIZE=20px]NOW~![/SIZE]

[SIZE=24px]Just a heads up …

I have updated the FAQ here. It’s not complete yet, but it has a bit more detail on how we will do the tour this year.

Also - I was wondering if there is someone (or a couple of someone’s) out there who loves statistics and creating graphics and would like to be a cheerleader of sorts ? You would take the statistics from the spreadsheet and create really kewl graphics. Report on different things - like the person who is currently in the lead, the person who did the really coolest thing, The grams per people reporting number, you know, anything you can create a statistic for, I would love to have reported !

Any one (s) interested ?[/SIZE]

I like small notion; stitch markers, scissors, note cards, project bags and I can always use a small notebook.
Of course fiber is always welcome.

I’ve been thinking about what I could donate as a prize. my own supply’s are small. I was thinking about maybe a braid of fiber, but it couldn’t be commercially dyed, as I don’t really have any. So far I have bought undyed wool top, and I dyed it myself using food safe dyes, would that interest anybody?

Other options would be a handmade project bag and or handmade stitch markers.

I think those are all really great ideas ! I also don’t think it needs to be a commercially dyed item, or even a commercially purchased item. This is a handi-craft group, right? We like make things with our hands. So a handmade/homemade item would be wonderful. It shows the extra care that goes into the item.

That’s amazing that you are starting from your own flock. The nice thing about this challenge is that we get to set our own goals and cheer each other on.

I will try my best to join in but without notifications…well my brain just cannot cope, lol. Sorry to sound so whiney. Maybe I will be more of an unofficial participant. I have ordered 2 fleeces and at least 4 braids. I hope to just get myself back to spinning and that will be my prize. Am I right that this is strictly for yardage spun during the competition? or is it skeins?

Hi @KikiKnits, we are more of a camaraderie group than a competitive group. Thus, there will be prizes for certain things, some yet to be determined, but we don’t go crazy trying to spin the most fiber or yards, etc. The “rules” are HERE:https://fiberkind.com/forum/spinning/spin-a-longs/98610-spin-de-fleece-2021-faq A few prizes are just for participation and posting updates, etc.

I haven’t decided what I am spinning yet, but I did order a lot of undyed fleece, so I best get cracking on the dyeing. It’s so hard now to stay inside and dye when it is so nice out . I guess I could set my table up outside. I wouldn’t have to worry so much about the mess! I just started my first handspun sweater and I think it would be good to try to dye a larger quantity of fiber, so I could make a “less colorful” sweater or something. I’ve never really dyed that much at once.
So on another note, perhaps after the “Spin de Fleece” is over, maybe should have a “Knit/Crochet/Weave” de Fleece to showcase some of our handspun yarns.

Sounds like your dyeing question is related to this project. Good luck, and isn’t it nice to have a goal?

It looks like I’m going to get some spindle practice this time around! We have several trips planned (including camping), and I’m thinking taking my drop spindles along since my Traddy is just a bit bulky to travel with. I haven’t decided what fiber to do with it yet. Maybe I’ll order something fun that won’t matter if it doesn’t turn out great, because I really haven’t done a lot of practice with drop spindles.

But when I’m at home, I hope to complete the rest of my Shetland wool for a Shetland hap (a large shawl). Last summer I ordered a Shetland fleece and processed it and spun it up, but it wasn’t enough to knit up the Shetland hap I wanted to do, so I ordered more fleece (ready to spin), but I have been weaving more than spinning lately since I got my floor loom, so this will be the perfect time to get that goal checked off.

I am getting excited!! Anyone else getting your stash ready to go? Make sure you have plenty of empty bobbins, your niddy-noddy is handy, your wheel is dusted off and oiled, and whatever else you do to prep!

Also, is anyone planning to watch the TdF? I find that YouTube has the recaps if you don’t want to watch the entire race. It’s enough that I can sit down and plop in front of my wheel and and enjoy some of the exciting highlights of the day’s race. One of these years I’ll pay the Gold cost and get the whole thing, but this summer is just a bit too busy to enjoy it all.

What are you doing to prep this week? Post pictures of your stash and your wheel! Let’s get the momentum going–we have some nice prizes!

Thanks for your help. I’m excited, I just got a Spinolution Pollywog!! I love it!

Welcome to this spin-along. As PurlgirlButtons said, we are more about having fun and sharing our craft with each other. If you only post a couple of times, that’s okay. Do as much or as little as you can. We have a thread set up for posting your progress - we are tracking yardage, but also tracking days spun, grams spun, and time spun … mostly because I love statistics and I think we’ll get some interesting numbers :slight_smile: There are a few prizes ( so please be sure to post your progress) and there will be a separate thread for the general chatter … but our main goal is to have fun and encourage each other!