Dear Spinning Circle,

Note: This episode has been updated to include a ~15 minute conversation - please check it out and listen from ~27 minutes in!

Can you believe that we are at the end of another Breed & Colour Study?! 

We started Breed & Colour Study in July 2016. The evolution of the study has grown and changed over the years but the overall goals are the same - learn, study, reflect and grow! 

This study was challenging for a few reasons: 

1. Staples are short (1.5 - 2.5 inches),

2. Might be many second cuts since these are not sheep kept for fleece (shearing is utilitarian - it's a means to an ends - ie. get the fleece off), and

3. Matte, lack-lustre striking of the dye on this wool leaving almost chalk-like colour

It's actually too bad that these sheep are mainly meat-centric because, although the fleece is short stapled, in a woollen preparation with woollen-style spinning, it is a finer wool and spins easily. It is fine to medium in quality but I think it has tremendous potential and certainly pushes us out of our often limited focus on certain wools. This is where and how we grow as spinners -- to spin other breeds and fibres! 

To learn about my study on the Charollais, please check out these links:

How I Spin Transcript - Part I

How I Spin Vlog - Part I

How I Spin Transcript - Part II

How I Spin Vlog - Part II

How I Spin Transcript & Vlog - Part III (bonus content, public links)

Community Participation

Sherri's finished yarn here

Megan's pillowcases here

Maggie's waffle shawl here

References

Ekarius, C. & Robson, D. (2011). The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook. Storey Publishing: North Adams, MA. 

I hope you enjoyed our conversation. If this is your first time tuning into Wool n’ Spinning Radio, welcome. This audio podcast is a spin-off from the original podcast available on YouTube at youtube.com/RachelSmith. Rachel has been podcasting since 2014, talking about handspinning and making yarn. Her passion is working with her handspun yarns in projects, both knit and woven. Links to the website, Instagram and more are available in the show notes and at Patreon.com/woolnspinning.

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Thank you for listening! If you would like to be a guest on Wool n' Spinning Radio, please reach out below, in the comments, or send an email to [email protected].

Until next month, keep wool close and your spindles closer!