Friday, July 8, 2011

Tour de Fleece Flax Progress!


Linen is a plant fiber, processed from the stem of the flax plant. It has been used for thousands of years; it is an extremely durable fiber with many endearing qualities.

However, it is very different from spinning animal fibers or cotton. This fiber is extra fine water retted flax from Louet. I love the color and the sheen, but the fibers are short in spots, so it is a challenging spin when coupled with the slipperiness of the flax. But well worth it! I am able to get an even enough single to suit me, and I am finding the spinning a leisurely paced pleasure.

2 comments:

Kathy said...

Spinning flax on a spindle - I'm impressed! I never quite got the hang of spinning it on my wheel. Do you wet it as you spin at all?

WonderWhyGal said...

Gorgeous and thanks for the explanation. Yes, spinning it on a spindle is definitely one I haven't seen.