My New Toy - A Drum Carder!

Yesterday, I went to visit Natalie of Cloudlover Yarn & Fiber. We've done some shows together and I've talked about possibly carding fiber to spin or to use in spin-your-own-art-yarn kits. Since she bought a second carder last summer (an awesome one, too, I might add!), she offered to let me borrow her first carder - a Strauch Petite (Super Fine). Here it is . . .

Along with this, I also came home with a HUGE bag of hand dyed wool - mostly merino - and also some gorgeous hand dyed silk! With this fiber and the stash I already have, I hope to start carding batts - some that I'll spin into yarns for my etsy shop, and some that I will sell as is, or as parts of spin-your-own-art-yarn kits.

I brought the carder home Sunday night, after a fun day of hanging out with Natalie (and Ben, her two cats, and Mr. BunBun the rabbit) in her FIBER HEAVEN. Seriously, walking in all I saw was a huge drying rack just filled with her hand dyed fiber! (It's amazing I only came home with ONE bag of wool!) Even though I should have started right in on spinning yarns for my shop, and a custom order, I just HAD to play with the carder.

For my first batt, I just took some small bits of brighter colors - pink, blue, a little bit of green, and white. Mostly just wool with maybe a little bamboo. I had so much fun with that one, I had to try at least one more . . . which turned out to be two more in shades of brown, green, and chartreuse. Again, these are mostly wool, but also included more bamboo dyed by Fiberlady in her "Rain Forest" color. The results are super soft batts . . .

I am definitely having fun with this new toy and am really grateful to Natalie for letting me try it out! And for all of the awesome fiber. But, now I have to get going so I can get some yarn spun . . . and maybe card another batt!