Corgi Hill Farm - Phat Fiber Sample

Corgi Hill Farm - Phat Fiber Sample
Originally uploaded by Project Pictures

Oh, how I loved this batt. It was the first to really catch my eye when I pulled everything out of the box, so of course I saved it to spin later on down the line. Named "Pixie Farts" it is a blend of merino and alpaca, with a little bit of firestar added for glitz. Gotta love sparkly wool (I know my daughter does!).

This is the first sample where I had something in mind for it before I started to spin. I recently finished an AbbyBatt by a similar name (Fairy Farts). I'd like to knit the resulting yarn into fingerless mitts. Because I like my mitts a little longer, and because of the similar names, I figured this could make a lovely complimentary cuff at the wrist and knuckles. So I spun with the intention of matching the two yarns.

That meant I needed a two-ply yarn that was a bit fluffier than the laceweight I had been spinning so far. I aimed for a single that looked like it was a little less than half of normal fingering weight. This is because once you ply it, the single will fluff back up a bit.

I was reminded as I spun of something I had read lately. Unfortunately I can't remember exactly where I saw it, but someone mentioned that batts have a tendency to spin up darker than they look. This is because in batt form, all that fiber is fluffed up with a lot of air in between and it reflects more light. Once you spin it you re-compact the fibers and bring them closer together giving more intense colors again. This was certainly true here! What were barely echoes of color in the batt became pronounced stripes in some parts of the yarn. It's a really pretty effect!

Twenty yards may not be enough to do cuffs on both ends of both mitts, but I still may incorporate this into my project. It's that, or this mini-skein may take up a semi-permanent spot in my fiber-shelf bouquet of favorite yarns!