#ashford

I’ve named her Ava.

She currently has 15 warbler species and a Hermit Thrush completed, but I’ll be adding more on other surfaces little by little! I went with a heavily simplified, pretty stylized style and I’m loving how it’s turning out.

2ply woolen yarn! Locally sourced (Alaska, matsu valley) Shetland spun on an ashford wheel with a semi-woolen-ish draw technique and both light twist and ply. This is the airiest yarn I’ve made so far and I LOVE the loft it came out with. I think the source farm was called Green Ear Acres. I love love love the silvery wool with the black hairs. I picked this fleece out after hemming and hawing for a whole day at the Mat-Su Valley Fiber Festival this year. It’s my first time buying a whole raw fleece and I’m having a blast with the learning process!

I left this fleece a little greasy on purpose because I’m a little goblin, but also because I’m envisioning a lovely, lofty, weather-warding sweater to keep the off the coastal Alaska damp cold :-)

Photos of the pre-ply single and roving! Made some big fluffy batts on a borrowed drum carder with 72tpi cloth (I think 🧐)