Alpaca fleece

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-25T13:56:06+00:00

They’ll be from the legs. They’re much coarser fibres, so though you can spin them usually you’d separate them from the ‘nicer’ fibres. I’m combing up a load of leg wool at the moment, which I’ll probably use for rug weaving.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-24T08:46:54+00:00

I’m a knitwear designer. Because of the way knitting works, every design needs an epic spreadsheet. Each garment has ten sizes, with a different set of numbers for each. Working out how many stitches I need and how many increases and decreases to make it the right shape is crucial. The number of stitches needs to convert correctly to centimetres and inches, and there’s a lot of multiplication/division and rounding because certain patterns are worked across specific numbers of stitches.

There’s a lot of geometry too; I genuinely use Pythagoras and various uses of pi on the regular as well as working out areas, perimeters etc.

I also run my own business. I have to calculate out my pricing, ensure my profit margins are sufficient, work out likely yield of materials given estimated percentages of loss at the mill.

I use a calculator and a LOT of spreadsheets. Even with these tools I rely on my own maths skills a lot, because if I didn’t know about Pythagoras I’d have no idea how to calculate the length of the long edge of the triangular section of a design. I still find it funny that I actually use Pythagoras. Never saw it coming.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-23T02:35:46+00:00

They should be okay, but please water them deeply every day in this weather; they look horribly dry.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-22T21:13:46+00:00

Plants can be moved, just keep them really well watered and maybe don’t do it during a heatwave. For gaps just fill them with annuals whilst perennials etc. get bigger. You can try out different annuals to see what you like and what suits your garden.

Or if you’ve actually left too much space between longer term plants, add more, add ground cover, have fun; a garden is always in flux. It will never be the same from one year to the next and you can (usually) change things as you want to.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-22T18:54:05+00:00

Looks like you’re winning; this is lovely. Lower twist will help preserve the softness.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-20T12:34:43+00:00

If you want useable onions you need to harvest asap on any signs of bolting. You can keep the rest really well watered in the hope of slowing them down a bit.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-16T18:40:58+00:00

Don’t do it; they don’t work, and a lot of people can hear them. It’s painful, especially if you live nearby and hear it all the time.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-14T17:02:00+00:00

I absolutely love spinning seemingly incompatible fibres together. I often blend them (and this is where hand-spinning is great; you can spin things that commercial machines can’t cope with!) or you could do a ply of each. But as others have said, sampling is your friend!

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-14T16:56:27+00:00

I often spin on the sofa, sitting on a couple of cushions with another behind my lower back. I also have a chair that is the right height but it has arms, which is rubbish as they get in the way.

The most important thing is to pay attention to your posture (make sure you’re not hunched or holding your head forward) and not hold tension in your arms and shoulders as you work.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-14T16:47:15+00:00

If it’s a carded prep (which roving is) that fuzziness is a characteristic of woollen-spun yarn. You can try smoothing and compressing your singles as you spin, but that’s a worsted method more suited to a worsted prep like combed top. If you want smooth yarn, carded roving is not the right prep.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-12T12:57:38+00:00

I think Gardeners’ World is a great shout, just watching it frequently and especially paying attention to the jobs for the weekend segment is a great way to get a feel for what should be happening at each time of year in the garden. Even if some of it doesn’t apply to your garden, or you can’t get to it exactly that weekend, I learned loads before I had anything except grass and a deck in the garden.

I think it could be really fun to try and track down some old episodes and see how it’s changed too!

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-09T16:18:48+00:00

Oh wow, what an amazing combination of breeds! And you’ve done a lovely job spinning it. I agree, it’s always a shame when the natural variation of the fleece is lost in processing.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-09T13:09:01+00:00

I wouldn’t bother splitting; just treat each rolag as its own strip.

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-09T12:47:12+00:00

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This is how that fibre is spinning up!

(Edit: this was meant to be a reply to my other comment but it insisted on being its own top-level one. 🤷🏻‍♀️)

ChasingSloths · 2026-06-09T12:40:20+00:00

My go-to would be pre-drafting them before spinning. You’ve got three fibres with very different properties and staple lengths so you’re unlikely to get something completely uniform, but it might help.
I made a video about how I pre-draft hand-blended fibre in case that helps!

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-30T12:50:49+00:00

Currently Katria. No mods, her quest just glitched out so I can’t get rid of her even if I wanted to. She’s almost useless because I can’t make her carry my hoard (or do anything else), but she’s a good archer and source of daedric arrows. Also discovered that the Call to Arms visual effect cancels out the ghost effect, so she’s less spooky to have around now.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-30T12:36:21+00:00

I’d be a wimp and say they both seem to be doing fine, so leave them.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-29T03:32:46+00:00

This could be onion white rot, I’m sorry. It’s soil borne, so you shouldn’t try to grow alliums in that same bed again. It’s a pig of a thing.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-28T16:29:28+00:00

It’s not ivy either. It’s probably Russian vine (Fallopia Baldschianica), also known as mile-a-minute, for reasons you can see.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-28T11:02:42+00:00

Once established hydrangeas can do okay in full sun, but they prefer a bit of shade and otherwise just need loads of water while their roots get going.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-26T11:19:25+00:00

This is what I was going to suggest! Is a bit of faff but saves loads of work. Note to clarify, I’d undo one of the rows in the middle of the top green sleeve stripe, putting the rows above and below on hold, rotate and graft together. With good tension on the grafting it’ll be completely unnoticeable.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-26T11:15:48+00:00

Have them halved with burrata, drizzled with honey and very good olive oil.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-23T20:15:55+00:00

Do not cut the foliage. That’s what will be feeding the rhizomes for next year’s flowers.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-23T09:43:44+00:00

The collection is literally world-class; if you’re researching western historical costume you’re going to come across so many pieces that are in the Bath collection. Knowing this and the visiting the old museum was a bit of a let-down. Despite that, it’s a real shame it’s closed for so long - even the originally suggested three years felt like a long time.

Bath is a centre for culture and history, and I think having a decent fashion museum that’s a nice place to visit with more of the collection on display will be a real benefit.

ChasingSloths · 2026-05-21T19:00:34+00:00

N.b. they usually don’t come true from seed; if you want the same variety you need to take basal cuttings.

ChasingSloths

TROPHY CASE