Washing a GCN fleece bit by bit

     To wash a fleece, I take a very large mixing bowl, almost as large as the kitchen sink basin, and I fill it with water as hot as I can stand to touch.  I add some dish soap, the Seventh Generation free and clear brand, and I disperse the soap throughout the water while trying not to raise suds.  I take some of the wool, about as much as would fit on a dinner plate, and gently submerge it in the soapy water so it can soak for five minutes or so.  I put the wool in the basin with the tips facing down, so the dirt falls to the bottom of the basin and not deeper into the locks.  

     I carefully lift the wool out of the water, trying not to disturb the arrangement of the locks though I don't totally succeed with that.  I place the wool in another mixing bowl.  I dump out the dirty water and start again, going through the process another two times before finally submerging the wool in plain hot water and lifting it out again.  I very gently squeeze water out and lay the wool on a tea towel.  After some of the water soaks into the towel, I transfer the wool to a new dry tea towel and let it sit somewhere out of the way for maybe three days, until it is dry.  Then I put it in an airtight container to protect it from moths.

     A handspinner friend of mine told me that she takes her raw locks of wool, places them in a net bag, and secures the locks to the netting with diaper pins before washing them.  She said this reduces felting and maintains the lock structure, which is helpful for combing or carding the locks later.

     I have heard that it is important to keep the water hot when washing a fleece.  Apparently if you let hot water cool down with fleece in the water, the grease redeposits itself, which is a problem.

     I finished knitting the black lace scarf for myself.  When I tried it on, I was reminded that I prefer woven scarves over knitted ones.

     I am washing the local Gulf Coast Native (GCN) fleece bit by bit.  I plan to use my Clemes & Clemes wool carders to process the wool into rolags to prepare it for spinning.

     I tried spinning a rolag into yarn with my favourite Spanish Peacock lace-weight drop spindle.  Spinning was difficult due to the irregular arrangement of the fibres and the vegetable matter stuck in the wool.  It was unlike my usual experience with commercial combed top.  It was discouraging.  And the washed wool looks discoloured, also discouraging.  What keeps me going is the dream of having a garment that qualifies as a Fibershed garment (local fibre, local colour, local labour).