Fiber Arts Friday - Tour de Fleece 2011

Welcome to Fiber Arts Friday!  Can you believe that the Tour de Fleece 2011 starts tomorrow?  Wait!  You don't know what the Tour de Fleece is...well, let me tell you that I am all about this fun excuse to sit at my spinning wheel for hours on end each July.  Each year while athletes compete in the Tour de France, members of Ravelry who love to spin or just learning to spin have our own friendly "competition".  We have teams from all over the world who are sharing their spinning accomplishments with each other on message boards, blogs and Flickr.

This is the second year that the Team of Wonder has come together to share the love of Alpaca with spinners.  We have 46 members on our team from various continents and spread throughout the United States.  Many are Alpaca breeders and many simply adore the fiber while many are using the Tour de Fleece to understand Alpaca more.  Some members will be spinning Suri Alpaca while others will spin only Huacaya Alpaca.  Some will spin blends of Alpaca with various kinds of wool while others may spin only wool (I told them I wouldn't kick them out as long as they spun Alpaca at least one day).

Throughout the Tour de Fleece, our team will share our hits and misses, techniques and understanding of the glorious fiber that comes from Alpacas.  The neat thing is that no way is wrong.  While some only want to work with 100% Alpaca yarn, others have found that blends (no matter the type --Alpaca blend or Alpaca/Wool) have a better use for their intended end product.  It will be a fun way to learn together.

I have been busy creating Alpaca Batts of Wonder.  Some are 100% Alpaca while many others are blends.  Some are dyed while others are using the natural color of the Alpaca.  I hope to have some of these listed on my Etsy Shop of Wonder this weekend while others I will be selling at fiber festivals this summer but many will be for my own pleasure.  Hey, I can always sell the yarn although some of the fiber I hope to spin for some future knitting projects that I already have patterns for.


Finally, I want to share our sweet Arwen of Wonder who was born last Sunday.  She is amazing...and as you can see from the photos, very curious.  She is the finest Huacaya that I have ever had my hands on and I'm curious to see what her fleece will become as she grows older.  Now...share your adventures in Fiber Arts!

Fiber Arts Friday Blog Carnival! 

To participate:

1. Submit your blog article using your current blog address NOT your complete blog  i.e. you would submit 

http://wonderwhyalpacafarm.blogspot.com/2010/02/e-i-e-i-doh.html  

NOT 

http://wonderwhyalpacafarm.blogspot.com

1. Link back to Fiber Arts Friday from your post so that your readers can come and see everyone else’s projects! Text link to  WISDOM BEGINS IN WONDER!   
2. Visit as many of the other participants as possible and leave comments! That’s what helps us all connect!

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