Veryl (and anyone else who might have wondered...):
I was in a fiber exchange a couple of years back (*not* the time I spun
your pyrs, Veryl! ;-) and the donor had sent some wool/llama blend for me
to spin. She'd already blended it in her carder, so it was in batts. But
she hadn't washed the llama before she'd blended it (!) Now, llama doesn't
get greasy, but llamas *love* to roll in the dust, and an unwashed llama
fleece can be extremely dusty - as these were. I tried to spin them as is,
but just couldn't stand it, so said "What the hey? I'll try washing them
and see what happens." Figured I could always recard them if I messed up
too badly. So here's what I did:
1. Using mesh lingerie bags, I put enough batts into each so they wouldn't
move around much.
2. I filled the washer with hot water and Dawn
3. Put in the bags and let 'em soak for about 15 minutes
4. Spun the water out (I have a spin-only cycle, which I can manually turn on)
5. Removed the bags
6. Filled the washer with hot (same temp) water for rinsing
7. Put in bags, etc.
8. Handle just as before.
The single rinse had gotten all the soap out, so I carefully took the batts
out of the bags, and laid them on a two-tier mesh sweater dryer that I also
use for drying washed fleeces, and hoped for the best. Result: The batts
were clean and fresh - not messed up at all - and *much* more pleasant to
spin. I'd say - handle them as little as possible so as to not disturb the
fibers, and go for it!
Good luck!
Glenna
At 09:38 AM 3/4/01 -1000, you wrote:
>I have no problems washing wool fleece but I'm not sure how to handle a batt
>that I have. I purchased a Romney batt that has been dyed a lovely
>turquoise. However, I didn't get around to using it for two years and it is
>now very sticky. I can spin it this way but I would like to blend it with
>some silk and I'm not sure I want to run it through my drum carder this way.
>Is there a way that I can wash the batt to get out the stickiness without
>ending up with felt?
>
>Veryl Ann Grace
>Pele, Maddie & Karlo (Pyrs)
>Kea`au HI
Glenna Stansifer
Independence, CA, USA
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