Navajo 3-Plying, A Look At Ingeo & More

I've just come in from filling the bird feeders this fine, sunny morning in Vermont. Look what treasures were underneath the feeders, bursting forth from the damp earth. Just seeing green in the form of a flower's leaves is a joy to behold, especially when snow covered the same spot only a week ago. I planted a few, new varieties of bulbs last fall, so it shall be great fun when they show their brilliant, flower colors.

Speaking of colors, I was asked this past weekend, whilst teaching a two-day, "Fiber Prep" course at Harrisville Designs, what color theory book I recommend? More to the point, the participant wanted a book that was easy-to-understand, instead of a tome that would sit on the shelf getting dusty because it was not user-friendly. It took me not even a moment to say, "Colorworks," Interweave Press, by Deb Menz. I had read the book in its entirety when I had several hours to pass, sitting in a coffee shop, waiting for a fiber-related gig to begin. As I read, I became more and more excited, realizing that here was a book that would make color theory accessible to anyone searching to enrich their own fiber work with glorious color. I particularly like the interactive, tear-out, perforated cards on heavy paper stock: A twelve-step color wheel+, a grey scale and a variety of hue cards. These removeable cards make the process of studying and choosing colors fun and easy. Crafters of all types will appreciate photos of beadwork, quilting, embroidery, knitting, weaving, handspun yarn, surface design and more.

And speaking of the "Fiber Prep" workshop at Harrisville Designs, what a lovely gathering of folks I spent my time with a few days ago. Various fibers and colors were a'flying as participants blended with their handcards and drumcarders, striated or separated with handheld and mounted combs, learned how to use a diz, mounted fibers on a hackle and drew them off into a rainbow of color, flicked open locks with their flick carders, spun from the fold, spun from the ends of preps, discussed worsted and woolen yarns and all yarns in-between and much, much more. The atmosphere reminded me of adults let out to play, after a winter's worth of hunkering down.

On last week's post featuring Tencel, I mentioned that I'd show this week the other three colors of Tencel that were solar and naturally dyed. But do take a really good look at the top photo on Tencel: Terrific To Natural Dye & Spin. It's not the camera shot, bad lighting or your own computer's color capability...if you split the circle of Tencel down the middle, the fiber on the left is one color and the fiber on the right is another. I forgot I photographed it this way and didn't even realize it again until I, myself, looked closely. Therefore, the Tencel on the left is darker and dyed with Lac extract, with a citric acid assist. The Tencel on the right has been dyed with Cochineal extract, Madder extract and a tad of Logwood Grey extract. All extracts were purchased from Earthues. In today's post, the Cochineal, Madder and Logwood Grey Tencel is seen flowing from one of my Ma's cherished vases, of the same color. Below that pic is a photo of a "nest with eggs" (...just can't resist a birdie reference!) made up of two colors of green Tencel. The eggs are a lighter greenish-yellow, solar dyed with Weld. The darker green was produced by solar dyeing with Goldenrod. All of the Tencel mentioned was prepared with scour and soda ash, and premordanted with aluminum acetate, as described on last week's Tencel post. All of this Tencel will be spun and go into the Bamboo knitted blouse I'm working towards.

On a completely different note, an e-mail came in from Gayle of Fur-Ever Creations. Gayle has started a business spinning pet fiber for customers looking for someone to make yarn or create a finished item out of their precious dog's, cat's, alpaca's, llama's, etc. coat. Items range from a small piece of yarn, to a skein, to a crocheted scarf or a woven "memory" square. Do check out Gayle's friendly site so that she can make a pet fiber tribute for you.

An e-mail also arrived from Tamara of Spincerely Yours:

I have a dyeing question. Elizabeth gave me bamboo fiber for my birthday. I have gray and white and even though I love the gray color, I find that I just can’t get myself to spin it for very long. At this time of year I really need bright colors. I thought I would try dyeing the bamboo, so yesterday I did a very small test run and tried dyeing a bit of each color with fiber reactive dyes (the ones I use for tie-dying from Dharma). Well, the white (more creamy actually) bamboo took up the dye like crazy, but not the gray. There was so reaction there at all; the color just washed right out. (No washing that gray right out of my hair!) Do you have any ideas on why this might happen???? Thank you so much!

The spider replies:
The fiber that Tamara is referring to is being retailed as Black Diamond Bamboo. For an excellent description of how this Bamboo is made, do go to Black Diamond Fiber: Ecoyarns. I'm guessing it's the carbonization process described that contributes to the fibers not being able to take up the fiber reactive dyes Tamara so successfully used for the white Bamboo. Readers - have you found any dye types that work on the Black Diamond? Any other ideas as to why the Black Diamond is dye stubborn?

Talk about dye stubborn...let's move on to Ingeo. On last week's Tencel post, a brief description was given as to how Ingeo is made. An e-mail came in from Jen in Mexico:

What is suitable to make with handspun Ingeo? I have 8 oz. each of 2 different colors and have no earthly idea what to do with it!! I haven't spun more than a small sample yet; waiting for a project so I know how thick or thin to spin. Every time Ingeo is brought up on the forums people either hate it or have no idea what to *do* with it, so a post on this would be most enlightening! Thanks!!

The spider replies:
Let's begin by taking a look at the fourth photo from the bottom. It shows white, undyed, Ingeo fiber with a small, handspun skein and two swatches; one knitted and one crocheted. Ingeo is the "corn" fiber, at one time (in this white form) distributed by Southwest Trading Company. It's my understanding that now Ingeo is rather harder to find in its white form, except perhaps on eBay or other such places where folks are aiming to unload it. It can, however, be found at various vendors in a rather nice array of colors. My hunch is that the white was dropped more-or-less due to the situation that: 1) Plenty of spinners complained that the stuff felt funny in their hands (I once heard it described as feeling like you were spinning corn starch); 2) The white Ingeo is difficult to dye since it has a melting point of 170 degrees; 3) Folks didn't know what to do with the stuff once it was spun.

Being a somewhat softie who tries to be open to the possible underdog of spinning fibers, I began some initial Ingeo experimenting of my own. Mind you, I've not yet tried to natural dye it yet. But the pic shown is a start towards eventual further Ingeo adventures. The yarn I show is a 4-ply cable and both swatches were made from it. My notes said that I spun it on my Lendrum, 6:1 ratio, with a short, backwards draw. (An aside: Would you like to see a post dedicated to cabling yarns? If so, please comment in the affirmative.)

What would I do with this yarn if I had oodles? Well, to answer that, let's look at some of Ingeo's properties...again, this was taken from the Ingeo and other related sites:

• Ingeo means "Created from the earth."
• The making of Ingeo does not have to draw upon depleting fossil fuels (no carbon from petroleum). Therefore, less greenhouse gases are added to the atmosphere (reduced CO2 emissions).
• Compostability (biodegradable) and recyclability
• Claimed to be the only "artificial fibre produced from 100% annually renewable resources. (Note from spider: Haven't we heard/read this somewhere else before?)
• Ingeo is a silky, bright white fiber with an average staple length of 3".
• Inelastic, but lots of definition
• Some random crimp or bends
• Said to resist ultraviolet light better than other synthetics
• Low flammability
• Absorbs moisture
• Low melting point (dyer's note: melts beyond 170 F)
• Also a dyer's note: Avoid using with soda ash as it will destroy the fiber.
• Aljo "low energy" disperse dyes have been suggested for successful, synthetic dyeing of Ingeo.
• Bit of controversy: If you are against genetically modified crops (GMO's), Cargill Dow (maker of Ingeo) has not been able to "guarantee" that no genetically modified corn has been used in the Ingeo process. Patagonia was going to launch a line of fleece jackets made out of Ingeo but is strongly against GMO's and has presently "pulled out" from doing so. When I was researching Ingeo over a year ago, in one place on the Ingeo websit, in a q & a section, Cargill Dow says, "Ingeo fibers do not contain genetically modified material, nor does its production require any genetically modified material." But when I looked further on their same website they say, "We use what is available in the supply chain. Today, the corn growing, distribution and processing supply chain does not maintain segregation of genetically enhanced corn and conventional corn through to the dextrose Cargill Dow purchases." Over 30% of all corn grown in the U.S. is said to be genetically enhanced. Should you use Ingeo....depends on where you stand on GMO's. To be fair, maybe the folks at Ingeo changed the information on their site by now. But does their stand on GMO's remain the same? Hmmmm.

So, back to Jen in Mexico's question about what to do with Ingeo handspun. Given the properties, right away I thought of a crocheted, brimmed, summer hat. In the apparel industry, Ingeo has been used in underwear and sport fashions. Perhaps us handspinners might like it in a sock blend...its wicking capabilities weren't mentioned (if at all present), but maybe the "aborbs moisture" property would be of use. Placemats might be nice out of Ingeo. I know industry has used it in curtains for the retail market, but I don't like the idea of putting it in a sunny window if it melts as low as 170 F...hey, even in VT, used in a window with a southern exposure in the summer, might be pushing it. So readers, any ideas on how to use that Ingeo yarn? What's your feeling about spinning/knitting/crocheting/etc. Ingeo? Do you like spinning the Ingeo that's already in dyed form? What do you think about using it in a garment?

Now on to the final, fiber subject on this post of Navajo 3-plying. Several readers commented on the blog or e-mailed me as to dedicating a post to this almost magical way of achieving a 3-ply from one singles strand. Thank you ALL for asking great questions and requesting that a technique be addressed. Everyone who reads this blog benefits when you do so.

When thinking about such a topic for the post, and aiming to keep fresh, I decided to steer clear of all information in my personal book & magazine collection and that which is already available on other blogs and websites, about Navajo plying, so that I wouldn't be tempted to snag ideas. Not that all those ideas aren't well-worth looking in to...I'll leave that for you to research. My aim here is to keep it simple. Hopefully those who asked about Navajo plying and others, will be able to try it at home. With a little help from my cyber friends (you readers!), we'll clarify things even further when you comment about what works and what doesn't.

Let's start at the top photo showing what I used for the demonstration. It's a snazzy, new line of space-dyed, 100% wool, commercially combed top available from Louet, called "Northern Lights". (Note to Harrisville "Fiber Prep" class: Yes, I know I told you it was a carded prep. I was wrong! Louet lists it as top. Sorry!) What's so incredible are the many colorways available. I used "Picasso," which included amongst its colors a vibrant orange, a golden yellow, peacock-ish blue, a rich wine and an olive green. Not only does this fiber look pretty, it spins wonderfully. I spun it on my Louet S10 wheel with a fat core bobbin, 6.5:1 ratio, and a short, backwards draw.

Now the first tip I can give to spinners wishing to Navajo ply would be to use single's in which the live twist has deadened. This does not mean the twist goes away...it's still in there if you put it there! But if you let the single's sit on the bobbin a good, long time before Navajo plying it, the twist will eventually go to sleep, so to speak. Once asleep, it stops wanting to ply back on itself and won't cause havoc when performing the hand tasks necessary to achieve a Navajo plied yarn. However, who wants to wait for the twist to deaden in this way? Not I and probably not you. (Note how I freely exchange the words deaden and goes to sleep...I'm guessing you get the drift...they're one and the same in this case...not necessarily so in real life...).

The 2nd from top pic is of an electrical steamer. It's a handy-dandy piece of equipment that'll put that twist to sleep good and proper. But first, I wind the single's on to a cat ball. For how to make a cat ball, which is none other than a felted ball, see the past post Storing Takli-Spun Singles For Plying. The ball with yarn is then popped into the steamer for about 5 minutes, after the steamer is well-revved up. When done, the removed ball is set to dry.

The ball with sleeping single's then goes under what's pictured in the 3rd photo from top. Yes, that's a clay flowerpot. Not a bad tool, indeed, as it keeps the ball from rolling across the floor, teasing two black cats if it did roll, and it acts as a kate of sorts, which can help tension, if needed, the single's coming through the drainage hole, especially if you place it a bit in back of you.

The 4th pic from the top shows how you take the single's in hand, make a loop that your hand could easily fit through and then some, pinch the top of this loop with the single's-attached-to -the-ball (yes, they're all from the same single's but we differentiate this strand from the two sides that make up the loop). The 5th photo shows how you take what's pinched between your fingers and bring it through the loop of your leader. You don't have a loop at the end of your leader?! Perhaps it's time to consider one...you may end up liking it a lot!! A loop at the end of your leader will allow you to join on yarn (in the case of plying) or fiber (in the case of spinning a single's) without having to rely on it holding on to the core of a single-stranded leader. For plying just poke the beginning through and fold it over. Once you begin treadling for plying, as in the 6th photo from the top, all will be securely attached to the leader.

The next photo, 7th from top, shows how your back hand opens up the loop you've made and with a finger (I use either my pointer or middle finger), scoops up the single's-attached-to-the-ball and makes a new loop from it, as you *treadle.

The most useful tip I can give at this time is to *treadle slowly. Consider using a ratio that's slower than what you used for spinning the single's. If this isn't possible, you'll really have to concentrate to treadle slowly or your Navajo 3-plied yarn will be rope in no time (ie. overtwist). Why? Because your hands have to do more than just ply, as in plain vanilla 2 or 3 ply. To achieve a Navajo 3-ply, your hand has to continually bring up the single's-attached-to-the-ball through the loop....over and over again.

Another useful tip is to scoop the single's-attached-to-the-ball through the loop when it's still big enough to get your hands in and is not closed off by the plying twist. The 8th photo demonstrates that you've got to keep the loop at least this big for scooping.

The 9th pic shows how a new loop is being formed (note that the single's-attached-to-the-ball is hiding under my hand, but it's still there). In the 10th pic, the process repeats itself...also clearly (hopefully) showing how the two sides of the loop + the single's-attached-to-the-ball make up the three strands of the Navajo 3-ply.

The 11th photo from the top (last of the Navajo plying demo), demonstrates how you can compare the plying twist as you Navajo ply with a plain vanilla 3-ply-back (taken from fresh, live-twist single's), in order to check that you end up with a balanced yarn...given that you remained consistent in spinning your single's to begin with. Also note that I saved my single's by notching the index card, making for an excellent visual reference.

Folks often worry about the "knot"...it's not really a knot...actually it's at the point where the single's folds when making a new loop. The only time I've had problems with this area is when spinning 100% mohair, especially yearling and coarser. In that case, the fold bloobs (another one of those technical spinning words...heh, heh) out, probably due to mohair not wanting to fold at all. If you've overtwisted your Navajo 3-ply yarn, maybe the knots/folds will be hard...but hey, so will your yarn be! In any case, I generally find the folds melt right into the knitted fabric of whatever I make. Readers, what's your experience with the folds causing problems or not?

A really neat use of Navajo 3-ply yarn is when the single's you've spun has definite lengths of various colors spun in succession, as in space-dyed or handpainted fiber. You can simply bring up loops when you wish, keeping clear color and avoiding alot of barber pole-ing. However, the barber pole-ing you do allow can be rather nice in that it gradually takes you to the new color, as in shading towards that new color.

Navajo 3-ply is also a useful technique when you want a thicker yarn but you only have single's to make it from. And don't forget that you can Navajo 3-ply on your spindle. After all, the technique gets its name from the Navajo Native Americans who created 3-plies on their spindles.

Please consider commenting with your Navajo 3-ply experiences. Has anyone used more plies in their Navajo technique? Folks who've had a hard time making the "comment" function work on the blog, do try this: Let the whole blog page load completely before you click on "comment" at the bottom of the post. A pop-up will occur. Type what you want in the space. Click on "other" if you're not on "Blogger" yourself and type in your name or nickname, etc.; type your website/blog (optional); and click "publish your comment". Do please check that it went through. Thank you!!

On a totally different topic, from viewing the photo of the spider on last week's post, Lucy asked whether or not I have "baby blue" eyes or are they blue/green? Well, as per usual, the spider does not have a simple answer. When I was little, I lamented that my eyes were a rather dull blue-grey...not the lively blue of my Dad's eyes. By the time I was a teenager, I noticed something quite magical. The interesting thing is, that's when other folks noticed it, too...my eyes changed colors dramatically. Sometimes they are as blue as any blue eyes you've ever seen. Occasionally they have a hint of green in them. At other times, Chris has said they're downright turquoise. I once asked an eye doc about this, but he said he'd never heard of it. Have you? Seriously, if I was the only one who noticed, then I'd be thinking....yeah right, Jenny! But, the eye color change has been brought to my attention quite regularly over the years by a variety of people. Sometimes Chris and I notice that my eyes match my outfit (convenient, don't you think?...like an "accessory"!) and at other times he says it must have to do with something that I'm looking at. Who knows? Not a bad mystery at all....