Bamboo Spinning Part Two

A few people asked for more information about the bamboo fiber I am spinning.  So I have taken several photos and will also add some information about both the fiber and my process for spinning it.

First I should tell you that I learned to spin wool both by self study and by taking a couple of classes.  I have had no training on spinning bamboo.  I just used the ideas from wool spinning (and cotton spinning) and adapted them to bamboo. 

When I first started with the bamboo, I was adding it in with wool to add shine.  However,  wool shrinks when washed with agitation and dried with heat.  So, spinning bamboo alone makes for a yarn that is less finicky when washing.   Also, wool is hot to wear and I live in the South. Bamboo is cooler.
Let me show you the current bobbin of "yarn" first.

You may notice that there are fuzzy bits "hanging out" of the yarn.  The way I spin  the bamboo, that just happens and I live with it.

I start with purchased bamboo fiber/roving. What I purchase is generally pre-dyed. 

However, I do have a rather large ball of white. (you can see my thumb in the upper left of the photo)

Trust me, that is a LOT of fiber for spinning.  Now, I can dye the white bamboo using the dyes I use for cotton. BUT, it isn't fun to do and it makes a mess of the fiber.

I also have something called "faux angora" that is amazingly soft. It is a nylon fiber.

 The faux angora spins very easily.  Sometimes when the bamboo keeps separating and coming apart as I spin, I add some of this just to give myself a break.  Then when I go back to the bamboo, it seems to spin better.  (yes dears, I know that it is all in my head - but it works for me!)

I basically spin the bamboo just like I spin wool, but a bit thicker so that it stays together better.  It does require a bit more twist but not nearly as much as cotton.

The following link is one place that bamboo fiber can be purchased.  This is not a recommendation, but just for educational purposes.  I bought mine at a fiber festival, on Etsy and other online vendors.
Paradise Fibers Ashland Bay dyed Bamboo fiber. 

So what is bamboo fiber? Is it from a bamboo plant like you have in your yard, field, planter?   It does indeed start as one of those long bamboo plants.  The cellulose fiber is extracted from the plant then treated and processed into a form of rayon. (any cellulose plant fiber can be made into rayon - but to be called bamboo it must be from the bamboo plant.)   The fibers are then sold as fiber for spinning or (more often) to  a mill that will make yarn/thread or fabric from it.

And now a quick update on the Grid.
I have done a bit of it with black lines over the cut edges of the fabrics.

This seems to be adding more definition to the shapes as well as intensifying the dimensional effect of the grid.  I will eventually finish it, but for now it is being worked on it "as I feel like it."


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