Fiber Arts without Spinning

Dianne Howe with Marsha Novak

Now that the shearing is finished and you have properly stored all your wonderful fiber, are you wondering what to do with it? If you do not spin, don't despair. There are actually quite a few things that non-spinners can do with raw and carded fiber. I will briefly outline four "crafts" where non-spun fiber can be utilized: knitting, weaving, locker-hooking, and felting.

Knitting with Carded Fiber

I know you are saying, "But don't you knit with yarn?" Yes, but you can knit with carded fiber as well. It is a little more tricky as the carded fiber is more delicate than yarn. This method of knitting will work best if the fiber is at least 3" long so that each fiber is knit into several stitches.

If you want to try this, make sure that the carded fiber is prepared in pencil roving. This is the very thin roving that you can request if you send your raw fiber off to be commercially carded. It really works the best for knitting. You still may need to split the roving into even thinner strips depending on the pattern you have selected to knit.

You will also need to use thinner knitting needles, pull the roving into a size that is relatively thick for those needles.

The knitting process is basically the same, but in- stead of the yarn on your knitting needles, you use the pencil roving. Because the roving is much more lofty and fuzzy that any yam, your finished garment will have these same characteristics. Once the roving is knit, it is quite strong and will hold up well for hand-washing. (Check the Fall 2000 issue of "Spin-Off' magazine, pages 50-53 for a more detailed description of knitting with roving.)

Weaving with Roving

Once again, many of you are probably thinking that only threads and yarns are used for weaving. While these are certainly common materials, some incredibly beautiful weaving can be done using a combination of yarn and roving. In fact, many tapestry types of weaving are done using raw fiber or carded fiber. You can easily buy commercially prepared threads or yarns which you will use for the warp (the vertical threads on the loom). The horizontal component of the weaving, or the weft, will be the roving. You may choose to alternate rows of thread to secure the roving.

There are actually some fantastic weavings being produced in South America using this method. One of the biggest advantages of using roving in this application is that you can use lots of different colors and actually create a picture, rather than just a pattern. Check out the www.novica.com website to see examples of this type of weaving.

For this weaving technique, you can use a simple hand loom or Navaho type loom, or a more complex loom. After the warp is set up, weave the first row of weft with yarn. For the next row, use your roving instead of the yarn. This row will obviously be much thicker and have more depth. It requires specific techniques to thread this type of weft through the warp without the fiber pulling apart. The third row can be yarn, the fourth row the roving, and so on. Or you can do the entire weft with the raw or carded fiber.  There are two good beginner's weaving books that you may want to use as reference if you are interested in trying this craft: Tapestry Weaving by Nancy Harvey, and Navaho Weaving Way by Noel Bennett and Tiana BigHorse.

Locker Hooking

Locker hooking will probably remind you of a similar craft that you may have done as a child in school. It uses a canvas mesh made out of squares that are about 1/4". You use a special "locker hook" tool that is a crochet hook on one end and a large needle eye on the other end. The roving is pulled through the first square of the mesh from underneath with the crochet hook, then the crochet hook goes through the next square and pulls up a tuff of roving again, and repeats all the way across the row. To secure the row, you run the locker hook that is threaded with yam, back underneath all the tufts of wool to secure them, and start on the second row. It is similar to hooking a rug, but instead of using individual pieces of short thread and tying a knot in each, you use a continuous piece of fiber, or in this case, roving. You can do patterns of color or actually make scenes, pictures, or anything you desire.

The finished piece is reversible in that it has wool on both sides. The finished, woven canvas can be used as a wall hanging, rug, place mat, even made into a handbag, decorative pillow, tea cosy, cover for flower pots, etc. The only limit to what you can do with locker hooking is your creativity and imagination. This kind of  craft is also suit-able for children ages ten and up.

If this strikes your fancy, check out the book, Creative Locker Hooking by Leone Peguero.

Felting

The final craft for creating fun things from your raw llama wool is felting. This is very easy to do and almost impossible to make mistakes. Felting is basically getting the raw fiber to create a tangled mat, using water, soap and lots of agitation. (It's something you don't want to do if you are washing fiber for some other purpose!)

You can do it in a large basin or sink. You can use the raw fiber as it comes off the llama or you can card it first. By carding it first, the felt you produce will be in flatter sheets and be a bit smoother. This would be appropriate if you want to use it for making patterns for felt animals, or garments (hats, purses, etc.).

Use relatively warm water and liquid dish detergent. Put the wool into this water and start agitating it with your hands. Work the wool until it starts to come together into felt. Once you have it felted to the desired consistency, squeeze out the excess water and let it dry on a flat surface. Once dry, it can be cut into strips and woven into a placemat, or cut into patterns for felt animals or garments.

There are a number of books on felting for beginners to advanced projects: How to Make Felt by Anne Belgrave, and Exploring Felting by Joan Fisher are two good ones for beginners.  (Reprinted from CCLA Newsletter; Summer 2001)