Great Balls of Joy

I am so excited. I got the good word from a friend who owns a sheep farm about an hours drive from here where I live. She taught me how to spin and I bought my spinning wheel from her. It's sits idle in the living room but it is admired every time I walk past it. That's a start right?

Two years ago when I belonged to the local spinning guild, I was gifted two fleeces from a member who was moving from one house to another and wanted to purge her fleeces. No one in the room was jumping at the chance when they heard that they had to be picked and cleaned. Being the beginner I was, I jumped at the chance and took them home. They have been sitting under my bed ever since then. I did at least wash them, but nothing else. I bought some lock combs and have not really used them. So the enthusiasm had failed by the way side.

Maryland Sheep and Wool rekindled my enthusiasm for those forgotten fleeces. My friend Mary told me about Zeilinger Wool Co. She told me to bring my raw fleeces to them and they would take them, process them and then mail them back to me. I was truly not a believer for leaving my fleeces with someone else. Being the doubting Thomas that I am, I only trusted them with one fleece. If that one fleece came back unsatisfactory, I wouldn't give them anymore of the fleeces I have waiting under the bed. So I toted my fleece to the show and left it with Zeilingers. They said it should be to me sometime in July.

About the first of this month, I started thinking about my fleece. Where was it? Did they lose it or what? I figured that I would give them another few weeks and then start dialing. Opps, we don't dial anymore do we? Okay punching. Lo and behold, I fell asleep in the chair this past Saturday when DH went outside to mow the yard. When he came back in the had a box. I thought it was a shipment of books that I had ordered. I was so happy to see those books. I opened the box and got a BIG surprise. Not books, but fleece. It was coiled in the box like a big fuzzy hair ball. I had a devil of a time finding the end so I just picked a spot and broke it.

I somehow had it in my mind that the roving would come wound up in balls. After all, that's the only way I have seen roving. I had no idea that I had to wind it myself. Nevertheless, I did and got four rather large fluffy balls from the box. I am tickled pink with my roving. It's soft and looks pretty free of veg matter. I picked through it a bit and there doesn't seem to be too much.

I might have to spin some of this stuff here pretty quick. I have a full schedule until the end of this month so I may have to spin in August. That certainly won't stop me from admiring the ball of joy though!

So what color do you think they are? I can't decide. There is about 3 1/2 pounds of roving there. I am going to give the small ball away to another spinner so she can test it. All in all, I am just so pleased that I dragged that big honking bag up and down MS&W so I could get those. I am going to have to get the others ready to take next year!