Mystery Skeins of Natural Silk--Now what?

[luvswool and dyestuff]

Along with a recent purchase of fibers at auction, I received this surprise in my lot.  The paperwork says this is from Treenway Silks (Victoria, BC) and is marked Mulberry 8/2.  But there is another surprise which seems to be labeled “Tussah,” in “cake” form (see below).  But the paperwork is not attached, so either one could be mulberry, tussah, or another kind of silk.

Natural Silk by catwycliff, on Flickr

No, I am not a knitter and so these skeins and cakes are very confusing.  Do you know which silk is which?  But more importantly, what would be the best method for untangling that skein? Now is this where those noddy-noddy tools come into play, or skein or ball winders? (I plan to dye it.)

[luvswool and dyestuff]

Here’s the silk cake--not as shiny as the skein, and a bit thinner, I think!

Silk Cake? by catwycliff, on Flickr

Any help will be most appreciated!

[MTRuth]

You could email photos to Treenway and ask.

[Shepherdess]

The cake should be a center pull ball. Using the center stops it tangling as much. you can use a niddy noddy to make a skein but you can also use anything you like. the back of a chair for instance. If one is white and the other golden then the white one is the mulberry.

[elizabeth]

To untangle the top photo, I'd start with a shot of bourbon. Or valium :-)
Or send it to me.  And expect 50% 'shrinkage'

[zed]

I was going to say the same as Ann, and they look more like thread than yarn, but at one point does thread become yarn? When it's used with a knitting needle and not sewing needle?

[Pandagirl]

Cathy the top one will be a challenge. I usually use the back of a chair, but you need a lot of patience especially if it is knotted up. If you're not going to use it for knitting and just embellishments, you can just cut what you need and not worry about making it neat.

[luvswool and dyestuff]

Aha ha ha! Elizabeth. Thanks for my first out-loud laugh today!
…And to everyone else for your tips. Ruth, sending the pics to Treenway--how easy is that? Doh ;-}}

[Teri Berry]

Let us know what they say Cathy but as a general rule mulberry silk is more shiny than tussah, from your description and the photos I would say the tangled skein is mulberry and the cake is tussah (assuming they are both silk!).

[koffipot]

Feb 4, 2016 14:41:50 GMT luvswool and dyestuff said:

Along with a recent purchase of fibers at auction, I received this surprise in my lot.  The paperwork says this is from Treenway Silks (Victoria, BC) and is marked Mulberry 8/2.  But there is another surprise which seems to be labeled “Tussah,” in “cake” form (see below).  But the paperwork is not attached, so either one could be mulberry, tussah, or another kind of silk.

Natural Silk by catwycliff, on Flickr

No, I am not a knitter and so these skeins and cakes are very confusing.  Do you know which silk is which?  But more importantly, what would be the best method for untangling that skein? Now is this where those noddy-noddy tools come into play, or skein or ball winders? (I plan to dye it.)

Cathy, Lovely yarns if a little tangled!!!


I've just made a niddy noddy with PVC pipe and connectors. Cheap and cheerful and does the job. Instructions below:-

www.allfreeknitting.com/video-basics/how-to-make-a-niddy-noddy

[luvswool and dyestuff]

Thanks, Judith, for the link on making a niddy-noddy. So I get the skein winding part, but it’s just a pain to have to untangle that mess. I used some of the mulberry yesterday to dye with Jacquard silk dyes, but I ended up snipping off strands. I don’t see myself having the patience to unwind that total mess, but it would still be nice to have one of those tools on which to wrap your strands before or after dyeing.

BTW, many weavers use 8/2 thread or yarn for weaving-- weft or warp. Depends on the effect you want to have. I like to mix my threads and yarns for Saori-style weaving. Some will be thin, some will be very thick. Of course, the thin threads don’t go as fast. Patience again.

[koffipot]

Feb 7, 2016 17:32:38 GMT luvswool and dyestuff said:

Thanks, Judith, for the link on making a niddy-noddy. So I get the skein winding part, but it’s just a pain to have to untangle that mess. I used some of the mulberry yesterday to dye with Jacquard silk dyes, but I ended up snipping off strands. I don’t see myself having the patience to unwind that total mess, but it would still be nice to have one of those tools on which to wrap your strands before or after dyeing.

BTW, many weavers use 8/2 thread or yarn for weaving-- weft or warp. Depends on the effect you want to have. I like to mix my threads and yarns for Saori-style weaving. Some will be thin, some will be very thick. Of course, the thin threads don’t go as fast. Patience again.

Patience! It's not in my vocabulary!!

[sonia]

Thank you for the link ... now I know what a niddy noddy is !!

[luvswool and dyestuff]

Still haven’t tried to make a niddy noddy…looks like too many moving parts for me. ;-))
Judith, I will try that video once more.

[koffipot]

It's really very simple Cathy; just an Hwith the horizontal bar elongated and one leg turned at 90 degrees.