! Whimple !

The very first year I learned to spin, my spinning lesson (yes, just one) was in July. By the fourth day of practice I was spinning cobweb lace weight yarn. That became my 'standard' for a long time.

By the fourth Christmas I decided that my Christmas present to my mother that year would be a handspun, handknit whimple. Lace whimple. It was my first knitted lace. Because the yarn was cobweb lace weight, it took seemingly a very long time to knit it and I remember I needed to add at least one more lace repeat to the pattern. I believe the pattern was in a Spin Off magazine, since that was the only fiber magazine I was subscribing to at that time.

This first picture I took of me in the hallway mirror this afternoon.


This second picture is the whimple on the bed so the full patterning can be seen. The ribbing along the face area is white angora rabbit. The rest of the whimple is corriedale and polypay (the white). I loved corriedale! For several years I would buy at least one corriedale fleece from Moonshadow Farm in Minnesota. I could hardly wait for her sample cards to come of the shearings, both the adult and especially the hoggett fleeces. Oh, those hoggett fleeces were perfection. And so wonderful to spin! And just opening the boxes, the fleeces smelled so-o-o good! I've never had fleeces that smelled so loved. (Something only a spinner and sheep aficionado understands!)