Properties of Curly Fiber
Resembles mohair, Very Warm, Hypoallergenic
It can be spun into yarn
Knit, crochet, weave the yarn into many items
Mission Statement~ Our mission is to promote the use of Curly Horse fiber and provide Curly owners with a market for selling their fiber.
Goals ~ We are a group of spinners, weavers, knitters & crochet artists that provide instruction on how to harvest, clean & spin Curly fiber. We exchange information & ideas about working with the fiber. We also provide demonstrations for the public at Breed demo`s where Curly horses are represented. We will also provide craft items made of Curly fiber for display at breed demos & horse fairs.
WORKING WITH CURLY FIBER
The Curly horse coat can be harvested and spun into yarn. The shedded curly coat comes off in the spring. The Curly hair collected is a mohair like fiber. It varies from very soft to coarse. The Curly fiber can be blended with other fibers and spun into yarn. It is a hypoallergenic fiber, since many people allergic to horses show little allergic symptoms to Curlies.
Curly Fiber Spinners ~ Bunny Reveglia, HC 31 Box 102A, Williamsburg, NM 87942
Sandra Bennett, Rt 1 Box 351, Tazewell, 24651 email: bricbenn@netscope.net
Robin Pooler, Flying Horse Farm, Maine
COLLECTING CURLY HAIR FIBER
Different areas of the Curly produce different qualities of fiber. See photo below for a diagram.
Once the Curly hair has been collected off the horse, pick out the large pieces of VM (vegetable matter, hay, straw, etc.) To wash the fiber, fill a bucket, large bowl or tub with warm water & Dawn dishwash detergent or baby shampoo. Put the fiber in the water & push it down gently. Let it soak for 15 min. Remove all the fiber & squeeze out the water. Empty dirty water & soak in warm clean water. To rinse fill the bowl with clean warm water & put the fiber in. Repeat two or three times, until water is clear. To dry, place on a towel & air dry on a rack or put in front of a fan on low for air movement. Also on top of a warm dryer works great.
CARDING & BLENDING CURLY
I`ve used very soft wool & med soft wool to blend with the Curly. Also great to blend is mohair, alpaca, llama even silk and angora rabbit as well as cotton. Use hand cards & put some wool or other fiber, then add the Curly to the wool on the cards & card some more. Add a little more wool or other fiber and card again. Roll the fiber off the cards into rolags. You`ll have little puffs of blended fiber ready to spin.
DYEING CURLY FIBER
I`ve also dyed the white, palomino & light grey Curly fiber & wool with Kool Aid to come up with some beautiful colors. Put the fiber in a bowl of hot water to just cover fiber. Add dry unsweetened Kool Aid of your choice & press down into fiber. Microwave on high until hot & steamy but not boiling. Let cool until all water is clear or milky, & color is in the fiber. Squeeze out water, place in clean water to rinse, squeeze out water & then dry. You can also dye spun yarn the same way.
SPINNING
You can use a drop spindle or spinning wheel to spin your Curly blend into yarn. I use a drop spindle made form 2 CD's, a dowel rod and cup hook. It works great. I also use a Babe spinning wheel. The blended Curly/wool spins up very nice into a fuzzy eyelash type yarn. You can then knit, crochet or weave something from the yarn. It is very, very warm.
Bunny Reveglia
HC 31 Box 102A
Williamsburg, NM 87942
bnrkcc@yahoo.com
My Favorite Web sites
Curly yarn Cowboy Hats, Fiber For sale, Curly Fiber Items
ICHO Home Page
Curly Home page
