Brushed Mohair

Mohair/Silk: 1 ply each
28-32 wpi (minus the halo)
852 yards

I finished spinning this yarn back in February, but I never got around to finishing it until this week.  After washing the skein, I whacked and thwacked it around to loosen up the mohair.  Once dried, I wound and rewound the skein/ball on my ball winder while passing the strand of yarn through my boar’s hair fingernail brush a total of 6 times to bring out the halo.

You can’t really tell by the picture above, but the halo is really there.  This sample card on the right shows the halo a bit better. The sample on the right (blue/green) was brushed once.  The sample on the left (lavender/blue) was brushed 6 times.  I forgot to keep back a sample before the wet finishing to show off how different it really is.

It’s not as soft and hairy as Rowan Kidsilk, but I don’t think it would have been possible with this fiber for several reasons.  The primary reason is that the mohair was combed, so it was spun mostly worsted.  This compressed the fiber somewhat, and doesn’t have the loft.  Kidsilk must be spun woolen, though I can’t confirm this.  Also, I don’t think my mohair was kid mohair, but most likely adult mohair.  (The package didn’t say.)

But the drape of this yarn is fabulous!