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Monday 18 July 2011

Tour De Fleece 2011 - Angora Rabbit

Angora Rabbits are one of the oldest breeds of domestic rabbit.  They originate from Turkey along with the Angora goat.  They were bred for their soft long fur.  I can't quite believe there is a rabbit under there!  Of all the fibres in my sample pack I was least enthusiastic about Angora rabbit.  I found it an interesting spin but personally I did not enjoy it.  I had a nasty allergic reaction to an Angora Mix jumper once, where some fibre got in my eye.  My eye was inconceivably swollen for three or four days before the fibre worked its way out and became apparent as the cause.  It was a beautifully soft, grey and embroidered jumper, I only wore it once!  It was with a considerable amount of trepidation and the sort of willfulness that gets me in to trouble that I set out to spin this fibre, with the attitude of getting it over and done with.  It is a shame because it has some really wonderful qualities.  It is soft, fluffy and the resulting yarn has a wonderful halo.

It has little elasticity so I think it would be useful to explore blending Angora with other fibres.  I can't see me experimenting much with it though.  It is a bit like joining a Gym, it has little appeal to me although I can see why others like it!  It did make me itch, I expected to get hives (seriously), my nose tickles and my eyes don't feel great, however even though my clothes are covered in a layer of white fluff I am not sneezing or as bad as I expected.  I was reading about someone with a severe wool allergy, can you imagine such an affliction?  Rabbit hair I can probably live without, but wool!  Perish the thought!
Edit:  We all went out covered in white fluff today.  The little one had it all over his school trousers and I had it all over my behind!  Not a good look!

9 comments:

  1. I love the rabbit, though he looks fierce! The wool looks divine!

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  2. OMG that rabbit is fabulous! I love angora but not as much as I love cahsmere.
    Love Tickety-boo
    xx

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  3. My first thought on seeing the rabbit was - wow, that is some bad hair day!
    I know how it feels to have the white fluff all over your clothes, one of our cats has a lot of white fur and it gets EVERYWHERE.
    Carol xx

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  4. A bad hare day! D'ya get it! Oh dear, this 'Tour de Fleas' is getting to me!

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  5. How does that poor critter move about? Goodness! It does look soft and fluffy though. I'm sorry the experience wasn't one of your favorites, but the fibers do look lovely! I have a dear friend whom I am teaching to crochet who has allergies to ALL animal fibers. The poor girl can only work with synthetics and cotton. Needless to say she's incredibly bitter about it. Hoping you have a more enjoyable and less hairy tomorrow!
    ~Lacey

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  6. I have seen lots of Angora rabbits in my day and even had a grey one.. and have never seen one that furry! Poor thing can't even see! Someone needs to shear it soon! I've seen spinners with a rabbit on their lap, spinning directly from the bunny! I'm surely enjoying your TDF!! ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  7. Wow, that is one fluffy bunny and the spun yarn looked gorgeous - you're right about the halo :)
    Can't wait to see what you blend it with!

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  8. Holy cow look at that bunny!!! Oh I could just cuddle him. I always have sticky rollers as our dog has a fair bit of white hair and we always go out covered in it too.

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  9. Hahaha that bunny is the funniest thing I have ever seen :-D I would love to be able to spin my own yarn, everyone's blogging about it and it looks awesome :-D

    Can't wait to see more x x

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