Today is stage 6 of the Tour de France and all 160.5 km of it is pretty steep.  However, whilst Giulio Ciccone et al are spinning their wheels from Mulhouse to La Planche des Belle Filles, I and thousands of other people are spinning their wheels for yarn.

The Tour de Fleece was started by Star Athina and a few friends back in 2006  The idea was to dedicate 21 days in July to spinning, and maybe watch a little cycling too.  Flash forward 14 years and there are thousands of spinners all around the world, spinning on thousands of different wheels and drop spindles all united in their desire to meet whatever personal challenge they have set themselves.

This is my first Tour de Fleece.  Mainly because although I have done a little drop spinning, I haven’t done much and I only learned to spin on a wheel earlier this year (with the lovely Katie Seal of Sealy MacWheely in Kirkintilloch).

However, I have been making up for lost time, and whilst my new (to me) wheel is being given the once over by the superb Dr John, Physician to spinning wheels of distinction, I am currently spinning on Frankie, a wheel belonging to his lovely wife Carol.

There are teams you can join, prizes, challenges and all sorts going on.  I am starting small.  I am a member of the FB group which is as close to a team membership as I have got and my challenge (met so far) is to spin a minimum of 30 minutes per day.

At the moment I am getting myself by into the spin of things (pun intended) by using up some Blue Faced Leicester which is nice and easy.  But I have some lovely fleece I bought in Iceland

and a fabulous top and batt (which I designed myself)

from Sealy MacWheely

and when I am confident enough I shall move over to them.  I can’t wait!

Love Gillie x