TIPS FOR WORKING WITH SURI?

• Suri’s smooth surface may create some static electricity in dryer climates. Keeping a fine spray of water on hand will reduce this issue. 
• While Suris have no lanolin, they do like to roll in the dirt! The advantage to washing the raw fiber is it keeps your carding cloth free of oils and dirt and results in a lustrous yarn right off the bobbin. However, the advantage to spinning unwashed, raw fleece is that it is easier to identify and remove individual locks to flick or card than to do so after washing. Choose the method you think you will be most comfortable with. 
• Washing any fleece should be done with care to prevent felting, but with Suri, minimizing agitation keeps the longer fibers from tangling. Some prefer to soak and rinse fleeces several times. Others may remove locks carefully and wash them individually. Whatever your method, use a gentle soap to preserve the special characteristics of the fiber. 
• Flicking the Suri locks allows the spinner to maintain the alignment of the fibers in the lock and allows the spinner to spin worsted. Holding onto one end of the lock firmly, you flick one end of the lock and then the other so that when finished, the lock has been opened and aligned. Any fibers that are left in the flicker can be used to spin woolen, or blended on the carder with other fiber for woolen yarn. 
• If carding, keep in mind that fibers will be less aligned than if flicking and is better suited to woolen spinning. When using a drum carder, consider the staple length of the fiber. Locks longer than 5” may get wrapped around the carder and tear. 
• Master Spinner Donna Rudd describes her technique for spinning: “When I draft a Suri lock, I pull a few fibers from the tip end slowly from the fiber supply about half the length of the lock before grasping another small amount of fiber from the lock to draft along with the first supply. 
• As this length increases it gathers within my hand and forms a folded roving which is held safe and warm until all fibers are drafted and held within my hand in a long pencil type sliver. I then flip the fiber supply over to get the first tip end and start spinning from that end. The reason I draft from the tip end first with Suri only is because that part of the Suri will often be finer by a few microns than the cut end and it just enters the twist easier than a thicker cut butt end. Because the cuticle scales on Suri are very shallow and infrequent this does not seem to affect the draft at all (the opposite would be true with spinning wool...I would spin from the cut butt end to the tip of a staple)”. 
• Note that the longer fibers of Suri allow for spinning fine yarn, but its silky nature may require slightly more twist. 
• Donna Rudd describes her experience using Suri in novelty yarns: “I love spinning Suri for boucles! Suri makes big loops, small loops, wraps, spirals, tips and whips! Suri makes all types of boucles. Higher coarser grades of Suri make wonderful loopy boucle yarns with lots of volume, texture and its dyes like mohair into brilliant colors.  Another way I use Suri is in Novelty or Art yarn. Suri blended with a variety of fibers, colors, lengths and mixtures will give you an ‘Art Batt’ to die for and it is fun to spin until it is all gone.”