Albany spinners deliver it straight from the ewe to you at the Albany Show

The talents of the Albany Spinners will be on display during the 2022 Albany Agricultural Show as they take freshly shorn wool and turn it into a jumper. Passionate group members will display their spinning prowess to the public as they keep the age-old tradition of spinning alive. Albany Spinners president Leeza McLean said about 12 members would be involved in spinning, plying and knitting the jumper. “This year, we’re going to do another ‘ewe to you’ challenge, where we shear a sheep first thing in the morning on Friday, we then spin it, ply it and knit it up into a jumper within two days,” Ms McLean said. “We’ve done a jumper in the past and we’ve done a cardigan in the past. “And then last year, we did as many metres worth of wool that we could create within the two days.” This year the group will be spinning and knitting wool from a Merino or Corriedale-cross fleece to create a woman’s jumper. Ms McLean said she hoped the jumpers would be completed by 4pm on Saturday. The group’s wares will also be on display, with spinning wheels available for the public to try throughout the show. The display will also feature a rare “great wheel”, a large spinning wheel spun by hand instead of foot. “It’s pretty unusual from the more modern wheels that we have these days that we spin with,” Ms McLean said.