The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Food & crafts => Crafts => Topic started by: Fleecewife on June 23, 2012, 12:18:39 pm
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I love spindles; I think they are little works of art. In particular, the two new turkish spindles I bought at Woolfest are beautifully made, and one is made from Norfolk bogwood which has been carbon dated to 3,300 years old - how cool is that 8) 8) 8) Great for me as I am originally from Norfolk.
So I thought I would look up to see if I could get any ideas on how people store and display their spindles. The first google page had me in stitches, being all about spindle cells, and drosophila with wonky ones, like this: (don't look it up - it's a scientific paper to send most of us to sleep)
http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=4&sqi=2&ved=0CG4QFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fjn.physiology.org%2Fcontent%2F93%2F1%2F294.full.pdf&ei=2qPlT8C7HMLD0QXf5cibCQ&usg=AFQjCNHAfz7fxqfXlgPn-KIG_HOAS504zQ&sig2=Jgmep_67wHGHp1mvl1pTFg (http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=4&sqi=2&ved=0CG4QFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fjn.physiology.org%2Fcontent%2F93%2F1%2F294.full.pdf&ei=2qPlT8C7HMLD0QXf5cibCQ&usg=AFQjCNHAfz7fxqfXlgPn-KIG_HOAS504zQ&sig2=Jgmep_67wHGHp1mvl1pTFg)
As well as all that physiology, there was lots about stairs and spindles which I presume are the bits which join the banisters to the steps. So not what I was looking for either.
I wonder where I can find some ideas on how to store my spindles so they don't warp but they do look nice. Ideally they should be suspended - if I had room in my tiny house I could make a spindle tree :D :D
Now I'm thinking along the lines of something hanging from the ceiling like a mobile, but it would need to be well away from the light, and not somewhere where the spindles would catch my OH on the head - he hates my Helichrysum flowers while they are drying as he is forever getting caught in them :innocent:
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I had hoped we were going to get pics since I noticed you'd bought some spindles at Woolfest ;)
Storing them. Today at Woolfest, the Wood Emporium which is who I'd previously bought my spindle from, had them in narrow wooden racks, with little holes drilled in. You could make a very narrow shelf like this, which would hardly take up any space at all, and you could see them better than if suspended from the ceiling I think.
I was relatively restrained at Woolfest and have some away with only 200g pure silk tops to spin, 100g lace weight silk to knit into a shawl, some beads to add to the shawl and some stitch markers to help. My mother on the other hand........ :D
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I love spindles; I think they are little works of art. In particular, the two new turkish spindles I bought at Woolfest are beautifully made, and one is made from Norfolk bogwood which has been carbon dated to 3,300 years old - how cool is that 8) 8) 8) Great for me as I am originally from Norfolk
But you are not 3,300 years old.... :-J
I only bought another three bobbins for my Lendrum plus some bits and bobs for my daughter, it is becoming fatal having a child in tow... she is just starting to knit and do quite a bit of braiding and stitching and eyeing my spinning wheel... but yes was fairly restraint (with a garage full of fleeces bringing more home would probably mean divorce...)
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Ah - we are all as old as the Universe, just recycled and redesigned 8)
My Turkish spindles can be seen at www.thewoodemporium.co.uk (http://www.thewoodemporium.co.uk) . The bog oak one is the first one shown, with tiny brass weights at the ends of the cross-pieces. The other one is snakewood. Now I'm lusting after a rim-weighted top whorl spindle from him too - I just love the pure craftsmanship he puts into each piece. My other good spindles are mostly imported from Canada or the US, so it's lovely to know that someone here in Britain is making such beautiful spinning tools. However, I don't see how I can possibly justify another spindle :(
Jaykay - which spindle do you have?
The idea of his little racks is an excellent one - thank you :thumbsup:
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Not sure how many you have but what about something modified from a few hangers in your wardrobe that you could hang them from?
I've not had to worry about this yet, mine has been constantly in use!
Dans
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Mine is the medium rim weighted one, in oak burr. It's lovely to use ;D
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Mine is the medium rim weighted one, in oak burr. It's lovely to use ;D
Oh that's just the one I love :'( .
Dans - something like that is what I was thinking of at first, but I can do woodwork so a nice shelf made of an interesting wood, really appeals. Mind you, it will be a while before I have time to make it.
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It is, however, my only spindle ;)
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I bought a spindle with some prepard fleece at the small holders' show but I'm having real trouble with it. I hadn't realised that it was a weight at th top one which I've never used before so I moved the hook to the bottom but it won't spin evenly. Is this me or is it that you can't change them? I must admit I haven't tried very long yet.
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Top whorl spindles are much easier to use.
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It is, however, my only spindle ;)
Oh I know but a girl's got to collect something, and I'm not into shoes and handbags ;D ;D
MGofM - I agree with jaykay - top whorl spindles are easier to use than bottom whorl, except turkish spindles which are bottom whorl but SO easy to use.
The technique with a top whorl is to roll the shaft of the spindle up the outside of your right leg ie clockwise, to get it spinning (or down your left leg). Have a look at some of the Utube vids of spindling and you will see what I mean.
Try putting the hook back in its proper place (you might have to tweak it a bit to get it spinning well) then keep trying. I'm sure you will end up getting the knack :thumbsup:
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See how we are all different? I can't get the hang of top whorl spindles at all, but LOVE my bottom whorl I was given.
At the risk of sounding gross (not that I care too much :innocent: ) I am having a lovely time spinning some border collie hair!
I combed him with the furminator and popped the hair off the comb and it looked just like prepared tops......
It is sooooooooooooooooo easy to spin, I would recommend it as a newbies challenge. :D
And I bet I'm not the only one with a moulting BC right now ;D
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It is, however, my only spindle ;)
Oh I know but a girl's got to collect something, and I'm not into shoes and handbags ;D ;D
MGofM - I agree with jaykay - top whorl spindles are easier to use than bottom whorl, except turkish spindles which are bottom whorl but SO easy to use.
The technique with a top whorl is to roll the shaft of the spindle up the outside of your right leg ie clockwise, to get it spinning (or down your left leg). Have a look at some of the Utube vids of spindling and you will see what I mean.
Try putting the hook back in its proper place (you might have to tweak it a bit to get it spinning well) then keep trying. I'm sure you will end up getting the knack :thumbsup:
Thanks FW, I'll try it.
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This is the thread that brought me to the forum, so thank you Fleecewife for starting it. :)
Having never used a drop spindle in my life I'm hoping someone can point me in the direction of one that is suitable for a sixty-year old novice? I would also appreciate knowing what muscles get used in the process, which is probably not something many people enquire about. :D
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Ashford do a fairly large Turkish Spindle at a reasonable price. You can get cheaper spindles at a few £s. If you have to buy it online, I would suggest the Ashford Turkish as you don't need to adjust it, whereas most ordinary top and bottom whorl spindles will need at least a small degree of adjustment. I have one and use it for spinning medium weight yarn, so it would suit a beginner (my OH can spin using it - I did also find him teaching someone on my wheel when I'd gone for a wander at the show today - it's amazing what he can do when I'm not looking ;D ). You don't want too lightweight a spindle when you are starting out as it will not keep turning for long enough with thicker beginners yarn, nor do you want one which is too heavy as the yarn will keep breaking and you will get discouraged. Perhaps Sallyintnorth and Dans can describe their 'park and ride' method of spindling, which is great for when you first start out, and prevents a lot of frustration and confidence loss.
Muscles - wrists a bit, hands and fingers of course. If you are not sitting or standing comfortably you can get sore shoulders or back, as with a wheel. You also need to hold your arms up somewhat.
Carding can give you rsi in the wrists and the first joint in the thumb - if that can be a problem for you I will tell you how I deal with it - if only I had know 17 years ago I wouldn't have the problem now ::)
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Muscles - wrists a bit, hands and fingers of course. If you are not sitting or standing comfortably you can get sore shoulders or back, as with a wheel. You also need to hold your arms up somewhat.
Carding can give you rsi in the wrists and the first joint in the thumb - if that can be a problem for you I will tell you how I deal with it - if only I had know 17 years ago I wouldn't have the problem now ::)
Thank you so much for this information. I was watching a video on carding earlier and the thought did cross my mind that it could be problematic. I am more than happy to learn from your mistakes - forewarned is forearmed. :)
I will certainly take your advice on the Ashford Turkish Fleecewife, I'm already thinking of you as the 'Spindle Queen'. :thumbsup:
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I wasn't sure if I would take to the spinning so I just bought the cheapest one I could find on amazon. I am tempted by these Turkish ones now though!
Let us know how you get on and if you have any troubles.
Dans
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I bought a bog standard (as in common-or-garden, not as in 3000-year old bog oak! :D) Ashford top whorl spindle to learn on, and found it easy to use - but then I was already spinning with a wheel so very comfortable with drafting and joining. As soon as I was sure I'd like spindling I bought a more beautiful item and adore it. Haven't touched the Ashford since - but may do somewhen if I need two spindles simultaneously. (It will happen... :innocent:) I'm sorely tempted by the little Turkish spindles but so far have been able to resist... well, I need to have something I'm planning to buy at Woolfest next year, don't I?!
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I have been spinning since Fri with the spindle I borrowed from Dans (thank you!!) and I'm loving it ;)
I am practicing with some Cheviot tops I bought just for fun, to learn on and because they were cheap, before I try my hand at the beautiful Shetland ones I got at Woolfest. Cheviot is also good though, I find the fibres quite long and not too difficult to draft.
Still have bumpy bits of underspun, especially where I joined a new piece, but I seem to be getting a bit better at avoiding those and the super-twisted too fine bits.
I wanted to ask (I should phone Dans but I'm in work and forgot my phone just now - ::)): when the spindle is full, how do I get the wool off and do I really need a lazy Kate to ply it?
Also I guess if I get it off the spindle and maybe roll it in a ball or something, how do I tie the end so it doesn't unwind?? And I suppose that end will then have to be joined to the new spindle-full with a knot? Not keen on the idea ??? ???
Please help! lol
:wave:
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Hi Welshcob, sounds like you are making excellent progress :thumbsup: Well done
There are ways of plying two-ply by winding the wool onto your hand then plying the ends together. The most commonly described is the Andean ply (look for videos on youTube) and there's this simpler one too :
http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter05/FEAThandyplying.html (http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter05/FEAThandyplying.html)
I haven't tried either, mind, so I can't vouch for them.
I tie a slip knot loop in the end of my bobbins; after the yarn has rested for a while - 24 hours or so - it won't untwist so readily, so then you can just undo the knot and join on another piece if you wish. I expect there are much better ways than this, so hopefully I am about to learn a good tip too! :D
I am keen to hear how others use their spindled yarn, too - I took it up so I could spin while travelling, but I have to say I have made no plan nor had any thoughts as to how I will use it! :D
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Hi SallyintNorth,
Thank you for the links! I need to think about it and try wrapping some odd yarn around my hand to see if I got it first! I'm one of those that learns best if shown, and sometimes can't bring myself to read instructions and try to image what I'm supposed to do! :innocent:
I have a plan for how to use my very first handspun - it is going to be very uneven and lumpy, a fairly chunky yarn, but I have actually remembered (after we tried with Dans) of some very expensive yarn from Rowan called Boucle chunky and I think mine will look "a bit" ( :eyelashes:) like that. Therefore, I am going to use it in a pattern that Rowan published for it, which is slippers! They kept the rougher boucle knit as soles, and was felted too. I might do the same, with nicer uppers. OH needs nice slippers - but he doesn't know it yet! ;D ;D
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Hi Welshcob - you are having fun ;D :thumbsup:
You can ply directly from two spindles onto a third.....yes the maths tells us you can therefore justify having three spindles :eyelashes: . However it's just as easy to unwind into a ball or onto a nostepinne (which is a tapered stick for winding onto then sliding the ball off) If you use a Turkish spindle you dismantle it leaving the ball behind, then when you have done two of those you can ply them back onto the original spindle (the two arms slide off the stick then they come apart too)
Spindle lazy kates are available, usually at great expense, but I'm sure you can devise a plan to hold the spindles you are unwinding from - feet are useful for that :thumbsup:
I love the idea of the slippers :) Once your spinning improves you will be wanting that kind of textured yarn to use as highlights amongst your perfectly spun stuff, so keep some back for your first jumper.
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I'm useless at joining the yarns from the spinning (which is why I'm liking the wheel as I get a longer strand). When I did mine I did knot it, but would be very keen to know of another way!
Dans
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You can splice two ends of yarn together, as sailors would with a rope. Unwind several inches of the two ends to be joined, letting the twist run back up the yarn, rather than letting it run off the end. Then hold the two ends together and let the twist run back in. If you are splicing two ply, unwind as above and join each singles separately, preferably at different places on their length, then re-ply the joined bits. Try it and you will work out what I mean - it's difficult to explain in a few words. You can make an invisible join this way.
When you are joining on a new rolag as you spin, make use of the natural ability of wool to hook onto itself - keep the spun section turning and hold the new fibre against it at about a right angle, allowing the wool to catch on to itself. Once caught, draw out the new fibre as usual beside the already spun length and let them spin together. It nearly always works unless you are trying to demonstrate it ::)
The same ability to hook onto itself means that a ball of yarn, or a bobbin, or a cop will not tend to unroll as much as you might think - unless you have a cat :cat:
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or a dog named Archie ;D
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To ply, I wind my spindle off onto cardboard weaving bobbins (Schacht) then put them onto my normal lazy Kate to ply back onto my spindle.
You can wind off by hand, but I use a cordless electric drill, with the drill bit the size of the inside of the cardboard bobbin. I could hold the spindle in one hand to do this, stand it in a coffee mug or in an upturned plantpot, with a cardboard washer to protect the spindle - all systems worked.