[Fleecewife]

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    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
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 
 
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 

[jaykay]

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........

[Anke]

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    Great for me as I am originally from Norfolk

But you are not 3,300 years old....
 
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...)

[Fleecewife]

Ah - we are all as old as the Universe, just recycled and redesigned 
 
My Turkish spindles can be seen at 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 

[Dans]

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

[jaykay]

Mine is the medium rim weighted one, in oak burr. It's lovely to use 

[Fleecewife]

Mine is the medium rim weighted one, in oak burr. It's lovely to use 

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.

[jaykay]

It is, however, my only spindle 

[Lesley Silvester]

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.

[jaykay]

Top whorl spindles are much easier to use.

[Fleecewife]

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 
 

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 

[colliewoman]

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 ) 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.


And I bet I'm not the only one with a moulting BC right now

[Lesley Silvester]

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 
 

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 

Thanks FW, I'll try it.

[Crafty Soo]

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.

[Fleecewife]

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  ).  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