Author Topic: spindles (Read 7468 times)

Crafty Soo · « **Reply #15 on:** July 22, 2012, 03:30:51 am »

Quote from: Fleecewife on July 21, 2012, 04:08:53 pm

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'.

Dans · « **Reply #16 on:** July 22, 2012, 11:28:48 am »

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

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #17 on:** July 22, 2012, 11:52:43 am »

I bought a bog standard (as in common-or-garden, not as in 3000-year old bog oak!

) 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...

) 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?!

Welshcob · « **Reply #18 on:** July 22, 2012, 12:41:45 pm »

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

SallyintNorth · « **Reply #19 on:** July 22, 2012, 01:13:11 pm »

Hi Welshcob, sounds like you are making excellent progress

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
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!

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!

Welshcob · « **Reply #20 on:** July 22, 2012, 01:31:32 pm »

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!

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" (

) 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!

Fleecewife · « **Reply #21 on:** July 22, 2012, 04:10:18 pm »

Hi Welshcob - you are having fun

You can ply directly from two spindles onto a third.....yes the maths tells us you can therefore justify having three spindles

. 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

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.

Dans · « **Reply #22 on:** July 22, 2012, 05:20:54 pm »

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

Fleecewife · « **Reply #23 on:** July 22, 2012, 06:31:51 pm »

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

Bionic · « **Reply #24 on:** July 22, 2012, 07:56:29 pm »

or a dog named Archie

jaykay · « **Reply #25 on:** July 23, 2012, 11:26:27 pm »

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.