Handspinning

[Redneck Crow]

Does anyone else make their own yarn with a spindle? I've recently learned how to do it and it's very relaxing. Draft...spin...wind, repeat about 1000 times, then ply. I started knitting yarn I made myself for the first time today, and I was pleasantly suprised--this is good stuff! I'm going to make a few family heirlooms for Christmas gifts this year. I can just about bet that none of my family will have anything quite like it already.

 

[pmcleanj]

I love hand-spinning. When I was a girl in school I learned to spin at a wheel, and that's pretty tiresome. A couple of summers ago my daughters saw a lady spinning at a living-history museum, and asked me to get them spindles. I expected it to be even more tiresome than wheel spinning, being lower-tech and slower. But it's lovely and relaxing.

My elder daughter has a particularly fine hand. But, I don't ply the wool for knitting. I have a small hand-loom that I'm using to weave some into cloth. I warped it with homespun, too though, and the warps are tending to felt together which makes it hard to get a good shed. I'm thinking maybe I need to grease the warps with a bit of lanolin.

 

[CandyL]

I know how to spin, and use the spindle method, also.

 

[nomoreillusions]

I learned to use a drop spindle a few years back and have recently (in the last 4 months) really taken up the craft and started doing it on a regular basis!

I love it, I've spun alpaca, wool, silk, bamboo, and cat! (ok ok, so that last bit was about 1 inch of yarn that I spun using my fingers after brushing my cat.. but it was still cool)

Alas, I don't crochet or knit so I use all my new yummy yarn to embroider, otherwise sew, or weave!

 

[katautumn]

I handspin on a drop spindle. I'm saving to purchase a wheel. I have spun novelty yarns, artyarns (including super coils), thick/thin singles as well as fine singles to ply as lace weight on my drop spindles. I'm working on a monster of a lace weight project right now. I dyed my own roving (brown sheep mill ends) and I'm trying to spin enough to knit a lace shawl.

 

[nomoreillusions]

I handspin on a drop spindle. I'm saving to purchase a wheel. I have spun novelty yarns, artyarns (including super coils), thick/thin singles as well as fine singles to ply as lace weight on my drop spindles. I'm working on a monster of a lace weight project right now. I dyed my own roving (brown sheep mill ends) and I'm trying to spin enough to knit a lace shawl.

Wow, that's awesome! How long have you been doing it for and where did you learn?

 

[katautumn]

Wow, that's awesome! How long have you been doing it for and where did you learn?

I have been spinning for about two months now. I'm self-taught. I went to websites like iSpindle and Joy of Handspinning and watched the videos. It was mostly many hours of practice. Some of the groups on Ravelry were helpful as well.

 

[katautumn]

*bump* Now that the weather is getting colder I have several spinning WIPs. I dyed some wool over the weekend into a lovely royal blue/yellow/soft purple colorway. As I was spinning it on my spindle it reminded me of Van Gogh's "Irises" painting. I'll take picture and post them either this afternoon or tomorrow. Anyone else have projects on the spindles/wheels?

 

[immersedingrace]

I want to learn! It's one of those projects I'll eventually teach myself but alas, havent' gotten around to it. Maybe when I have kids we'll learn together!

 

[NostalgicGranny]

ditto with immersedingrace - something I plan on learning someday.