# Spinning



## ptober (Mar 24, 2011)

Hi - 

Here is a picture of one of my spins. It is superwash wool that I hand dyed and spun.

There are 472 yards in 6.8 oz. Wpi 12-13 as it varies in thickness.

Thanks for looking.

For you other spinners please post your results- I love seeing what other spinners have done.


----------



## loubroy (Feb 15, 2013)

I have tried spinning with a drop spindle. I am just not getting it. I really want to learn how but there isn't anywhere locally that I can find someone to show me what I am doing wrong. I have tried following spinning videos on youtube and they make it seem so easy. Any advice would be appreciated.


----------



## ptober (Mar 24, 2011)

I spun this on a regular spinning wheel. 

However when I began with the drop spindle I was told it is a matter of practice, practice , practice. Try it every day whether you are successful or not- I promise it will get easier and better. Also make sure the wool you are spinning drafts easy- it is hard to learn if you are fighting the fiber.


----------



## Lolly12 (Oct 10, 2012)

loubroy said:


> I have tried spinning with a drop spindle. I am just not getting it. I really want to learn how but there isn't anywhere locally that I can find someone to show me what I am doing wrong. I have tried following spinning videos on youtube and they make it seem so easy. Any advice would be appreciated.


Practice and more practice,it takes time, I am self taught on a spindle and wheel. I was very determined to learn and watched many youtube tutorials.It is not something that happens right away.♥


----------



## Lolly12 (Oct 10, 2012)

Pretty yarn.♥


----------



## crivitz (Apr 12, 2015)

ptober--that is one whopping big amount of yarn. It doesn't look like there are that many yards on the skeins. Even though your spinning is uneven it will knit up very interestingly and you may want to keep your spinning like that. Would you consider it a worsted weight yarn? Your dyeing is so subtle. Love it.


----------



## lovethelake (Apr 6, 2011)

loubroy said:


> I have tried spinning with a drop spindle. I am just not getting it. I really want to learn how but there isn't anywhere locally that I can find someone to show me what I am doing wrong. I have tried following spinning videos on youtube and they make it seem so easy. Any advice would be appreciated.


whispering to you: I never liked the drop spindle, takes too long. And I really did try, I bought all sorts of handmade ones, and thought the pretty factor would help. Nope, I went right for the big ticket items and bought wheels, yes wheels. But I have friends that only do drop spindles. Love my wheels.


----------



## mama879 (Jan 27, 2011)

Very pretty I just spun some wonderful yarn could be your yarns sister. It was just put on the knitty knotty and not wet finished yet. But I can take a picture.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

Beautiful spinning and the yarn is just lovely.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

loubroy said:


> I have tried spinning with a drop spindle. I am just not getting it. I really want to learn how but there isn't anywhere locally that I can find someone to show me what I am doing wrong. I have tried following spinning videos on youtube and they make it seem so easy. Any advice would be appreciated.


I had a hard time learning the drop spindle but finally did. I was using very soft roving and for me, I couldn't get it.....it just kept pulling apart and dropping to the floor. I actually got a small package of the roving that is for felting at Hobby Lobby and drafted it and spun that. It was strong so while I was trying to get the hand of spinning and drafting, it was not going anywhere. Then I went to the better roving and it was easy by then.

I agree....YouTube people make it look easy and seeing that, made me feel like I would never get it but I did. But, once I got it, it is fine and I enjoy it. My learning curve is waaaaay steep.

Practice and do not give up.....I know you can do this. ????


----------



## ptober (Mar 24, 2011)

crivitz said:


> ptober--that is one whopping big amount of yarn. It doesn't look like there are that many yards on the skeins. Even though your spinning is uneven it will knit up very interestingly and you may want to keep your spinning like that. Would you consider it a worsted weight yarn? Your dyeing is so subtle. Love it.


Epic is between 12-13 so one could confer it a Worcester/ sport depending on which chart you use. I am spinning more even now but almost hate to lose the varied thickness of this spin. I think it adds character!


----------



## mama879 (Jan 27, 2011)

Your yarns sister lol. Just got this off the knitty knotty have not set the spin yet so I wont do a wpi test yet. I purchased the roving from FB. It is 332 yds.


----------



## ptober (Mar 24, 2011)

mama879 said:


> Your yarns sister lol. Just got this off the knitty knotty have not set the spin yet so I wont do a wpi test yet. I purchased the roving from FB. It is 332 yds.


That is lovely? I really like the soft colors.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

mama879 said:


> Your yarns sister lol. Just got this off the knitty knotty have not set the spin yet so I wont do a wpi test yet. I purchased the roving from FB. It is 332 yds.


Really pretty.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

ptober said:


> Epic is between 12-13 so one could confer it a Worcester/ sport depending on which chart you use. I am spinning more even now but almost hate to lose the varied thickness of this spin. I think it adds character!


I love the varied thickness of your spin and it does add character. That's exactly how I want my yarns.


----------



## gardenpoet (Jun 24, 2016)

ptober said:


> Hi -
> 
> Here is a picture of one of my spins. It is superwash wool that I hand dyed and spun.
> 
> ...


Beautiful! I aspire to do that, though I am still on the drop spindle level. I want to make sure I love spinning as much as I think I do before buying a wheel. I too like the thick and thin character, though I hope to eventually be able to control that. I also love the colorway of your dye work. What do you plan to make with this yarn now?


----------



## IndigoSpinner (Jul 9, 2011)

Cdambro said:


> I had a hard time learning the drop spindle but finally did. I was using very soft roving and for me, I couldn't get it.....it just kept pulling apart and dropping to the floor. I actually got a small package of the roving that is for felting at Hobby Lobby and drafted it and spun that. It was strong so while I was trying to get the hand of spinning and drafting, it was not going anywhere. Then I went to the better roving and it was easy by then.
> 
> I agree....YouTube people make it look easy and seeing that, made me feel like I would never get it but I did. But, once I got it, it is fine and I enjoy it. My learning curve is waaaaay steep.
> 
> Practice and do not give up.....I know you can do this. ????


If you are interested in using a spindle at all, I would suggest you switch to a support spindle.

When I learned to spin, it was on a Navajo spindle. A friend helped me, and I just sat down and started spinning. I'm proficient with support spindles and wheels, but I still have trouble with a drop spindle. Drop spindles are _not_ to learn on or even to spin on.


----------



## ilmacheryl (Feb 3, 2013)

Two of my recent spins. The one on the left is triple ply, two of green & one of pink. The other is my first spin on my EEW5. Both are unknown wool content.


----------



## IndigoSpinner (Jul 9, 2011)

_VERY_ nice!


----------



## spinninggill (Apr 9, 2011)

Are you using a top whorl or bottom whorl spindle? Top whorls are easier to learn on. Also when you are learning, add more twist than you need, because it will untwist a bit when you wind it on to the spindle shank and often, with a beginner spinner, that is sufficient 'untwist' for the spindle to drop off the yarn as you join the next section.


----------



## kwharrod (Jul 24, 2012)

All the skeins shown in this thread are lovely. I still get the thick and thin. I just consider that an indication that it is handspun. Some days my results are better than others.


----------



## IndigoSpinner (Jul 9, 2011)

kwharrod said:


> All the skeins shown in this thread are lovely. I still get the thick and thin. I just consider that an indication that it is handspun. Some days my results are better than others.


Most spinners I know worked very hard to make their yarn come out very even and consistent.

And then when they achieved their goal, looked at finished bobbin of yarn one day, and realized that they could have gone into a yarn store and bought it.

Leave that little bit of inconsistency. It gives the finished garment life, I think. I look at similar things I've made with commercial yarn and handspun, and the handspun looks alive compared to the commercial yarn. Look at your finished garment and see how you feel about it.


----------



## mama879 (Jan 27, 2011)

IndigoSpinner said:


> Most spinners I know worked very hard to make their yarn come out very even and consistent.
> 
> And then when they achieved their goal, looked at finished bobbin of yarn one day, and realized that they could have gone into a yarn store and bought it.
> 
> Leave that little bit of inconsistency. It gives the finished garment life, I think. I look at similar things I've made with commercial yarn and handspun, and the handspun looks alive compared to the commercial yarn. Look at your finished garment and see how you feel about it.


I agree I love the thick and thin not all roving is perfect and I figure it would take me forever to spin and not enjoy it much if I had to stop to defuze a ball on my roving.


----------



## wordancer (May 4, 2011)

IndigoSpinner said:


> Most spinners I know worked very hard to make their yarn come out very even and consistent.
> 
> And then when they achieved their goal, looked at finished bobbin of yarn one day, and realized that they could have gone into a yarn store and bought it.
> 
> Leave that little bit of inconsistency. It gives the finished garment life, I think. I look at similar things I've made with commercial yarn and handspun, and the handspun looks alive compared to the commercial yarn. Look at your finished garment and see how you feel about it.


While I'm not aiming for commercial consistently, I don't want extreme thick and thin, unless I'm doing it on purpose.

I'm finding now that my singles are gently undulating between areas of thickness within a certain range that I choose.

My fingers can tell if an area gets too thin, I break that area reattach and carry on, ditto with a over thick area, which I don't seem to get a lot of anymore. Slightly thick areas just might need a few fibers teased off. Slugs and nubs get picked off. With practice these little adjustments go rather quickly for me. Most of the time I don't need to stop the wheel for nubs, slow down a little, reach down for a quick pick and carry on.

Also, if anyone's hand spun does get close to perfection, it will still be more alive in looks and texture than commercial because it is not spun under high speed tension as commercial yarn is.


----------



## Reba1 (Feb 5, 2012)

I enjoy seeing everyone's spinning. I need to grab some time to sit at my wheel and produce something. I don't spin enough to develop any consistency.


----------



## Alpaca Farmer (Jan 19, 2011)

Your skeins are so pretty. 
I have never been able to get spinning on a drop spindle. I seem to be too "all-thumbs" for that.
If we wanted perfect yarn, we could buy it. Hand spun cannot be beat for beauty, and touchability (in my opinion).


----------



## IndigoSpinner (Jul 9, 2011)

Alpaca Farmer said:


> Your skeins are so pretty.
> I have never been able to get spinning on a drop spindle. I seem to be too "all-thumbs" for that.
> If we wanted perfect yarn, we could buy it. Hand spun cannot be beat for beauty, and touchability (in my opinion).


I've been spinning since 1988. I learned on a support spindle (Navajo) and it was easy. I can spin well on support spindles and wheels, but I still can't spin well on a drop spindle. They are not easy to learn to spin on.

You might consider trying a support spindle. My first recommendation would be a Navajo spindle. You can spin anything on one, from the finest lace to really heavy singles, a Navajo spindle will do it. I'd recommend a Schacht Navajo spindle. It's factory made, so I know exactly what I'm recommending, and it's probably the cheapest one of its type, but still excellent quality.

http://www.dharmatrading.com/tools/navajo-spindle.html

If you'd like something smaller, you could try a Tibetan spindle, although there are a lot of different styles of support spindles.

https://www.etsy.com/market/tibetan_spindles

https://www.etsy.com/search?q=support%20spindle

A support spindle is _much_ easier to learn and to spin on than any drop spindle.


----------



## Cdambro (Dec 30, 2013)

ilmacheryl said:


> Two of my recent spins. The one on the left is triple ply, two of green & one of pink. The other is my first spin on my EEW5. Both are unknown wool content.


Both are lovely.


----------



## desireeross (Jun 2, 2013)

I love the soft colours


----------

