For years, JWo has told me I should take up spinning. (This in the face of having more yarn that can be knit in my lifetime – hey, here’s an idea, make more!) I have always maintained that I don’t want to bother with it, since I can go straight to the end result and focus on my main enjoyment, knitting.
Then I had lunch with Beth & Amy. Amy had just finished a morning camp session at Wornall House, where they do all sorts of fun old-timey-time things, and that day’s adventure had included making a spindle from a CD and dowel, and they were spinning some roving into yarn. I watched her demonstrate, then I asked her if I could try it.
DAMMIT. It was mesmerizingly fun. I quickly had a nice long thread of yarn, and knew I had to get myself a spindle of my own, and to see if it was something I really wanted to do.
First Yarn:
This was my first real attempt, with nobody even watching. I looked at a video online, all five minutes of it, and then just threw myself into it. Fortunately, the Sunflower Knitters Guild was around the corner, and I took all my stuff with me there, to get some input and advice from Teri. She’s done loads of yarn just using a spindle, and she, among others, praised my first efforts, and she demoed how she spins for me. Roving by Lorna’s Laces. Plyed to itself on top; single below. Whee! That led to this:
I’m using a Louet spindle I got from The Loopy Ewe, which is rather clunky and doesn’t spin nearly fast or long enough, we determined this past Friday night. The fiber is Corriedale from The Studio, hand-dyed by Jacey of Insubordiknit, and she was also cheering my efforts on. I finished spinning it all yesterday and am waiting to figure out my plying options. I even got invited to attend last weekend’s Spinster’s gathering, since it was at my friend’s house; I wasn’t able to go, and truth be told, I don’t feel ‘qualified’ at this point. :) Annnd I’m really trying not to over-embrace it all. There’s soooo much to learn, a wheel is expensive, and didn’t I mention something about already having a lot of yarn? My goal is to make some sock yarn. We’ll see!