I started spinning back about 6 years ago. I didn't have money to buy a wheel, so it was all spindles.
I heard more than once something that basically said spindle spinning is inferior. When was I going to move up to a wheel. Wheels are better, spindles are just for learning. Someone told me I wasn't a real spinner because I didn't spin on a wheel.
Seemed like I was making yarn, I don't know why she thought it wasn't "real".
One of these that seems like it's still hanging around is that you can't spin long draw on a spindle. Can't be done.
Oh Really?
So I guess that's totally NOT what I'm doing here.
In fact I've been spinning in some kind of hybrid/modified long draw for years. At Stringtopia last month I finally got to take a class from Abby Franquemont on spinning long draw on spindles.
I already had a pretty good base idea but this class really gave me new wings. I learned some ways to make the whole process faster, and some tricks to getting out slubs by slacking the yarn and then re-tensioning it.
And I'm learning about myself that I really like doing things I'm not very good at (yet). I've started swimming which I am TERRIBLE at. Just really really bad, I've never learned how to freestyle swim at all. I started out a month ago with this long draw things at a pretty beginner place. There is so much room to learn new things and the learning curve is so steep at the beginning, there's nowhere to go but up. And I have no expectations, so I can't beat myself up for not being better yet.
I bought 4 ounces of the class fiber, some brown carded wool, strictly for the purpose of practicing. I didn't really care how it came out, I wanted to be able to spin automatically. I intentionally practiced during tv shows that I wanted to look at, instead of my hands. I did not micromanage, because I learned from several exercises that the yarn comes out a lot better than I think it is. I spun for efficiency.
In no time at all I had 2 full spindles.
And a day later I had plied yarn.
Which washed up into this really squishy 260 yard skein
Which is really pretty amazingly even considering it was a learning skein, and I wasn't really even trying for evenness.
I really like this long draw spindle thing.
I heard more than once something that basically said spindle spinning is inferior. When was I going to move up to a wheel. Wheels are better, spindles are just for learning. Someone told me I wasn't a real spinner because I didn't spin on a wheel.
Seemed like I was making yarn, I don't know why she thought it wasn't "real".
One of these that seems like it's still hanging around is that you can't spin long draw on a spindle. Can't be done.
Oh Really?
In fact I've been spinning in some kind of hybrid/modified long draw for years. At Stringtopia last month I finally got to take a class from Abby Franquemont on spinning long draw on spindles.
I already had a pretty good base idea but this class really gave me new wings. I learned some ways to make the whole process faster, and some tricks to getting out slubs by slacking the yarn and then re-tensioning it.
And I'm learning about myself that I really like doing things I'm not very good at (yet). I've started swimming which I am TERRIBLE at. Just really really bad, I've never learned how to freestyle swim at all. I started out a month ago with this long draw things at a pretty beginner place. There is so much room to learn new things and the learning curve is so steep at the beginning, there's nowhere to go but up. And I have no expectations, so I can't beat myself up for not being better yet.
I bought 4 ounces of the class fiber, some brown carded wool, strictly for the purpose of practicing. I didn't really care how it came out, I wanted to be able to spin automatically. I intentionally practiced during tv shows that I wanted to look at, instead of my hands. I did not micromanage, because I learned from several exercises that the yarn comes out a lot better than I think it is. I spun for efficiency.
In no time at all I had 2 full spindles.
And a day later I had plied yarn.
Which washed up into this really squishy 260 yard skein
Which is really pretty amazingly even considering it was a learning skein, and I wasn't really even trying for evenness.
I really like this long draw spindle thing.