Spinning Your Own Yarn!
10:50 PM Posted In Crochet , Spinning Edit This 0 Comments »
No, you don't need a spinning wheel. Those things are expensive!
You can start out spinning your own yarn very inexpensively and quickly, actually. How do I know this? I totally just made some today. Let me tell you - it's insanely addictive! Now I have tobrag about it show you how, too!
I started out with four valuable tools:
Some fiber (free-$10 or more)
A drop spindle (more on this in a sec)
A book on spinning (check your library)
Youtube!
Let's start with the fiber.
Because I'm interested in keeping goats, I started with mohair. I recommend starting with any kind of wool, from sheep or goat, so long as it's been carded/combed or whatever it is they do to it to form it into big ropes. It will be easiest to begin on something where the fibers are already going the same direction, rather than beginning with something raw or locks. Definitely ask the fiber/yarn store person - they'll be able to help you find a good beginner yarn! Fibers that are longer will be easier to draft, so stay away from short fibers like dog hair in your first project.
The spindle.
The spindle does NOT have to be fancy. You can buy a simple one for about $5-7, or you can make one out of a wooden dowel and something round like an old cd. Google instructions to make your own, or start with one like this or this. I'm actually not learning on the one my book recommends and I haven't seen it used before, so that just goes to show that spinning is NOT that hard, and you can pick it up no matter what your resources may be. Get creative!
A book on spinning.
The book I used was Spin It: Making Yarn from Scratch by Lee Raven. You don't have to buy one, though, go ask your public library if they have any books already! In fact, even if they don't, many libraries nowadays share books among networks of other libraries, and might be able to request one for you to rent. In fact, you can skip the book completely if you're good at finding what you need on the internet!
Youtube.
Youtube and other video services have some tutorials by skilled fiber artists to show beginners like us just how to use the tools available to us to make yarn from raw fiber. Just go search for spinning tutorials! :)
I wish I could give a full run-down on how spinning works, but I'm definitely not skilled enough yet to share anything of much use, heh. What I can do, however, is point you in the right direction if you're interested in spinning and give you some of the bare basics.
There are several sources for fibers, both synthetic and natural. Animal fibers include those from sheep, goats, rabbits, dogs, alpaca, llamas, etc. There are also fibers from silk, cotton, bamboo, and of course, blends of anything you can think of! You probably already know about synthetic fibers, but I'll be skipping over these since they seem to be unfavored in yarn shops.
Once you have fiber that is ready to be spun, that is, at least facing the same direction, the first thing to do is separate the fibers out as evenly as you can. Slide a small amount out from the group of fibers (this is called drafting) and spin them between your fingers - pay attention to the direction you spin, as this is the same direction you'll be spinning the rest of the yarn. VOILA! You have yarn. Pull on the twisted portion, separating it from the bulk of the fiber as though you were going to pull it right out, but stop when you have enough fibers separated to about match what you began with, and - you guessed it - twist! You're going to continue this until you have about 8 inches or so, then attach it to whatever weapon you decide to use.
The rest depends on the tool you're using, but long story short, you use the tool/spindle/stick to do the twisting for you. In my case I twisted what was coming off the spindle tightly, stopped, then drafted out one small portion at a time, letting the twist work itself into the drafted section until I ran out of twist to carry up. Then, I'd spin the spindle again, stop it, draft out some more fiber and release my hand from the first section of yarn, letting it twist up the drafted part.
I'll try and get a video of that up soon, as it's WAY easier to show someone than to explain it (but my book does a pretty darned good job!), but in the meantime I recommend checking out online videos to figure it out based on the tool you have available to you.
Here's my before-and-after:
If you get the chance, I highly recommend a spinning class. Some can get pretty expensive, but look around! There's one this weekend nearby for $30 I'm hoping to get into if I can afford it. I'll report back if I can! :)
-MM
Oh P.S. - recent projects:
Yay - productivity! :D
You can start out spinning your own yarn very inexpensively and quickly, actually. How do I know this? I totally just made some today. Let me tell you - it's insanely addictive! Now I have to
I started out with four valuable tools:
Some fiber (free-$10 or more)
A drop spindle (more on this in a sec)
A book on spinning (check your library)
Youtube!
Let's start with the fiber.
Because I'm interested in keeping goats, I started with mohair. I recommend starting with any kind of wool, from sheep or goat, so long as it's been carded/combed or whatever it is they do to it to form it into big ropes. It will be easiest to begin on something where the fibers are already going the same direction, rather than beginning with something raw or locks. Definitely ask the fiber/yarn store person - they'll be able to help you find a good beginner yarn! Fibers that are longer will be easier to draft, so stay away from short fibers like dog hair in your first project.
The spindle.
The spindle does NOT have to be fancy. You can buy a simple one for about $5-7, or you can make one out of a wooden dowel and something round like an old cd. Google instructions to make your own, or start with one like this or this. I'm actually not learning on the one my book recommends and I haven't seen it used before, so that just goes to show that spinning is NOT that hard, and you can pick it up no matter what your resources may be. Get creative!
A book on spinning.
The book I used was Spin It: Making Yarn from Scratch by Lee Raven. You don't have to buy one, though, go ask your public library if they have any books already! In fact, even if they don't, many libraries nowadays share books among networks of other libraries, and might be able to request one for you to rent. In fact, you can skip the book completely if you're good at finding what you need on the internet!
Youtube.
Youtube and other video services have some tutorials by skilled fiber artists to show beginners like us just how to use the tools available to us to make yarn from raw fiber. Just go search for spinning tutorials! :)
I wish I could give a full run-down on how spinning works, but I'm definitely not skilled enough yet to share anything of much use, heh. What I can do, however, is point you in the right direction if you're interested in spinning and give you some of the bare basics.
There are several sources for fibers, both synthetic and natural. Animal fibers include those from sheep, goats, rabbits, dogs, alpaca, llamas, etc. There are also fibers from silk, cotton, bamboo, and of course, blends of anything you can think of! You probably already know about synthetic fibers, but I'll be skipping over these since they seem to be unfavored in yarn shops.
Once you have fiber that is ready to be spun, that is, at least facing the same direction, the first thing to do is separate the fibers out as evenly as you can. Slide a small amount out from the group of fibers (this is called drafting) and spin them between your fingers - pay attention to the direction you spin, as this is the same direction you'll be spinning the rest of the yarn. VOILA! You have yarn. Pull on the twisted portion, separating it from the bulk of the fiber as though you were going to pull it right out, but stop when you have enough fibers separated to about match what you began with, and - you guessed it - twist! You're going to continue this until you have about 8 inches or so, then attach it to whatever weapon you decide to use.
The rest depends on the tool you're using, but long story short, you use the tool/spindle/stick to do the twisting for you. In my case I twisted what was coming off the spindle tightly, stopped, then drafted out one small portion at a time, letting the twist work itself into the drafted section until I ran out of twist to carry up. Then, I'd spin the spindle again, stop it, draft out some more fiber and release my hand from the first section of yarn, letting it twist up the drafted part.
I'll try and get a video of that up soon, as it's WAY easier to show someone than to explain it (but my book does a pretty darned good job!), but in the meantime I recommend checking out online videos to figure it out based on the tool you have available to you.
Here's my before-and-after:
 |
| 4 ounces was PLENTY for me to learn on! |
 |
| This is the only picture I have so far, but 4 ounces makes TONS more than this! Isn't it pretty? Itzopretty! |
-MM
Oh P.S. - recent projects:
 |
| Modified pattern from here. |
 |
| Slightly modified pattern from here. |
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