Help me learn to spin with a drop spindle in 2016!
December 18, 2015 4:53 AM Subscribe
Can you recommend a reliable online business from which I can purchase a good quality/well-designed "Teach yourself to Spin with a Drop Spindle" kit preferably with instructions and all the things needed? It can be on Etsy (I have an account) or elsewhere. Sources for general spinning-related supplies and helpful websites also welcome.
I am a crafty person but I do not know how to knit. I used to do a bit of crochet and cross-stitch as a young girl and currently I do free embroidery.
Recently I have fallen in love with all the fiber on sale online, especially hand-dyed exotic fibers. I live in a big city in Asia where there are a lot of knitters but everyone uses store-bought yarn and no one knows how to spin. Raw fiber isn't available either. The yarn available in local yarn stores are all imported, expensive and limited in selection. Think blends full of acrylic and other horrors with low percentages of the good stuff.
Since I can't buy a drop spindle in my own country or find a teacher, I'm planning to bite the bullet and pay for international shipping to buy a kit from overseas.
I know there are Mefites who are handspinners and I know nothing about spinning or knitting at all so I'm hoping for advice. I'm actually more interested in the spinning than the knitting.
Also, one reason I'm interested in alternatives to wool is that I find wool scratchy and uncomfortable. However, since it seems to be cheaper than alpaca and other kinds of fiber, would it be better for me to learn to spin with it first? Also, how much fiber should be in the kit for a beginner to start off with? I expect my early skeins to be lumpy and probably unusable for knitting anyway. I love angora, cashmere and silk (in clothing, never spun with them of course) and would like to try alpaca, guanaco and other fibers not available in my part of the world.
If things work out with the drop spindle, I would probably import a spinning wheel eventually but given the expense and the space issues it is not a decision to be made lightly.
Thanks in advance!
I am a crafty person but I do not know how to knit. I used to do a bit of crochet and cross-stitch as a young girl and currently I do free embroidery.
Recently I have fallen in love with all the fiber on sale online, especially hand-dyed exotic fibers. I live in a big city in Asia where there are a lot of knitters but everyone uses store-bought yarn and no one knows how to spin. Raw fiber isn't available either. The yarn available in local yarn stores are all imported, expensive and limited in selection. Think blends full of acrylic and other horrors with low percentages of the good stuff.
Since I can't buy a drop spindle in my own country or find a teacher, I'm planning to bite the bullet and pay for international shipping to buy a kit from overseas.
I know there are Mefites who are handspinners and I know nothing about spinning or knitting at all so I'm hoping for advice. I'm actually more interested in the spinning than the knitting.
Also, one reason I'm interested in alternatives to wool is that I find wool scratchy and uncomfortable. However, since it seems to be cheaper than alpaca and other kinds of fiber, would it be better for me to learn to spin with it first? Also, how much fiber should be in the kit for a beginner to start off with? I expect my early skeins to be lumpy and probably unusable for knitting anyway. I love angora, cashmere and silk (in clothing, never spun with them of course) and would like to try alpaca, guanaco and other fibers not available in my part of the world.
If things work out with the drop spindle, I would probably import a spinning wheel eventually but given the expense and the space issues it is not a decision to be made lightly.
Thanks in advance!
If you are so inclined and the parts are easy for you to source, you can make your own drop spindle instead of having to pay for international shipping. Like this one, out of an old CD. That's what I spun on when I was on a drop-spindle kick.
As far as quantity, I made a ball of lumpy alpaca yarn the size of a grapefruit with the amount of roving that would fit in a big shoebox. I wish I could tell you weights, but the analogies are all I've got right now.
posted by Guess What at 5:56 AM on December 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
As far as quantity, I made a ball of lumpy alpaca yarn the size of a grapefruit with the amount of roving that would fit in a big shoebox. I wish I could tell you weights, but the analogies are all I've got right now.
posted by Guess What at 5:56 AM on December 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
Best answer: TL;DR: An all-in-one spinning kit may not offer the perfect solution, but you can use that money to buy a starter spindle, some long-staple fiber and downloadable videos that should get you well on your way. The key to success is regular practice, even 15 minutes a day, to minimize frustration and maximize the development of muscle memory - you can do it, and it's worth it to learn, because spinning is fun.
I feel like this has multiple parts: the spindle, the fiber, and the lessons. You can make a drop spindle fairly easily out of common items. I would not pay top dollar for your first one simply because you might develop preferences fairly quickly about what you like to use (heavier, lighter, top whorl, or the less common bottom whorl), and if I had paid a lot of money for a kit, I might feel obligated to use that spindle even if it was too heavy or too light to feel comfortable. FYI, lighter spindles can more easily spin finer yarn. Also, using a drop spindle will automatically feel uncomfortable when you're starting out, so the the first day or first week are not the time to judge if it's the right spindle. As an example, this is a low-stakes option of a reasonable weight very similar to the ones those instructions tell you how to make on your own. If you continue spinning, you're likely to end up with several spindles; this is normal.
Fiber is categorized by something called staple length - the length of individual fibers within the larger braid or length of fiber. Fiber with a longer staple is easier to spin if you're just starting out - the longer staple gives you more time to add twist as the spindle is moving. Something like corriedale, or blue faced leicester, or even merino - the important thing is that you probably want to plan on a quantity of fiber. I read early on that it takes about a pound of fiber to feel comfortable as a spinner - I found this to be true, so I would spend my money on some pretty long-staple fibers that I wanted to try out, rather than one expensive braid, if that makes sense.
Finally, the lessons. There are many, many Youtube videos for different spinning techniques, but I would start with those by Abby Franquemont - I like her videos so much I made a point of taking a class with her in person when I could and I was not disappointed. She also has a book, Respect the Spindle, and some companion videos which are frankly, great - she is a super teacher. When you are interested in a wheel, Start Spinning and its companion video are a good place to start. The key to success is regular practice more than anything else.
posted by deliriouscool at 6:04 AM on December 18, 2015 [6 favorites]
I feel like this has multiple parts: the spindle, the fiber, and the lessons. You can make a drop spindle fairly easily out of common items. I would not pay top dollar for your first one simply because you might develop preferences fairly quickly about what you like to use (heavier, lighter, top whorl, or the less common bottom whorl), and if I had paid a lot of money for a kit, I might feel obligated to use that spindle even if it was too heavy or too light to feel comfortable. FYI, lighter spindles can more easily spin finer yarn. Also, using a drop spindle will automatically feel uncomfortable when you're starting out, so the the first day or first week are not the time to judge if it's the right spindle. As an example, this is a low-stakes option of a reasonable weight very similar to the ones those instructions tell you how to make on your own. If you continue spinning, you're likely to end up with several spindles; this is normal.
Fiber is categorized by something called staple length - the length of individual fibers within the larger braid or length of fiber. Fiber with a longer staple is easier to spin if you're just starting out - the longer staple gives you more time to add twist as the spindle is moving. Something like corriedale, or blue faced leicester, or even merino - the important thing is that you probably want to plan on a quantity of fiber. I read early on that it takes about a pound of fiber to feel comfortable as a spinner - I found this to be true, so I would spend my money on some pretty long-staple fibers that I wanted to try out, rather than one expensive braid, if that makes sense.
Finally, the lessons. There are many, many Youtube videos for different spinning techniques, but I would start with those by Abby Franquemont - I like her videos so much I made a point of taking a class with her in person when I could and I was not disappointed. She also has a book, Respect the Spindle, and some companion videos which are frankly, great - she is a super teacher. When you are interested in a wheel, Start Spinning and its companion video are a good place to start. The key to success is regular practice more than anything else.
posted by deliriouscool at 6:04 AM on December 18, 2015 [6 favorites]
Best answer: Ooh, you got my wheelhouse here; I give spinning lessons.
To start with, you really do probably want to start with wool. Bluefaced Leicester or corriedale top would be good starting points, as would calling a spinning shop and asking them for 4 4-ounce amounts of "good beginning fibers" (I like Spunky Eclectic for this sort of thing, but there are a lot of good small wool shops online). In theory you can learn on anything, but flying solo, you want to set yourself up for success and wool, with its nice sticky microscopic scales, should help with that. A pound ought to be enough to get the hang of the mechanics. These wools are usually middle-of-the-road for softness, and may be more pleasant than you expect if you're thinking of prickly rough wool sweaters. Mentally set that first pound aside as "play". It's fingerpaints, it's dancing alone to cheerful music, it's learning. If it's usable yarn it's a bonus, not a goal (yet).
After that first get-the-hang-of-things pound, I think that silk top or sliver would be the most compelling to you; more expensive but not exorbitant, relatively easy to spin. Wool-silk blend is good too. What I did fairly early on was to make my own "sampler pack" with an ounce of a bunch of different fibers I was interested in trying. An ounce isn't much on its own but it was enough for me to know if I liked something, and if I liked it I bought enough to make a project.
For a spindle, you can make your own if you have ready access to the kind of craft store with wooden dowels and toy wheels, and that will give you an idea of what kind of thing you might want to try next. If you want a "real" spindle, though, Bosworths are my favorite, and the midi size is about right to start with. A Cascade Little Si is one of the most inexpensive quality spindle options. A Schacht Hi-Lo in the 1 ounce size is a good quality spindle in the mass-manufactured range. Whatever you're looking at, keeping it to the 0.75-1.75 ounce range will be about right.
To learn, you want Abby Franquemont's video. Check Ravelry to make absolutely sure that there are no local spinners though, because everyone seems to think there are no spinners near them at the start even when there's an active group. Beginning Spinning and Spindlers are two good groups on Ravelry for questions and feedback.
posted by tchemgrrl at 6:30 AM on December 18, 2015 [5 favorites]
To start with, you really do probably want to start with wool. Bluefaced Leicester or corriedale top would be good starting points, as would calling a spinning shop and asking them for 4 4-ounce amounts of "good beginning fibers" (I like Spunky Eclectic for this sort of thing, but there are a lot of good small wool shops online). In theory you can learn on anything, but flying solo, you want to set yourself up for success and wool, with its nice sticky microscopic scales, should help with that. A pound ought to be enough to get the hang of the mechanics. These wools are usually middle-of-the-road for softness, and may be more pleasant than you expect if you're thinking of prickly rough wool sweaters. Mentally set that first pound aside as "play". It's fingerpaints, it's dancing alone to cheerful music, it's learning. If it's usable yarn it's a bonus, not a goal (yet).
After that first get-the-hang-of-things pound, I think that silk top or sliver would be the most compelling to you; more expensive but not exorbitant, relatively easy to spin. Wool-silk blend is good too. What I did fairly early on was to make my own "sampler pack" with an ounce of a bunch of different fibers I was interested in trying. An ounce isn't much on its own but it was enough for me to know if I liked something, and if I liked it I bought enough to make a project.
For a spindle, you can make your own if you have ready access to the kind of craft store with wooden dowels and toy wheels, and that will give you an idea of what kind of thing you might want to try next. If you want a "real" spindle, though, Bosworths are my favorite, and the midi size is about right to start with. A Cascade Little Si is one of the most inexpensive quality spindle options. A Schacht Hi-Lo in the 1 ounce size is a good quality spindle in the mass-manufactured range. Whatever you're looking at, keeping it to the 0.75-1.75 ounce range will be about right.
To learn, you want Abby Franquemont's video. Check Ravelry to make absolutely sure that there are no local spinners though, because everyone seems to think there are no spinners near them at the start even when there's an active group. Beginning Spinning and Spindlers are two good groups on Ravelry for questions and feedback.
posted by tchemgrrl at 6:30 AM on December 18, 2015 [5 favorites]
Best answer: YAY SPINDLES, hi I am literally surrounded by spindles (and wheels) as I type this.
These learn to spin kits are totally decent, I taught someone using one once upon a time. This page gets updated now and then with different kits that have different kinds of spindles. Of the two up now, I'd pick the one with the Little Si spindle, not the Ashford. Good spindle brands for learning: Kundert, Greensleeves, Cascade. Fancier ones you might want if you get really into spindles: Bosworth (ahhh I love them) and Golding (I don't have one but they're very very pretty).
Be aware that spindles are harder to use than wheels. The reason you start on a spindle is because it's cheap and low stakes, not because it's easier to learn, so don't give up if you aren't great at spindle spinning right away. Respect the Spindle, the book and the video, will tell you all about this.
Great advice from deliriouscool above, but I'll add that you might find long-staple wool to be scratchier than short, and if you usually find wool scratchy and want to make things to wear eventually, you'll want to work your way up to short-staple fibers: cashmere, bison, yak, cotton. You might also like spinning silk and I'm here to tell you it is not as hard as you might think and you should try it! Sara Lamb is a super great spinning/weaving teacher and has a silk spinning DVD, link on this page.
posted by clavicle at 6:36 AM on December 18, 2015 [6 favorites]
These learn to spin kits are totally decent, I taught someone using one once upon a time. This page gets updated now and then with different kits that have different kinds of spindles. Of the two up now, I'd pick the one with the Little Si spindle, not the Ashford. Good spindle brands for learning: Kundert, Greensleeves, Cascade. Fancier ones you might want if you get really into spindles: Bosworth (ahhh I love them) and Golding (I don't have one but they're very very pretty).
Be aware that spindles are harder to use than wheels. The reason you start on a spindle is because it's cheap and low stakes, not because it's easier to learn, so don't give up if you aren't great at spindle spinning right away. Respect the Spindle, the book and the video, will tell you all about this.
Great advice from deliriouscool above, but I'll add that you might find long-staple wool to be scratchier than short, and if you usually find wool scratchy and want to make things to wear eventually, you'll want to work your way up to short-staple fibers: cashmere, bison, yak, cotton. You might also like spinning silk and I'm here to tell you it is not as hard as you might think and you should try it! Sara Lamb is a super great spinning/weaving teacher and has a silk spinning DVD, link on this page.
posted by clavicle at 6:36 AM on December 18, 2015 [6 favorites]
Oh hey! If we do indeed have a critical mass of spinning mefites we could maybe start a thread in our very quiet ravelry group? For OP's benefit and also just to nerd out?
posted by clavicle at 8:51 AM on December 18, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by clavicle at 8:51 AM on December 18, 2015 [1 favorite]
Blue-faced Leicester wool is very soft for long staple wool.
.
posted by stowaway at 9:17 AM on December 18, 2015
.
posted by stowaway at 9:17 AM on December 18, 2015
I have made my own drop spindle out of thin dowl, plasticine and a screw hook. I have not, however, ever spun a loose fiber into yarn. But I have spun T-shirt strips, plastic bags and fabric strips. Giving these materials a twist makes them much more manageable, for crochet and what not. All I want to say is that you can easily make a spindle with common materials, and you can experiment with other lengths of material to spin.
posted by Locochona at 1:06 PM on December 18, 2015
posted by Locochona at 1:06 PM on December 18, 2015
Best answer: Generally speaking, the kits that are out there are not fantastic, as the wool included in them is not great. (I'm sure there are exceptions—I just wanted to mention it as a warning. Alas, I don't know of a good one personally, so I can't help there... but I'll proceed with some general advice instead.) You really don't want to try learning to spin with crappy fiber; you'll have no way of knowing whether it's you or the fiber, and you're likely to get frustrated quickly as a result. You probably do want to start with wool of some kind, most likely with a medium-long staple length. Every fiber will feel different to draft and spin, but wool is probably the best place to start while your hands learn what they need to do.
(Side note: What people think of as a wool allergy is really either a lanolin allergy or—more often, I think—a micron-count sensitivity. The thinner the fiber diameter, the lower the micron count, and the less scratchy the wool. So, if you find yourself especially sensitive, look for fibers with a lower micron count; you skin will thank you.)
There are spindles that can be used as both top-whorl and bottom-whorl (like the Schacht Hi-Lo); something like that might be a good place to start, as it allows you to experiment with which you prefer while only buying a single spindle. My first spindle was the 4"/3 oz. Hi-Lo, which is really heavy. Now that I have other spindles, I really only use it for plying (although it's great for that—I can pack a whole 4 oz skein on there!). ~1.5 oz would probably be a good weight to start out with.
"Wool" is a really broad term; wool from different breeds, and different sheep, can vary drastically. I highly recommend Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) as a first fiber—it's long stapled and forgiving to work with. If you can find a mixed BFL (e.g., a 50/50 blend of white and black fiber), all the better, as the different colors will make it easier to see the amount of twist you're putting into the fiber. Undyed fiber in general will be much cheaper than the dyed stuff.
I'd suggest at least 8 oz to start off with. It might seem like a lot, but by the end of that you should be a lot more comfortable. Even a pound would be great, but you might find yourself getting bored of spinning the same thing for that long. At any rate, you want enough that you don't feel precious about it. Try very hard not to worry about "wasting" fiber; it's not a waste if you're learning! (But you might not want to be doing the first of that learning on an expensive hand-dyed braid of fiber… unless of course the changing colors are what really keep you going. Everyone's different!)
Don't be afraid to park and draft. A lot of spinners seem to look down on it, but it's a perfectly valid technique to use while your hands learn what they're supposed to do; it prevents you from having to worry about the spindle from back spinning while you try to draft. Over time, you'll probably find yourself doing it less and less without even thinking about it. Try to spin a little every day—even 15 minutes will really help you improve steadily.
Abby Franquemont is fantastic… a real wealth of information and experience (see her getting started post first). I highly recommend her book Respect the Spindle.
Ravelry is a great resource, even if you don't knit or crochet. I recommend the "Spinders" and "Beginning Spinning" groups in particular, but "Spinner Central" and "Spin Tech" are also good. My Ravelry username is the same as my Instagram (linked in my profile); I'm not mentioning it here specifically for reasons of Google, but you're welcome to look me up there. I've only been spinning since August, but I love it and would be happy to share what I've learned, if you ever have any specific questions.
posted by cellar door at 6:17 PM on December 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
(Side note: What people think of as a wool allergy is really either a lanolin allergy or—more often, I think—a micron-count sensitivity. The thinner the fiber diameter, the lower the micron count, and the less scratchy the wool. So, if you find yourself especially sensitive, look for fibers with a lower micron count; you skin will thank you.)
There are spindles that can be used as both top-whorl and bottom-whorl (like the Schacht Hi-Lo); something like that might be a good place to start, as it allows you to experiment with which you prefer while only buying a single spindle. My first spindle was the 4"/3 oz. Hi-Lo, which is really heavy. Now that I have other spindles, I really only use it for plying (although it's great for that—I can pack a whole 4 oz skein on there!). ~1.5 oz would probably be a good weight to start out with.
"Wool" is a really broad term; wool from different breeds, and different sheep, can vary drastically. I highly recommend Bluefaced Leicester (BFL) as a first fiber—it's long stapled and forgiving to work with. If you can find a mixed BFL (e.g., a 50/50 blend of white and black fiber), all the better, as the different colors will make it easier to see the amount of twist you're putting into the fiber. Undyed fiber in general will be much cheaper than the dyed stuff.
I'd suggest at least 8 oz to start off with. It might seem like a lot, but by the end of that you should be a lot more comfortable. Even a pound would be great, but you might find yourself getting bored of spinning the same thing for that long. At any rate, you want enough that you don't feel precious about it. Try very hard not to worry about "wasting" fiber; it's not a waste if you're learning! (But you might not want to be doing the first of that learning on an expensive hand-dyed braid of fiber… unless of course the changing colors are what really keep you going. Everyone's different!)
Don't be afraid to park and draft. A lot of spinners seem to look down on it, but it's a perfectly valid technique to use while your hands learn what they're supposed to do; it prevents you from having to worry about the spindle from back spinning while you try to draft. Over time, you'll probably find yourself doing it less and less without even thinking about it. Try to spin a little every day—even 15 minutes will really help you improve steadily.
Abby Franquemont is fantastic… a real wealth of information and experience (see her getting started post first). I highly recommend her book Respect the Spindle.
Ravelry is a great resource, even if you don't knit or crochet. I recommend the "Spinders" and "Beginning Spinning" groups in particular, but "Spinner Central" and "Spin Tech" are also good. My Ravelry username is the same as my Instagram (linked in my profile); I'm not mentioning it here specifically for reasons of Google, but you're welcome to look me up there. I've only been spinning since August, but I love it and would be happy to share what I've learned, if you ever have any specific questions.
posted by cellar door at 6:17 PM on December 18, 2015 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Thank you all for taking time to reply to my query, especially those who offered personal guidance. After a great deal of industrious and creative googling, I managed to find two local women who weave wall-hangings, one of whom teaches weaving out of her home. I don't know if they spin their own yarn but I shall email and ask.
I shall also post a call for local spinners on Ravelry. If no one is able to help me, I will probably order the Little Si "Learn to Spin" kit recommended by clavicle. I will report back on my progress since this seems to be my 2016 New Year Resolution. I may take some time to do things because I'm backlogged by work but I'm posting this here to keep myself honest :)
Thanks once again everyone and I hope this will help other new spinners.
posted by whitelotus at 10:33 PM on December 19, 2015
I shall also post a call for local spinners on Ravelry. If no one is able to help me, I will probably order the Little Si "Learn to Spin" kit recommended by clavicle. I will report back on my progress since this seems to be my 2016 New Year Resolution. I may take some time to do things because I'm backlogged by work but I'm posting this here to keep myself honest :)
Thanks once again everyone and I hope this will help other new spinners.
posted by whitelotus at 10:33 PM on December 19, 2015
Response by poster: Update: Well, it took me quite some time because of my busy life and other delays but the drop spindle and undyed wool (from Spunky Eclectic) have finally arrived. Spinning is definitely not intuitive for me (my singles are irregular) but hopefully I will get the hang of it by the time my wool runs out.
Thanks askmefi!
posted by whitelotus at 1:19 AM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]
Thanks askmefi!
posted by whitelotus at 1:19 AM on March 4, 2016 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
Merino wool is soft and lovely to touch. If you aren't actively allergic to wool, you'll probably enjoy working with it.
posted by yarntheory at 5:20 AM on December 18, 2015 [2 favorites]