What does Spinning mean to you?

What does Spinning mean to you?

 

Some think it is a child turning round and round really fast, while playing, until they get dizzy and fall down.  Some may even think of a merry-go-round from their childhood, and how fast they could make it go, before they jumped on.When you type in spinning on the internet you get things like spinning bicycle wheels, tires, exercise bikes. 

However, to us Fiber Artists, it means twisting fiber, fleece, or wool roving, silk, alpaca, angora, mohair, flax, etc. into a continuous thread using either a spinning wheel or a drop spindle.  Spinners can spin their thread thick or thin, plied or un-plied, some will dye their yarns, while others leave it natural.

Fiber artists use their yarn for knitting, crocheting, or weaving projects.  I have seen people even use unspun fiber for knitting, crocheting, weaving and yes even felting.  I love seeing all these different ways of using fiber.

I love to spin my yarn into thin singles, 2 plied yarn and even a 3 ply yarn.  I knit a lot of different projects from my yarn, like socks, hats, scarves, boot cuffs, cowls and shawls.  I have even wove triangle shawls, scarves and overshot coverlet squares with my handspun yarn.  I have even dyed my own yarn too, its fun to watch the fiber absorb the dyes.

Spinning is a form of art and is done in a variety of ways, which makes it exciting, because no 2 yarns are the same.



Lost in my own spinning world

Sometimes I just get lost in my own little spinning world.  Once I get into the spinning room, my thoughts are on nothing but fiber, spinning, carding, weaving and knitting.  Today was not the exception!  I knew that today I'd be concentrating on where I left off yesterday on my spinning.

This bobbin was almost completely full yesterday with handspun 3 ply white alpaca and my goal for today was to finish filling it.....

which I accomplished in the first 27 minutes and 27 seconds of spinning.  I then wound it off onto my niddy noddy, washed it and hung it to dry.

Then I began plying up another skein (22nd) and managed to almost have the bobbin full again in 1 hour.

This is what happens when I get lost in my own little spinning world!  Now that lunch break is almost over, I think I'll go and get lost again.  I so LOVE to spin!

 

 

 

No spinning or knitting today!

Sorry Folks!  No spinning or knitting today.  I did try!! Yesterday I sliced the top of my finger yesterday, when I was cleaning my house.  I sliced bad enough for my husband to take me to the ER for 3 stitches.  My finger feels better today, but its awkward to spin and knit and I have a tendency to poke myself with the knitting needles.  Then when I'm spinning, I put pressure on that area of my finger and it hurts.  So I think I'll sit back a read some spinning and weaving magazines for a couple of days.  Sorry everyone!