Tag: spinning techniques

The Art of Roving to Yarn Transformation: A Colorful Journey!

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A Totally Unexpected Handspun Outcome

A few months ago, I posted about dyeing roving in a crockpot, which is my favorite method for dyeing fiber for spinning. I used colors that I had just gotten in stock as examples, and the resulting color was not a combo I would typically dye.

The goal of that video was to show how I dye roving in a crockpot one color at a time, so there was no thought into the colors I was putting together. I needed samples of each color for my dye binder, so I decided to dye the roving at the same time, to create a video of the process.

You Can Watch the Dyeing Roving Video Here:

Now I have a roving made out of several primary-like colors, but I have no idea how to spin it. I was convinced that no matter how I spun this, it would be a mess of color and not necessarily desirable. Okay, I’ll say it. It was going to be ugly! And I’ll have to over-dye it.

A Creative Epiphany

One day, while working in the garden, I had an idea pop into my head about how I could try to spin it. Even though I didn’t have a solid plan on how I would eventually ply it, and was not very confident that it would even look nice, I decided to be vulnerable and record the process anyway. I figure my failure would lead to others’ success. Learn from my mistakes, as you will.

This project required the use of the Lendrum fast flyer once again, and I decided to go for it and use the smallest whorl. I can’t express how much I love this fast flyer for spinning more consistent thin singles!

Another aspect that made spinning this yarn easier was that I decided to strip the roving into very thin strips. This was because I wanted the color to be in shorter intervals throughout. The first bobbin looked really good, so I decided to chain ply it. However, I reminded myself that the whole point of this project was to experiment and see what I would get if I plied this roving together without rhyme or reason, color-wise.

I stripped this roving into as thin a piece as possible. Sometimes that meant one end would be thicker than the rest, sometimes that meant I wouldn’t get a full strip with all the colors. I purposely mixed it up, sometimes even turning the strips of roving upside down. I intentionally wanted to jumble up the colors as much as possible.

Even then, I was surprised at how much of the yarn is two plies of the same color, with one opposing color. Even in some sections, there would be a total solid color. It was fascinating to watch the colors come together as I plied this yarn.

Apprehensive to Share the Outcome

To say I was a bit nervous and feeling vulnerable sharing this process in a vlog is an understatement! I was prepared to create a second video where I would overdye the result. I was convinced this would be the most hideous 3-ply yarn I had ever seen.

A person with short dark hair and clear glasses, wearing a sleeveless shirt, looks up at the camera while holding a large untwisted skein of handspun yarn. The image is in black and white, with a couch and blanket in the background. The image is in black and white so not to give away the final process from spinning the roving.

To see what this roving looks like now, all spun up, check out the video above. 😉

The end result? Let’s just say I should have never pre-judged this yarn. The final handspun yarn is nothing like I thought it would be!

It will be fun to decide what to make with all 800+ yards of this sport-weight yarn, but for now, it’s hanging in the studio. I’m blown away at how much yardage I have in this colorful skein, and how quickly it spun up in the grand scheme of things. I should have purchased the fast flyer attachment for my wheel a long time ago! I might have spun thinner yarns more often (I’m more of a worsted-weight & bulky yarn spinner). This project opened up so many possibilities for my yarn design creativity.

I hope you enjoyed this month’s project. If you like my content, be sure to subscribe to my YouTube Channel and explore the fiber arts/dyeing/spinning section of the blog.

Until Next Time,

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My Spinning Philosophy (and how it ties into jewelry making)

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The other day I was flipping through my copy of Intertwined: The Art of Handspun Yarn, Modern Patterns, and Creative Spinning by Lexi Boeger and the intro to chapter 3 reminded me why I spin.

Free the Pattern

The Yarn made me do it.

“Working with handspun yarn provides a perfect opportunity to free yourself from the constraints of formal patterns by allowing the characteristics of the yarn itself to dictate the work’s form. There are many ways to do this, and a few examples will follow, but the idea to teach yourself to really look closely at the yarn, and let the details and eccentricities that you find there guide you in your creative process. Many people are hyper-focused on the act of knitting or crocheting, and oblivious to the yarn itself as they work through it.” 1

Faux Tailspun Yarn in pink flamingo
Faux Tailspun Yarn in pink flamingo

I’ve been in a bit of a spinning & knitting slump as of late which I find happens when my days are more consumed with jewelry making or fleece processing. This quote reminded me why I got into making yarn in the first place. It’s easy to get into concentrating on technique only, esp. when you are out of practice. But for me that takes away from the joy of spinning. I’m a throw-caution-to-the-wind kind of spinner. I’ve come up with the best skeins this way. They are in no way reproducible, but isn’t that why we love handspun anyway, the uniqueness of each skein?

I really enjoy Lexi’s book as she is about pushing the envelope as to what we think of when

just a few of my fave yarns I spun
just a few of my fave yarns I’ve spun

we think of handspun yarn. I don’t tend to click with many spinners I meet since their goal many times is to get the thinnest and/or most even yarn usually for a particular pattern or project. I would much rather let the fiber take me on the journey and then decide after it is spun what it would like to become. It usually takes me several attempts to make something out of a skein of yarn because it doesn’t always want to do what I want it to. I find a pretty pattern in one of my books, and convince myself that this particular handspun will do the trick. Most of the time, I am wrong. Instead, I have had to train myself to look at the yarn and decide from its feel what it should become. I do look at patterns for inspiration, but most of the time, knitting (or crocheting) just spontaneously happens.

If you think that a jewelry maker making the jump to spinning yarn is odd, here is where the parallels are drawn. When I make jewelry, I like to sit down with a component – such as a gemstone bead – and let it develop into a piece. Sure I have a sketch book with designs and this is more useful for the engravable jewelry. Even then do the designs rarely look like what is in the book. I like to let it develop as I go. Much like mixing different colors of fiber for spinning, I like to take beads and metals to find a harmonious blend. It’s painting, only on a 3-dimensional level to produce a tangible product or textile. To me spinning is the perfect compliment to jewelry making – not to mention the ultimate mash-up: spinning beads into my yarn (I also got tired of boring plastic and rubber stitch markers too so I make my own – that I call knitting bling). 🙂

coopsworth 2-ply with purple stacks
coopsworth 2-ply with purple stacks

When I started spinning I just went for it. The opportunity arose where I could buy a wheel and I seized it. It made absolutely no sense at the time, but I am so glad I left logic on the shelf, and delved into spinning yarn. It is an absolute bliss for me, even with every ache and pain that goes along with it.

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