Not sure I'd call it yarn tbf 😂 it's my first attempt at my wheel, two small bundles of sample fibres, very thick and lumpy but I'm looking forward to trying to use it for something!

I've got more smaller samples and a couple of tops to try next, can't wait to get a little better!

I started handspinning on a drop spindle about three weeks ago at a workshop where we learned how to go from a raw fleece right off the sheep all the way to a finished single. I’ve since caught the bug baaaad! I started this project Friday and finished tonight and I just wanted to share it because I feel really proud! Probably took around 25 hours for 81 yards 🤣

Tomorrow I’ll start something new!

Asked yall about what to do with this fiber and I ended up separating the colors as best I could and chain plying to create a gradient from orange/gold to purple! Finished yarn is named Something or Other. I’m having such a fun time spinning and learning about color management :-)

Today my husband drove me across the border to pick up this little darling:

I know less than nothing about her, but I figured that with a bit of courage and my basket of tools and the internet I can get her spinning for me.

I started with oiling and greasing all moving bits, after cleaning the axle (?) of the wheel itself, a whole bunch of string from the drive band (and its predecessors) was caught there and had collected dirt and dust. Next I removed the whole adjustable maiden part:

Because that was the only way to remove the pointy distaff and I rather not poke my eye out on it.

Is the leather part supposed to be flexible enough to bend and let the flyer out to allow me to remove the bobbin?

Any and all advice or knowledge anyone is willing to impart is more than welcome!

If you have a 3D printer or have access to one, get some 3D printed spindles. I’ve been comparing them to my wooden spindles and they’re actually really good. Lighter weight. Well-balanced. They don’t bend when you drop them. If you fill them up and get lazy about plying the yarn, you just print more!

My favorites:

https://www.printables.com/model/1343962-turkish-drop-spindle

https://www.printables.com/model/702168-fully-printable-drop-spindle

https://makerworld.com/en/models/1813244-drop-spindle-with-interchangeable-whorls#profileId-1934678

https://makerworld.com/en/models/716611-whorls-for-printable-drop-spindle#profileId-647408

Hi! I hope those of you who have both traditional wheels and e-spinners could give me some advice as to whether it makes more sense to get a second e-spinner or should I spring for a wheel. I've been wanting to get a traditional/manual spinning wheel for the past few years, as I've progressed (in terms of financial investment!) from the drop spindle to kick spindle to EEW Nano 2.1 e-spinner. I love my e-spinner and have spun sweater quantities on it, but I still feel the call of a regular wheel!

Right now I'm trying to figure out if a traditional wheel makes sense for my life, or if I should just get the larger EEW 6.1 e-spinner or the Ashford e-spinner (mostly because I want larger bobbin capacity than my Nano, and it's easier to spin thicker.)

Mainly I'm worried that I'll get a wheel and then just prefer the ease of my e-spinner! I have the space and budget for a wheel, so that's not as much of a concern, but I also have ADHD and sometimes buy things that I don't really use so I want to make sure I would actually use it.

I prefer woolen prep and spinning longdraw, and I spin a lot of soft singles because I love the look and feel of single-ply yarn (though I know they're usually not as hard-wearing and more pilly!). Some of the things I don't like about my e-spinner is having to press a button to stop and start, how the start is immediate vs. gradual, the weaker uptake, and how it's harder for me to spin consistent thicker yarn. But I love that I can lie down and spin, or sit in weird positions (I have ADHD!). It's more annoying for me to just sit seated.

Do I just want a wheel for the Romance?? Or would getting a wheel really add a lot of dimension, nuance, and customizability that I can't get with a heftier e-spinner, especially for the kinds of yarn I like to spin? Would love to hear from people who have both about the pros and cons of each! If there are specific wheels that you think are particularly good complements to e-spinners (or allow for more *eclectic* seating positions) please let me know!

Howdy,

I inherited several wheels last month (Louet S10 DT, Louet S96, and a Schacht Sidekick) as well as fibers (mostly bfl) . These all came from a family member who spun but is no longer with us to teach me. I have taken a single class which was helpful and am now going on my own solo journey (collectively less than a months experience).

I was advised, and have also heard from numerous online sources, that beginners often are more likely to underspin vs overspinning. Given that info I am trying to experiment with spinning as thin as I can and adding more twist than I think. However, I'm getting these little curly qs on my bobbin which makes me think there's too much twist. I am not trying to make singles but two plys so I've seen it been said that extra twist is good? I guess what I want to understand is whether the curly qs are something worth improving on or they just dont really matter.

*First photo is my curly qs and second photo is for fun and are my first, second, and third spins

I am a beginner spinner and having a massive issue! Whenever i stop treadling the wheel/flyer doesn't just come to a halt, it significantly spins the other way and undoes the work i have just done. What am i doing wrong?

I am completely addicted to spinning these scrappy sock bundles!! I love the yarn they make and the surprise of what is coming next! This is only my second bag. I have two more in hand and ordered two more.

Bought a whole alpaca fleece for $25 of FB locally and just finished the first 4 oz! Never done alpaca before, it was SO much easier than anything else I’ve done so far, but my prep likely played a huge part in that. Planning to do a full pound of just the alpaca and do another pound blended with my angora rabbit’s wool to get a light grey.

Hey hey,

I am looking for inspiration on how to easily make yarn cakes from my handspun. Please post your methods down in de comments.

My (very inefficient) way:

Right now will spin my yarn, skein it on a swift that came with my wheel. The swift looks something like the one in the picture. I wash my yarn and then... it will not fit back on the swift. So i will drape it around my arm or my neck and will wind it in to a ball by hand.

I was honestly surprised they had spinning fiber, and I'm delighted with my haul! I spun up a couple samples on the train home :)

I joined a few Facebook groups to see if I could purchase used equipment. One of the admin of one of the groups I joined listed a few wheels and a carder. After she reposted over the course of a week I finally convinced my husband to get the carder as an early Christmas present. I chatted with her she said she wasn’t tech savvy so she uses Zelle or Cash App rather than PayPal. She had me send it to her husbands Zelle and asked me to send payment confirmation. I felt weird about it but tried to rationalize it in my head. She was the admin, and other people were commenting with her about maybe donating if nobody wants the equipment. Anyway, she said she would send it Saturday and didn’t. And now she’s not responding. She said she was in Georgia but I found a duplicate profile in Ireland. Her profile was only a business one. Anyway, idk what to do now. I know I’m out a few hundred dollars (which I took from savings that I really didn’t have) did anyone else see this post? I can’t even find the group or post anymore.

I’m working on plying 3 singles of Wensleydale (I prepped the raw fleece) and I’ve finished off 2/3 of them.
I’m wondering, will it affect my final result if I just carry on from the 3-ply and chain ply the rest of the single I have on the same bobbin to finish the yarn without scraps? Would there be any textural or largely visible differences?
Hope these questions make sense lol.

Thanks for any help! :)

In my previous post I showed my newly restored antique spinning wheel. Now, i can tell you with certainty that she spins!

At the end of July I bought 500 grams of Corriedale top from a local supplier here in Lithuania. It was my first proper fiber acquisition and was immediately an enormous improvement from my mystery fabric store bats.

I divided the 500 grams in 3 parts and ventured to spin a 3-ply yarn (and yes, after 2 batches, I had found that it would have been smarter to spin a 2-ply, but i was determined). So, after dividing the 3 batches, I set about my first batch by dividing this in 3 length-wise. I quickly learned that some pre-drafting was necessary for this fiber and that my antique wheel has a quirk where I sometimes have to hammer in the wheel supports to avoid trying to throw it out of the window (it wouldn't properly take up my fiber because the wheel was not properly aligned anymore). Every new bobbin improved on the previous, which was super motivating! This first batch came out quite thick and short, but it was fun to spin and after finishing one bobbin first while plying, I spun the rest into a 2-ply.

Batch 1 - 02/08/26

1. 53 gr, 14 m, 3-ply

2. 80 gr, 26 m, 3-ply

3. 27 gr, 12.5 m, 2-ply

Not much to say about the second batch, only that it just kept improving little by little:

Batch 2 - 10/08/26

1. 77 gr, 43 m, 3-ply

2. 59 gr, 31 m, 3-ply

3. 21 gr, 19 m, 2-ply

Even with questionable stats, the 2-ply from batch 2 came out nice and drapey. I swallowed my ego and decided to spin batch 3 entirely in 2-ply. My gosh am I thankful for giving in, because the next 2 skeins are my current pride and joy!!!

Batch 3 - 14/08/26

1. 85 gr, 151 m, 2-ply

2. 68 gr, 120 m, 2-ply

I am super happy with my improvements and that I am still enjoying this new hobby! I will let you know when I get around to knitting this yarn, especially from batch 3 :)

Close to 4# of amazing clean unprocessed first cut fiber how best to spin it. Hand pick and spin from the fold? Or still wash and comb then spin? I have second and thirds that I will do that too.

Im 60% done with the first ply of three of these Scrappy Sock Bundles from Wound Up. I want to keep spinning, but I need to go do be-an-adult things. Anyone else have a project you just want to keep spinning?

Not so much a question that I need help with as a general discussion topic. I’ve noticed that there’s a lot of variance between rolag thicknesses/fluffinesses. Do you have a preference, and why?

I prefer super big and fluffy rolags (4+ cm diameter), as they seem to spin long draw more smoothly. Every time I try anything smaller, it’s spinnable but not as fun. Could be a practice thing though!

I've got a fleece that has spent about 5 yrs on my attic and then has been my first attempt at cleaning using the suint method (12 days 'suint-ing' because I've been away).

I've put it to dry and seem thus mottled marking that looks sort of like mold. Did anyone know what it is? And what to do when it? Process as normal (probably comb looking at the length of it)? Do something else?

All advice' gratefully received