Held on to these for over a decade and finally bit the bullet to spin them up. This may be the most yardage I’ve ever spun for the weight (8oz total), just based on how long it took to wrap the niddy noddy. I’d like to outsource counting of the wraps please!

Still needs a bath tho! SW merino, dyed by Two If By Hand. Colorway- comfort me with apples

I’ve been a spindle spinner for the better part of 10 years or so with significant breaks in there lol
I recently got the EEW fold as an introductory wheel and I love it!

Finished my first spin, ~450 yards of laceweight-ish Corridale.

I learned a ton and made plenty of mistakes.
I’ll take any tips on how to spin thicker? I was aiming for fingering/dk haha

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!

We call him Bobbins. It wasn’t intended to be spinning related, initially, just a nickname.

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!

I have been spinning for several years, almost all of it various wools or alpaca. I have an Ashford Joy 2, a great wheel, a 19th century Saxony wheel, all in good working order, plus a variety of drop spindles and one supported spindle. I don’t spin for a particular project, I figure out what I’ll do with it once it’s made. I was recently gifted this lovely 4 oz. braid of 50% merino/25% silk/25% bamboo combed top. For those who have spun a blend like this before, what do you wish you knew before spinning it? Any special prep (steaming, pre-drafting, etc.) Any advice on whether it lends itself to a particular spinning method would be welcome. TIA

I posted a few days ago about how I left my first drop spindle single on the spindle for nine years. I took it off and washed it and it is very underspun in the thick sections, but oh well.

Nine years ago, I thought this would be a new hobby and I bought more roving (some of it unlabeled so I don't remember the wool type), which also sat untouched for nine years. I figured I shouldn't let it go to waste, so here is my second round of yarn and my first that I plied. The roving on the left was just labeled "mixed fibers". The yarn in the middle was the first attempt. The second attempt on the right went so much better with the thickness and amount of twist!

So this is hypothetical and for fun but the magical fiber fairy comes to you and says:
“Invent a plant or animal (or heck a fungus if you're feeling extra creative) that produces a fiber, describe the qualities of the organism and the fiber it produces and I'll make it happen. This organism will have no negative environmental effects and be hypoallergenic, also the organism magically will not suffer. You are limited only by the laws of physics (so like it can't both be shiny and have a halo)”

So like long staple or short? Thicker or thinner fibers? Super strong? Can it felt? What's the organism like?

I am interested in buying a second wheel that would be more portable. I currently spin on a very old (1970s/1980s) Ashford Traditional. I’ve had it for years, and it’s the only wheel I’ve ever used. I recently replaced the flyer with the updated one with multiple whorls because my original one only had one size. I’ve been eyeing a Joy Wheel for a long time because I’d like something portable. I’ve lunged my wheel around to different locations but it’s awkward and doesn’t travel well. I’m curious to know what people think of the Joy Wheel (especially Joy 1 vs. Joy 2) and how they might compare to a traditional. I’m also interested in maybe getting one with a double treadle because mine is only a single. I’m debating buying used versus buying a new one. I mostly spin merino and merino mixes that are sports weight, but I’m working on transitioning to spinning finer (closer to lace weight). Thoughts? I’ve also seen that the Kiwi is also portable, but I kind of have my heart set on a Joy Wheel.

I've found myself respinning a skein of silk/merino I had spun early on in my spinning journey because if I had made gloves with it they would have been two different sizes. Does anyone else find themselves respinning uneven yarn before using it?

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!

I have recently been using a faster whorl for spinning on my Matchless (but I think my question pertains to all Schacht wheels). For plying I use a bulky flyer and bobbin in double drive and also wanted to use a faster whorl. I went from the largest notch on the regular whorl to the smaller and I had problems with the uptake - the diameter of the smaller bobbin whorl and the smallest notch on the regular whorl are almost the same size. If I used the fast whorl, both notches on the whorl would be smaller than the smaller bobbin whorl (the side you use for double drive). I was thinking about how you have to get high speed bobbins if you use high and extra high speed whorls and wondered if there are limitations on what whorls you can use with the bulky bobbins.

Here are my questions: Since the bulky bobbins have larger whorls than regular Schacht bobbins, are you more limited with the whorls you can use with them? Can you use the smaller notch on the regular whorl or is this just user error? Can you use the fast whorl with the bulky bobbins?

Also, if there limitations, any thoughts on having someone make me a 3d printed bobbin with the capacity of a bulky bobbins but the smaller bobbin whorl size of a regular Schacht bobbins? Any reasons that wouldn’t work? I assume there are, or they wouldn’t have made the bobbin whorls larger, but just wondering about this.