by Christina Socorro Yovovich Late May in 2023 found me gleefully bent over steaming metal pots on my back patio in the early morning. I was scouring my first fleece. I didn’t know what I was doing. I’d started knitting in late January after a thirty-year hiatus. I’d started noodling around with a drop spindle […]
by Kira Dulaney One of the many pleasures of spinning is searching out different breeds of sheep and fiber blends to try. As a bonus, heading down that path means supporting smaller ranches raising heritage breeds and, if you choose not to start with raw fleece, sourcing fiber from small wool mills. I love visiting […]
Words and photos by Cynthia Haney I first fell in love with spinning yarn on a top whorl drop spindle, using park-and-draft to build my skills before spinning suspended. I manage the spindle with one hand while the other holds my fiber supply. After setting the spindle in motion, I move my spindle hand to […]
Words and pictures by Rowena Zuercher Within the past few years, I’ve developed a fondness for the idea of “place” within my fiber craft. Using fibers and materials local to where I live helps me learn about, and appreciate, the land in creative and surprising ways. During a recent plant fiber deep dive, I came […]
Words and photos by Kyla Crawford Have you ever wanted to take a drawing and make it into yarn? I do that by spinning paper. I started this practice while I was in graduate school working on my MFA in sculpture. I have always been fascinated with artworks that cross the line between two and […]
by Kira Dulaney Historically, spinning was a necessary household chore, but these days for most of us it’s a hobby, a creative outlet, or perhaps even an escape. You might spin yarn sporadically and inconsistently or in concentrated bursts that cause sore muscles the next day, or maybe you are getting bored by using the […]
The Handspinner’s Companion: From Fibre to Yarn by Amanda Hannaford Publisher: The Crowood PressPaperback, e-book, 144 pagesPublication date: August 12, 2025$31.49 (As this title is published out of the UK, the physical book will not be widely available outside of the UK until February 10, 2026. However, the e-book is available now!) Buy now at […]
by Kat Pong I love rainbows. My first rainbow yarn was a long gradient. I took rainbow-dyed Three Feet of Sheep braids from Frabjous Fibers, spun them end to end, then chain plied. When I knit a scarf from the yarn, it created long rainbows, big chunks of color gently fading from one to the […]
Time to ramp up for tonight’s PLY Spinners Guild Third Thursday foundational spin-in! We’d like to take a moment to feature some tips from one of our wonderful PLY Guild spin-in leaders, Donita Westman. The old saying is that “practice makes perfect”; over twenty years ago, my music education mentor challenged me to consider if […]
