Frontpage Article – Page 25

How to Spin

April 7, 2016/in Frontpage Article, Spinning /by beth smith

So early last month my new book came out. It’s by Storey Publishing and it’s called How to Spin. The title is right to the point I think.

Here’s what I know about learning to spin:

It takes some time
It takes some practice
It takes some patience
It’s best if you can have an in person teacher

Really, you can learn on almost any wheel. Consider all this years ago when the family had whatever wheel was available and whoever was learning learned on that wheel.

If you can’t get a wheel get a spindle. You can learn on any spindle.

You can learn with any fiber. People all over the world learn to spin with cotton or silk or cashmere as their first fiber.

As with everything, once you learn and begin to try things you can figure out what you love the most or what works best for you.

Stop worrying and wondering and thinking and just start trying. And if you already know how to spin, start trying new things and brooadening your horizons.

As far as the book goes, I think it’s good for most spinners. Sometimes you just forget something or there is some basic thing you never really got. Maybe check out How to Spin and see if I can answer your question.

What’s inside the Cotton issue?

March 24, 2016/4 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Issue Preview /by Guest Blogger

The Spring 2016 “Cotton” issue is busy making its way to various destinations around the world. Whether you’re a subscriber waiting for your copy to arrive, or you’ve been thinking of subscribing and you’d like a preview before you buy, today’s post is here to give you a sneak peek inside the issue!

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So many spinners stick mainly to animal fibers for their spinning, and never really get a chance to try cotton. Others have tried it but for whatever reason it didn’t click. Still others love cotton so much that they sing its praises throughout the spinning world – and we’ve tried to bring that level of enthusiasm to this issue. Many, many thanks to Joan Ruane for helping to bring this issue to life and sharing her inspiring love of cotton with the rest of us. Let’s dig in!

Great Articles!

We’ve rounded up the a talented group of spinners and asked them to share their insights and experiments with us, and as always we’ve got a tip jar full of helpful hints from our readers, humor by Franklin Habit, and how to keep your spinning body happy by Carson Demers! Take a look at what you’ll get!:

Cotton: the Miracle Fiber, by Irene Laughing Cloud Schmoller – Irene LOVES cotton, and it shows in her article which covers the history of the plant itself and its many uses in everyday life.
Cotton Lessons, by Stephenie Gaustad – Learn from Stephenie’s early “mistakes” with cotton spinning and you’ll be off on the right foot with her tips for how cotton begs to be spun.
Prep it! Dyeing Cotton Naturally, by Ric Rao – The photography alone will take your breath away with this article – who knew you could achieve such vibrant colors with dyes you picked or grew yourself? Venture into the world of natural dyeing with Ric; you won’t be sorry.
Prep it! Carding Cotton Lint and Making a Puni, by Joan Ruane – If you live near a cotton mill you can probably get cotton lint directly from them! Otherwise, we encourage you to buy some online and follow along with Joan as she shows you how to hand card and roll punis from this fiber.
Prep it! Blending Cotton, by Susan Sullivan Maynard – If working with cotton by itself isn’t your thing, this article is just what you need! There’s plenty of information and even a color-coded chart to help you blend cotton with other fibers to achieve the result you’re hoping for.
Charkha Tips and Tricks, by Eileen Hallman – Have you ever seen a Charkha in action? These adorable mini-spinning contraptions were literally made for spinning cotton, and Eileen’s got all the tips you need to start working with one today.
Spin it! Cotton on a wheel, by Joan Ruane – If you’re a wheel spinner, you don’t have to change your whole methodology just to begin spinning cotton. Joan will guide you through the process of changing just a few things to make cotton work on your wheel, even if you’re accustomed to animal fibers.
Cotton Spindles from Around the World, by Kristin Merritt – Kristin wrote and illustrated the gorgeous spindles for this article, which is a fantastic comparison of spindles used for cotton. She also has an accompanying Spin It! article to help you learn to spin cotton on a spindle!
Hot Button: Boiling Cotton – Several experts sound off this issue on the issue of boiling cotton fibers for spinning.
Cotton Farming in New Mexico Prehistory, by Glenna Dean – Glenna is an archeobotanist (someone who studies the growth and use of plants in historical times), and in this exploration she shows us how ancient people used land that most would think wasn’t suitable for farming at all to grow cotton.
Cotton Spinning and Sprang in the Pueblo Southwest, by Louie Garcia – A traditional Pueblo fiber artist, Louie takes us on a journey of Pueblo ancestry and their relationship to cotton fibers.
The Arizona Openwork (Tonto) Shirt Project, by Carol James – In 2013, Carol James met Joan Ruane and the two of them went to visit the historical Tonto shirt, an openwork garment dating back to the 13th century. Together, they hatched a plan to re-create that shirt. Follow along with their project in this article.
Cotton Spinning in Uganda, by Allen Nansubuga – Allen is one of the founders of Crochet4Life, an organization that empowers Ugandan women to bring in their own income through the production of handmade cotton goods. Read about his project in this issue!
Khadi: the Freedom Cloth, by Chitra Balasubramaniam – Khadi is a handspun, handwoven cloth that has come to represent India’s freedom from British rule. We think you’ll love the story Chitra weaves and her gorgeous photos of Khadi production in India.

Fantastic Projects

In every issue of PLY, you’ll find a handful of projects for knitting, weaving, crocheting and more – along with instructions for how to best spin the yarns you’ll use in those projects. Here are the projects from the Winter issue:

Cotton Cactus Flower Shirt, by Jill Holbrook – Spin along and knit the perfect summer garment – a cotton tunic style shirt made using two different natural colors of this versatile fiber.
Weave with your First Handspun Cottons, by Patricia Santangelo – Try weaving with your first handspun cotton – yes, even that “beginner stuff” you think isn’t usable. You’ll be surprised what it teaches you! And who couldn’t use a few extra towels?

Everything Else!

Tip Jar will empower you to overcome your fears and get into spinning cotton. In Ergo Neo, Carson explains the best way to spin in a chair for comfort and bodily health. Who’s That Spinner? introduces us to Kay Toombs, who explains her cotton spinning history and how she learned to spin and weave with Multiple Sclerosis. Scene is full of things on the spinning scene that you’ll want to know about including the upcoming Ply Away retreat, the 70-year anniversary of a Florida guild, and a symposium on flax and linen. Beth Smith offers a variety of pattern suggestions to get you to Use Your Yarn, even those first handspun cottons.

If you haven’t subscribed yet, you can do that right here on our website! And be sure to pick up a copy of this issue if you don’t already have one (or it isn’t on its way to you)!

Growing and Spinning Florida Native Cotton

March 17, 2016/12 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Spinning /by Guest Blogger

Today we’ll hear from guest blogger Caroline Tacker, who tells us about how she got started in the fiber world with a spur-of-the moment purchase of some inexpensive cotton plants!

I grow and spin Florida Native Cotton, which at its best has a ¾-inch staple. I currently use an Ashford Kiwi and Traditional for my spinning, but I can also use a Tahkli spindle. This cotton was grown in my front yard.

The Cotton that Almost Wasn’t

The bloom from a Florida Native cotton plant

Florida Native Cotton is part of the Hibiscus family, as are all cottons. It is an endangered plant in Florida. In the early 1940s a new bug was found on the cotton that resembled the boll weevil. Fearing another boll weevil-like attack, they decided to systematically destroy the plants. It just so happened that World War II broke out and those men left this project to join the armed forces. Hence some of this cotton survived… and NO new boll weevil was ever verified. There is an original strand of this cotton behind a synagogue at mile marker 31 on the way down to Key West. I can verify it’s there as I have seen it!

Florida Native Cotton grows much like our hibiscus: if left unattended it gets gangly and out of control. I do prune my plant back, to try and make it ascetically pleasing, and also to make it look like it belongs in the yard/garden. It is not cold tolerant; it prefers to grow below the subtropic line of Florida. I did lose all my plants to a freeze 5 years ago. Since then, a “volunteer” showed up.

The use of Florida Native Cotton in History

Caroline’s cotton plant

There is limited information about Florida Native Cotton; the one thing I haven’t seen about it is whether or not it was ever really used for anything. I’m sure people used it because that would be in our nature as pioneers: use what you have. As to what they used it for or on, I have not found any information. As to spinning it, my thoughts are it would be too labor intensive and not a good use of time for people who made everything from scratch, but I cannot find anything confirming they did or did not.

My Fiber Journey

My start down the fiber path started over 11 years ago in the spring when I attended a Florida native plant sale in St Petersburg, Florida (where I live). There I found Florida Native Cotton seedlings which they were selling at 3 pots for $1. I thought… if they live great, if they don’t I’m only out $1.

I was told that cotton liked full sun and carbon monoxide, so I planted my seedlings in the easement of my front yard, next to the road. As they grew over the next several months, they bloomed and then I had this white beautiful fuzzy cotton! Now that I had this lovely fiber… I had to figure out how to process it.

harvested Florida Native cotton

I did several web searches – how to clean, gin, etc. – and after a year of not finding much about how to process cotton, other than commercially. I’d kind of given up. Then someone suggested I go to Heritage Village (our local living museum). I contacted them and asked if they could teach me how to process my cotton and in exchange I would become a volunteer. In March of 2006, I met Wendy who taught me how to “gin” my cotton by hand and spin it on a tahkli spindle. I had the process down in about 45 minutes.

While volunteering at Heritage Village during their County Jubilee Festival, I met Judy of the Pinellas Weavers Guild. She was spinning on a lovely spinning wheel. We talked for awhile and she invited me to come to a guild meeting. I did and joined the Guild in December of 2006. Have loved being around other “fiber” minded people, I am currently still a member… and I am their curre

Caroline’s cotton ready to spin

nt president. I have also been the past Secretary and Vice-President.

So to sum it up… almost 12 years ago I purchased three Florida Native Cotton plants for $1. I have since learned to spin on a tahkli spindle, purchased 2 spinning wheels, a drum carder, a loom and other associated small equipment. I “play” with lots of different fibers, and I do sell some of the things I make, but I ALWAYS come back to cotton. I just love it.

Samples of Caroline’s cotton spinning projects

Have you ever tried to grow or spin cotton straight from the plant? Tell us about your experiences & ask your questions in the comments!

Caroline Tacker is a Florida native born in Orlando, living in St. Petersburg for the past 25 years. She volunteers with Heritage Village as a living history docent (spinning cotton by hand) and is a member of the Pinellas Weavers Guild, Bay Area Knitting Guild, and Florida Tropical Weavers Guild. Find her on Facebook for more information.

Adventuring with Sheep

March 10, 2016/3 Comments/in Frontpage Article /by Jillian Moreno

I’ve recently read two wonderful books about sheep, one written by a shepherd and one written by a spinner and knitter. Do you need a book to inspire you as spring is springing? To get you ready for the first fleece fairs? Both of these books are great company.

In the Footsteps of Sheep by Debbie Zawinski

Debbie Zawinski had an idea to walk the highways and byways of Scotland collecting fleece from native breeds of sheep to spin into yarn and then knit into socks. Now anyone that isn’t a spinner, knitter or avid walker might think this is crazy, but those who are will think this sounds like bliss.

The book is divided into 10 breeds of sheep and each chapter tells the story of Debbie traveling to the part of Scotland where the sheep can be found, finding the sheep with the help of people she encounters, gathering a bit of fleece and spinning it. Sounds straight forward, but as anyone that travels knows, it never is.

The stories and photographs of her travels are mesmerizing. I’ve gone back and looked at the photos many times since I’ve finished reading the book. I’ve never been to Scotland and now want to go more than ever. She doesn’t gloss over her frustrations or the crappy weather in her stories, but that makes the whole book more enjoyable.

My favorite bits are the connections she forges with the people who help her find her sheep, ferrying her to islands, directing her down lanes or across fields and applying the much appreciated tea and cake while talking sheep.

It’s interesting that Debbie spins her yarn on a stick. There are no discussion of wheels or types of spindles. She uses a spinning stick and makes wonderful yarn as she walks.

The 10 sheep she visits and spins are: Shetland, Scottish Blackface, Hebridean, Boreray, Soay, North Country Cheviots, North Ronaldsay, Castlemilk Moorits, Bowmont and Cheviots. She closes each chapter with a sock pattern designed and knit out of each breed and inspired by her trek. There is an eleventh pair of socks knit with a bit of each breed.

She writes as someone who knows the joy of solitude, picking out and relishing the details of weather and landscape. This book is exactly the sheepy type of adventure I’d like to experience.

The Shepherd’s Life: Modern Dispatches From an Ancient Landscape By James Rebanks

James Rebanks is a Lake District shepherd. It’s not exactly the pastoral Lake District of painting and poem, the beauty is there, but this Lake District is also the one that has housed shepherding families for hundreds of years. It’s not an easy or lucrative life, but a life rooted in family, place and hard work.

Like his father and grandfather before him, James raises Herdwick sheep. He writes thoroughly, dissecting the seasonal work of raising sheep, the good, the bad and the bloody.

He writes in a style that is more liked linked essays than chapters, glimpses of landscape and seasons of life on the farm. He also tells his own history, that of his family and his corner of the world.

He knew from a young age that he wanted to follow his father and his grandfather and stay to work the family land. He did go on later to get a degree from Oxford while continuing to work on the farm between semesters. He writes about his life with awe and humor, about how his work and countryside are connected to a bigger world and to shepherds all over.

The book is filled with joy and love and a strength and wisdom pulled from land, sheep and family.

Both of these books have a lot in common with the spinners and fiber artists I know. They have sheep at their center. They are infused with passion, dedication and a connection to all of the people who work with fiber going back and forward in time. They are both excellent reads.

A Spinning Wheel in Good Working Order

March 3, 2016/2 Comments/in Frontpage Article, PLY Away, Spinning /by beth smith

I’m leaving today to teach some classes in Iowa this weekend for a guild. I’ve never been to Iowa. But it’s not that far away so I’ll pack the car and drive there. By driving I can stop for as many Starbucks hot chocolates as I want. But that’s not what I wanted to talk about today.

The classes I’m teaching are a breeds studay and a class about woolen and worsted. The breeds study requires either a spinning wheel or a spindle and the woolen/worsted class is wheel specific. In the notes for both classes when I list the equipment needed I specify a “spinning wheel in good working order”. Many of my teacher friends use the same language. I wanted to just talk for a short time today about what exactly that means.

Most of the time the wheels people bring to class are fine but there have been several times where the a student’s wheel wasn’t fine and then things get hard for me, the student and the entire class. If a wheel shows up in class that isn;t in good working order I often will spend a bit of time trying to get it to go. Since I am often traveling a far distance to teach I don’t have an extra wheel with me to lend just in case. So the best case scenario is where I get the wheel going with just some minor tweeks. Worst case is that the wheel has bigger issues than I can fix in class and the student doesn’t have a wheel to use. If I have brought a wheel along with me I often lend mine.

I have found that most of the time when the worst happens it’s because the wheel in question was borrowed for the class and the student didn’t try it out before bringing it.

Anyway, There are things I check on my wheel before I bring it to class and there are things that should b checked out before trying to use a wheel that you may not be familiar with. So here goes.

The bobbins should all spin freely on the bobbin shaft. Dont just try one bobbin. If the class calls for more than one, try them all out. Spinning freely means that you give it a push and it spins several complete revolutions before you touch it again.
When treadling with no yarn or tension, the wheel spins freely and treadling is almost effortless.
The treadles are actually attached to the footmen and those attachments don’t look like they will fall apart at any moment.
All bolts and screws are tightened and will remain tight oveer the length of the class.
All front feet are present and accounted for. (This pertains to especially Schacht Wheels that have adjustable feet.) I check this before I leave for a class and then again before I put my wheel in the car after a class.
If the drive band hasn’t been changed in the last 6 months and it’s cotton, change it.
If it’s scotch tension, make sure there is a scotch tension brake band attached along with a spring or other bouncy option.

I thnk that’s it. It looks like a lot but it really only will take about 5 to 10 minutes to get it all in order and make sure you’re all set.

Let me know if you have any questions!

While I have your attention, I still have a couple of spots left in one or two of my Plyaway classes so if you can get to Kansas City in April, sign up!

Singles on a Sock Machine

February 18, 2016/17 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Projects, Spinning /by Guest Blogger

Guest blogger Cindy Craft is here to share her experiments with using a Circular Sock Machine to knit single ply socks. She also uses a flatbed machine for color work using singles. If you’ve ever wondered about knitting machines, we think you’ll be very inspired by her post!

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I’m a hand spinner. I spin every night; it’s the way I wind down at the end of the day. As a result, I make a lot of yarn – there are several blanket chests in my house full of handspun yarn. I knit with my handspun yarn but I spin much faster and much more often than I knit. Several years ago it occurred to me that unless I wanted to die with a small mountain of handspun yarn, I needed to find a way to use my handspun faster.

A sock in progress on Cindy’s CSM.

Circular Sock Machines had been on my radar for many years, but I was reluctant to buy an antique as they’re expensive and not always functional, so I had never purchased one. Then one day I was vending at a local sheep shearing show and a vendor a couple of booths down had a CSM that they were demonstrating – and not just any CSM but a new CSM! So I marched down with a small skein of handspun to see if it would knit on the machine. It did, and within a month we had our own CSM and I was happily using it to knit socks out of my vast supply of handspun.

The resulting Navajo Churro socks.

On one of the Ravelry CSM forums I encountered someone who was knitting socks on their CSM from handspun singles. This blew my mind, because I had always been taught to ply my yarn for knitting. I had always thought it might be possible to use singles for weaving but never for knitting – there would just be too much biasing of the knitted fabric. I figured I’d give it a try; even if it was a disaster I wouldn’t have invested more than a couple of hours to make the socks. The resulting socks were just fine. If I looked carefully I could see that the loops were not quite even but the resulting fabric wasn’t twisted or misshapen.

If you look at the photo to the right, you can see that the right side of the knit loops is narrower than the left side but the shape of the socks themselves is even and not twisted. These socks were made from handspun singles of 50% wool of unknown breeding and 50% alpaca that I processed from raw fiber. This photo was before washing.

To the left is a photo of three different pairs of socks I made using singles yarns on the CSM. In this photo you’ll see three socks all made from handspun singles and knit on the sock machine. These are all socks that I have been wearing and washing by hand for at least a few months. The striped sock is made from a BFL x Romney fleece and was dyed – there is almost no biasing of the stitches present in that sample. The blue sock was made from a Dorset x Southdown. It might be 50/50 or 25/75 as it came from a fleece from a local flock but I don’t know which sheep. There’s lots of biasing in this sock to the point where you can actually see the stitches twist on the sock. The third sock is undyed Romney with a bit of sparkle blended in. This is the oldest of the three socks and you can see some of the wear in the right hand corner. This pair is starting its third year. I spun and knitted these socks in very similar ways – the only real difference is the wool type used.

When I started using singles for socks it got me thinking about using singles for other knitting projects. At the same time, using the CSM got me thinking about using a flatbed knitting machine to speed up my knitting. I’ve been knitting singles on a flatbed for the past couple of years now, and I have found the biasing to be nearly imperceptible. Below are a couple of photos of items knit on the flatbed.

The black and white hat is made from a black Shetland fleece, and I think the white is probably some of the Dorset/Southdown cross fleeces I got in 2014. I am hard pressed to see any biasing in this knitting. The blue and white mittens are made from the 2015 Dorset/Southdown cross fleeces, and the biasing is more visible in this knitting. Perhaps the all over pattern in the black and white hat helps to disguise any biasing that may be present.

Do you knit with singles? Have you ever used them on a knitting machine? What have your experiences been?

Meet Cindy: Spinning is at the core of what I do but yarn is not a finished object so I’m always exploring new ways and tools to use my yarn. You can see more of the ways I use my yarn at our website, www.subitofarm.com.

Spinning for Something Big

February 3, 2016/6 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Projects, Spinning /by beth smith

So I’m in the midst of this big project that I brought on myself. I probably have at least another year of spinning and weaving before I finish the original plan and since I began I’ve thought of new questions and experiments I want to look into.

The thing is there are many smaller projects inside the big project but the smaller projects aren”t even that small. You’ve probably heard that I’m spinning for weaving. I’m weaving yardage for skirts. The original plan has 7 skirts.

There are 4 blog posts about this project on my website starting here http://bethsmithspinning.com/the-great-skirt-project/

The Schacht Blog followed Jillian and I throough a weaving project. http://schachtspindle.com/smith-and-moreno-take-on-weaving/ There are 8 total posts there.

Now here’s the thing; each skirt needs a minimum of 5000 yards of 2 ply yarn. That’s 10,000 yards of singles. For the yarns I’m spinning for this skirts each bobbin takes 9 to 10 hours to fill. And I’d actually like to spin the next one a bit finer.

Please don’t misunderstand. I make my share of hats and scarves and cowls. They take a little less planning. But I’ve always like to go big. Big bags, big baskets and big projects.

See the card on top of the wool and bobbins and yarn? That’s my control card. It has singles wrapped around it and a 2 ply and 3 ply sample attached. See how it’s all bent up? By the time of this photo I had spun about 3000 yards of 2 ply plus those 3 bobbins of singles. So the card had been through a lot of handling. That’s how I make the same yarn over a long time.

But that’s not really what I’m here to talk about. Many, many people have asked me how I can spin that much yarn that is the same. Same size, same color, same everything. There’s no real secret. But I’ll tell yoou what I know now that I’ve finished three skirts and I’m spinning for the 4th.

After the first bobbin, the yarn begins to be something I can spin without a lot of thought. I’m not switching back and forth between projects too much so it’s not difficult to get back in the groove from one day to the next. I try to spin every day for at least an hour and usually 2 to 3 hours when I can. Practice makes perfect.

Also, I watch a lot of TV. I DVR plenty of things and there are also several series on Netflix that I watch. Since the yarn gets to be something I don’t have to think about I can watch the TV and spin at the same time. Lou is often amazed at that.

I’m very goal oriented. I like to set goals, and set a date for accomplishing that goal. Sometimes I am a bit late – ask Jacey! But usually I get there.

And finally, I like to spin. Come on, you can’t fool me. You have a favorite yarn size that you spin the most. So here’s what i would recommend if you have the desire to spin for a larger project such as a sweater…or crocheted pants. Begin with your favorite yarn. Once you finish the project, I promise you’ll want to do it all over again.

Want help planning your project? Let me know. Need moral support? I’m a great cheerleader!

Concrete shots and free fiber!

February 1, 2016/6 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Give-a-way, Photography, Reviews /by Jacey Faulkner

It was slow coming to you international folks, I know, but I think just about everyone (minus a few South American subscribers) has their Winter issue of PLY. What did you think? I have to tell you the truth, this one took the most for me to love but it wasn’t the content or articles or samples, it was our photoshoot venue!

We learn as we go, as usual, and what we learned this time was that grand, wide-sweeping locations aren’t for us. They just don’t work as well as the itty bitty gritty shots full of textures and detail. We shot at the gorgeous Longview Mansion in Lee’s Summit, MO. And just like the website implies by it’s own lovely photography — your bride will look stunning as she glides down the grand staircase beneath the crystal chandelier; your fish and/or chicken plated dinners will look delectable as your guest consume them along side copious amounts of champagne from the champagne fountain that’s placed under the twinkling stars; and never will you and your spouse feel so majestic and magical as when you walk down the column-lined promenade punctuated with extravagantly shaped shrubbery. The location was all of that and more.

However, when you’re attempting to capture the tiny felted corner of a Wendsleydale swatch, you tend to shoot a little closer. Heck, you tend to shoot a lot closer. With our specific photo needs, it’s hard to capture the grand staircase, the champagne fountain tower, the topiary shrub that’s skillfully pruned to look like an actual tree, and the imposing stone columns. In fact, when we what you see is mostly the wood on the staircase, a stump of the shrub, and the concrete at the base of the columns.

Bernadette and I worried and woe-ed. We did. We actually woe-ed. It’s a thing.
Woe: a feeling of great sorrow or distress.
to woe: to slightly sway back and forth while consumed with a feeling of great sorrow or distress.
Woe-ed: to do all the stuff I just said but, you know, yesterday, last week, in the past.

We woe-ed. We woe-ed all the while we waited for the issue to go through layout, then to go to print, then to make it through the USPS-mystery-system. And then we got it, cracked it open, and we thought and then texted each other “oh, that’s a pretty good issue.” I mean, it’s no “ruins of a castle” but in the end, it looked cohesive and it told the story it was supposed to tell.

So what do you think of the issue? And I don’t mean the photography in particular (Bernadette always does such a good job with what I give her, right? and she did rock those concrete shots!) but the issue in general. I love hearing and reading what spinners think of each issue! Plus, it helps people on the fence decide if they should give us a chance. So, if you’d be so kind, head over here and leave a review for the Singles issue of PLY!

On feb 15th I’ll pick one reviewer at random (I totally promise it’ll be random) and send him or her some of the fiber we used in the issue. That’s right, you’ll get 4 ounces of the same fiber used to spin and knit the Ondulant sraft by Carol Feller. The fiber is dyed by the wonderful June Pryce Fiber Arts and it’s the same light to dark gradient you see above. You’ll also get 2 Crosspatch Creations fiber blended batts. This is the same fiber Sue Tye and Jill Sanders used in their amazing Saori Tunic. You want this fiber, right? It also just so happens that it all goes together beautifully! Go, leave a review on the issue page (not here) tell us what you think! It makes us smile, keeps us striving to get better, and helps us keep on keeping on!

Spinning “Lopi” Singles

January 21, 2016/7 Comments/in Frontpage Article, Projects, Spinning /by Guest Blogger

Guest blogger Beth Abbott is here to share with us her experiences spinning “Lopi” style singles yarns and using them in her knitting. Follow along with her exploration of the history of these yarns and her efforts to engineer a way to spin them for herself.

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When I started my study on Icelandic fleece, one of the first things I learned was that although traditionally the fleece had been separated into the two coats, thel (undercoat) and tog (long hairy outer coat), currently in Iceland, to my knowledge, there was/is no one spinning the coats separately. The two coats are now spun combined into several styles of singles yarns.

Lopi in History

In the late 1980’s there was “Lopi” under the brand name of Alafoss and a yarn that was mostly used in Iceland called “eingirni” meaning “singles”, a fine fairly firmly twisted yarn used in lace knitting. In early 2000 there were two more yarns added to the collection called Lett (light) Lopi (about half the diameter of the original Lopi) and a Heavy Lopi which was about twice the diameter of the regular Lopi. The company has undergone a reorganization and is now Istex.

A lopi plate showing the size of the strand – note the lack of twist.

The word lopi means roving in Icelandic and the plötulopi plates that the Icelanders use for knitting their popular patterned yoked sweaters are actually just the last roving step in the process of spinning the fine “eingirni.” Usually three strands of this roving are worked together and the result is a very bulky but very light airy sweater, very warm, because the air is trapped in the yarn. The Lopi yarn was developed for the export market because they thought it would be easier for non-Icelanders to knit.

a hand knit sweater from real lopi plates

An interesting point is that those yoked sweaters have only been a tradition in Iceland since the 1920s, when a creative spinner decided to try to knit on her knitting machine with the rovings as they came from the mill, without spinning them. When she found this was possible, it opened up a whole new area of knitting for the hand knitter as well as the machine knitter.

Re-creating a Lopi style yarn

The original Lopi yarn has about one twist per inch and a twist angle of 15º. The diameter is about 8 – 10 wraps per inch. As many of you will know, it is difficult to spin a yarn this soft and thick consistently, and with some air to prevent it from being dense and heavy. I found that preparation was key to success in spinning a Lopi style yarn.

handspun Lett lopi and regular lopi style yarns

To prepare an Icelandic fleece: wash, dry and then carefully tease out the locks, paying special attention to the butt ends which tend to clump together during the washing. It is worth noting that the “thel” or undercoat is extremely fine and short and felts very easily, so that care is also needed in the washing process – NO playing with your hands – while the fleece is in the hot soapy water. Carefully lift the fleece from the slightly cooled water to empty the tub and fill with rinse water. Try to keep the temperature of the rinse water close to that of the slightly cooled wash water. Again – no movement while it is rinsing. Carefully lift out of the rinse water and either roll in a towel and dry flat or put in the washer on JUST SPIN – no rinsing process – to take out the excess water. Then lay flat on towels to dry. Once the fleece is dry, the teasing is fairly easy, though time consuming. However, the time spent in this part of the process will save time and agony later.

After carefully teasing out the locks I put them through my drum carder. I usually use a Louet drum carder for Icelandic as it has longer and finer teeth and will take the loft of the combined coats more successfully than many other carders. Usually I put the fleece through at least twice, splitting the first batt into two lengthwise and then putting each through again. I hold the batt up to the light and see if there are neps and lumps that need further carding.

Once the fleece is well carded, I split the batt into narrow strips and predraft these into a sort of roving form. These I spin on a Louet wheel, because of its larger orifice and bobbins. Using the lowest bobbin/flyer ratio you have, work slowly to draft a bulky yarn, as consistent as possible. Any lumps often tend to drift to the outside of the yarn and can be picked off. Aim for one twist per inch. If need be, because you have only a high ratio wheel, you can put the yarn through the wheel again in the opposite direction to remove a little of the twist.

It is not easy for the hand spinner to create the roving style of Lopi but, by using my fingers to fan the fibres and letting the twist pick up the fibres, I am able to create a very light and airy, softly spun singles yarn. If I put in a little more twist, I can ply two strands together and get a Lopi diameter yarn that is airier than the original Lopi yarn, and one I like better.

closeup of hand knit real lopi sweater – purchased in iceland – long hairy look is due to the long tog fibres in the yarn

The next time someone tells you that you must cut the fibres to be the same length for blending, or that fibres should be compatible for blending, remind them that the Icelandic fleece, with its strong outer coat like a long Lincoln and its fine under coat, more like the finest, shortest Merino, are regularly blended and spun in Iceland.

Beth Abbott has been spinning since 1975 and earned her Master Spinner Certificate from Georgian College, Owen Sound Ontario, in 1990. Her in-depth study is now in print as a book. Beth teaches in the Spinning Certificate Course at Haliburton School of Art on a regular basis. For more information on the Icelandic Fleece, consult her book “The Icelandic Fleece – a Fibre for All Reasons”. It is available from Beth and Ron Abbott – contact elizabethandronabbott@gmail.com