PLY article index

This article goes through the considerations spinners should make when deciding whether to use a long draw draft to spin their singles. It focuses on staple length and fiber prep.

This photo essay explains each of the long draw drafts with photos showing how to do each one: point of contact/supported, double draft/traditional/English, from the fold, short long draw/short with twist between hands, unassisted

This article looks at the different ways of drafting for long draw, comparing the fuzz factor (fluffiness) of these different drafts on the same fiber and prep: point of contact, double draft, unsupported long draw, and from the fold.

This article provides tips to controling the diameter of your singles while spinning on a wheel. It covers setting up and adjusting your wheel, holding the fiber, drawback speed, and double drafting.

This article explains how to spin the yarn for the cowl project included in this issue, using a spindle. The fiber is a Border Leicester fleece, and the author experiments with the prep to determine the best option for the project yarn: flicked, combed, dizzed from a hand card, rolag, cloud, and drum fauxlag. Part of the test to determine the final yarn is to check for wear, so the sample yarns were made into swatches and then abraded to see which one held up the best. The article ends with the details for the project yarn.

Pattern for a warm cowl that features large squishy cables formed with traveling ribs to evoke the twined roots of trees and a walk in the woods on a quiet snowy afternoon.

This article explores how to spin long draw using supported spindles, from the spinning technique to the different spindle designs: whorl-less or shaped stick, disc-shaped whorls, and cup-shaped whorls.

Photos showing how to make a puni and how to make a rolag using hand cards

This article explains how to use a charkha to spin long draw. It covers charkha styles, fiber selection, charkha setup, and methods of spinning, including step by step photos. The article also includes a section on spinning on a great wheel.

PLY readers share their tips on making the jump from worsted to woolen spinning

This article experiments with spinning different fibers (Dorset, Finn, and Merino) using both a worsted and a woolen draft and compares the results for loftiness, which is measured by grist.

This article experiments with woolen yarn in knit swatches using lace and cable stitch patterns. It compares BFL, Corriedale, and Rambouillet against a worsted-spun control swatch.

This article start with exploring how to knit fine diameter yarns using long draw drafting, including wheel setup, fiber prep, and drafting style. It ends with an expalantion of how to spin the yarn for the shawl project included in this issue.

This article describes an experiment testing the warmth of woolen yarns compared to their worsted counterparts using six different fibers: alpaca, Cheviot, Gotland, Icelandic, Merino, and Shaniko Merino blended with silk. The author knit small pockets and tested the warmth by tucking a hot potato inside each pocket and checking the temperature change over the course of two hours.

Pattern for a lace shawl using luxury fiber, featuring snowflakes, pine trees, and winding rivers.

Five spinners experimented by spinning 2 minutes using a long draw and 2 minutes using a short draw and measuring the length of each yarn at the end of that time to determine which method produces more yarn in the same amount of time.

This article explores finishing options for woolen yarns by spinning yarn from Babydoll Southdown and a blend of Targhee and BFL and finishing each yarn in a variety of ways: soaking, thwacking, snapping, helicoptering, shocking, and agitating.

This article tests the strength of woolen-spun yarns to see if they truly are weaker than their worsted-spun counterparts. Using Coopworth and Merino, the author spun samples of yarns spun using worsted and woolen preps and methods and tested the strength of each yarn by seeing how much weight it could hold before it snapped.

This article looks at the possibility of knitting socks using a woolen-spun yarn by spinning both worsted and woolen yarns, knitting a pair of socks from each, and testing the wear on the socks.

This article compares the durability of woolen and worsted yarns by using Coopworth and Merino and abrading swatches using sandpaper, counting the strokes it takes before the swatch shows wear and when a hole forms.

This article explores different types of spindles that can be used for long draw and how to control the diameter of the yarn you are spinning.

This article provides tips for spinning big and lofty yarns on your wheel using long draw drafting. It covers wheel setup, fiber selection, fiber prep, brake band adjustments, treadling speed, drafting, and finishing.

This article explains how to spin the yarn for the hat project included in this issue, starting by creating rolags on a blending board and explaining how to spin the yarns as well as management the colors in the fiber.

This article explores the differences between plying worsted and woolen yarns and provides tips and considerations for plying woolen yarns and keeping the characteristics of the yarn.