PLY article index

This article explains the spinning decisions made for the yarn for the leg warmers pattern included in this issue. One yarn is a chain-plied gradient and the other is a 2-ply semisolid.

Pattern for a groovy pair of modern day flares for crochet enthusiasts: crocheted flares with an added circular flounced bottom edge. This fashionable pair of leg warmers offers multiple styling options for the wearer. They can be worn above the knee or cuffed below the knee or cinched and scrunched all the way down to just below the calf. The adjustable garter can be placed anywhere to cinch up extra width-wise fabric, and for the length, they have nearly invisible additional side cinches to scrunch them up to your heart’s desired length. You can also rock them scrunched and folded above the elbow as arm warmers, featuring the ginormous circular flounces as a dramatic focal point at the cuffs with garters and ties. The choice is yours.

This article gives you seven different ways to spin a braid without adding or subtracting colors, just by moving the colors from the braid around. Each of these ways keeps the color but makes the knitted outcome look different. The process for each option is discussed and knitted samples show the resulting looks.

We asked our readers where they start when designing their own colorway and share their responses in this collection of tips.

Pattern for socks knitted using two yarns spun from the same fiber but in different ways (traditional 3-ply and chain ply). It uses a mosaic stitch design and afterthought heels.

Inspired by the “3-Ply 2 Ways” article from the Sock issue of PLY, the author uses that technique to spin two yarns for a sock project (pattern included in this issue). One yarn is a traditional 3-ply while the other is a chain ply, both made from the same braid of fiber.

Adding materials to make your fiber sparkle on a blending board is not difficult, but it does require choosing the right type of material to achieve the desired effect. The material you select can significantly impact the outcome of your fiber.

This article explains how to build a color palette starting with your main hue and then using color harmonies (analogous and complementary) to blend a range of colors.

When William Henry Perkin accidentally discovered mauveine in 1856, he had no idea he was about to change the world of color forever. This serendipitous moment in history not only gave us the first synthetic dye but also paved the way for the vibrant hues we enjoy today. This article explores that discovery of this color and how the author re-created it using modern synthetic dyes.

Knitting pattern for fingerless mitts inspired by spring blooms in the morning sun after a long dreary winter. It uses stranded knitting (an accompanying article provides suggestions for choosing your colors) and can use woolen or worsted spun yarn (or both, one for each mitt, as this sample project does).

This article discusses some of the earliest natural dyes used in various traditions and the mordants (sometimes toxic) that were used. It looks more deeply into three natural dyes (which are then used to dye the fiber for the wall hanging project described in this issue): fustic yellow, madder, and indigo.

This article compares the results of dyeing the fiber vs dyeing the yarn with the same method and uses knit swatches for comparison. It shows the results of dyeing a solid color, a tonal color, and a variegated color.

This article looks at how fiber content impacts the way dyes turn out. It explores the following questions: If the same set of dyes is used on two different fibers, will they look the same? What about naturally colored fiber? Why does some fiber look shiny and lustrous while others appear matte?

The topic of how sheep’s fleeces end up as the colors that they do is enormous, and our understanding of it is still unfolding. This article explores some of the genetic factors involves in color for fleece and looks at specific examples of how that plays out in the following breeds: Romeldale, Shetland, Karakul, and Finn.

This article describes the process Jacey went through while weaving the wall hanging for the Color season of the PLY Spinners Guild. Ultimately she decided to use natural sheep colors, natural dyes, and synthetic dyes representing the first colors humans created. She also discusses the different spinning methods she chose to highlight with the yarn and the decisions in the weaving pattern and final project.

This article looks at creating a bouclé yarn and how dyeing the fiber vs the yarn vs the mid-process yarn affects the final color results.

This article discussed how to spin two sets of yarns, one woolen and one worsted, that are identical in every other way and so could be used for the same project with no changes. This sounds easier than it is. It’s not just a matter of prepping the fiber differently and spinning with a different draft. If you want the yarns to work up the same, using the same pattern, needles, and gauge, it takes a little thinking before spinning.

This article provides tips and suggestions for building a palette of colors for a fair isle or stranded knitting project by explaining the roles played by different colors in a palette.

If you have some fiber where you aren’t excited about the color but don’t want to do any dyeing, this article gives you suggestions for blending that color with naturals to create a shift in the color to better suit you or your planned project.

One perfectly reasonable approach to breeding for colored wool is to start with colored sheep and breed them together, selecting the colored offspring and breeding them to colored sheep. It’s a little like pulling the lever on a slot machine – with the genetics safely hidden inside a box, you just get what you get. This approach will get you some colored sheep – maybe a lot, maybe a few – and you might get a bunch of white sheep that are “hiding” colors from you. Your journey will include surprises and some frustrations or you may hit the ball out of the park. This article discusses how genetics works for color and how you can figure out which sheep to breed for specific color results.

This article looks at blending colors to create a color wheel and how a woolen vs worsted prep and spinning method would affect the colors.

Readers share their sest self-care tips for a pain-free experience for all aspects of spinning (e.g., washing fleece, standing at the drum carder, working with combs, or spinning for hours).

Author uses research on the growing sustainable fashion industry to suggest examples for considerations to make spinning more sustainable.

The author thought she was allergic to wool and could never use it, but discovered that in some instances, she can use wool. In sharing her own experiences and experiments with finding wool she can work with, she offers tips and advice to other who might be facing a similar sensitivity to wool.