PLY article index

Knitting pattern for a muff with an angora/wool lining and wool stuffing so it is warm and mostly windproof. It has a pocket and a wrist loop so it can dangle when you need to use your hands.

This article explains what a cabled yarn is and how to spin it. Photos show up close images of the finished yarn so you can see the ply structure clearly.

This article troubleshoots some common plying problems and how to fix them. The problems include the following: I want to make a balanced yarn but don’t know how much twist to put in my yarn when plying. As I ply, my yarn doesn’t come off my bobbins smoothly. My singles yarn is all twisty and hard to ply. One of my singles breaks while I’m plying. My freshly plied yarn is twisting back on itself when I take it off the wheel. Even after finishing my yarn, my skein is twisting back on itself several times. I didn’t put enough plying twist in my yarn. My plying is uneven; some parts have too much twist and some have too little. My plies don’t twist together; one strand wraps around the other. My plies have little pigtails that stick out of the yarn

Plying is an important step in yarn creation, PLY readers help you get just the right amount.

Stephenie Gaustad lets us in on the secrets of yarn handling tools and how they can help us! She shows (and shows how to use) a counting clock reel, a reel, bobbin winder, and a squirrel swift.

Jacey asks Stephenie all of her spindle questions and Steph answers! They discuss top, bottom, and mid-whorl spindles as well as supported and kick spindles.

What’s twist angle and why do you care? Michelle Boyd joins us to answer those questions and more.

Ever find it hard to get a good twist angle measurement? Jacey’s here to demystify the process, talk about how multiple plies affect twist angle, and how the S- and Z-twist angles relate to each other. Taking this important measurement needn’t be hard; let this segment make it easy!

Grist is just about the best measurement you can take of a yarn. It tells you how the length and weight of a yarn relate to each other as yards per pound (YPP). If you’re only going to take one measurement, grist might be the best one to choose. Jillian Moreno explains why it’s so awesome, how to take it, and what it means.

Technical measuring not for you? Not interested in taking the TPI, WPI, twist angle, and grist? Jillian Moreno talks measuring for the intuitive spinner in this segment. A guide to gathering the bare basics and going from there!

Jillian spins a yarn, walking and talking you through her process, while spinning and measuring intuitively.

Jacey tell you about the episode, the guild, and what’s to come.

Jacey explains the PSG website, how it’s set up, and how to navigate the episodes and seasons.

Roy Clemes explains small carding tools, the differences, and how and when to use each including flickers, hand cards, lock pops, cotton cards, and wool cards.

Michelle Boyd tells you where and when to oil your wheel as well as tying the perfect leader.

Need help with the basics? Jacey gives a thorough overview on spinning yarn. It’s not worsted or woolen, it’s just spinning. She uses a bobbin-led wheel and then a flyer-led wheel.

This article explores the fibers and yarns used for the binder and core for creating a boucle yarn. It mixes and matches four materials: silk thread, polyester thread, viscose thread, and handspun singles from the same alpaca/bamboo blend as the loops.

This article explains how to create a boucle-like yarn on a spindle. It describes how to spin the singles and how to ply and overply the yarn, including recommended plying tricks for spindles.

This article starts off this special topic issue by describing what a boucle yarn is and the basic way to create one. It talks about wheel setup, the core yarn, the wrap/effect yarn, how to create the circles/loops, spinning the binder yarn, and how to bind your boucle. Lots of pictures are included to illustrate the process.

A knitting pattern for a cowl using boucle yarn that starts out very ordinary but quickly morphs into a funky shape that shows off a wide eyelet pattern with lots of drape down the front of the neck.

This article explores using various breeds of wool for boucle and how effective each one is: fine wool (Merino), medium wool (Corriedale), longwool (Cotswold), Down wool (Tunis), and primitive wool (Icelandic).

This article starts from the base of knowing that mohair top spun worsted makes the most sublime loops and explores the following questions: What if we switch fiber preparations and instead of combed, it’s carded? What happens if it’s not mohair but a wool not known for its looping properties? Will it give interesting bumps and squiggles along with loops? Will it still look like a boucle or is fiber preparation just as important with this yarn structure too?

This article looks at the history and development of the yarn we refer to as boucle. It covers some of the history of spinning machines (such as the spinning jenny and the water frame) and discusses how telephone wire and horsehair factor into yarn structures related to boucle.

This article describes spinning the yarn for the hood pattern also included in this issue. It creates a boucle yarn using a two-step process instead of the traditional 3-step process.