Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Spinning, I am thinking I can do it, thanks to all the assistance from Lady Knitter.

I spent the morning watching kids, Bubbie was sick and had to go to the doctor, sinus and ear infection.  I will have the kids again today, as well, Cubbie knocked one of her caps off and Mokie has to take her to the dentist in Zootown to have it repaired.  I am not sure I will make CAKLS but still could. Tomorrow I am off to spend the morning with Herbalist to borrow her spinning wheel and her commercial sewing machine, my poor little one can't take the stress anymore. Plus I get to visit her and baby goats.

I had a wonderful time with Lady Knitter yesterday.  She has been blessed with inheriting her mothers spinning wheel.  It is a lovely piece of art and a working tool, very nice.  I have been reading avidly for awhile to get a feel for spinning.  I know, I study everything to death before I do it and I have at least learned some of the terminology so Lady Knitter didn't have to start with a complete no nothing.  She showed me how to use her carding drum, I love it.  Twin had shown be hers in the past but I had not actually used it.  It was a lot easier than I thought it would be, but then Lady Knitter had cleaned the wool before we started, Twin has told me, as has Lady Knitter, that cleaning the wool can be the hardest part and I don't doubt it with some of the wool or goat fiber I have seen.  I am hoping to get a pattern for a picker and have Poppie make me one. 

We carded a batt and off we went to the next stage,  she set up her spinning wheel.  It is a single or double drive, I am not sure maybe it is both, ok, so I don't know all the terminology but I am just learning.  I was fascinated with the way the maiden bar and the wheel worked to make the tension and how the ratio of one to the other worked.  She began to spin and the wheel cord kept coming off it was a good illustration of how being off just a little makes so much of a difference in the ease of using it.  Her hubbie aligned it and off she went.  She did it wonderfully well, I tried but couldn't seem to make my fingers do what my mind wanted them to.  She asked me if I had ever spun with a drop spindle and as I hadn't we went back a step and she showed me how to do that.  I was all thumbs but the process and feel of using the spindle will give me a better bases and feel for using the spinning wheel.  I couldn't quite seem to make the roving feed right, I did get the feel for rolling the spindle down my leg, but as I didn't pull the roving thin enough I was making it too thick before it spun,  I have a lot of work to do to get it right but Lady Knitter showed me enough to get me bit by the bug.  I can't wait to try more.  I also think that we found that we, Lady Knitter and I, have even more in common than we even thought.  We think a great deal a like, and both go out and learn what we want to get us to the next art or craft project. 

She is making the cutest little newsboy hats,  she is using woven wool to make them.  I have a lot of woven wool from a generous blessing of wool Twin gave me, so I told her I would pick out some that would work well for her caps and bring her some.  We are both developing our brands, so to speak, in different but complimenting ways so had lots to share and talk about the time went by so quickly we will have to figure out how to spend more time together sharing ideas, techniques and coffee, of course coffee.  I am glad I went and have strengthened a friendship that has so much room to grow.  What a wonderful day, and time, and I learned the first steps of a fiber art that may eventually consume a great deal of my time..... tomorrow.

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