I’ve been really busy lately, and I’ve learned that my old method of posting just isn’t going to work. Instead of taking photos and posting when I’m completed or sufficiently excited about a new project, I’m going to have to batch process photos on the weekend, and slowly post about each throughout the week.

The main reason I’ve been so busy is that I got a new job that requires me to commute an hour each way every day. I know it sounds crazy, but when you learn where I’m working you might not think me so crazy. About a month ago I got a job at Webs yarn store in customer service! It’s totally bizarre being among fiber lovers like me, and discussions about spinning wheels, knitting projects, weaving with knitting yarn, etc, etc are not uncommon at all. Since I get home at 6pm every night, it’s hard to get the motivation in the little time I have to post. I’ve been opting for a little Battlestar Galactica instead (almost done season 3!).

What does this have to do with “Ply-as-you-go”? It doesn’t, so let’s move on to what I actually wanted to write about today.

I saw a reference to a really cool technique on the Ravelry Spindlers group today. I’d seen it mentioned before, but this time I actually took the time to check it out. Basically, with this technique you spin your yarn then navajo ply the length you’ve spun before winding it onto your spindle. I find it really fun, and it makes plying not nearly so tedious as it normally is for me. I get to do a little drafting in between the plying, which is my favorite part of the spinning.

You may want to read the explanation, and see a video tutorial of it here before reading the rest of this post. It will make a lot more sense, and I don’t think it’s necessary for me to explain it when someone else already has.

I have some green and red merino roving in my stash, and had a fun idea today of spinning some sock yarn out of it. Now I really want to stay away from merino sock yarn, but I think part of the problem is that commercial sock yarn in merino tends to be too softly spun. I’m going to attempt my own 3-ply fine fingering weight high twist sock yarn, and thought this new technique would be perfect for it. It took me some time to feel comfortable with it, and I learned a few things in the process.

1. Practice before you give up. It seems fiddly, and your fingers may feel in the way at first. Give yourself some time to get accustomed to what you’re supposed to be doing, and you’ll have it smooth and efficient in no time.
2. Don’t try to get the loop to be snug on the shaft. At first I was sliding the loop over, then winding the yarn so it was taught against the shaft. It’s much easier to take off and deal with if you just loop it over and leave it loose.
3. Use a spindle with a notch if you can. Since you’ll end up with 3 strands over the whorl at any given time, it just makes things much less fiddly.
4. Don’t let the loop go when it’s off the shaft, because it will twist in the plying direction and weaken the yarn at that spot when you make your next loop. If it does let go and twist, untwist it as much as you can until it’s in its original state.

I don’t have any pictures yet because there’s not enough light, and the yarn I’m spinning is pretty fine. At some point I do want to show the coolness that is a cop full of plied yarn and just spun singles coming off the spindle hook. When I’m done this yarn, all I have to do is wind it off the spindle, soak it, and let it dry. One thing I haven’t figured out is how to splice on new yarn so I don’t end up with a ton of little skeins of spindle spun.

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 21st, 2008 at 4:17 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.