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Magnicmax
Chatty Knitter
100 Posts |
 Posted - 12/30/2005 : 8:22:29 PM
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OK all you experienced spinners - tell me what helped you the most when you first started spinning? You know, that "aha, I think I finally got it?" sort of thing?
Obviously it takes practice, but alot of the older newbies have been saying "It finally clicked when......."
Just curious
Donna in RI
http://donnaknitsandspins.tripod.com/ I'm going on a high fiber diet for New Years: romney, corriedale, merino.... |
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RoseByAny
Permanent Resident
USA
12598 Posts |
Posted - 12/30/2005 : 8:26:30 PM
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Well, what helped most was slowing down - slowing down the treadling so the wheel almost stops each time around. That gives your hands more time to do what they need to do.
But it finally clicked when I realized I didn't need to have a death grip on the fibers. Actually both hands are holding the fiber very gently - no real pressure at all. Once I got that, everything settled.
"Choose your friends by their character and your socks by their color. Choosing your socks by their character makes no sense, and choosing your friends by their color is unthinkable."
http://RoseByAny.BlogSpot.Com |
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RobA
Permanent Resident
2373 Posts |
Posted - 12/30/2005 : 9:42:28 PM
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The first click (I am a newbie too) was when I realized I could control how much fiber I was using, and also that I could actually control the twist -- untwist if I needed too, add more fiber to let the twist run itself out a bit.
Rob http://roberta.typepad.com/robknits/ |
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pixiepurls
Gabber Extraordinaire
373 Posts |
Posted - 12/30/2005 : 9:54:39 PM
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RobA that's a good comment, I still am a little rough with the joins!! Luckily I am not breaking to often now, but that's prolly bad cause if I did break more I would prolly practice joining more!!
http://www.pixiepurls.com |
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azblueskies
Permanent Resident
2294 Posts |
Posted - 12/30/2005 : 10:14:30 PM
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| Just start with shorter pieces of fiber to practice joins. I've only been doing this for a couple of days but it got better when I treadled slower and loosened my grip, too, Rose. |
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kitkatknit
Chatty Knitter
184 Posts |
Posted - 12/30/2005 : 10:30:40 PM
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In the beginning I (after restarted spinning after many years away) got better when I relaxed and did something else at the time. Spinning with the spinning group chatting away and when I wasn't concentrating on what I was doing the single came out so nice and even. That and using one of the easier wools - corriedale.
Now I'm better because I spin more often and because I pre-draft. Cheating in some people's mind, but my yarns are yummy.
http://spaces.msn.com/members/joyofspin/ (pre 12/21/05)
http://kitkatknit.blogspot.com (from 12/21/05 on)
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Ivynforestsmom
Gabber Extraordinaire
465 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2005 : 07:58:53 AM
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Pre-drafting was the biggest help for me, and someone's gentle suggestion that I didn't need to spin my singles soooo tight. 
Yvonne
"Wrinkles should merely indicate where the smiles have been."-Mark Twain
http://ybrach.photosite.com/ |
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RobA
Permanent Resident
2373 Posts |
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joym624
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
483 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2005 : 09:38:43 AM
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I'd agree with the pre-drafting and slowing down. I also seemed to find my own style. When I first "got it" I used to hold the fiber tightly and spin and then let out a bit inch by inch. It was slow but the finished product was spun nicely. I also noticed that different fibers required a different technique. I had started with some really coarse hand-me-down stuff from a friend. It was pretty ugly and just looked awful even when I got the spinning part right. I bought some beautiful fiber from Three Bags Full and it made a big difference. I wanted to do this right and I sat there until I got it.
At one point my son said "I hope you master this before you are an old lady because you're going to look terrible if you're an old lady cussing like that."
Good luck! |
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KCShaw
Gabber Extraordinaire
USA
393 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2005 : 11:20:08 AM
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| Im a new spinner and I was getting hung up at not letting my hands be far enough apart to draft well. The over-spinning was a first hour kind of problem for me, When i started making sure everything was pre-drafted nicely, and making sure I wasnt tugging or ripping, it all went sooo smooth and seemed easy. |
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Lissa
Permanent Resident
USA
4942 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2005 : 12:24:00 PM
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For me, it was realizing that I could control when the yarn went onto the bobbin: that I could hold out the yarn as long as I wanted without having the wheel take it from me. When you can both pull yarn off the bobbin and let it move smoothly onto the bobbin, and hold it out and steady without feeling like your arm is being pulled off, that's the right brake setting. I practiced sorta see-sawing the yarn in and out, in and out, while treadling to finally get a "grip" on this.
Lissa
During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a
revolutionary act. -- George Orwell
Oh, and I now have a blog:http://knittnlissa.typepad.com/knittnlissa/ |
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KnitRedSox
Chatty Knitter
170 Posts |
Posted - 12/31/2005 : 5:27:16 PM
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| The fact that I became pretty decent at spindle spinning before using the wheel really helped me. Once I got a feel for the wheel, I was spinning better and more comfortably. My "got it" moment at the wheel came when I used a different fiber preparation. I was using commerical roving, but then used hand carded rolags and spun much better. Then I went back to the more slippery commercial stuff and it came more easily. |
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