Amy King - Spin Control: Techniques for Spinning the Yarns You Want

Techniques for Spinning
the Yarn You Want

amy king

To all spinners of all levels who are making beautiful yarns.

How do I even begin to thank all the people who have helped me create this book?

My husband, Jay, and my two little girls deserve the most thanks of all. They always took it in stride when supper was pizza several nights in a row and even rejoiced when PB&Js was announced as the meal of the night. On top of all that, they listened to me go on and on about this fiber, that wheel, and even when I explained the ins and outs of yarn creation.

My parents deserve a special thank you for always being there to help and support mefor helping me build my business and for actually learning fiber terms (possibly because when you hear something so many times you cant help but remember some of it), all without complaining and just offering to help more.

Thank you to Anne Merrow, Abby Franquemont, and all of Interweave for believing in me, my book, and generally providing such great resources for us all. Where would we all be without Interweave, which publishes so many of the greatest resources for spinners to learn by?

I want to also thank my friends, who listened to me drone on with fiber information theyd heard so many times or engaged in the same woolen vs worsted discussion again and again or dealt with my excited childlike glee at every new publishing experience. Last but not least, I want to thank the Spunquistadores for cheering me on every step of the way.

As spinners, we start with a hunk of fiber and feed it into the orifice of our wheels or onto the shafts of our spindles, and it becomes yarn. With a little more control, technique, and practice, that yarn can be anything we want it to be. Spinners have the potential to make the most gorgeous yarns ever seen. You can make conscious decisions and choices that will give you the yarn that youve been dreaming ofa yarn that you designed and executed.

This book is all about how to be in control of your yarn. Yarns that just happenthe happy accidents, the yarns you spin to feel the fiber pass through your fingerswill always have their place, but if you want to make yarn that has been popping up in your dreams or that you just cant find anywhere else, this book will help you get there. While Im talking about taking more control in your spinning, there are a few techniques that for some of you will be positively freeing. You will get to explore and be wild with your yarns and break out of your limiting spinning habits.

I love everything about yarn, and I want to be able to make any kind I could get commercially as well as any kind that is completely unique to me. Thats not to say that a spinner wont ever buy commercial yarnsfar from it. It means that we can understand the strengths and weaknesses of millspun yarns and use those qualities to make yarns that complement or contrast with what we can buy.

If youre stuck in a rut, if you have trouble spinning the yarn you really want to knit or weave, if you need to create a handspun to work with a commercial yarn or replace a discontinued one, this book can teach you what you need to know.

There are so many variables when spinning your own yarn and so many yarns to make. With color design, fiber choice, fiber preparation, and spinning techniques, we may live to be one hundred and still not sample every possible yarn. (But I hope youll try!)

May you spin happy and find joy in all your projects.

At its most basic, yarn is fiber with twist. From these two factors, there are infinite ways to make yarn and infinite yarns that can result. Creating the specific yarn you want is a matter of matching the type of fiber with the method of spinning that will bring out the characteristics youre after. As you combine fiber and twist in every imaginable way, keeping records of what youve spun and keeping track of a few details can help you make the right yarn every time.

For many of us, fiber is the most seductive part of spinning... the softness of cashmere, sleek shine of silk, or earthy hues of natural cotton may inspire you to sit down at the wheel. Beyond their tactile appeal, specific fibers have evolved to make particular yarns very well.

Knowing the complete history of an animal or breed you are using, while interesting, isnt necessary for the process of making yarn. You can get by on knowing the basics, such as texture, staple length, and color. In addition to the innate properties of fiber, the way it is prepared affects the finished yarn. In this chapter you will learn about the variety of spinning fibers and how they can become the yarn you have in mind.

Texture determines how the yarn will feel, but it also affects how the fiber will behave while spinning. Coarse fibers tend to stick to one another, while finer fibers tend to be more slippery. This comes from the texture of the individual hairs.

If you cant touch the fiber you want, as when you buy over the Internet, it helps if the seller is using a grading system. Micron count is a good measure of how your fiber will behave if you cant touch it for yourself. The lower the micron count, the finer the fiber is. A higher micron count will let you know that its a little coarser and the fibers arent as slippery. The other method of wool grading most commonly used is the English or Spinning Count system, also called the Bradford count, measures the number of skeins that can be spun from a pound of fiber. The higher the number, the finer the wool.

Staple (or fiber length) is an important factor. If you have a fleece, its easy to pull out a lock and see how long the individual fibers are. To see the staple on prepared top, hold the fiber a few inches from the end, grasp the fiber at the tip, and pull. Youll feel the fibers give way to your tug, and you get a general idea of how long the staple is. You cant do this easily with carded fibers, as the carding generally homogenizes all the fibers, making it difficult to pull out a single staple of fiber. Staple is important because the shorter the fibers, the more twist is needed to hold them together in yarn. The longer the fibers are, the farther apart your hands need to be when drafting so you arent fighting the fibers to draft.