teaching an old dog...

a few years ago i became enamored with supported spinning.    i've been spinning on drop spindles and spinning wheels for what seems like most of my life, lol...but supported spindles were an alien concept until i bought my 'learn to spin cotton' kit earlier this year.     the little brass tahkli spindle that came with it made spinning cotton (something with which i had struggled in the past) nearly effortless.   who knew that having the spindle resting on a surface (or in a small bowl) was the missing ingredient?   this new found love spurred me to look more deeply into other supported spindles.   as i said,  i have been enamored with them for a while...   i had watched videos of russian women spinning very fine cashmere for equally fine shawls using russian style supported spindles.    this spoke to me on a cellular level.   but i didn't know anyone in real life who did supported spindling, so my pursuits never went past the watching and drooling stage.

the tahkli spurred me on, however.   i joined several supported spindle groups on ravelry,  and began to stalk the shops of some of the favored spindle makers.    i haven't had any expendable income, so all i've been able to do is look,   but there are several supported spindles on my bucket list, lol.  

recently, my friend, amanda, decided that she wanted to learn wood turning.   she aspires to learn the skills necessary for restoring antique spinning wheels.    i suggested that 'we' could also make spindles.  :-)   
she has been learning the basics,  and a few nights ago i showed her pictures of phang spindles (a himalayan style supported spindle) which are very simple in design,  and seemed like making some would be good turning practice and a great way to suck her in to making supported spindles.   hahahahaha.    she saw right through me, of course.   but friday afternoon she dropped by with her first ever spindle,  a phang made from cedarwood.   it smells divine.  and is deceptively light in weight.    she handed it to me with instructions to test drive it.   :-D   woo hoo!!!

ok.  so spinning on a phang is a whole new learning curve for me. i can almost smell the new neuron pathways being burned into my brain.   my first thought was that i wanted more heft...that a heavier/more dense wood would be better.   i searched through some forum posts and found that many people PREFER a lighter phang.  hmmm.   so maybe i just need to keep experimenting until i find the right body mechanics/flicking style/drafting style for this type of spindle.....    

i have been practicing (and struggling) and today i seem to be finally getting the hang of it.    i'm using a 'park and draft' technique,  which is sort of like supported spindling with training wheels,  but it's making good yarn, so i'm not going to beat myself up about it.  :-P

i will keep practicing and, hopefully, will collect some more supported spindles in a variety of styles.
and thank you, amanda, for humoring me.  :-) 

Cotton....

I've been spinning yarn since the late 1970's. i've used bottom whorl drop spindles, top whorl drop spindles, and a variety of spinning wheels. i can spin just about any type of fiber..... but cotton has always been my fiber nemesis. it has a short staple (each individual fiber is short) and requires a lot of twist to hold the yarn together. i had tried drop spindles and spinning wheels, but just couldn't get the hang of it---couldn't produce a yarn with which i was happy.

A year or so ago i saw a cotton fiber sampler which included a tahkli down at darn yarn needles and thread. a tahkli is a small supported spindle, often made from metal, that is traditionally used for cotton spinning in india. i read that it was invented by ghandi in the 1930's but haven't verified that bit of info. i kept wondering whether this specific little spindle would make the difference for me.

I had been thinking about this sampler ever since, so thursday afternoon i bought one. i was amazed that i was immediately able to spin a fine, fairly consistent yarn. i had never had any interest in supported spindles before, but now i find myself searching youtube and drooling over russian supported spindles on etsy lol. this has the potential to turn into my next fiber obsession.....

So far i have spun less than an ounce of the cotton but i already have visions of weaving dish towels from naturally colored cotton.... i'm partial to the green. but the shades of brown are also nice. I also have a few seeds for green cotton that were shared by a nice person on ravelry. i'll plant those in the next month or so and see whether, by planting in containers indoors, i can create a long enough season for the bolls to mature. i wonder how long it will take me to spin enough yarn for a couple of dish towels using my little tahkli..... Maybe i should save up for a box charka...

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