So this is Goblin Eyes from Spunky Eclectic, October’s offering from the Spunky Club. Here’s how it looked as roving–
I think it’s quite lovely. Which is why I really didn’t want to screw it up, and why I’m especially pleased I learned something important before I plied it.
Here’s what I learned:
If one of your plies is underspun compared to the other, it will wrap around the relatively overspun ply. To counter this, keep more tension on the less spun ply, letting the overspun ply wrap around the underspun.
Got that? Now, see, because I’m a n00b, my singles are overspun in places and underspun in places, but I was able to keep adjusting my tension between the plies to compensate for this. And it worked!
This skein is SO MUCH BETTER than the last one; I’m not even kidding.
Where did I learn this little tidbit, you ask? Funny story.
I’ve been using the book Teach Yourself Visually Handspinning, which has been a huge help. But apparently I misread the following from page 105:
Sometimes the plied yarn can look like it has a curled edge, and even small loops. . .(t)his happens when the tension on the singles is not even; if one single is looser, then it wraps around the tighter one. To fix this problem, determine which single is loose and adjust your fingers to put a little more pressure on it.
I read that to mean if one single is less tightly spun, but upon re-reading I notice it says “if one single is looser,” and seems to be referring to tension, not spin. So maybe I goofed up—but it seems to have worked anyway.
I think this skein is truly beautiful. I may be biased, of course, like a new mama, but I think my baby is so pretty!
I’m so pleased with myself. Can’t.stop.grinning.
Comments 11
Great job! Even a nonspinner like me can see that it’s much more even than the last one.
Posted 24 Feb 2008 at 7:01 pm ¶I knew you’d get better with practice. Just wait until you’ve spun for a few months. However, I still don’t have the hang of it…sigh. I need to read up on it, too.
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 5:53 am ¶It looks terrrific - and Margene is right. It’s really just a matter of practice.
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 5:58 am ¶The color is great and it looks fab!!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 6:45 am ¶yay! that’s what I thought was going on, but I may not have articulated it well in my comment. In the meantime, I managed to finish 500 yards of seriously over-plied yarn last night. Once it’s dry, I guess I’ll just have to take some of the spin out with the wheel. Fun, fun!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 7:26 am ¶No bias at all - it is beautiful! Nice job!!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 7:30 am ¶That is some beautiful stuff! Good job!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 7:45 am ¶Oh, it is lovely!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 7:45 am ¶Wow, it really does look terrific, and you are learning fast! Hang in there, soon the hardest part will be finding time to spin all the yarns you want to be making… now’s the time to check out the Feather and Fan comfort shawl pattern I found in a friend’s Ravelry queue; you can create a stripey blend of your own handspuns and gradually replace your beloved but lost shawl. Way to go, grrlfriend!! You will be fondling fleece with the rest of us at Estes come June.
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 11:51 am ¶Excellent! I would say you do indeed have the hang of it!
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 12:47 pm ¶She’s a beaut and I’m impressed.
Posted 25 Feb 2008 at 1:40 pm ¶Trackbacks & Pingbacks 1
[...] was a lovely mix of pinks and corals with brown and blue. It wasn’t as easy to spin as the Goblin Eyes (which was Romney) so it’s a little more uneven but it’s well balanced and I really [...]
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