Thursday, May 31, 2007

Howdy!

I'm a little late to the party, but very glad to be here at last!

I'm a relatively new spinner. I had my first lesson on a drop spindle about a year and a half ago, and quickly progressed to a wheel. But after a few months of getting to know my Lendrum, I still wasn't very adept at using it, and I lost interest in spinning for quite a while. I'd give one of my spindles a twirl now and then, but stuck mostly to my knitting--until very recently, that is.

I don't know what happened--maybe seeing so many beautiful skeins cropping up around the blogosphere?--but my desire to spin came surging back about a month ago, and now my day isn't complete if I don't get to spend at least a few minutes with a spindle or at the wheel. Here's a peek at what I've been working on lately:

Three bobbins
Click for big!

On the right are two bobbins of Spunky Eclectic nearly-solid, wool-blend roving in "Poppies". These have been waiting a while for me to ply them (I prefer to ply when I am alone in the house, and can take my time about it, without fear of distractions or interruptions. I wonder, does anyone else feel the same way?) On the left is a bit of Merino/Shetland cross that I purchased at last year's Garden State Sheep Breeders festival. I bought lots of little samples of interesting wools at that festival (two ounces here, four ounces there, etc) and am in the process of spinning them all up for practice. This particular bobbin represents some of my best, most even spinning to date. I'm really very proud of it! Unfortunately, though, the second bobbin isn't turning out nearly as well. I've been letting it sit for the last few days, hoping that taking a little break would do it some good.

Thanks for letting me play! You can read about the rest of my knitting and spinning adventures here if you are so inclined.

4 comments:

Fiberjoy said...

The poppies yarn catches my imagination.

As with most of life spinning seems to also have its cycles. Fitting it in when there are so many other demands can be tricky.

judy said...

Hi Beth, so happy to see you here!

Margaret said...

That Poppies color is great! And I hear you on not being interrupted while plying!

I did the same thing at the Spring Fiber Festival near here and bought a nice assortment of little bits of different types of wool just to see what they are each like. I got cards from each of the vendors so I can order more of what I like best.

Glad you are back to spinning, sometimes you just have to let the creative urge take you where it takes you, and when it wants to go.

cyndy said...

Your bobbins look beautiful! The color is so much like the poppies!