You may remember my first foray into spinning. I ordered a kit and attempted spinning back in November. I gave it a good effort, but my first yarn was...unimpressive, to say the least. I kept trying, but I was having issues with consistency and trouble plying my singles. So, I signed up for an Intro to Drop Spindle class at my LYS.
It turns out that I was the only student that signed up for that time slot, which worked out really well. I already had the basics down from my previous few attempts, but I needed to work on my finess. The instructor was great and talked me through all of the issues I'd been having. By the time I left, my singles were much more consistent, which should help me have an easier time plying.
Plying isn't discussed at all in the intro class, but since I was the only student and I had the basics covered, she offered to show me the various plying methods. I learned all about Lazy-Kates, Navajo plying and Andean plying. Andean plying kind of gives me a headache. I still don't understand how the single doesn't get all tangled.
I've been spinning 15-20 minutes at a time, once a day. My teacher promised that within a few weeks I'll notice a difference and suddenly I won't have to think about it so much. I hope so. I really like the idea of spinning, and I can't wait to be able to spin the yarn for a specific project. But right now, there's way too much thinking and a whole lot of paying attention. That's not a bad thing, it's just not a comfort hobby the way knitting is. I'm sure it will get there and right now I'm enjoying the challenge.
My spindle is a Schacht Hi-Lo and the fiber I'm using in these pictures is BFL from Blarney Yarn.
