Fibers Questions, answered with pictures

Nina asked me questions, just like I had hoped someone would. :)

What are your final thoughts about your spinning lessons? Did you enjoy them, learn lots or think they were only somewhat helpful?

I definitely enjoyed them and I learned lots! Donna, from Wellington Fibres is a great teacher.

Did they convert you to the dark side? bwahahahaha.......

Wheeling, as opposed to Spindling? *g*

Well..... yes. I'm converted.

I won't give up the drop spindle, I do enjoy it. And I do need to know how to use to demonstrate it at the demos that DARC does for the public, but the spinning wheel beats the drop spindle hands down in two very important ways.

Production value. And it doesn't hurt my shoulder.

What was the best thing your learned from the lessons and what was the thing that you think was the least useful?

I learned what all the modern lingo means. I learned the differences in the type of yarn that different techniques produce. And I can apply that knowledge to the Viking Era that I study.

I learned how the darned machine works. I've had it on loan from Anti-V for more than a year and hadn't made any progress in teaching myself just because I couldn't make the darned thing work. One or two little tension adjustments and understanding their connections - it was like a light breaking through the clouds!

The least useful? Two things, actually.

1. Chemical dyeing. Don't get me wrong - it was fun to play with colours, but I'm just never going to dye that way for myself. I enjoy natural dyeing far too much, and the chemical dyeing just isn't applicable to my historical interests.

2. 'Modern' fibers like angora and mohair. They just don't have a precedence in the Viking Era.

I would like to take further courses (maybe just one day workshops) in each of flax and silk spinning. Both have an application to the Viking Era.

Did you spin small samples or large enough to use for actual projects?

Small samples of most of the projects for the course, but large enough to do something with was learning to 3-ply. I used my own Icelandic top for that and spun a whole bag - approximately 3 skeins worth. Now I just need to figure out what to do with them. The general consensus so far is socks.



What project are you working on now?

I bought some mystery roving from Donna on the day of my last class. I'm currently working my way through that. It's a mixture of modern fibers and funky colours. You know, the stuff I said above that I wouldn't have much use for knowing how to spin. ;)