| This description is based on the assumption | | | | knitted (flat or circular), crocheted, or by |
| that wool is the fibre being used. For | | | | other means turned into fabric or a garment. |
| hand-spinning most of the fibre spun is wool, | | | | |
| or a blend containing wool. Most animal hair | | | | Removing the yarn from the wheel When |
| fibre is handled with only a few | | | | spinning on a spinning wheel, the yarn |
| modifications to the below description. Plant | | | | collects on a bobbin. Once the bobbin is |
| fibres are prepared for spinning very | | | | full, the spinner can either put on a new |
| differently. | | | | bobbin, form a skein, or ball the yarn. |
| | | | |
| Sheep Shearing The first step in processing | | | | If the yarn is to be plyed then the most |
| the wool is to collect it. Shearing can be | | | | common action is to put a new bobbin on the |
| done with use of hand-shears (tools that look | | | | wheel, and leave the yarn onto the bobbin so |
| like big scissors) or powered shears. | | | | that the spinner can ply directly from the |
| | | | bobbin. This makes for greatest ease when |
| Professional sheep shearers can shear a sheep | | | | plying, but cannot be done if the spinner |
| in under a minute, without nicking the sheep | | | | does not have enough bobbins. When plying |
| once. At many state fairs there are sheep | | | | from bobbins a device called a lazy kate is |
| shearing contests, to see who can shear a | | | | often used to hold the bobbins. |
| sheep the fastest. These contests mainly | | | | |
| include older men, with only a few | | | | If the spinner has the end result (i.e. |
| youngsters. | | | | |
| | | | the yarn is already plied or is not going to |
| When the fleece comes off the sheep it should | | | | be), then most likely they will make a skein |
| be in one piece. Also, it is best if the | | | | out of the yarn. A skein is a coil of yarn |
| shearer cuts close enough to the skin that a | | | | twisted into a loose knot. |
| second cutting is not required. Second cuts | | | | |
| make for very short fibres, which are more | | | | It is either formed on a niddy-noddy or some |
| difficult and not as much fun to deal with | | | | other type of skein winder. |
| and spin. | | | | |
| | | | Traditionally niddy-noddys looked like an |
| Primitive breeds, like the Scottish Soay | | | | uppercase "i", with the bottom half rotated |
| sheep have to be plucked, not sheared, as the | | | | 90 degrees [3]. Now days spinning wheel |
| kemps are still longer than the soft fleece, | | | | manufactures also make niddy-noddys that |
| (a process called rooing) or the fleece must | | | | attach onto the spinning wheel [4] for faster |
| be collected from the field after it falls | | | | skein winding. |
| out. | | | | |
| | | | Rarely is the yarn balled directly after |
| Skirting Skirting basically means disposing | | | | spinning. Normally hand-spun yarn will be |
| of all wool that is unsuitable for spinning | | | | stored in skein form, and transferred to a |
| (too short, has sheep dung in it, etc.) One | | | | ball only if needed. (For example, knitting |
| often could spin this wool, with much extra | | | | from a skein, unless done very carefully, |
| effort, if one wanted. (The dung can be | | | | ends up with the yarn in knots, so it is best |
| washed out, the short fibres - though with | | | | to ball it first.) Ply Plying yarn is when |
| greater difficulty than longer ones - can be | | | | one takes a strand of spun yarn (one strand |
| spun, and other objections can be similarly | | | | is often called a single) and spins it |
| dealt with.) Thus this step can be skipped if | | | | together with other strands in order to make |
| necessary. It can also be done at the same | | | | a thicker yarn. There are several ways, the |
| time as carding. | | | | most common being regular and Navajo. |
| | | | |
| Cleaning Before carding the wool, it must be | | | | Regular plying consists of taking two or more |
| cleaned. At this point the fleece is full of | | | | singles and twisting them together, the |
| lanolin and often contains vegetable matter, | | | | opposite way. This can be done on either a |
| such as sticks, twigs, burs and straw. One | | | | spinning wheel or a spindle. The most |
| way to prevent the vegetable matter from | | | | important thing to remember though is that |
| getting into the fleece is to have the sheep | | | | the twist must go the opposite direction. If |
| wear a coat all year round. | | | | in spinning the single the wheel was spinning |
| | | | clockwise (which is called a "Z" twist, as on |
| At this point there are two ways to go. | | | | any given side the fibres appear to cross |
| | | | diagonally in the same direction as the |
| The first is to simply pick out the vegetable | | | | diagonal of a "Z"), in order to ply it the |
| matter, and move on to the next step. The | | | | wheel must spin counter-clockwise (an "S" |
| lanolin is kept in the wool. | | | | twist). |
| | | | |
| People who enjoy spinning 'in the grease' | | | | This is because otherwise you are not |
| (i.e. spinning with the lanolin still in the | | | | balancing the twist, just twisting it more. |
| wool) prefer this method, and wait to wash | | | | The concept is similar to when a heavily |
| the lanolin out until they finish spinning. | | | | twisted piece of yarn is folded, and it |
| The lanolin can be left in the wool after | | | | twists up on itself. It is most common for |
| spinning as well, making the fabric or | | | | singles to be spun with a "Z" twist, and then |
| garment water repellent. If one doesn't want | | | | plied with an "S" twist. |
| to spin in the grease, the other option is to | | | | |
| take both the vegetable matter and the | | | | Navajo plying consists of making large loops, |
| lanolin out. | | | | similar to crocheting. First make a loop |
| | | | about 8 inches long through the loop on the |
| Washing the wool at this stage can be a | | | | end on the leader. (A leader is the string |
| tedious process, if you let it. Some people | | | | left on the bobbin to spin off of.) Start |
| wash it a small handful at a time very | | | | spinning all three strands together in the |
| carefully, and then set it out to dry on a | | | | opposite direction than that they were spun |
| table in the sun. Other people will stick the | | | | in. When only 2 to 3 inches remain of the |
| whole fleece in a tub of water and soap | | | | loop, pull a new loop of yarn through the |
| (dishwashing detergent works well), let it | | | | loop, and continue spinning. The new loop |
| sit, swish it around, and refill the tub with | | | | should be around 7 inches long. Repeat this |
| new water occasionally until the fleece is | | | | process until the yarn is all plied. Only one |
| clean (of soap and dirt). One carding mill | | | | single is necessary, and if the single is |
| puts the fleece in a washing machine (that | | | | already dyed this technique allows it to be |
| has been slightly modified for this purpose) | | | | plied without ruining the colour scheme. This |
| and melts the lanolin away by soaking the | | | | technique also allows the spinner to try to |
| fleece in very hot water. All these methods | | | | match up thick and thin spots in the yarn, |
| work. The thing not to do when washing fleece | | | | thus making for a smoother end product. |
| is to rub it against itself too much. If the | | | | |
| fleece gets agitated, it will become felt, | | | | Most spinners (who use spinning wheels) ply |
| and then spinning it is impossible. Felting, | | | | from bobbins. This is easier than plying from |
| when done on purpose (with needles, | | | | balls because there is less chance for the |
| chemicals, or simply rubbing the fibres | | | | yarn to become tangled and knotted if it is |
| against each other), can be used to create | | | | simply unwound from the bobbins. So that the |
| garments. | | | | bobbins can unwind freely, they are put in a |
| | | | device called a lazy kate, or sometimes |
| Carding Before spinning it is a good idea to | | | | simply kate. The simplest lazy kate consists |
| get the fleece into a slightly more | | | | of wooden bars with a metal rod running |
| manageable state. It is possible to spin | | | | between them. Most hold between three and |
| directly from a fleece, if it is a very clean | | | | four bobbins. The bobbin sits on the metal |
| one, but it is much easier to spin a carded | | | | rod. Other lazy kates are built with devices |
| fleece. Carding by hand yields a rolag, a | | | | that create an adjustable amount of tension, |
| loose woollen roll of fibres. | | | | so that if the yarn is jerked, a whole bunch |
| | | | of yarn is not wound off, then wound up again |
| Using a drum carder yields a bat, which is a | | | | in the opposite direction. Some spinning |
| mat of fibres in a flat, rectangular shape. | | | | wheels come with a built in lazy kate. |
| Most carding mills return the fleece in a | | | | Picture of lazy kates, with tension device. |
| roving , which is a stretched bat; it is very | | | | |
| long and often the thickness of a wrist. (A | | | | Washing If the lanolin was not washed out |
| pencil roving is a roving thinned to the | | | | before, this is the point at which it gets |
| width of a pencil. It is often used for | | | | washed out, unless the lanolin is to be left |
| knitting without any spinning, or for | | | | in the cloth as a water repellent. When |
| beginning spinners.) Many hand-spinners send | | | | washing a skein it works well to let the wool |
| their wool out to carding mills to be carded, | | | | soak in soapy water overnight, and rinse the |
| as one good-sized fleece may take weeks to | | | | soap out in the morning. Dishwashing |
| card with a drum-carder, or an eternity by | | | | detergents are commonly used, and a special |
| hand. If the fleece is sent to a carding | | | | laundry detergent designed for washing wool |
| mill, it must be washed before carded. | | | | is not required. The dishwashing detergent |
| | | | works and does not harm the wool. After |
| Most mills offer washing the wool as a | | | | washing, let the wool dry (air drying works |
| service, with extra fees if the wool is | | | | best). Once it is dry, or just a bit damp, |
| exceptionally dirty. Other hand-spinners | | | | one can stretch it out a bit on a |
| simply buy their fibres pre-carded. | | | | niddy-noddy. Putting the wool back on the |
| | | | niddy-noddy makes for a nicer looking |
| Spinning Hand spinning can be done many | | | | finished skein. Before taking a skein and |
| different ways, the two most common being by | | | | washing it, the skein must be tied up loosely |
| use of the spinning wheel or the spindle. | | | | in about six places. If the skein is not tied |
| | | | up, it will be very hard to unravel when done |
| Spinning turns the carded wool fibres into | | | | washing. |
| yarn which can then be directly woven, | | | | |