Siege

SOAR Retreat #1: Combing

I know, it's not much of a picture, but remember, I didn't have a camera - so no action shots of me doing my thing.  The official title of the retreat was "Making the Most of Your Handheld Combs", taught by Robin Russo (who I understand is the queen of combing).

It was the first retreat I took and I must admit, I was still exhausted from the workshop even though we had a day off in between.  I walked into class to see a friendly face ... who had forgotten I was in the class too and she didn't save me a seat (I think she was afraid I'd be better at combing than she was).  I set myself up and looked at the combs, wishing I had more caffeine on board. 

Robin had this great hand out. with a couple of pages of history and instructions on how to comb and a page to attach the yarns to.  She started by explaining how to prepare the wool for combing.  Best tip of the class?  Work combing oil into the locks you're about to comb.  This allows the fibers to slip past each other and also controls a lot of the static.  An added bonus is that it smells good and keeps your hands soft.

Next, holding one comb (teeth up), you lash the wool on until the teeth are about 2/3s full.  Take the other comb and (with the teeth pointing away from you) pass it through the fiber on the first comb.  Each time, you grab more fibers from the first comb, until you're left with junk on the first comb and beautifully combed fiber on the passing comb (throw the junk away or put it in a pile to use for something else).  Essentially, do this as many times as you need to until you're happy with the fiber.  Fewer is better - just like with hand cards, the more you work the fiber, the more chance you have of combing/carding in noils.

Next, you grab the fibers and pull (it's a sort of wiggly motion) the wool away from the comb.  You don't want a break, so make sure you're only pulling out a bit less than the length of your staple.  You get a long roving.  Don't let it fall to the carpeted floor, it sticks and makes a mess of your gorgeously prepared roving.  Wrap that roving into a "bird's nest" and set it aside.

We started out with Polworth (fine wool).  After combing, Robin instructed us to spin samples of bulky, medium, and fine yarns - from the same bird's nest of fiber.  This was amazingly easy (as long as you don't look at my fine and medium yarns in the Polworth - they're remarkably similar).  My Polworth was combed on double row Majacraft combs.  I liked them, but they seemed slightly unbalanced in my hands - the comb side was much heavier than the handle side.

Next we worked with Romney wool (medium wool).  It appears purple in the picture, but we actually practiced combing together white and another color.  This was a good exercise as everyone had a different idea of how much blending was enough.  There were some barber pole yarns and some that were very integrated.  I used double row Valkyrie combs.  It appears that these combs are no longer made.  The tines were very long, I had a hard time keeping control and I was afraid I was going to stab myself.

Lastly, I combed Coopworth (coarse wool) on Viking combs.  I liked these combs the best.  I felt like I had good control and was quite comfortable with them.  It seemed to me that it was easier to get just the preparation I wanted and I like this set of yarns the best.  I had no trouble drafting for each of the different yarns.

Some people got the hang of combing very quickly and moved onto the exotic fibers (alpaca, mohair, and angora) and then blending the exotics with wool.  I didn't move that quickly.  Robin encouraged us to take samples and borrow some combs from a friend to try these exercises.

I think it's a good skill to have and I'm glad I took the retreat.  I have processed fleece before - I don't like it.  It's a lot of work before you get to the fun part and I have so little time to do the fun stuff, that I don't want to spend all of it in fiber prep.  The best part of knowing how to comb is so you can prepare the fiber exactly the way you want it.  Robin is an excellent teacher and had more than enough different combs for everyone to try all of them.  Well worth the time.

SOAR Retreat #3 - Kitchen Sink Yarns

Don't worry - you didn't miss retreats 1 & 2, I'm doing them out of order because I have pretty pictures to show you.  I must admit, I wasn't all that interested in taking this retreat.  If you've ever played with a drum carder, essentially you've done this work.  I took it because other cool people were taking it and I wanted to play too, plus the teacher was so charming.

The description said "we will be drumcarding everything from the mundane to the exotic into spinning fibers ... experimenting with different materials."  The retreat was led by Janel Laidman.  She had a giant table filled with every kind of fiber in every color there is.  She also had something like a dozen different carders set up.  We all wanted to jump in and start carding, but she had things she wanted us to know before starting. 

She talked about how to use the carders and demonstrated for us.  First trick I learned - DON'T pull on the fiber as it's feeding into the licker drum.  That leads to the fiber wrapping around the licker and not making it to the big drum.  I have been guilty of throwing down big clumps of fiber and trusting that the carding process will open it up.  Why take the chance?  Janel said to draft it out and lay the fiber in thin sheets for the licker drum to pull in smoothly.

Second trick?  Fill the carder so that the teeth are about 3/4 full.  This one is more difficult than it sounds.  I found that when I really liked the look of the batt, I wanted to keep adding more and more stuff.  Less is more - stop before the fiber goes sliding off the side  of the drum and into the gears.  Trust me, this happened to me once and I never did it again.

One more tip from Janel - pick a color you don't like and build a batt around it.  Go ask Jillian how many sari silk yarn bits it took for her to like yellow.

We started by working together and came up with the 2 batts at the top of the page.  The one on the left  we ended up calling clown vomit.  We were mostly working by color, but we added some surprises as well (glitz, sari silk bits).  The one on the right makes me think of water.  Again, I don't remember all the stuff we put in it, but there's a mix (flax, wool).  We also did a batt that for some reason I don't have a picture of, but Janel had these lacy cocoons and we cut up a bunch of those and dropped them into the fiber.

After working together for part of the class, we started following our own muses.  These batts are from that part of the retreat.  I'm a blue/green freak.  I think I threw bunches of different blues and bits of bright green as well as some natural white into this batt. 

When we split up and made our own color combinations J made 2-3 batts for each of mine.  She was a drumcarding demon.  Interestingly, we each had batts that looked like the one on the right - fairy princess with a pony.

The best part was seeing what everyone else did.  Some were flops (see clown vomit above), but some of them were gorgeous due to the colors put together or the amazing fibers used.  We walked around and looked at everyone's work, but I did not have a camera and I was wishing I did.  I'd love to try and recreate some of those mixes.

The down side?  I have a small drum carder that I was completely happy with ... until I used a Patrick Green Deb Delux.  Oh the smooth gears, the lovely way the batt peeled off the big drum.  It was pure heaven.  One more thing on the wish list.

Spindlewood Square

We've come to the last of my spindles.  I fully expected to buy at least one spindle at SOAR this year.  I guess I've become a little more discriminating in my tastes, because there weren't many that jumped out at me.  I love these new-ish square spindles.  I think I mentioned before that there was a lovely little zebrawood spindle I had my eye on.  Since I had already spent my budget by the time I saw it on the first day, I told myself that if it was still there on day 2, I would buy it.  It was still there, but I gave it a spin and wasn't happy with it.  There was a small wobble.  Regretful, I put it back - there's no point spinning if you have to fight with the spindle.

Then I had to look for something else.  It would have been a chunk of my budget for the day and I didn't want to waste it.  The Spindlewood booth was tucked in the center aisle of the market and I had walked past the booth a couple of times and never looked in.  On the last day of market, I stopped.  I do love these square spindles and I especially love this one with the round circles set inside the square - gorgeous!  There's nothing like ebony wood for pure smoothness and shine.  It spins beautifully and it's gorgeous, what more could I want!

Specs
Shaft length:  10"
Whorl diameter:  2.5"
Wood:  ebony shaft, ebony & tulipwood whorl
Weight:  54 gm
Price:  $54.00
Where and when bought:  SOAR Traverse City, October 2007

Norm Hall

I did not know that I wanted a Norm Hall spindle.  Mostly because I didn't know who Norm Hall was.  Are you surprised that Jillian was the one who introduced me to the amazing-ness that is Norm Hall?  I think this may have been the last thing I bought at Rhinebeck last year (or maybe not - it's a little hazy).

We approached Norm's booth through a bevy of women.  He was the only person there to answer questions about both his spindles and his giant wheels (and he seemed to really like it that way). 

Every time someone stood up after spinning at one of his wheels, another person sat down in her place.  They are gorgeous and truly amazing wheels.  I looked everywhere for a link to them - there isn't one.  I think you can only see them in person and only at certain shows.  Get yourself to Rhinebeck, you won't be disappointed.  Both of my current wheels I can get started just by putting my feet on the treadle.  With a Norm Hall wheel, you have to start it with your hand, but the weight of the wheel keeps it moving with very little input from your feet and the treadle.  It is a smooth, silent wheel - truly effortless.

The coolest thing about this spindle?  It can switch from a top-whorl to a bottom-whorl in about 3 seconds.  There are hooks on both ends of the shaft so you can pretty much spin no matter where the whorl is sitting.  Right after I paid for mine, Norm grabbed it back and demonstrated.

Top whorl

                                                                                    Bottom whorl

Specs
Shaft length:  10"
Whorl diameter:  3.5"
Wood:  no idea
Weight:  on the heavy side
Price:  J - help me out on this one; somewhere in the $40-50 range
Where and when bought:  Rhinebeck, NY, October 2006

Bosworth Midi

Last year was the year of fiber festivals for me.  I went to Maryland with Nancy, and then Jillian and I went to St*tches Midwest.  When J invited me to Rhinebeck, I almost didn't go.  I had a work meeting the day after J was leaving to pick Amy up.  I was determined and found a close(ish) airport and a one-way ticket to New York.  Some work friends even took me to the airport so I wouldn't have to pay for parking while I was gone.

Once again, I did not intend to buy any spindles.  I had plenty.  Then I went into the Bosworth booth (Jillian needed one) and had a look around.  I'm a sucker for zebra wood and when I saw this one, I was a goner.  The picture doesn't do the beauty of this spindle justice.  It's gorgeous.  As I didn't have a Midi, it came home with me.

This makes 3 Bosworth spindles in my collection.  They're well worth it.  I know there are people who will only spindle on these - I'm not quite that far gone (I love me some variety).  I would suggest that if you haven't used on, you should find one.  If you order directly from them, they will put a custom shaft for you if you'd like.  I think that raises the price a little bit.

I had a comment question about whether or not I spin on all my spindles.  The answer to that is, I have spun on all of them.  Do I do it regularly?  Not really.  I find that there are a couple I reach for consistently when I have an urge to spindle (Hatchtown Kaari, Kundert, Forrester, Grafton Swan & Fibership).  The rest just live in the collection and are pulled out to show people.

Specs
Shaft length:  9"
Whorl diameter:  2.5"
Weight:  no idea
Price:  $45.00
Where and when bought:  Rhinebeck, NY, October 2006

Unknown Canadian Spindle Maker

My friend Pat is studying for her Master Spinner Certification and travels back and forth to Ontario at least once a year.  She came across the maker of these spindles (whose name I have forgotten) and bought one.  Of course she brought it to a guild meeting and we practically jumped on it!  Threatening Pat with physical harm, we made her promise to contact this man again and get some for us to choose from.

A couple of months later, we met her for lunch and she had an array to choose from.  It's a very interesting design with a huge, but almost flat whorl.  I particularly love the designs he burns into the shaft - each one is different.  When I brought it home, Hub looked at it and said, "It's gonna warp.  It's too thin to stay true."  It's been over a year now and still not warping.  I point that out every couple of months.

Specs
Shaft length:  9"
Whorl diameter:  4.25"
Wood:  no idea
Weight:  no idea
Price:  $34.00
Where and when bought:  Pat D., September 2006

*Edited to note that Jillian remembered how much we paid.  She didn't mention if she remembered who the maker was ...

Grafton Nina

This is the third of the Grafton spindles I own.  My friend Lynne thought she would become a dealer and bought a ton of spindles to sell.  Only to discover that she wasn't really a saleswoman and didn't want to push people to buy them.  I think she's fooling herself.  I think she didn't sell them because secretly she liked having tons of spindles all to herself!

It's a lovely little spindle.  The picture to the left doesn't really show the whorl correctly.  This is a rim weighted spindle and to achieve that, Tom leaves the bottom of the whorl flat, but hollows out the top of the whorl.  Think of a flat bottomed bowl.

I also like the way the whorl is set back from the top of the shaft - almost 2 inches.  It gives this little spindle a unique look.  I don't spin with it much, but since I associate it with Lynne, it makes me feel good to see it in the collection.

Spec
Shaft length:  9"
Whorl diameter:  2.5"
Wood:  paduak whorl, white oak shaft
Weight:  1.8 oz
Price:  $35.00
Where and when bought:  Lynne R, August 2006

Grafton Swan

I saw this spindle in the rack at a booth at Stitches.  I wasn't in the market for a spindle.  I thought that I already had enough.  I touched it, I spun with it.  It was lovely.  I looked at the price tag and put it back and walked away.

J and I continued to saunter through the market.  We walked into the next aisle and began touching some yarn.  Then I looked up and said, "I'm going back to get that spindle."  I think I may have run, but I'm not sure.  All I remember is the look on the women's faces when we came back and I snatched up the spindle.  They were surprised and then they laughed.  (Incidentally, we went back to their booth the next day and everyone of their spindles had sold.  I've never been so glad I went back to something.)

I think this is the most beautiful spindle I own.  Even Hub thinks it's a gorgeous piece of wood.  It's a little on the heavy side, but I can still spin a fairly fine yarn with it.  Once again, it spins forever and stays true.

Specs
Shaft length:  9"
Whorl diameter:  2.75"
Wood:  cocobolo shaft, cocobolo burl whorl
Weight:  no idea
Price:  $115.00
Where and when bought:  Stitches Midwest, August 2006

Avi Wasserman

This is the first spindle I bought at Stitches Midwest.  I hadn't planned on buying any spindles, but I was with Jillian.  We wandered into The Fold's booth and Toni had a huge display of Wasserman spindles.  They are incredible.  I'm not a woodworker, so I don't know how much work goes into these, but the patterns are so intricate that there must be a lot of time spent on them.

It's a big spindle, bigger than it looks.  The shaft has a substantial heft to it.  I find that if I don't draft fast enough, this spindle will stop and start spinning the other way very quickly (which happens to me frequently with some of my other spindles - but with this one, it happens FAST).  It's a great plying spindle, plus it's gorgeous.  Enough of a reason to keep it hanging in the forest.  I didn't take a picture of the underside of the whorl, but it's just as beautiful as the top of the whorl.  It reminds me of a really well done intarsia sweater - you know, as pretty on the inside as it is on the outside.

Specs
Shaft length:  13"
Whorl diameter:  3.375"
Wood:  mahogany shaft, purpleheart/maple/ebony whorl
Weight:  1.75 oz

Price:  $65.00
Where and when bought:  Stitches Midwest, Chicago, August 2006

Golding Spindle

There is another spindle I bought in Maryland.  It was a Golding Celtic Ring.  It reminds me of pretzels.  Like all the Golding spindles, it spins like a dream - seriously that brass rim makes it go forever.  For some reason, though, I didn't like it.  It spins fine, makes a great yarn.  I just didn't like it.  Can't explain it, don't understand it.

This is the spindle that now lives with Beth and she's very happy with it.  I'm glad.  I'm of the firm belief that if you don't enjoy working with the tool, someone will and you should hand it down the line until it fits with that someone.

Specs
Shaft length:  9.75"
Whorl diameter:  3"
Wood:  walnut shaft, walnut whorl with brass rim
Weight:  1.9 oz
Price:  $67.00
Where and when bought:  Maryland, May 2006
Sold to:  Beth, October 2007