One Thing Leads to Another

Knitting is mainstream, spinning is unusual.

You can find usable yarn in any craft store, and yarn shops with high-quality yarn in every city.

As a knitter, there was little push to buy new tools and try new crafts. Sure, I would go out and buy a different size of needle, and I bought a set of t-pins when I started doing lace. One project required that I do a crochet border. But I never felt deprived because I didn't have a spindle. Fantastic yarn was all around.

It helped that I usually bought plain-colored, worsted-weight wool yarn (now that I spin, I try to avoid buying yarn, since it is piling up so fast). That stuff is versatile and interchangeable. With it, I can make almost anything I want to wear or use, and if there is something else, I can buy a batch of yarn special.

But now that I spin...

At first, I thought that I would just buy some roving and spin away. All I would need is a drop spindle. But I went to my local festival and fell in love with some dyed locks.

Dyed locks

Suddenly, I needed hand carders if I wanted to work with them. And then I read that the best way to get out the little bits of grass in the locks was to get a flick carder. And then it turned out that the staple-length was too long for carders to work easily, so I needed combs.

Suddenly, my tools were multiplying like never before. And that is even before I accidentally bought a pound of unwashed wool.

And it wasn't just my tools that were multiplying. All I wanted was to spin yarn, and I found myself carding, combing, flicking, and washing.

I think it is because of where I got my roving. Because it is not carried in most craft stores, I had to go to the festival. And while there was roving (and top) there was also more soft and beautiful wool that was just waiting to be turned in to yarn with just a little more work.

I am resisting the final step, however. I had been very careful to try to always get colored wool, either dyed or naturally some other color.

And then I was given pounds and pounds of white wool. I am making a shawl, but what am I going to do with the rest?

I don't think I can avoid dyeing forever, but we will see.