Our newsletter has an earthy theme this month; stories include mud dyeing, a Beauty in Soil biodiversity exhibition and a geology-themed boneyard shawl.
Cotton crops up too with an attempt at the longest thread, growing at home from seed and lab-grown brightly-coloured cotton.
I don't keep a count but this feels like a bumper issue. The stories have just kept coming.
Read on for this month's cunning curated collection of inspirational information and entertainment for spinners, knitters, crocheters, dyers and weavers.
This free issue for September 2020 is brought to you in association with Audible. I'm a member and enjoy listening while I spin. Download a free audiobook with your 30-day free trial.
Find out how to receive a longer ad-free* version of Hand Spinning News a couple of weeks earlier.
Photo right: sweater, heybrownberry. Cover photo: The spinning wheel (Oil on Canvas) by Giovanni Battista Torriglia.
The online petition encouraging the use of wool in the UK's public buildings is still live and you can sign it if you haven't done already.
Farmers have welcomed the Welsh government's pledge to use more British wool as insulation in public buildings.
www.farminguk.com...farmers-welcome-pledge-to-increase-use-of-british-wool_56497.html
This finished skein looks overplied but it may not be. Singles relax, you may deliberately leave your singles to relax as Knit/Wit does. That means that if you test for balance as you ply then your yarn may be underplied.
Sarah discusses the subject as she plies and soaks this 'Stash Dash' yarn.
paknitwit.blogspot.com/2020/08/its-going-to-be-nail-biter.html
If crochet, particularly granny squares are your bag, then you may already know that 15 August was granny square day.
You can use the hashtag #grannysquareday2020 to see a million (ie more than seven thousand) pictures of people's 2020 granny squares. Hosts Simply Crochet encouraged people to crop their pictures so that the hashtag page makes a 'virtual blanket'. There are lots of resources on that page too to help you learn how to make and join granny squares.
This is Claudine Celebuski's sweater made from handspun yarn using a knitting machine.
Spin-Off magazine asked her to write some tips for working with handspun on a knitting machine.
This jumper was made from natural grey Gotland fleece. Also see another of Claudine's machine-knitted, handspun-from-fleece jumpers in the Gallery.
spinoffmagazine.com/5-tips-for-using-handspun-yarn-on-a-knitting-machine
The leg of this Ashford Traditional has been given a new treadle bearing.
There are pictures in Sue's blog showing how the woodturner completed the repair.
castonandcastoff.blogspot.com/2020/08/spinning-wheel-repair.html
When I dealt in new and secondhand wheels, a very frequent enquiry was from people who had bought an old wheel, expecting to be able to buy parts off the shelf.
It's very common to find vintage wheels with no name and with parts missing.
If you're prepared to do the research and pay for specially-made parts, it can be rewarding to get such wheels working and to use them.
Heather Fulford has put together a list of books, forums, wheelwrights (U.S.) and useful supplies.
A 'hefted' sheep holds a particular place and returns there instinctively. No, I didn't know that either.
This is a beautiful video showing the sheep of Long Mynd instinctively returning to their spot after shearing.
Alpaca wool doesn't contain lanolin, but it can be dirty.
April has accumulated some fleeces and has decided to wash it ready for spinning. Here are her experiences and tips.
www.withwool.com/blog/2020/8/5/adventures-in-washing-alpaca-fiber
This is yarn that Riihivilla has dyed using her first japanese indigo harvest.
Five well-grown plants yielded 2.5kg of leaves. There are more details of the process in the blog post.
riihivilla.blogspot.com/2020/08/first-japanese-indigo-harvest-and-dye.html
Complementing the story above nicely is this picture of Jenn with her Woad harvest. Explore her Instagram feed for more pictures, this year she has extracted and dried 36g of indigo dye from 9kg of woad.
You could find your next spin in your commercial yarn stash.
Heavenly Bresser explains how to take a millspun yarn, unspin it and spin it into something different,
Her example here turns a single-ply, Aran-weight yarn into a handspun, two-ply sportweight yarn
spinoffmagazine.com/unspun-and-upcycled-yarn-deconstruction-101
Elisabeth Hill has tried a commercially-available mud dyes and produced these attractive woven napkins.
Susan and Christina have shown that these dyes make an easy and fun activity for small kids and big kids alike.
See also Beauty in Soil below But is it art?
Jean Betts has dyed these skeins using just one sunflower's-worth of seeds. She describes the colour as "light purple-y grey".
I haven't seen a treadle quite like this before. This is hemp fibre being separated after retting. There are some more pictures alongside this video showing batiked and indigo dyed fabric.
Youtube user Moth and Rust DIY has documented the process of growing and processing cotton at home, from seed to rolag.
I believe it's possible here in the UK although the climate is a little cool.
I'm linking to Ewespecial who has recommended and embedded the video.
ewespecial.blogspot.com/2020/09/acadian-brown-cotton-exhibit.html
Evanita has spun this very fine cotton as part of Tour de Fleece 2 and also as part of a 10g longest thread competition. Her 211.5 yards is a personal best.
Adventurous handspinner Jeannine Glaves enjoys trying unusual fibres. In the past she has tried spinning a native American's long hair, toilet paper and steel wool scrubbing pads.
In this Spin-Off magazine article she writes about three unusual fibres; chinchilla, cactus cotton and Spanish moss.
spinoffmagazine.com/spinning-the-unusual-chinchilla-cactus-cotton-and-spanish-moss
When little needs saying except 'beautiful colour'
Knit/Wit gets full marks for matching yarn and bobbin. These purple singles looks very deep on the bobbin.
paknitwit.blogspot.com/2020/08/tdf-take-2-and-circle-of-yarn.html
Threadbender calls these colours 'fun'. They're vibrant and not gaudy.
The shine is provided by tencel.
From one extreme to the other. I'm a fan of subtle and this is about as subtle as you get .
Anna recently acquired a blending board and is excited about the colour possibilities for rolags as well as batts.
I love seeing side-by-side pictures of fibre, singles and plied yarn so that we can see the transformation and we do have all three here. The yarn has a mother-of-pearl effect.
In order to try and make the colours more uniform, Kaitlin has been blending chunks of this Malabrigo braid on hand cards and then pulling the fibres off (similar to dizzing).
Grease is a vital part of wool. The right amount of grease makes the wool vivid, resilient, and fun to spin.
A. Sabine Schröder-Gravendyck explains how to clean your fleece while leaving it full of life and vitality.
There is a disclaimer with this tip; thecrazysheeplady says that she is a redneck spinner and that you should bear that in mind.
Here she's using steam to 'wake up' the crimp in combed top. I'm not sure that I know what a 'redneck spinner' is, and how seriously this tip should be taken, but I like what it appears to be doing to her top.
Kitchener stitch mnemonics and rhymes have featured regularly in this spot, but I still have to search online for the instructions every time I need to do it.
Thanks to Dances with Wools for the link to this cheat sheet. Look for the link to the free pdf. It prints four to a page and I have now printed, laminated and cropped four little cards for myself.
tricksyknitter.com/blogs/learn-to-knit/kitchener-stitch-cheat-card
By coincidence I've also seen Vampy's printable spinners' control card this month.
Finding moth holes in a valued garment is a depressing problem.
Northern Lace discusses deterrents and detailed instructions for making a repair.
Here's a tip for making sure that sleeve decreases match.
These are four advanced and genuinely beneficial tips that can help make the difference
www.interweave.com/article/knitting/finishing-a-knitted-garment
HighlandHeffalump makes lampshades and these needle-felted fairies for a local gallery.
Each fairy is unique but the process for making the body, head and arms is the same. In this blog post she gives instructions and lots of examples.
You may have tried both snapping and thwacking your skein after soaking. Emonieiesha Hopkins explains that they each have their place and lists when to use each method.
spinoffmagazine.com/a-perfect-finish-thwacking-and-snapping-handspun-yarn
Australian scientists believe they have found a way to modify cotton so that it grows in a variety of bright colours. They hope that these cotton plants can be spun and made into colourful clothes which don't require any dyes.
www.fastcompany.com/90536103/scientists-are-growing-psychedelic-cotton-in-the-lab
This material is made from keratin, found in hair and nails as well as from recycled wool.
A sheet of the material can be set into one shape and then when wet it returns to its original shape.
Suggested applications include self-fitting bras, one-size-fits all t-shirts, or garments with air vents that open in response to moisture.
The video on this page shows the origami star example as well as a single thread which appears to shorten when moistened.
www.engadget.com/harvard-programmable-material-3d-printed-183939765.html
If you like Yvonne, click the image to find her page, you can use next and previous to explore more cartoons.
Thank you very much if you've had a go at any of these on your computer or tablet.
I've set them up with 35 - 50 pieces- just the right number for a coffee-break challenge and you gradually reveal the cartoon.
But if you fancy more of a challenge (or less) you can customise the number of pieces before you start.
Are you a teacher, pattern designer, dyer, equipment manufacturer or supplier?
Would you like to reach the readership of thousands of hand spinners and at the same time help to support Hand Spinning News ?
Find out more about advertising here using the link below.
If you are a supplier, please don't miss the UK Supplier List. If you're not already on it, please let me know, and if you are on it, please consider paying a modest amount for a coloured box around the listing and an additional sales message.
Sponsored story
The Coronavirus pandemic is causing havoc in all our lives at the moment but what about the charities and organisations that rely on public fundraising to maintain their care services? Martin House Children's Hospice is such a charity, with an annual running cost of around £9 million to provide their vital services to families, they need our help.
As a way of offering support to Martin House, Adam Curtis Online are donating a percentage every sale of their two most popular ranges, the Best of British Wool Throw Collection and the Real Shetland Cushion range.
Please see their blog for more information about Martin House and the fundraising products.
Evanita has microblogged her review / demonstration onto Instagram as a series of short videos with comments.
You may have seen the Akerworks Super Skeiner already and been intrigued. It looks easier than a traditional niddy-noddy to use and has a built-in counter.
I'm linking to the 'in use' video, explore Evanita's Instagram feed for videos showing the assembly and disassembly.
Sometimes just a picture is enough
Kicking off our gallery this month is cronalicious_lwg modelling her Boneyard Shawl.
We may as well stop here because there won't be a better picture of a handspun project ever.
It continues our mud / soil / earth theme; the colours in this Boneyard shawl are geology-themed. (Inglenook Fibers' geology blend series plus heathered Jacob). She says that the shawl was "fast and fun" but is itchy against the skin!
In tribute to a crystal artist, thelotusgrows made this shawl from handspun yarn.
Click through to see close-ups of the quartz crystals which are sewn on by hand.
The free pattern is Butterfly | Papillon by Marin Melchior (Ravelry link)
This is a fabulous shot of tayloreowen's beautiful handspun jumper.
The yarn used is three ply handspun from a cormo fleece dyed with black eyed susans and a 2 ply of the malabrigonube fibre.
The pattern is Misurina Tee by Caitlin Hunter. Obviously this one has long sleeves.
Claudine Celebuski made this jumper using two raw fleeces: a black Border Leicester and a white Texel. She had hoped to enter the finished garment into a Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival contest, which of course has been cancelled, but she hopes to enter it into the 2021 event.
This article from Spin-Off has lots of detail about the jumper; materials, design process, specific challenges and favourite parts.
spinoffmagazine.com/your-finished-object-overshot-pattern-sweater
This kaleidoscopic sexy spindle shot was taken for us by nbmnc on day 10 of Tour de Fleece 2.
The trouble with finishing a sweater in the summer is in the word 'sweater'. Here's Meaghan suffering so that we can admire her finished Shifty sweater which includes her handspun yarn.
She's taken care that the colour changes in the sleeves line up.
the_village_weaver is ready for Autumn with this handwoven cowl which includes hand dyed and handspun yarn. The textured yarn is corespun hand dyed merino and silk
Fibre is from John Arbon, Babbles Yarns and Cat and Sparrow. I like the transition from light to dark.
heybrownberry highly recommends the pattern, JUiST No2 by ANKESTRiCK. She says that the "details on this are subtle and awesome". See her Instagram feed for some close-up pictures of the sweater and her impressive work.
lanehampton tried using three braids and running each into the next. They include angora rabbit and targhee wool
She ad-libbed the design.
A selection of free seasonal patterns which will work well with handspun yarn.
Pimpelliese is a very popular pattern and the projects page shows a wide variety of colour choices.
Araignee has used her own hand-dyed handspun. The fibre is Knit Picks Bare fiber, possibly merino.
I don't think the colours are as 'clown barf' as Araignee says. She doesn't hate the colours in the finished shawl as much as she thought she would, but suggests that she might overdye it at some point. Her finished project is here, link to the pattern on Ravelry is below.
Moorman Inlay is a technique that I've only heard my teacher talk about but never tried.
Sienna Bosch describes her design process as well as giving instructions for this stained glass wall / window hanging.
I'm pretty sure I've shared Flax before but this picture has appeared. It shows Em of Tin Can Knits wearing one that she spun and knitted herself using fibre from both John Arbon and Spin City.
She thought that spinning for an entire sweater was "slightly unreasonable" but it came together pretty quickly and she says it's her favourite knit of all time.
More beautiful pictures of this particular handspun sweater are here and my main link goes to the pattern on TCK's website.
These boot toppers can be worn over ankle boots or clogs, or flipped over the top of a taller boot.
They're designed to show off 4oz / 100g of handspun yarn.
Free Ravelry download.
This picture shows Thread Head Joanne's Stone and Fire Cowl, which she's renamed earth and water due to the colour of the yarn that she dyed and spun especially for the project.
She says that the pattern is "lovely, with an easy to memorise stitch pattern".
shop.longthreadmedia.com...stone-fire-cowl-spinning-knitting-pattern-download-ep16636
You're probably as curious as I was about how this woven look is constructed.
They're eye-catching as well as warm if made in a sturdy wool. They'll take 328 yards of sport-weight (12wpi) yarn.
www.interweave.com/product/basketweave-mitts-crochet-pattern-download
This is hsuv's Hecate, which includes handspun yarn from Corriedale combed top.
Imperceptions is a new collection from Woolly Wormhead. The patterns use "unconventional stranded colourwork to create the illusion of manipulated fabric".
Also from the same collection in handspun yarn is fitzie's Circe
The University of Wyoming's Biodiversity in Art project is both art and education. Karen Vaughan and Diana Baumbach decided to depict soil through weaving in a variety of works.
Faig Ahmed began this piece, titled 'Doubts', before lockdown. The studio had to be closed during the quarantine and the work was "waiting for its time".
In light of the current situation, the regular events listing here is temporarily replaced by an 'online events' listing.
Are you hosting or taking part in an online event or challenge that I'm not aware of? Let me know.
This challenge runs from Dec 2019 to Dec 2020 and you're free to jump in at any time. Bins are still being added.
I'd encourage you to read the rules, there is a lot of fun to be had including chat, 'use it or lose it' and a penalty for bailing on your bin.
There are no prizes at present (except possibly for some fibre from the Use it Or Lose It Club) but that may change.
www.ravelry.com/discuss/completely-twisted-and-arbitrary-spinning/3991052/1-25
14th to 18th October 2020
Challenge, Fun, Friends, Charity.
There is no entry fee to register a team. Spinners will be invited to donate a minimum of £5 each and ALL funds raised in 2020 will be donated directly to the RNLI (Royal National Lifeboat Institution)
I'm Shiela Dixon, I've beeing doing this for around ten years in order to promote and encourage the craft of spinning.
You can help to support this work with a regular contribution (pay what you like, no matter how small) and in return receive HSN earlier and receive a longer ad-free* version (approx half the number of stories again).
A final word of thanks to everyone who blogs, writes articles or posts pictures on the subject of spinning, knitting, crochet or weaving. This newsletter wouldn't exist without people writing interesting and useful things.
If you enjoy Hand Spinning News, please don't keep it to yourself. Please share a link to hand-spinning-news.com by email or on social media with anyone who may be interested.
It's always good to hear from readers for any reason (or no reason!)
Happy spinning!
Shiela Dixon - Editor / curator
If you're reading this newsletter on the web and would like it delivered to your email inbox for free every month, just fill in your email address in the box somewhere below. If you've reading this in your inbox and would prefer not to receive any more, just use the Mailchimp 'unsubscribe' link at the foot of the email.
A PeacockMedia publication
Hand Spinning News as a free monthly email.
Please share HSN with your friends:
Follow me on Instagram
Facebook
Twitter
