From fluff to finished object

My first attempt at handspinning with a drop spindle did not go well. I had a really hard time coordinating the drafting and the spinning and what resulted was a tangled, slubby mess and a really p*ssed off fibre lover. The bag of roving and the drop spindle I brought home from Pacafiesta were banished to the bottom of the stash bin, wedged between some truly hideous novelty yarn and old scratchy acyrlic. Every now and then, while I hunted up something to work with for some project, I would come across the drop spindle and its pathetic remnant of fibre, and sigh (or growl, depending on my mood) at it and move on. I resigned myself to the fact that I was not a spinner, no matter how badly I wanted to be. And I certainly could not justify the cost of a spinning wheel if I could not master this.

When my first Secret Pal 11 package arrived, I found some beautiful blue merino roving and an Ashford drop spindle. The spindle is beautiful, and it felt much more sturdy and solid than the one I bought before. I decided to give it another shot. I played around with it a bit, but still it was not clicking.

Then I got inspired to let my knitting leak into my education. I got very excited about the prospect of a spinning demonstration as part of the presentation. It hit me about 2 days before the due date.

I needed to figure out this drop spindle thing before I could show others how to do it.

So, one night while Phil was at work, my kiddies were all snug in their beds...I sat down with the fibre and the drop spindle...my "Spin It" book and the information sheets that my SP11 partner sent to me.

This time...it clicked. Suddenly, it all came together and holy crap I was actually making yarn! Not just yarn...but usable yarn!

It's far from perfect, but there it is:


The pretty blue merino did not spin up a whole lot (probably would have been more had I not used up some in false starts and the inconsistencies in the yarn)


I wanted to make something with this that I could keep for a while. I thought about using it to edge a hat or a scarf, but that did not really appeal to me. Then one day I stumbled upon this pattern here. And I immediately knew what my wee skein of handspun would be.

I am pleased to introduce....



George.

He now lives on my pile of knitting books; He is the Pattern Keeper.

(Before anyone asks, no I don't think I'll bring him to KOL...he's quite little and I'm not so sure he'd do well if there were to be another incident like this one. Especially because, well...he does not have any arms)