Spinning epiphany

Just wanted to share the fun I had spinning over the weekend.  I have been working on spinning a pound of mill end roving that I had ordered to practice with.  I haven't had time to spin for going on 3 weeks so I had to work out some initial rust.  I also thought I'd try out a couple of new techniques I had read about.  What I ended up with was a disappointing thick/thin yarn and a feeling that maybe I would never progress in my spinning.  I went back to drafting the roving the way I had been doing and my yarn improved but I was still disappointed in my inability to master a short forward draw which is supposed to be a beginner's drafting technique.

I was really getting tired of the mill end roving that it seemed I had been spinning forever and decided to just go ahead and try something new.  I pulled out the half a bag of alpaca I had left from what we bought when we went to the fiber festival in Virginia and thought I'd give that another try.

It was all the fiber I had when I went to my first spinning guild meeting in November.  The ladies in the guild told me it was not a good beginner fiber so I bought some corriedale from one of the guild members who is also a vendor and put the alpaca up for later when I was a better spinner.  I took the corriedale home and spun it all up while waiting for the mill end roving I had ordered to practice on to arrive.  

I pulled out that alpaca on Friday and thought I'd give it another shot.  I was (and still am) amazed at how easily that alpaca spun up.  I finally got to experience what people mean when they say a fiber spins like butter.  I was spinning a very fine yarn using the short forward draw with no problems.  I felt like I could probably have spun with a long draw if I had wanted.  It was spinning up that easily.

I worked through what I had left of the alpaca way too quickly.  What a difference!  I understand now that it wasn't me, it was the fiber.  I understand what people mean when they say the fiber just wanted to be spun thin (or thick).  I feel so much better about all things spinning.  I went back to spinning the mill end roving with the understanding that the mill end roving was meant to be spun at a medium thickness using my version of the short backward draw.  The mill end roving needed to be split about 4 times and pre-drafted once or twice while the alpaca needed no prep whatsoever.  

I'm using the mill end roving to finish filling the bobbin that is currently on my wheel and I need to ply what I've got left on another bobbin with this bobbin.  I've got to do this to free up a bobbin for more spinning since I only have three.  I need to order another woolee winder bobbin and some more alpaca to spin.  I've got some superwash bfl and merino to work on and of course my mill end roving.  I'm really looking forward to trying out the merino and see how I do with that.  If I can spin that well, then maybe I can spin up that merino my mother picked out at the fiber festival and send her some beautiful handspun yarn.

The day after Christmas

Well, all in all Christmas went pretty smooth.  Everybody got along and there were no fights (only one of the usual main instigators was there).  The worst thing that happened was Mike dropping William's new tv and busting the plasma screen.  He's out now taking it back to Best Buy to get another one.

I think everyone was happy with their gifts.  I got a spinning wheel from my parents and a woolee winder from Mike.  I love them both and only wish for time to spin.  I am determined to get some time in with my wheel (Miss Lilly Ann) today.

Ugh!  My laptop is giving me fits.  I need to take it in for a good cleaning and get some memory added.  I don't know why the thing runs so slow except that it is old in computer years.

Mike just called and he's on his way home with a Sony tv for William.  He's going to get it set up and hook up the gamecube then go get William.

I got a little device from my parents that monitors not just your steps but your activity.  It's pretty cool. It calculates your activity level, the calories you've burned and for how long you have been active.  This is a good weight loss device and I definitely need to lose weight.  My dad said he'd pay for a membership to weight watchers but I think I may check out some other weight loss sites and see if there is something out there that I might could join that would make use of this new little device I have.  I was a member at ishape for awhile and they have a good program.  There's also ediet which is supposed to be good.

The Redskins finish up their season this Sunday.  It's hard to believe football season has come and gone.  The Redskins started out so promising and I guess all things considered are fortunate to be assured of at least a .500 season.  I hope they bring back Jim Zorn for another season.  It just wouldn't be fair to fire him after just one season.  He needs to have the benefit of a full offseason and to be allowed to show what he has learned from this past season and how he can move forward and build on it.  I'm undecided on Jason Campbell.  I think he deserves another year and then if there's no definite improvement...well let's see what CB5 can do.  (I'm also aware he will be a free agent after this next year.  That's a tricky one and I'm glad it's Vinny and not me making those decisions.)

I think it's time for me to do some spinning.  I need to practice spinning from the fold and my short forward draw.

I tried to crochet with the yarn I had navajo plied and it's some pretty rough yarn.  I was going to make Mike a hat but I don't have enough yarn and I also messed up somewhere and the hat was way too small even for my head.  I frogged the whole thing and re-wrapped it into a center pull ball.  Maybe I'll navajo ply what I'm working on now and then have enough for a hat.

Wow...I just read back through this and what a random stream of consciousness.  Oh well, blogs are what you want them to be...right?