Beginning Drop Spindle Workshop

Spinning a Yarn: Beginning Drop Spindle
Saturday, September 12th 1pm-2:30pm

Description

Learn how to spin wool into yarn with Echo Mae using a drop spindle, one of the world’s oldest and most widespread textile tools. We will begin with the beginner-friendly park-and-draft method, then move on to controlling a suspended spindle, adding twist, winding yarn onto the spindle, and joining new fiber.

As you spin, Echo will share a brief history of the drop spindle, from its use around the world to its importance in Celtic societies and cultures. There will be plenty of storytelling along the way, including spinning folklore and fairy tales from Ireland, the Scottish Highlands and Lowlands, and beyond.

You will leave with your first handspun yarn, instructions for plying and setting the twist, and the skills you need to keep exploring the world of spinning on your own. Please expect your first yarn to be a wee bit uneven, or even lumpy! This is a normal part of learning how to spin. After all, as the old Irish proverb goes, ní den abhras an chéad snáithe.

Who Is This Workshop For?

This workshop is for complete beginners, makers curious about how yarn is made, history and folklore enthusiasts, and anyone interested in traditional crafts and stories. No previous spinning or fiber arts experience is required.

Drop spindle spinning uses repeated hand and wrist movements and requires coordination between both hands. It is easiest to learn while standing, but students are welcome to spin while seated.

You Will Learn How to:

• Spin using the park-and-draft method
• Spin while the spindle is suspended
• Add and control twist
• Wind yarn onto the spindle
• Join new fiber
• Troubleshoot common beginner problems
• Ply your yarn
• Set the twist after spinning or plying

Materials List

• A beginner-friendly drop spindle, such as a wooden top-whorl or bottom-whorl spindle
• 2–4 ounces 100% wool top or batt, medium or coarse, with a minimum staple length of 3 inches
  Please do not bring fine or medium-fine wool, such as merino. Medium and coarse wools are easier to manage when you are first learning.
• Approximately 10 inches of yarn to use as a leader

Kits will also be available for purchase from Echo for $25 on the day of the class. Each kit includes a wooden top-whorl drop spindle, 2 ounces of medium wool, and a leader.

Instructor Bio

Echo Mae [she/hers] is one of the owners of Northwest Yarns & Mercantile in Bellingham, WA and a dedicated fan of fiber arts history and culture. When not encouraging anyone and everyone to learn a fiber art, dreaming up knitting patterns, or writing for her shop blog, Know Your Fiber, Echo can be found exploring fiber arts trends, culture, and history to share with her fiber arts community and with almost any person who will stand still long enough to listen to her talk about them.

‍

Upcoming workshops at CAF from Echo Mae!

-Beginning Drop Spindle Spinning, 9/12 at 1pm

-Portable Frame Loom Weaving: Plaid Mug Rug, 10/18 at 1pm

-Beginning Embroidery: Tea Towel, 11/15 at 1pm

‍

For questions about the course, experience level, or materials list, please contact Jodie Permen at Jodie@Celticarts.org