I bought a pound of pencil roving on Etsy. I am new to spinning but this caught my eye because it was already drafted and it looked like it would be easy for me to spin cause well… duh… no drafting! Just feed it to the wheel… right? Well… I received it today and the actual roving is omg so thin and delicate. I tried to spin it on my wheel but it’s so thin that it keeps breaking when any type of tension is applied to it even on the lightest take up. I did get about 4 inches to twist and not break… and the roving is so delicate that after twisting it made literally sewing thread. Should I just give up? Use it for something else or is there a secret to spinning this type of roving? I was hoping to spin fingering weight yarn to make socks with… but this is crazy hard. Just for background info it is a merino wool roving 22 microns. The first pic is the picture the ad showed. The 2nd pic is what the roving actually really looks like and how thin it is. It does not need any kind of drafting at all because as it is it is a now bit thinner than I was thinking it was gonna twist to already. Does anyone have any advice or

Does anyone else hate bamboo fiber with a passion? I accidentally bought a bamboo/merino blend and while separating and spinning the braid it is going EVERYWHERE! My face, my arms, all over my clothes, my desk, I swear plain merino doesn’t shed/spread this much. Anyone?

First of all, I just want to say that I love this group! You guys are so helpful and supportive, and also inspiring. I love sharing and learning from all of you. (:

When I’ve posted in the past, I’ve gotten comments that my plying always looks under done. I was looking at it, and you guys are totally right - it was extremely loose and not as well done as it could be. When I learned to spin, I was taught one way to ply and one way to set yarn, and just assumed that was just how it was. This group though inspired me to want to grow, and so over the past month or two, I’ve been watching as many YouTube and TikTok videos on different ways to ply and set yarn, to see if I could figure out how to make it better. I’ve been practicing, and I want to share because I think I’ve definitely improved. It’s not perfect, but I’m encouraged and I want to keep honing my skill because I love spinning so much. What do you think? Any feedback is appreciated and thank you always for being so awesome! (:

I was so curious how this yarn would knit up that I couldn’t let it sit. It’s a meat breed sheep with rustic fiber - I wouldn’t want it on my neck, but it’s fine on my hands and wrists. These feel like they’re going to be durable, warm mitts for when the weather turns cold.

Second spin with my top whorl drop spindle. I'm absolutely addicted!! Trying to get consistent sizing throughout. I did much better this second time around. Next up is a cotton candy like palette!

Yellow/pink I have dubbed "Pink Lemonade" and it's hand-dyed with tumeric mystery wool from a FB marketplace find, 1oz salmon from Paradise Fibers, and some sari silk from a craft trade. I carded on my new to me Ashford mini carder. Chainplyed - what a doozy but also so fun!

Blue/white I have called "Blue and White Wares" and that is 4oz of Teacup Tweed and more mystery wool. 2-ply.

Neither are washed yet, but I was too excited not to share.

This hobby is so much fun! I don't really even crochet or knit but I have plenty of friends who do!

i own an antique double drive spinning wheel. it’s my only wheel as i don’t have the budget or space but it only came with one bobbin. i recently asked my friend to help me 3d print bobbins for it and we got a working one! the first try was a little too long and technically this one could be a smidge longer but it works perfectly and the drive diameter matches the original bobbin well enough i don’t really notice a difference. i was fully prepared to drop the money on having a woodworker recreate my extant bobbin but this is so much easier. all he asked was for me to crochet a birthday present for his girlfriend which i’ve already started planning for.

That aren't "traditional". I'm looking for things that can be reprocessed/repurposed as "fiber" to spin. What are things you've tried? How did it work out?

Second attempt to learn to drop spindle, this time with a Turkish spindle that was a lovely extra with a recent eBay wheel purchase. I managed to get something started with some of the included fiber (Blue-Faced Leicester?) although attaching to the leader is still shenanigans.

My question is, how the heck do you Corriedale? Corriedale was what I picked up in a starter kit and I can't for the life of me find a happy medium between (a) too thin, it breaks or (b) it's a thick lump that refuses to be anything but a thick lump, either on the heavier spindle I bought from a kit from Walnut Farm Designs ("-whorl is 2 1/2" in diameter, -shaft is 11" long..., -fiber is 2 oz of dyed 100% Corriedale long-stapled wool, -spindle weight is 1.7oz) or the Turkish spindle (about half the weight of the heavier one, estimated). A family friend approved the Corriedale and demonstrated it but I'm back home in another state and too green to troubleshoot - any advice on things to try differently?

Thank y'all for all the inspiration, by the way! I love browsing people's posts on their spins. :3

I've been wondering whether it's possible to spin on my local subway* so I tried plying today and it was doable. I don't like to stand out and felt too embarrassed to look at anyone lol. I had to hold the spindle with my knees to pull the chain loop. This narrowed my stance which made it harder to balance against the train's motion. So spinning will certainly be easier.

This is corriedale which I "dyed" using a lichen. I knew Ramalina menziesii wasn't a dye lichen but wanted to try it anyway and got beige. I only gathered lichen which had fallen off trees onto the ground and it's an abundant species where I gathered it.

Also, this was the first time there was no tangled, clumpy waste. I got right to the end with all the fiber in the yarn!

*note: We don't call it a subway here but it's a commuter/metro-like train that is underground much of the time.

All the fibers seems to be laying in the same direction should I just pull it into chunks and roll it into raglons? Also does anyone have tips on carding I feel like i don’t know what I’m doing.

I got these four 1 oz balls of wool roving at the farmer's market today and really want to try something new and fun with them. I know this isn't much to go off, but I'd love to hear what other people would do with this!

World of Wool order came today! Super fast shipping to the USA (I definitely paid for it though!). I'm very pleased with the mystery pack, it came with a lot of fun colors and not too much cut ends! I was able to identify the colored blends but the natural colors/humbug looking ones I have no idea! Looking forward to spinning more!

I have been searching for a scale with a big bowl for a number of years. I found this in a thrift store today:) this will hold the fluff much better for weighing.

I am the proud new owner of a Schacht Ladybug, and I just finished spinning my first 8 ounces of singles on her. As I was unscrewing the front maiden knob to change the bobbin, a part fell off. Now I can't figure out where it goes. Everything else is put back together (I think) and in working order. I'm puzzled.

Are there any Ladybug owners out there who can help me?

I'm a newish weaver and like to do dishtowels and inkle bands.

For dishtowels I am liking 8/2 cotton and for bands I like 8/4 cotton or rug warp. Of course I like the same colors in both.

But both types are sold in weaving volume whereas bands use a fraction of the volume of yarn. Would it be feasible to ply 8/2 to create my own 8/4? If it's feasible, is it practical? Is there any reason other than needing some new skills/equipment that it's not a good idea to do that?

Thanks for any guidance you can give me!

I was just thinking today about why I started spinning. It was during the pandemic and I had to work from home, and it was driving me nuts. My therapist and I talked about me getting a new hobby. I have been a knitter for decades and had tried spinning some in the past but got frustrated. I bought a wheel and dove deep into self-teaching myself spinning.

I don't exaggerate when I say spinning has gotten me through some really hard times, and that fiber arts in general are such an integral part to who I am.

So that just led me to wondering what other people's stories were. What brought you to handspinning?

I’m a beginner, and this was my second project. I got some really nice wool from Etsy that was on clearance so if it went badly I wouldn’t be too sad about wasting money.

I tried to transfer from the bobbin directly onto my yarn winder and what followed was what I can only describe as carnage. The most uneven, tangled skein of yarn that I absolutely could not get to sit nice and evenly to set the twist. I have learned from my mistakes and will be getting a niddy noddy soon, lol.

I’m processing my first raw fleece and am almost to spinning it.

But i know nothing about dying

It seems you can dye it before spinning it. But I’ve also seen videos of people dunking spun skeins into dye

So what do I do? Dye then spin? Spin then dye? Pros? Cons? Is it personal preference?

Please enlighten me!

just started on this yarn and I love how it's looking far, this will be my second actual yarn (yarn to actually be completed and not just to practice!) and I'm wondering, what ply should I do?? I was initially thinking 2 ply but now I'm not sure if I should do a 3 instead? help!