Yesterday, the missing parts ordered for my new wheel arrived and the wheel assembly was finished. Over the year that I have been spinning, I have accumulated a few small bunches of roving of various fiber, some from just not finishing roving I was spinning, some the wee giftees from the friend from whom I purchased my first wheel, and a few left from when I was drop spindle spinning. I pulled out some Merino, an easy to spin fiber and tried out the new wheel.
It is a learning curve to change wheels, I don't know how people with multiple wheels manage it. The first few tries resulted in the roving getting too thin and disappearing onto the bobbin while I still had the rest in my hands. After a number of false starts, I got the hang of it, I thought, and spun the remaining few yards of Merino, switching to a Merino/Silk blend and feeling pretty good about the wheel when the roving broke and I lost the end on the bobbin. After trying to find it for a while, I gave up. Today I resumed looking for the lost end to no avail and cut the single near where the end should be and worked backward until I had a solid single to begin on again.
This afternoon has been a fun experiment, using Corriedale in vivid colors, Blue Faced Leicester/Silk blend and pure Alpaca to create a funky bobbin of single that I am going to ply with a neutral and use to knit blanket squares. Maybe someday, there will be a blanket or throw to warm us on a cold evening and it will be made entirely of homespun yarn.
I am in love with my new wheel and still adore the spinning process.
What an art spinning is...I envy you the ability to do it...I have always wanted to learn to spin but never have taken the time to do it...
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