Navajo plying and fancy yarns workshop

A very brief note as I'm a bit pushed for time (if anyone wants to add to this, please feel free - just email me at the Guild address with your comments).
An amazing day on Sunday, May 13th., with Chris Jukes and Anne Campbell learning some foolproof ways to produce a bit more than your average 2-ply yarn.  Not only 3-ply chaining, but 4 and even 6-ply - useful for our own handspun and also for jazzing up commercially spun yarns.  And then learning how to do a straightforward wrapped yarn.
Loads of people doing yards of spinning, lots of new members, cake...... what more could you ask?

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This is from Di Bruce:

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“As a relatively inexperienced spinner I gained both practical and inspirational skills from Chis and Anne’s workshop. I learned about the benefits of using navajo plying to quickly produce yarn with only one bobbin, as well as how to produce funky art yarn from core spinning and wrapping techniques. I became immersed in experimenting with colour and texture like never before in my spinning and came home with samples that are already urging me to raid my own stash with more confidence and creativity. Many thanks to the providers and organisers for making this possible. No more drooling at the yarns on Etsy....instead I will produce my own!

My only regret is that I didn’t circulate to view the lovely yarn produced by others from the varied stash we were offered during this most enjoyable workshop. 

For me the sun shone both outside and in this Sunday.”

AC

Plying workshop with Katie Weston (Hilltop Cloud)

On our first Sunday meeting in 2018 we were delighted to see Katie Weston once more, this time for a workshop concentrating on that all-important step in yarn production - plying.  

Katie took us through all the stages of producing a consistently plied yarn, and provided excellent, clear tuition at each point of production.  We learned the difference between freshly spun singles and yarn which has been left to rest on the bobbin, and the usefulness of obtaining a "ply back sample" from the freshly spun yarn - and the importance of keeping it for reference!  We also discovered the miraculous regenerative powers of warm water on tired singles.

Katie touched on the use, or otherwise, of counting treadles while spinning and plying: those who already do it will continue, and those who don't need to won't. 

We plied our own yarn, and Katie's, and other people's (a bit daring); learned or revised "Andean" and chain (Navajo) plying; and finally some of us had a go at making a cable yarn.

This really was a brilliant day and we all - beginners and more experienced - learned a great deal.  Now we have no excuse for producing  underplied fluff, or overplied rope.....

Thanks to all who attended, and those who helped organise the day, and of course especial thanks to Katie for yet another excellent session.

Freshly spun and plied Blue Faced Leicester - the same fibre in each hank, but each hank is unique.

A simple way to demonstrate plying twist.

All agog...

Taking into account the importance of ply when knitting - twist will affect the drape of the finished garment, and the number of plies in the yarn will influence the effectiveness of lace or cable patterns.

Chain plying

Katie in action...

...And the traditional cake - sorry, biscuit - picture