I'm Plying!

It's time to pull out the Niddy Noddy again, which now has several layers of yarn on it. I finished spinning my merino from Yarnivore the other day, and yesterday I started to ply.

Here is Mom helping me get the indigo single off the Niddy Noddy. Actually, she's posing for the camera here, but it is a really good picture and I wanted to post it. (That's her spinning wheel in the background.)

Here is a close up of the periwinkle single as I wound it. I talked about using a Lazy Kate, but Mom's was full, so I just rolled them into balls.

Here are the two singles, ready to go.

It seems like I read somewhere that you can just ply yarn by letting the two plies untwist around each other. I think this can still work, but Mom suggested using the drop spindle. I think it was a better choice for the merino, since it has less twist.

(I kept having to look at the clock to make sure I was spinning counter clockwise.)

Mom explained the concept of "balance." A balanced yarn won't kink up like it is here. However, we both agreed that this yarn looks better "unbalanced." The balanced yarn was too loose.


Here is what I have so far. The problem is that all four ounces won't fit on the drop spindle. I think I'll just take the yarn off the drop spindle and keep plying with a ball of yarn sitting under it.

I still can't get over the fact that I'm actually making yarn!