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Luba
New Pal
Australia
34 Posts |
 Posted - 10/26/2008 : 02:39:07 AM
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Hello everyone,
I have just discovered spinning lace weight yarn. I have never been able to get the yarn thin enough becaude I have always carded my fiber. I'm now trying to preserve the parallel formation of the fibers through the washing and combing processes. I haven't got any special laceweight spinning equipment. I do use a very light tension though. Just wondering if anyone has any tips on how to spin better fine yarns?
Kind regards,
Luba |
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KathyR
Permanent Resident
New Zealand
2969 Posts |
Posted - 10/27/2008 : 4:59:36 PM
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Not an expert here but I don't really think that preparation has much to do with the ability to spin a fine yarn. You need to draft out less fibres than you do for a thicker yarn but make sure you have enough twist to keep the thread from drifting apart.
KathyR
If you always do what you always did, you'll always get what you always got.
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kdcrowley
Permanent Resident
USA
4773 Posts |
Posted - 10/27/2008 : 5:23:00 PM
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Yes, Kathy is right. The lightest tension and takeup will work wonders....a parallel prep can help, but since many spinners are better with woolen, this might not be as crucial for some folks.
Kelley
Check out my solar-dyed yarns at http://www.ceallachdyes.com
and my blog at http://ceallachknits.blogspot.com
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knottyknitter
Permanent Resident
USA
3702 Posts |
Posted - 10/27/2008 : 5:35:00 PM
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What Kelley and Kathy say is right - light tension is one of the main keys. Also, since getting enough twist in is very important too (although the longer the fibers / staple, the less important it becomes), using one of your higher ratios is very helpful as well, as you'll get more twist more quickly.
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Katheroni
Permanent Resident
USA
1407 Posts |
Posted - 10/27/2008 : 10:01:41 PM
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| What the others said. Also, a bit of pre-drafting could help. |
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davidrv
New Pal
USA
23 Posts |
Posted - 11/04/2008 : 07:51:17 AM
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Choosing the right fiber is also important in making lace weight yarn. Coarse fiber still needs some minimum number of fibers to make a stable yarn, so the tried and true "easy" wools like Romney or Shetland can be more difficult to manage.
Many people like a substantial "halo" on lace weights, so any kind of combed top wouldn't be the first choice for this. Fine or super-fine wool, maybe carded with angora or a camelid down make great fuzzy lace-weight woollen yarn. Coarser fiber will need to be in combed top and spun worsted, or the smallest you can do easily will be fingering or sport, and there will be little or no halo.
Teeswater is a neglected fine wool that will draft out to lace-weight even with really long-draw woolen technique. It's longish staple makes a very strong lace-weight yarn with a modest halo.
David
(Spin, knit, crochet, tat, bobbin lace) |
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knkurz
New Pal
USA
1 Posts |
Posted - 12/19/2008 : 2:30:12 PM
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I have recently been spinning lace-weight qiviut, and it is definitely important to make sure you have enough twist. The yarn I spun most recently doesn't have enough, and it drifts apart so easily that I can't continue to spin until I backtrack enough to find a stronger spot. This means lots of carding and respinning for me  |
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lisaandjo
New Pal
Australia
6 Posts |
Posted - 08/31/2011 : 10:29:11 PM
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Hi ! washing, & or combing is likely to cause more problems for you, and no substitute good carding, What you are attempting is a challenge, are you using a wheel with 2 drive bands?? or does it use scotch tensioning??? is the drive band/s, cotton or polycord?? what do you use to card your fibre?? Hand, or Drum Carder.
As other replies have indicated Slow wheel speed, Minimum tension, Accurate/Consistent drafting, from a small source, As long a staple as possible, enough twist and not overspun, will do the trick. You'll be a star in no time at all ! |
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Advice for spinning laceweight yarn
