Spinning

I own an Ashford Traveller wheel, and an assortment of drop spindles. I use the spindles more than the wheel because they are portable, and look great at demos. (“Look, mom! A medieval yo-yo!”)

I spin primarily wool, although I’m experimenting with both flax and cotton. I recently spun some gray fleece with the intention of naalbinding socks to go with the 10th century Scandinavian shoes I’m working on, but haven’t gotten beyond the spinning stage. The shoes aren’t done either.

I would like to improve my spinning to the point where I can use it for tablet weaving, but I have a long way to go.

I have two churro sheep fleeces, a white one and a black one, to work on. They were purchased from the Ag department at New Mexico State University. The churro sheep were brought to what is now the southwestern United States by the Spanish. Their wool is used to make Navajo rugs.