Spinning a Good Yarn

For many people not close to the world of textiles or textile production, the assumption is probably that hand spinning of yarns went out when the industrial revolution brought in mechanized spinning. But for some of us who live in the textile world, hand spinning can be something we do somewhere between fairly often and daily.

Furthermore, those of us who continue the tradition of hand spinning do not have to spin on creaky, antique wheels. While some very old wheels are still in excellent condition (or can be brought back into fine working order), there are many contemporary wheels to choose from.

A spinning wheel typically has one or two foot treadles, a large drive wheel, and a flyer, which contains the bobbin onto which the yarn is spun. However, this is also a spinning “wheel.”

While electric spinners have been around for many years, the HansenCrafts miniSpinner, pictured at right, is a new addition to the market. It takes advantage of modern technology in terms of circuit boards and other electronics in its design and operation.

A more traditional type of spinning wheel that still has a contemporary look is this wheel (below, left), made by Gordon Lendrum of Ontario, Canada. Mr. Lendrum himself doesn’t have a website, but you can find his wheels at numerous sites that sell spinning supplies, such as Carolina Homespun or Paradise Fibers.

Other modern wheels might have a more traditional look, even though it’s a contemporary wheel. Here’s one (below, right) made by the Polish wheel manufacturer, Kromski.

Like Lendrum wheels, Kromskis can be found at many reputable sellers of spinning equipment, including The Woolery, the Yarn Barn, and many others. Note that the Lendrum wheel is a double-treadle, and the Kromski is a single-treadle.

What’s the point in spinning your own yarns when you can go to a local yarn shop or go online and purchase yarn? Some of us spin so we can create specialized yarns to use in in our own weaving or knitting. Below left is a lovely, rustic scarf that gallery member Joan Hutten wove using her own hand spun yarns

Gallery member Jeanne Bohlen likes to make colorful, highly textured necklaces with her hand spun yarn. Here’s a photo (below right) of one of them:

Gayle Roehm, a gallery member whose creativity with yarn knows no bounds, uses her handspun yarns in her knitting. Here’s her handspun, hand-knitted interpretation of Audrey II (below, left) from The Little Shop of Horrors.

Finally, a number of members simply sell skeins of their handspun yarns in the gallery so that you, our customers, can use them in your own wonderful knitted, woven, crocheted, or felted creations. The skeins shown below at the right are by gallery members Heidi Moyer and Ruth Blau.

by July blog editor Ruth Blau

Hand knits at the Gallery

Knitted clothing and accessories can be bought many places, in department stores, in boutiques, and in galleries such as ours. What makes a knitted item gallery-worthy?

First, all knitted items in our gallery are hand-knit using original designs. Beyond that, one thing that often distinguishes knitted items at our gallery is the fiber used. For example, Joan Hutten's scarf is knitted of wild silk and cotton.

This detail shot shows the knitting pattern Joan used for her variegated yarn. Often the yarn in our wearables is hand-spun or hand-dyed.

Debra M. Lee is one of the Gallery's master knitters. One of her specialties is knitted tote bags made using recycled cotton canvas tote bags as the lining. These use quality yarns of natural fibers. In the examples shown below, the Journey and Chameleon and Praying Mantis bags use wool or wool and soy yarns, while the Blooming Flowers bag uses cotton, bamboo, silk, and linen yarns. Each lining is customized with a zippered top and interior pockets. The knitted fabric is reinforced with fused non-woven interfacing to help retain its shape and promote wear.

Here are the front and back of Debra's Chameleon and Praying Mantis tote bag:

The image on The Journey, below, is embroidered using the duplicate stitch technique.

Our final example of Debra's work is Blooming Flowers, where Debra knitted the bag in a geometric pattern, then added separately knitted and crocheted flowers.

Photos by George McLennan

When asked how her bags differ from commercially produced tote bags, Debra says:

• My hand-knits are my attempt to change the grandmotherly, dowdy perception of knitting as a craft and help bring it into modern, contemporary fashion and art.

• My bags take a small step toward reducing our carbon footprint by recycling mass produced canvas totes.

• I incorporate the principles of design and color through the use of color yarns and imagery that are not easily mass produced. The images on the Journey and Chameleon and Praying Mantis bags are hand-embroidered, for example.

• Each hand-knit is a project with a unique vision.

Of course, knitting need not be restricted to functional items. One example is Gayle Roehm's knitted interpretation of a Fabergé egg, Spring Flowers Egg:

Photo by Miriam Rosenthal, ThirdEyePhotography

This is but a taste of the range of knitted items that may be seen in our gallery. Please stop in to see what our members are showing this time.