Spinning: My New Form of Relaxation

Since my last posting  I've been learning to spin. There is so much to learn, so many new terms and techniques!  But I'm thinking it's like anything else new: just jump in and figure it out as you go.  So I rented a Louet S10 DT spinning wheel from my LYS, took a spinning lesson from my LYS owner, Bridgett, watched a lot of YouTube videos, and spun, spun, spun... Most of the results were not very pretty, thus no pictures, but I could see improvement with each new bobbin full of singles.   I am encouraged to continue.

I wasn't sure I would, but I think I really like the process this involves.  Here is a picture of the first skein I was able to spin from some Dark Coopworth carded roving and a small sample that I knit from it.  I can't believe how soft it is.  I wish I had more (Oh, maybe I'll just make some!)

Next I spun two more bobbins, one with the about 3.6 oz of the Dark Coopworth carded roving and one with about 2 oz of a multicolored kid mohair/merino blend of top, intending to ply them together afterward.  I didn't know if this was a good combination of wools or not but I didn't pay much for either so I didn't have anything to lose and experience to gain. Here is a picture of the fibers:

After the spinning was done, I watched a lot of YouTube videos (names of which I can't remember right now) and just jumped in to give plying a try.  After plying the two singles together, I wrapped them around the back of one of my straight back chairs to skein it up. I measured across the back of my chair and calculated that I have about 55 yards of yarn. I then soaked the skein for 15 minutes in a lukewarm water, squeezed the water out, and rolled it up in a towel to dry it further; then I hung it up to dry.  The result is to the right.  The color in the picture isn't very good but I'm still pretty excited about the end product. Maybe next time, I'll have something really pretty to show off.
Until then...happy knitting or spinning or whatever your passion may be!
b