She seeketh wool and flax and worketh willingly with her hands. --Proverbs 31:13

3/18/2006

Before I start spinning, all the batts that I have blended on the drum carder have to be drafted out. All drafted means is that they have to be turned from thick to thin. It makes spinning easier and quicker. I begin by doing something that Deb Menz calls "z-stripping" in her Color in Spinning book. It really helps a lot.

Can you see what I did here, cause it's kind of hard to put into words. You seperate the wool into sections, starting from opposite ends. You stop short of tearing it apart, so that it stays one piece.

Once you have done that, you go back to the beginning and draft it out farther, still being careful not to tear it into pieces. It forms a big pile of fiber in one continous pile. At this point, you can wind it up into a ball using your hands. I like to use the ball winder though.

The roving ready to spin. It's so pretty I almost hate to spin it.  Posted by Picasa

3 comments:

Tracy Batchelder said...

I always wondered how a batt became a roving. The picture where you show how it is separated makes perfect sense.

Shelley L. MacKenzie said...

Wow...I had no idea just how "hard" or involved the process of spinning was. It makes one appreciate the yarn a little more I think..

Holly said...

Neat tip! I have a batt in my stash that I'll try it out on. Your colors look great, btw!