Hand spinning is an ancient task invented as a means of creating fabric. The essential task evolved into an art form and now people use it as a method of relaxation and expressing creativity. Equipment, tools and accessories have helped make the task easier and more efficient for both commercial manufacturers and hobbyists.
Identification
Hand spinning is a fiber art with a long history recorded back to ancient times. The art involves twisting fiber using a spindle or spinning wheel to create a long string of yarn. According to Known Whorl Spinners of Atlanta, excavation sites show the existence of hand spindles for spinning fiber as far back as 5000 BC. This shows that our ancestors found ways to process fiber for clothing and fabric instead of harvesting animals solely for their fur hides.
Equipment
The major equipment required for hand spinning is either a spinning wheel or a hand spindle, also called a drop spindle. Many people that want to experiment with hand spinning begin by using a hand spindle since they are relatively low in cost and portable. A hand spindle consists of a 12 to 15 inch long dowel with a 2 to 3 inch diameter whorl placed on either the top or bottom of the dowel. The fiber wraps around the dowel to create yarn as the spindle twists and spins. Spinning wheels come in many shapes and sizes, with the basic design having a turning wheel and spindle that twists the yarn. A cord, or belt, connects the spindle and wheel so they both turn at the same time. Antique and ancient wheels required you to turn the wheel by hand instead of with the pedal found in newer wheels.
Accessories
Hand spinning requires fiber and a spinning wheel or hand spindle. There are several accessories to make the task easier and save time. A niddy noddy is a device used for making a fiber skein by wrapping the spun fiber around the two protruding pegs. A skein is yarn wrapped in a coil similar to a garden hose. A lazy kate is a device with several pegs that holds multiple spinning wheel spindles to make it easy for you to ply several layers of spun fiber together in a thick yarn.
Fiber
There are many fiber options available for hand spinning,with the most common being sheep wool. Sheep wool is available in many styles including a very fine crimp, hairy and course thickness. Other fiber options include cotton, llama and alpaca wool, angora (rabbit fur), silk, synthetic fibers and fiber blends. Natural fibers dye easily, which allows you to create color combinations not often found in manufactured yarn.
Benefits
According to Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, Gandhi believed that hand spinning was beneficial to the economy of India. He felt the task was easily learned, that the equipment low in cost and that it taught people to work and cooperate together. Gandhi also felt the spinning gave people the time to think, meditate and pray since the activity is repetitive and continues to operate until you stop it.
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