I think I need to start blogging every day again about my spinning practice. It helps keep me focused. Also, it helps me pin down details about what I’m doing and gives me a way to look back if I want to. So.
In my last post, I described the merino-silk blend and how I was practicing spinning thicker. Well, I did that and was actually pretty successful at keeping a consistent diameter over the whole 8 ounces. What was really interesting was what happened with the twist. I got a graphic example of how thickness and twist interact with each other. When I tried spinning thicker at the higher ratio (10:1) that I had used when spinning thinner, I got a LOT of twist in the singles, and plying at the related higher ratio (9:1) gave me a VERY tight yarn. You can see that here.
Tight 3-ply merino silk
So I backed off on the ratios (8:1 spin, 7:1 ply) for the next batch, and WOW what a difference. For this particular fiber, I like the lower twist much better. It feels better, and the colors are more vivid. The 3-ply yarn is about 7 WPI, which puts it in the Aran/Chunky weight range.
I have more of this fiber in a different colorway, but I’m going to save it for later. Right now I’m interesting in spinning silk fiber, because I bought this gorgeous silk lap in Texas, but I want to get some silk practice in before I touch it. So I got some undyed Tussah silk, and I’ve started spinning it. First, I did one 3-ply skein spun fairly thick. Now I’m spinning thinner with it and yes, it takes more twist very nicely.
3-ply Tussah Silk
Until tomorrow.