Several folks have asked how you do a criss-crossing wind-on. It’s pretty simple, and I wrote up the basics a few years back — with nary a question or comment! I demonstrated it with a low whorl spindle, and spiraling up the shaft to where you’ll do a half-hitch, but this same principle applies to […]

There’s a lot to say about filling up a spindle. I often hear from folks who have been told that a big problem with spindles is that you just can’t put a lot of yarn on them, and that’s one of the reasons why wheels win out. The thing is, it isn’t true. Flyer wheels […]

So how much twist is really too much twist? It’s common for spinners to talk about something having too much twist, especially if they’re new — but the truth is that yarn can handle way more twist than you’d think, and the exact right amount of twist is really subjective. When I’m talking about the […]

A few weeks ago my husband said to me, “So have you ever heard of EDC?” I thought about that. The only thing that leapt to my mind went way back to being pregnant, when that stood for “Estimated Date of Confinement,” and referred to, you know, your due date. Somehow I didn’t think that […]

A couple of years ago I made a video called Drop Spindle Basics to demonstrate, well, the basics — the most elementary parts of spinning. Since it’s been up, I’ve gotten all kinds of feedback on that video, ranging from “THIS IS AN AMAZING VIDEO. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge with the […]

Man, you guys came up with some absolutely fabulous stories. I have been laughing my butt off reading them all, and I love every one! But Lauren was the closest to right. A dear friend of mine had an absolutely appalling February (I keep telling her March is bound to be better) that was riddled […]

…unexpectedly this time, because there is a GENUINE SPINNING TEACHER EMERGENCY. And I’m totally the spinning teacher on call, so, you know. Gotta go. But not before quickly taking a moment to blog that it just slays me that I get to say “There is an emergency that requires a spinning teacher.” I have images […]

I’m back from an absolutely amazing trip to Colorado! While the purpose of the trip was to handle all the step-by-step photography for my upcoming book Respect the Spindle: Spin Infinite Yarns With One Amazing Tool, there’s a long list of “I’ll do that without fail if I’m in the area” things I also managed […]

I’m finishing up one of the stranger packing-for-a-trip jobs I’ve ever done. My suitcase is literally more than half full of spindles and fiber. Usually, I’d only take a few, but this trip is different. I’m heading to Colorado for a week working on step-by-step photography for my book, forthcoming from Interweave Press this fall. […]

UPDATED 17 July 2017! I originally wrote this in 2008, but have updated it annually ever since. At this time of year, we seem to always have a huge crop of new spinners and would-be spinners looking for information about getting started. So I thought I’d take a morning and pull together an overall post […]