on a roll …

I seem to be on a proverbial roll over here with singles yarn. I spun a third skein of singles after receiving an extra slow whorl for my Jumbo flyer, which I had ordered a few weeks ago. I am still missing the slow whorl but hope to add that next month. It will complete my set for both my standard and jumbo flyers.

As you can see, the Jumbo flyer and extra slow whorl are enormous on the Matchless. Next to Norah’s head, you’ll notice the size even more so. Sometimes I feel like the there is absolutely no twist entering my yarns when using this whorl.

Normally, I keep the Matchless in double drive, which is a fast and consistent drive system for me to spin large quantities of fibre in. I like the speed that I can treadle, keeping my hands fast to match the speed, and thus create yarns quickly and consistently. For breaking in the extra slow whorl, however, I put the wheel back into scotch tension. The size of the whorl meant a needed a second, longer drive band anyhow!

This fibre was deep stash that in a ‘lightbulb’ moment I remembered I had and thought might fit really nicely with the recent Bourbon spin I spoke about on Monday.

As you may glean from the name ‘extra slow whorl’ and the ratios included, 4:1 and 4.5:1, this whorl is slooooow. So slow in fact that there were moments I questioned whether there was any twist entering the yarn at all! A slightly tighter drive band than I normally use helped to keep the flyer turning at a consistent speed. There seems to be a lot of drag on the flyer as the whorl size increases – I’m wondering if it’s due to the weight. Treadling didn’t feel any different but I felt the difference in my hands.

The resulting yarn is lofty, airy and soft. The Polwarth + Silk fulled beauitfully during washing, creating a slightly stronger yarn than if I had just washed in luke-warm water.

Fibre :: Sweet Georgia Yarns’ Polwarth + Silk, colourway Tumbled Stone

Yarn :: singles yarn, 375 yards/113 grams, 1506 YPP, heavy fingering/16WPI {Ravelry project page here}

Wheel :: Schacht Matchless, Jumbo flyer, 4.5:1, scotch tension, moderate uptake

The project I spun this for is a Daybreak Shawl by Stephen West. I am a big fan of the contrasting section to show off the Bourbon colourway nicely. The tonal Tumbled Stone will help to set it off. Many have added beads to the cast off and I am seriously considering this detail. I love the weight beads add the shawls, as well as the small flash of sparkle without relying on Firestar or Angelina.

I am excited to make more progress of my current WIPs before I cast on another project. The WIP pile is slowly being eliminated so I’m happy to be looking at starting some new projects, particularly this one.

Until next time, thank you for reading,

r.