Wool n' Spinning

a shared passion for handspun yarn

  • October 2025 | Ketchup & Pickles (housekeeping)

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    I’m writing this after a VERY full weekend, and my heart is so full, my cup is filled and I am exhausted. As many of you know, dear Rebecca and her daughter visited me for Knit City Vancouver. We had an absolute blast and they left Wednesday morning with one extra case full of apples and wool (Rebecca will fill you in on The Wool Circle in a couple of weeks).

    Visiting Greta & hubby, Pedro, at their rare tea shop in Vancouver called O5 – one of my favourite places in the city!

    We packed in way too much but had a great time. I am still recovering but after a hectic start to the Fall, it was a lovely way to welcome Deep Fall as the trees start to turn and Canadian Thanksgiving is right around the corner.

    Playing with a book charkha @ Knit City Vancouver with my friends, Lisa Knots & Diana Twiss; below: Rebecca & Rachel in matching Jethros

    There is much going on this month – I am in the process of catching up and releasing things! Dionne has created another doozy of a Colour Mania Vlog, Rebecca is set to begin boucle but can’t stop talking about Supercoils, and I have finished Module 2 of Breaking a Braid … WHEW! It’s a lot – I’m so excited to share all this knowledge with you to strengthen YOUR spinning practice, inspire and motivate, and looking forward to hearing from you about your needs.

    **

    What’s happening this month ….

    We are getting close to that dread time of year where we FALL BACK & we do so at DIFFERENT TIMES from Europe (ugh … but more sleep!?) — watch for announcements about Time Zones over the next couple of months.

    Live Stream (Rachel): 11am Pacific Daylight Time

    • Tuesday, October 7*
    • Tuesday, October 21

    The Wool Circle (Rebecca):  11am Pacific Daylight Time

    • Tuesday, October 14
    • Tuesday, October 28**

    *This stream and ALL streams in October will be affected by Australia & New Zealand’s Time Change on October 5 & September 28 respectively.

    **This stream will be affected by Europe’s Time Change on October 26; N. America changes time November 2

    Don’t we all just love this time of year with all the time changes? There are parts of Chile that started Daylight Savings Time on September 7 but not all so I went with the World Clock Time Zones but please check since we have a few people who tune in from that amazing country, too!

    ONWARDS!

    ***

    Zoom groups hosted in the community are posted about 15 minutes prior in Slack, #general. Check Google Calendar for more information regarding times (here).

    Maker Morning‘s Zoom links are posted the day before via Patreon and on Slack (#general) about 15 mins prior to the start:

    • Wednesday, October 8 @ 9am PDT
    • Thursday, October 16 @ 9am PDT

    Maker Morning is a chance to gather on Zoom and spend some time making together! Bring your spindle, wheel, knitting needles or anything else you’d like to work on!

    Onboarding Calls help new and new-ish members navigate ALL THE THINGS! Rebecca will walk you through what you need to know & where to find everything. Links are published the day PRIOR on Patreon.

    • Wednesday, October 29 @ 12noon PDT*

    *Again, please check your time zone!

    ***

    Wool n’ Spinning Radio

    Dionne took the role of interviewer this month and asked Rebecca and I series of questions about Knit City! We got into a discussion about wools that blend well with others, and why that might be the case and finished off some speculation about what we will all be working on over the next while.

    Listen to Wool n’ Spinning Radio where you listen to your audio podcasts or here. RSS feed for the show is here.

    ***

    New for Fall 2025! Teaching, Spinning & More!

    ***

    Colour Mania & Colour Maniacs

    Dionne will be kicking off Colour Mania with Colour Basics. Trying to figure out where to start when it comes to working with colour and increasing your confidence when you make choices? Tune into the NEW Colour Mania. Available to ALL patrons.

    • Continuing with Colour Basics & Blending for Colour | Colour Mania, ep. 2 here
    • Introducing Colour & Getting Started | Colour Mania, ep. 1 here

    Colour Maniacs BEGINS November 2025 – space is limited. Join our dedicated Zoom groups (Staples, Maniacs & Queries) are here. Want access to ALL the groups? Join the Studious Spinner tier on Patreon.

    ***

    The Wool Circle & Spinning Staples

    Rebecca has been hard-at-work spinning singles and getting ready to teach us all about Textured Yarns!

    • Check out the FREE Trial for The Wool Circle here
    • Previous Wool Circles can be found here 
    • Spinning Staples (book group) meetings can be found here for members of Staplers 
    • All collections are found here (can be individually purchased)
    • Spinner’s Book of Yarn Designs Syllabus – Textured Yarns (Part IV) here

    Textured Yarns Study (Fall 2025) will begin with Corespinning, Supercoils & Variations.

    • Intro to Textured Yarns & Corespinning | The Wool Circle, ep. 149 here
    • Supercoils | The Wool Circle, ep. 150 here

    ***

    The Silk Circle & Breaking a Braid Workshop

    To kick off the NEW Spinning Purls teaching content (all previous content is still availble to patrons of the community – to browse the archives, go here), Breaking a Braid will increase your confidence when approaching those incredible hand painted braids of fibre I know we all love! Wondering what a 2-ply spun in a couple of different ways will look like in the finished fabric? Want to explore how a traditional 3-ply is different from a chain-ply? How about different fractals? Let’s talk about ALL that!

    This month, we will be preparing the braid for spinning – how I go about breaking it down, exploring the colourway repeat and whether to pre-draft … or not.

    • Prepping Braid for Spinning | Breaking a Braid, module 2 here*
    • Breaking a Braid: Introduction here*

    *note that Spinning Purls workshops will not be available on YouTube and must be watched on Patreon.

    ***

    Look for Staples // Colour ZOOM & Queries ZOOM Groups on Patreon. For ALL groups, join Studious Spinner tier.

    Spinning Staples meet on Thursday, October 9 & 23 @ 12noon Pacific. Zoom links will be posted the day prior on both Patreon and in Slack, within the private #spinning-staples group.

    Queries & Explorations meet on Saturday, October 11 & 25 @ 8am Pacific. Zoom links will be posted the day prior on both Patreon and in Slack, within the private #queries group.

    Colour Maniacs BEGINS November 2025 – space is limited. Join our dedicated Zoom groups (Staples, Maniacs & Queries) are here. Want access to ALL the groups? Join the Studious Spinner tier on Patreon.

    ***

    Comment below if you are looking for a specific link & can’t find it!

    Warmly,

    Rachel

  • Corespinning, Hanui Fog, Romney & Jacob Processing, Point Twill & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 323

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    Whew! It’s been a moment since we Live Streamed! There’s been a lot of life in the last 3 weeks – Rebecca was here & we had a grand time (minus my cold of death). Knit City Vancouver was awesome – listen to our post-recap conversation & look at the photos here!

    Rebecca & Rachel in their matching Jethro cardigans @ Knit City Vancouver 2025

    A lot has been released already this month, please check the Slack Channel #general for updates & links, as well as Ketchup & Pickles (housekeeping) here. This month is PACKED FULL of great info for you all!

    Direct YouTube Link here

    ***

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    Remember that beginning November 2025, Dionne will host a monthly ZOOM group (Colour Maniacs Zoom). This will be available for patrons in the Spinning Staples ZOOM group tier, as well as the Studious Spinner tier, on Patreon. Space will be limited.

    ***

    Dionne sat Rebecca & Rachel down to quiz them about Knit City Vancouver 2025. Rebecca & Rachel had spent the weekend exploring the marketplace, meeting with everyone in our community & of course, shopping. We share some of the trends we noticed emerge this year, including maching knitting, crochet (yay!) and more. Lots of fleece talk this month – we fell into a bit of a rabbit hole at the end of the show about a property of wool that Melissa (MellyKnits) and Rachel have been exploring with increasing interest, along with Dionne and her fibre blending experiments, called porosity (skip to ~45 minutes to listen to just this discussion).

    Listen to Wool n’ Spinning Radio where you listen to your audio podcasts or here. RSS feed for the show is here.

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Wednesday, October 29 @ 12noon PDT. Check Patreon the day before for links.

    ***

    Textured Yarn Spinning

    In keeping with our Textured Yarns that our Book Study is currently working through, I decided to grab the rest of the Columbia x Dorset cross from Kingdom Fleece and Fiberworks Advent a few years ago & get it finished! I’d already spun a bunch of it for a sweater & wanted to finish it up:

    Kingdom Fleece & Fiberworks Columbia x Dorset roving – Advent 2022 – corespun {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Resources:

    • Introduction to Textured Yarns & Corespinning | The Wool Circle, here
    • Supercoils | The Wool Circle, here
    • Corespinning How-To | The Wool Circle, here
    • Corespinning Nuances: Plying & Supercoils | The Wool Circle, here
    • Corespun & Coils | 51 Yarns SAL, here
    • Corespun & Coils PDF | 51 Yarns SAL, here
    • Corespun 2-ply | How I Spin, here
    • Supercoils | How I Spin, here

    Fibre Preparation

    Twin Oaks Farm Romney – lock pop & prepping the locks for carding; quite soft & slightly tinged tips {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Jacob x Lincoln from Dionne – picking open & carding into smaller batts; super easy to process {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Handspinning

    Bramble Ridge Haunuii Fog in ‘Hastings Sunrise’ – Lendrum Saxony, 18:1 (very slow for me); broke into 3 piles & pre-drafted for air & loft; eventual 3-ply {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Weaving

    SweetGeorgia Yarns BFL + Silk ‘Tofino Roadtrip’ {Ravelry Handspun Page here} in Point Twill, {draft shared in Ravelry Project Page here}

    ***

    Community Participation

    As always, thank you to those who share in the community, uploading photos and thoughts about what you are working on! I appreciate it – it’s my pleasure to be able to share!

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!

  • Speed Date Merino, CVM & Muga, V. BFL (M’s & W’s), BFL+Silk Point Twill & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 322

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    Welcome to deep Summer! We are on the cusp of Fall and while our leaves aren’t turning yet and our afternoons are still surprisingly warm (com’on sweater weather!), we are settling into a new routine with school and work. It feels like a warm hug that both kids are settling in. Knit City Vancouver is AROUND THE CORNER! Rebecca and I will be in the marketplace throughout the day both Saturday and Sunday – please stop us and say hello!

    Live: Tuesday, September 16 @ 11am PDT

    Direct YouTube Link here

    ***

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    Remember that beginning November 2025, Dionne will host a monthly ZOOM group (Colour Maniacs Zoom). This will be available for patrons in the Spinning Staples ZOOM group tier, as well as the Studious Spinner tier, on Patreon. Space will be limited.

    ***

    Check out Wool n’ Spinning Radio: Dionne, Rebecca and Rachel attempted to sow dissent and debate the merits of calling those handspun yarns that are not conventionally spun as ‘novelty’, ‘art’ or ‘textured’. Episode here. I know, we are hilarious and this conversation has sparked a lot of great discussion in the #podcastchat channel on Slack!

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Saturday, September 20 @ 10am PDT.

    ***

    SAMPLING

    MellyKnits Butt Hair Anniversary – Merino Speed Date, Steitzhof, MT {Ravelry Project Page here} ‘Pepper’ speed dated (in no particular order):

    • ‘Cinnamon’ 50/50 coated Shetland, Range Road Acres, AB
    • ‘Fara’ 50/50 coated Romney, Nighthawk Ranch, BC
    • ‘Jersey’ 50/50 alpaca, On the Brink Alpacas, ON
    • ‘Precious’ 50/50 Dorset, Shepards Haven, BC

    SPIN TO WEAVE

    While there hasn’t been much spinning around here these past couple of weeks, I have managed to weave off some pretty major projects – one in particular. It was a MAMMOTH and while it’s not finished and I will work on it later into the Fall when I have some quiet evenings (especially as it gets darker), I have some photoage to show you of the weaving itself.

    Log Cabin Doubleweave Blanket – 40″ wide, doubled (80″ total) x 92″ long; Briggs & Little Singles in Characoal & Gold, 6 skeins each {Ravelry Project Page here} On Loom: 12 EPI x 11-12 PPI

    Dame Godel M’s & W’s Stole – pattern draft M’s & W’s, woven as extended point twill {draft shared in Ravelry Project Page here}. FatCatKnits Variegated BFL in ‘Dame Godel Gradient’ {Ravelry Handspun Page here}; On Loom: 60″ long x 11.25″ wide, 13 EPI x 12 PPI

    SweetGeorgia Yarns BFL + Silk ‘Tofino Roadtrip’ {Ravelry Handspun Page here} in Point Twill, {draft shared in Ravelry Project Page here}; On Loom:

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!

  • Longway Homestead Breed Study, V. BFL Chain-Ply, Romney Speed Date & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 321

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    After last episode and all the changes we are making for the fall, thank you for being here today for a more conventional episode! Like Rebecca on The Wool Circle last week with her Mega Sock Project completion, I have a marathon project to share with you as well.

    Live: Tuesday, September 2 @ 11am PDT

    Direct YouTube Link here

    ***

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    Wondering about how to approach colour in your spinning? Dionne has your back! She will be delving into ALL THINGS COLOUR.

    As talked about in last episode, there are many changes coming in the Fall. Here’s the quick n’ dirty:

    1. Colour Mania vlogs will focus on all things colour – blending, dyeing and carding colour, planning projects and exploring how decisions around colour affect our finished yarns, Dionne will host this monthly vlog for patrons of the community beginning September.
    2. Spinning Purls will shift to a slightly different format: Behind the scenes, Rachel has been working on some larger workshops that will be uploaded as individual Collections on Patreon for download. These will also be dripped out slowly for those supporting at The Silk Circle level on Patreon. Available as a one-time download or supporting monthly allows Rachel to continue creating this content! Note: Previous Spinning Purls content will remain accessible & unchanged at lower patronage tiers.
    3. Beginning November 2025, Dionne will host a monthly ZOOM group (Colour Maniacs Zoom). This will be available for patrons in the Spinning Staples ZOOM group tier, as well as the Studious Spinner tier, on Patreon. Space will be limited.

    Spindle Spun Season is well underway! Check out the #spindle channel on Slack (for Patrons) to share, upload and be inspired by all the spindles. Check out the Ravelry group here, as well.

    ***

    Check out Wool n’ Spinning Radio: Dionne, Rebecca and Rachel attempted to sow dissent and debate the merits of calling those handspun yarns that are not conventionally spun as ‘novelty’, ‘art’ or ‘textured’. Episode here.

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Saturday, September 20 @ 10am PDT.

    ***

    SKEINED!

    FatCatKnits Variegated BFL “Dame Godel Gradient” {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Stages of spinning.

    Longway Homestead Breed Study completion – {Ravelry Project Page here}

    SAMPLING

    MellyKnits Guts 2 (Happy Anniversary) Romney Speed Date – May 2025 {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!

  • September Additions, Fabric Performance, V. BFL & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 320

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    This will be our last stream before the intensity of the Fall begins in our little family! For those with kids/teens heading back to school, I wish them all the best in the coming year. As we edge closer to the Fall, please think about your support of the podcast. Your support keeps the lights on here, allowing us to grow and create more! The changes coming in the Fall are exciting – let’s take a moment to welcome Dionne.

    Here is a snapshot of the changes:

    1. Colour Mania vlogs will focus on all things colour – blending, dyeing and carding colour, planning projects and exploring how decisions around colour affect our finished yarns, Dionne will host this monthly vlog for patrons of the community beginning September.
    2. Spinning Purls will shift to a slightly different format: Behind the scenes, Rachel has been working on some larger workshops that will be uploaded as individual Collections on Patreon for download. These will also be dripped out slowly for those supporting at The Silk Circle level on Patreon. Available as a one-time download or supporting monthly allows Rachel to continue creating this content!
    3. Beginning November 2025, Dionne will host a monthly ZOOM group (Colour Mania Zoom). This will be available for patrons in the Spinning Staples ZOOM group tier, as well as the Studious Spinner tier, on Patreon. Space will be limited.

    Spindle Spun Season is well underway! Check out the #spindle channel on Slack (for Patrons) to share, upload and be inspired by all the spindles. Check out the Ravelry group here, as well.

    Live: Tuesday, August 19 @ 11am Pacific / 1pm Central / 2pm Eastern / 7pm BST / 8pm Europe

    Direct YouTube Link here

    ***

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    Check out Wool n’ Spinning Radio: Post Tour de Fleece Recap; available here

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Wednesday, August 27 @ 6pm PDT.

    ***

    SAMPLING

    MellyKnits Sommelier – Origins – June 2025 CVMxDorsetxCharollaisxGotland blended with 20% Cotton & 10% Himalayan Stinging Nettle {Ravelry Project Page here}

    MellyKnits Sommelier Firefly – July 2025 – M23 Romney Yearling (1st shearing); Billabong Farm, BC blended with 20% Himalayan Stinging Nettle & 10% hand painted bombyx silk (Sanjo Silk, BC)

    MellyKnits Sommelier – Guts 4 – July 2025 Merino

    SKEINED!

    FatCatKnits Variegated BFL “Dame Godel Gradient” {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!

  • TdF Recap: Jacob, BFL & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 319

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    Tour de Fleece 2025 was a success! Join me in this episode for a recap, including a wheel discussion & reflection, as well as, finished skeins and pending projects! Note the date change to accomodate my kids’ soccer camp plans this week.

    Spindle Spun Season is well underway! Check out the #spindle channel on Slack (for Patrons) to share, upload and be inspired by all the spindles. Check out the Ravelry group here, as well.

    Direct YouTube Link here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    Check out Wool n’ Spinning Radio: Post Tour de Fleece Recap; available here

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Wednesday, August 27 @ 6pm PDT.

    ***

    SKEINED!

    Longway Homestead Icelandic – singles {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ·         Ashford eSpinner 3; pre-drafted and spun to medium twist

    ·         Soaked in hot water with Eucalan wool wash

    Bramble Ridge Hand Dyed Yarn BFL/Masham (75/25) “The Price of Eggs” {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ·         Horizontal, stripped down into light, airy lengths

    ·         Spun each end-to-end; two bobbins; rewound

    Sampling / Spinning

    Longway Homestead Shetland – pre-drafted {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ·         Ashford eSpinner 3; pre-drafted and spun to medium twist

    ·         Wondering about leaving it as singles vs. 2-ply

    FatCatKnits Variegated BFL ‘Dame Godel Gradient’ – spinning end-to-end & chain-ply; fine; Majacraft Suzie Pro 28:1 {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ***

    Community Participation

    As always, thank you to those who share in the community, uploading photos and thoughts about what you are working on! I appreciate it – it’s my pleasure to be able to share!

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!

  • Jacob FO, All the Sampling, Calamondin & More! | Wool n’ Spinning, ep. 318

    Dear Spinning Circle,

    Tour de Fleece/ Fleece Femmes has started! The tour runs from July 5 to July 27 and then de Fleece Femmes (TdFF) starts July 26 to August 3. The Ravelry thread for our team is here. Jump in, grab your Ravatar for your profile photo & start preparing to spin!

    Spindle Spun Season is well underway! Check out the #spindle channel on Slack (for Patrons) to share, upload and be inspired by all the spindles. Check out the Ravelry group here, as well.

    Direct YouTube Link here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 314 – 324 here

    YouTube Playlists for Episodes 303 – 313 here

    ***

    There is a lot going on in the community at the moment – please take a moment to read over the Ketchup & Pickles (Housekeeping) post for this month. Please leave comments with questions so that I can help you navigate! Remember that the On-boarding call this month will be Wednesday, July 30 @ 12noon Pacific.

    ***

    SKEINED!

    Cold Valley Farm, WI, Jacob – lock popping & carding; creating small nests to spin relatively quickly. Heathered yarn, planned 2-ply for weaving {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Sampling / Spinning

    Westcoast Colour CVM – ram’s fleece from 2020 – 2.5-3.5″ staple, fine micron {Ravelry Project Page here}

    MellyKnits Sommelier – Origins – June 2025 CVMxDorsetxCharollaisxGotland blended with 20% Cotton & 10% Himalayan Stinging Nettle {Ravelry Project Page here}

    • Cross, Barnston Island Flock, BC
    • Cotton from Cottonman, NC
    • stripped original batt into four nests & pre-drafted into nests

    K-Nitting

    Lakes Cardigan by Ozetta (Hailey Smedley) – Targhee-O.Polwarth-Silk-Sari Silk blend; Hawser yarn, 4-ply {Ravelry Project Page here}

    Calamondin by Audrey Borrego – CVM fleece from CO; colourwork yarn: Nest Fibre Studios Merino & Silk (August 2016: Amanar); 3.25mm (US 3)

    Spin to Weave

    SweetGeorgia Silk Puff ‘hearth’ – 40% Merino, 40% SW Merino, 20% silk – 15EPI x 15PPI {Ravelry Project Page here}

    ***

    Community Participation

    As always, thank you to those who share in the community, uploading photos and thoughts about what you are working on! I appreciate it – it’s my pleasure to be able to share!

    ***

    Thank you so much for joining me today!

    Until then, Happy Making!