Drop spinning

When I was first learning to spin on a drop spindle, I was told that once I was able to control my drafting, I would find my natural gauge - the size of yarn my hand would tend to naturally make. Instead, I found the key to making any size thread or yarn I needed.

That "natural gauge" is more a matter of the optimum gauge for the spindle in use than it is the natural gauge for the spinner. Some people only like to make one thing, and they have found a spindle and spinning technique that fits their need. I have a friend who's favorite thing is to knit gossamer weight lace shawls. She has no need to spin anything but an extremely fine thread. Her spindles are small and light, which makes the spinning easy. If she had a heavy spindle, it would be much more difficult for her to make those gossamer threads.

I prefer variety. Some days I want to spin a fine thread to try my hand at weaving or lace knitting or embroidery. Some days I want to spin a thicker yarn to nalbind a warm hat. I choose my spindle accordingly - light and compact for a fine thread; a heavier rim-weighted spindle for a bulky yarn. A few of my spindles are versatile enough to make a wide range of gauges.

I learned to spin on a modern mid-weight (just under an ounce) rim-weighted spindle. It's perfect for making a DK weight yarn, and will spin a nice sock yarn or even a heavier worsted yarn. I spun happily, making scarves and mittens with my yarn, until the day I got an antique whorl. Suddenly, everything I thought I knew about spinning went out the window.

No matter how hard I tried, I could not make a thread. That "natural gauge" was gone. In fact, I was trying too hard. What was required to spin with that whorl was a gentle touch and finer drafting. Spinning a thread of 28 wraps per inch instead of 17 wraps per inch, that spindle would hum. I could efficiently make thread all day long. And it was a thread perfectly suited to making cloth. What could be more natural?

So, don't get stuck in a rut - play with your spindles and see what they are capable of. Push your spindle to its limits. For me, that play time opened up a whole new world of possibilities.