Editor’s note: I’m so pleased to introduce Elizabeth Prose, the new Assistant Editor for Spin-Off and PieceWork. You may know her name, because Elizabeth has written a number of articles for Spin-Off. We’re excited to have her on the team, and you’ll be hearing from her regularly. -Anne
“Is your stash run over with 4 ounce braids?” inquires Jillian Moreno in her new video 12 Ways to Spin Handpainted Top. Why yes, yes it is! Often I am seduced by the enticing colorways that beckon to me from the booths at wool festivals or from the counter at my LYS. Then there are the fiber clubs, who add a mysterious bi-monthly nugget of fibery goodness to my stash. Sadly, each one has often been stored away in a bin, as a precious object--one of a kind.
No more! Jillian does the sampling and swatching for you, showing you how to blend and ply your way to vivid and beautiful handspun yarns. She demonstrates how “size matters,” showing the difference that a thick or thin single can have when produced from a variegated top. Watching her I was eager to get to my spinning wheel, yet I was glued to my screen in anticipation of what other tips and tricks and pearls of wisdom she had to share.
Jillian demonstrates how spinning directly from the top, dividing fiber, and mixing two (or more!) variegated tops can create dramatically different effects. She gives you permission to get rid of colors and add others, so that you are designing the yarns you desire. As she guides you through managing your fiber source, her inspiring samples, consisting of both the yarn and knitted swatch, clearly exhibit what will happen when a particular method is applied. Watching 12 Ways to Spin Handpainted Top was addictive...I wanted to see what would happen next!
If you are looking for me, I will be stash diving, dreaming, and spinning up new striking combinations inspired by Jillian.
Elizabeth Prose Assistant Editor, Specialty Fiber & Spin Off