I love spinning cotton during the summer. (I’ve mentioned this a time or two.) I also enjoy small, hot-weather projects that let me get a quick crochet fix or use up small bits of yarn. This month, I’ve been diving into a pile of odd little skeins of handspun yarn—the fruits of my early charkha spinning education.
Julie Cuff
First published in Blueprint Crochet by Robyn Chachula and later included in Crochet Jewelry Projects, this is a perfect project to use up the bits and pieces of yarn that inevitably pile up when you practice spinning cotton. This small skein of organic, natural-color cotton is a happy reminder of Oregon’s Fiber in the Forest. I made a few wonderful friends who happily dipped my tiny brown skein of cotton into an indigo pot. The dusty blue will make a fun summer cuff. I think it will need a few vintage buttons for good measure.
Indigo-overdyed brown cotton Kate spun on her charkha. Spinning cotton can be so colorful!
Plain-Weave Ribbon
Inkle and backstrap-woven bands require a surprisingly small amount of handspun yarn. This band is woven with a variety of natural-color, organic cottons from Sally Fox. Bands can be woven out of an interesting assortment of handspun yarns, but some work better than others. Read more about it in Spin Off Spring 2018.
Backstrap weaving in the forest.
Summer Stitching
I have fallen hard for sashiko and boro-inspired stitching as well as spinning cotton. Now I can combine stitching and handspun cotton! One of my new favorite ways to take a quick break during a stressful day or keep my hands busy while chatting with friends is to stitch odd bits of fabric in free-hand patterns with handspun yarn. It’s a bit like doodling.
Kate is really into stitching circles this summer.
—Kate Larson
Featured Image: All images by Kate Larson.