Finishing My First Sweater Spin || I SPUN IT ALL 🧶💫The Yarn Diaries ep. 03 ✨

[@dianekawagoe2330]

Spinning to knit a sweater is one of my goals, too! I keep getting caught up in just how much roving (in weight) do I need to get enough yarn to knit a small-sized adult sweater. I think I tend to spin a thicker yarn than it appears to me as I do the singles. That’s not all bad as I would not need as many yards as I might for a Dk sweater. I’m looking forward to seeing what you pick out to knit and then follow the knit on its journey. 🤗

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

@@dianekawagoe2330 - A trick I used the first time I needed to figure out the thickness of my singles was to take a commercial yarn of the weight I needed. I cut of a generous foot (or two) of it and split it carefully into singles. I wet those singles to get the kinks out the plying had given to it. Then I used one of those singles as a visual reference. For the fibre weight I calculated how much of the commercial yarn I’d need… and bought a little more of the fibre, just to be certain. Turns out my hand spun is a bit heavier than the commercial stuff, so it’s a good thing I got extra! Now I work a little differently. I know roughly how much I’m going to need. I still always get a bit extra, because leftovers are great to blend in order to ‘extend’ braids of fibre that just kinda sorta accidentally’ end up in my checkout basket when I’m intentionally ordering fibre, and that I want to turn into a project. Hope this helps and happy spinning! Edit: Another useful method is to spin up a sample or a skein in the thickness you want/need, then figure out the yardage and weight. Then order more of the same asap (plus a little extra if you can) to have enough for your project.

[@dianekawagoe2330]

@ Thanks so much for this sage advice! This makes a lot of sense and I think I’ll do that in the future. 🤗

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

@@dianekawagoe2330 - It’s not perfect, and every fibre behaves differently (crimp between wool varieties can vary enormously) which means the thickness of your singles will be affected too. But at least you have an indication. I find it’s a good addition to a ply back test. For bigger spins I’ll ply a few feet of my singles when the bobbin (or spindle) is full. For 3-ply that’ll usually be a chain ply. It doesn’t need to look absolutely perfect. It just needs to provide a reference.

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

My current spin is for 1300+ metres (1420+ yards) of lace weight Shetland 2-ply for a shawl. It’s a gorgeous dusty purple and I’ve spun the singles as fine as I could (cobweb or frog hair?) before plying. I still have to weigh the skeins but I’m estimating it’ll be around 100-150 grams total. The pattern I’ll be using is the Maikell Shawl (Estonian lace). Once I’m done with that, I’m planning on knitting a Ranunculus sweater. I’ve got some sinfully beautiful merino/camel/silk blend to spin up for that and I also want it lace weight, to create a sheer, drapey, soft and comfortable sweater to be worn over a top or undershirt. Something to crawl into when life is definitely something you have to face but don’t feel like facing: a luxurious hug that doesn’t weigh you down because let’s face it, some days you just need a hug from morning ‘til evening. Soft, light fabrics are perfect for that. Planning to add a cowl/turtleneck to it, but not entirely sure about that yet. Happy spinning!

[@knittingwitheve]

Wow!! your projects sound incredible! Spinning such fine lace-weight Shetland for a shawl sounds beautiful, and the Ranunculus sweater in that blend will be so cozy and comforting. Thanks for sharing - very inspiring! Happy spinning!💛✨

[@micahmilne]

Gotland is a fairly heavy wool. Many longwools are. This means that usually people will get less yardage per pound than they would with a finer wool. Not a bad thing, just something to keep in mind. I'd recommend knitting a swatch with it to find a needle size and stitches per inch that feels right for the yarn, and picking patterns based on your desired gauge. A lot of the time because of the halo and weight Gotland is really beautiful knit more loosely, but it's all a matter of personal taste. 😊

[@knittingwitheve]

Good to know! Thank you! this is my first experience with a long wool, so I will definitely knit a gauge when I try to find the right pattern

[@nadiadoucet8932]

Im also spinning some Gotland right now , I was thinking Nurtured by Andrea Mowry

[@knittingwitheve]

Thank you! I will add it to my list of potential knits

[@Lisa-io6jt]

I only recently discovered your channel but I really love watching your videos while knitting 🥰 and your spinning videos will definitely be the reason if I come home with a spindle one of these days. Your yarn looks beautiful! Can't wait to see it knit up 😍

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

As a relatively new spinner (started spindle spinning August of 2023 and bought my first e-spinner that November), I can only recommend it. The drop spindle wasn’t my thing. The supported spindle was. Soon I wanted more. In came a mini e-spinner (Eel Wheel). During Tour De Fleece this Summer I bought my larger e-spinner. I still absolutely love my supported spindle but my regular lunchtime companion on in-office workdays is my mini e-spinner. Spinning after a long and stressful workday means I can relax enough to sleep well. Knitting with my handspun is a joy. A spindle doesn’t cost a lot of money. Neither does a braid or a few nests of medium staple-length of wool fibre. Warning: spinning is addictive.

[@knittingwitheve]

Thank you so much for watching! and I do I hope you try spinning one day, spindles are a great way to start!💛✨

[@Lisa-io6jt]

@@eddavanleemputten9232 thanks for that input! I think I am also leaning toward a supported spindle. Or the Turkish drop spindle kind of looked cool as well 🙊 Haha and thanks for the warning! 😁

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

@@Lisa-io6jt - Turkish spindles are great! Their best ever feature is that you get a centre pull ball once you’ve filled them. I rigged mine with a longer shaft (bottom part sticks out a bit more) so I could use it supported as well in a bowl wide enough to accommodate the whorl ‘legs’. Supported or suspended, it’s a great spindle to have. Whichever you end up using, give yourself time. You might take to spinning like a duck to water or it might take a while. Either way, spinning is a fun skill to learn for anyone who likes to play around with fibre.

[@Lisa-io6jt]

@@eddavanleemputten9232 Oh interesting modification! Thank you so much for the advice 💕

[@miriamlopezdiaz1002]

Wonderful!!! Great job! I'm learning too... kisses!

[@knittingwitheve]

Thank you!! 💛

[@knittingwitheve]

Yes it can be really hard to know exactly, or a rough estimate of how much you will need for a full sweater. Since this was my first full spin I asked over on reddit for help, and looked at how much weight people were buying for different types of spins they made. www.reddit.com/r/Handspinning/

[@miriamlopezdiaz1002]

@@knittingwitheve Thank you, I didn't know that website... ☺