How To Spin A 3-ply Progressive Fractal Batt

Part 2 from Drum Carding Fractal Batts. Skills: worsted spinning, spinning from rolags and spinning from mini batts

[@PJoanGavigan]

That blue is just gorgeous!!!! Couldn’t wait to see how these batts turned out after spinning:)!!

[@jkfiberarts]

Thanks, Joan! Maybe you need a field trip to my place to make your own!

[@martyide8089]

Wow, really beautiful and you are such a great teacher !!! Thank you !!!!

[@jkfiberarts]

Thanks for watching! 💕

[@feltlikeitbydebs]

Loving binge watching your videos but need to get to my wheel. Many thanks for the inspiration.

[@jkfiberarts]

Thanks for watching! Spin Happy! 😃

[@Dina21976]

Absolutely beautiful! You inspire me every time! Thank you xx

[@jkfiberarts]

I'm so glad! Spin happy!

[@m.5018]

Thankyou Kirstan , great set of informative vids . Have a Spin Happy TDF.

[@jkfiberarts]

You too! Thanks!!

[@MarquitasKnottyCrush]

Your wheel is gorgeous! Can we get the details/ link in the description?

[@jkfiberarts]

It is a Kromski Minstrel. It can be purchased from a licensed dealer. They are handmade in Poland. It’s like spinning on a work of art. I have 2! My other one is the Kromski Sonata.

[@ChrisChambers7732]

Absolutely gorgeous yarn. You are so talented. What is the brand of your e-spinner?

[@jkfiberarts]

Thank you! It is an EEW 6.0 from Dreaming Robots.

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

I wish I had the room for a drum carder! As is, I’m saving up for hand cards and a blending board. I should be able to achieve a similar result with those. Rolags and mini-batts should be no problem. The long repeat… perhaps several mini-batts layered on top of one another?

[@jkfiberarts]

That sounds like a plan! Hand cards are great for making rolags. You might want to try a blending board! Less expensive than hand cards.

[@eddavanleemputten9232]

@@jkfiberarts - You’re absolutely right. However… As I’ve recently become the owner of 4 kilograms of raw alpaca fibre, I’m guessing those cards might come in handy too. I’ve got combs, but some of the shorter fibres might do well in a carded prep. So… more toys. LOL.

[@valeriebishop561]

Very very lovely! When you were saying you wanted to keep a 30 degree twist instead of the 45 degree is that for softness and drape that you wanted? Thank you!

[@kirstengrell5885]

Yes! You are correct! Thanks for watching and Spin Happy!

[@hartleyshandmade8471]

Do you have any tips for measuring wpi? I have a control card and I cant normally tell between 3 to 4 sections which one it is.

[@jkfiberarts]

Honestly, if you want to be extremely accurate you should wrap your single around(side by side no overlap yet touching) the 1 inch marker on your tool and then count the wraps. I very rarely do that. I have half a dozen spitting . My favorites are the fibersprite.com and this old no name one I bought from my fiber festival around 10 years ago. They are both made out of wood. They both have WPI markers slightly recessed so the yarn fits in it and you can feel that it’s in it. When you do it that way it’s always an estimate. You may notice that I often times say WPI between 22-24 or something like that. You will get the hang of it. I know that one of my tools always measures large and the other one probably measures a little bit small, in my opinion. But I am very used to it and I know what a worsted weight single is supposed to look like, etc. I use the tool as guide. if I’m going to spend a large amount of yarn for a very specific project, like a sweater. I do a test spin. I will spin the WPI I think I’m going to need then ply and set the twist to make sure I come out with what I want. Spin Happy!

[@jeanmccullough7737]

You said in another spinning video a few back that you recommend beginners to count their treadles. What do you mean?

[@jkfiberarts]

Count how many times you treadle before you let the fiber go into the orifice. It is how you get a consistent yarn. In the beginning you need to count them, check your plyback test and if you like it use that number of treadles. Think of it like counting dance steps. If you have a double treadle it’s 1&2&3&4(R,L,R,L)single treadle 1,2 3,4 etc. once you get that, I find music with that beat and eventually it’s automatic. You can adjust the wheel to work with your cadence.