Knit Flix

Saturday, January 19, 2008

1/4th of the way in


Happy Hippie Optim

Silky and a bit slippery with a long staple, that's Optim. I can only spin thin singles these days and this stuff can get crazy skinny! The color is rich and the singles retain the beautiful sheen of the fiber--and it's so soft.

One ounce in and I'm still trying to figure it out. When things are good it spins smoothly and evenly, then something happens and I'm fighting it. I think the "something" has to do with what my back hand is doing and how the ends of fibers line up.

Not that I really know what I'm talking about, but my self-assessment is that the back hand has too much pressure and keeps the individual fibers on the outside of the fiber that I'm holding from moving freely.

The second problem is a group of fibers will line up so their ends aren't staggered. When that happens, the twist travels down those fibers quickly and I'm not able to pull out a nice 1-2 inches with my front hand, an entire staple length wants to come all at once.

In spite of the process, the singles are beautiful and I'm looking forward to the yarn--Navajo plied most likely to keep the colors pure.

Maybe 2008 is the year for a spinning class or two.

Labels: , ,

4 Comments:

  • So pretty! I think your assessment is probably right - crushing the fibers in the back hand is a likely cause of stiction. Then again, so is "abused bump" - maybe the fiber was already beat up when you got it? Hope the finished yarn turns out like you want!

    By Blogger spinnity, at 1/19/2008 11:11 PM  

  • It looks good to me. Beautiful colors! I am looking forward to getting our shipment and getting in our house so that I can take up the spinning again!!!!

    By Blogger Cindy/Snid, at 1/20/2008 4:15 AM  

  • It looks great and so pretty to me.

    Although now I'm a bit timid about digging into the 100 g of Optim that I have here.

    By Blogger Elemmaciltur, at 1/20/2008 2:12 PM  

  • I agree - it looks beautiful to me!

    By Blogger Octopus Knits, at 1/21/2008 12:15 PM  

Post a Comment

<< Home