Knitting Hanspun Socks- 2 ply yarn

Knitting socks in handspun yarn is terribly amusing to me. Every inch is unique, every row exciting to see how it builds upon the last. This yarn has some camel carded in to it. Mmmm.

I like to spin my sock yarn for basci socks 2 ways: Navajo plied for a more striped yarn, or two plies to really spread out the stripes and make a more tweedy yarn. If I am knitting a lace pattern I will probably do 2 or 3 plies (but not navajo ply)  in a noncontrasting blend. 

Here, I want contrast but am doing 2 plies since my batts are somewhat tweedy and I want only short stripe segments. 

Spinning with my super fine lace flyer + bobbins on my Lendrum. LOVE the flyer. I spin multiple bobbins then ply switching between them to make the finished yarn more even (in case I spun one bobbin thicker or thinner than the others). Did I mention how much I love this flyer? I am using the lowest ratio for it to spin these really fine singles. 

Finished, it looks much more tweedy and less striped than I was hoping for originally. Knitting the toe of the first sock proves it is at least a bit stripey, so I am crossing my fingers!

There's only 275 yards/~4 ounces of the yarn, so I will be knitting the socks at least partially 2 at a time. I don't anticipate a problem not having enough yarn though since it is almost dk weight.

My cat is obsessed with this chair! Don't mind the mess in the background- I was rescuing a couple things people left at my apartment building to keep them from being thrown out. Chair is not staying since I don't need another chair, but I feel kinda bad now that Joey likes it so much!

Subtle Tweed Plaid- Spinning Warp + Weft

I started spinning yarn for the warp + weft of a scarf last week. I was trying to create a scarf that was a very subtle plaid with a tweed handspun yarn. I use shoestrings to keep the warp in place instead of fiddling with lots of knots to get the right tension. It is especially handy since I can tug on specific shoestrings to tighten a section without changing the tension on the warp ends next to it, or the trouble of tying a bunch or larks head knots. I use a technique described in Warping on a Shoestring.


I used a pattern for the scarf from The Handweaver's Pattern Directory: Over 600 Weaves for 4-shaft Looms, though I modified the twill pattern I was using a bit to make it more interesting.


For the warp I spun it in tight short draws to make a dense yarn that is 2 plies and not very elastic. When I block the warp yarn I weight it down since I want the yarn to be not stretchy, which would create tension issues on the loom.


The warp yarn is a combo of the fibers used for the weft spun with long stripes of different naturally dyed colors I had in stock, a variety of bamboo fibers, mohair, soy silk, alpacas, and other wool. One strand is striped and plied with a plain ply of the weft color.



I tried to vary the colors and length of stripes for each segment I was spinning so there wouldn't be any huge blocks of color since I am trying to create a very subtle tweed and plaid in twill.


Spinning weft yarn- I divided up the naturally dyed roving in to short chunks and spin them long draw woolen style to create a squishy weft yarn that will fill in and full out between the warp threads. I don't weight down the weft since I don't mind if there is some squish and elasticity in it as I am weaving.

Tomorrow: The yarn and warping!