The Wheel

I began drop spindling in February, thanks to the loving encouragement and enabling of my knitting/spinning group at Textiles a Mano in Eugene. I think it began thanks to Jo, who I watched making ethereally thin single-ply on a number of beautiful spindles. She let me borrow five or six of her spindles, and with a bit of blue-faced leicester, or BFL, I was off and spinning. I was encouraged by the rest of the spinners, who I saw every Saturday making beautiful, truly unique handspun on their wheels and spindles. My original idea in pursuing spinning was to take my spindle on my upcoming trip to Europe in October, as another craft I could do while being nomadic and traveling light.

Fast-forward to June. I've spent the last couple months watching my friend Peggy learn to spin on her new wheel, an Ashford Joy, I learned to chain ply on the fly from my friend Stephanie, and I went to the Black Sheep Gathering with my friends from the shop and spent hilariously fun hours examining fiber and yarn.

Jump to July 4th. Devlin, my partner, and I went to his mom's house in Newport for dinner and the fireworks. His mom invited her neighbors, Denise & Lewis, over to dinner as well, and we had a lovely meal. After, I pulled out my new Bosworth (found at Black Sheep) and began to work on my chain-ply. Denise was watching, and after a little while, she said, "You know, I have a spinning wheel in my closet - it's been there 20 years - and I think you'd be the right person to have it."

I just about fell off the deck. "Really?? A spinning wheel? " I asked her. I tried at first to sound light and not over-eager, but I was unable to hide my astonishment.

We decided we would go fetch the wheel the next morning... but after the dishes were done, I just couldn't wait. We trooped over to Denise's home, and she pulled the wheel out. It was a lovely little Ashford traveler, as I later learned, dry and in need of some wood finishing wax, but otherwise in perfect shape.

And thus, I am now spinning on my new wheel, thanks to Denise's generosity! I have finished a small test-ply skein, and I'm now on to spinning Esmeralda with a lovely skein of "Destin" by Dicentra. Now I have three months to spin my head off before we go to Europe!