2025 Goals

 Here we are at the end of 2024 and while I've never been big on New Year's resolutions, I do like to take some time at the end of the year to reflect on what I've accomplished in the past year and think about what I would like to do in the upcoming year.

As I sat down today with my new planner I jotted some things down in the front on the "yearly goals" page.

• Net stash reduction
• Knit a pair of Latvian Mittens
• Knit at least 2 sweaters, one of them being from handspun
• Knit at least 6 pairs of socks, prioritizing the skeins of sock yarn I purchased this year that haven't been knit up yet
• Get more experience with a technique I haven't used very often/ever/for a long time
• Spin the yarns from Wool 'N Spinning's Year of Yarn study
• Do at least one sweater blend project on my drum carder
• Spin up another sweater quantity of yarn
• Play more with my blending board
• Play around with luxury fiber blends on my 120 tpi drum for my carder

I thought this was as good place as any to talk about these goals in a little more detail.  

My first goal of a net stash reduction necessitates a little bit of an explanation of the how and why of how I've been tracking my yarn and fiber stash for the last couple years.  My primary goal is to keep my stash stored safely in the space I have allotted for it.  I'm really fortunate to have space in my home that can be a crafting area/office for me and therefore I don't want to be expanding into other areas of the house with my yarn and fiber beyond what I'm actively working on in those spaces and I want my space to remain usable.  There's also the whole aspect of keeping my purchases within a reasonable budget and not overwhelming myself with too much to do.  As a spinner and a knitter I include fiber from raw wool all the way through to finished yarn in my count.  I set up a spreadsheet and have in/out columns for raw fleece, scoured fleece, processed fiber, handspun yarn, and purchased (aka commercial or mill-spun) yarn.  I track in grams because that is the easiest way for me to quantify both fiber and yarn.  It also means I get a lot of credit for grams out when I scour a fleece or process it which definitely helps move the wool through the process.  Long story short, this has worked really well for me the last couple years both on keeping my incoming purchases to a reasonable level and for motivating me to work through what I have and let go of things I really don't want or see a personal use for anymore.  It is also nice that it still allows me to bring new things in and therefore doesn't quash my creativity or leave me bored.  Both last year and this year I've been able to end the year with a net reduction.  I want to do that again. 

"Knit a pair of Latvian mittens" is pretty self explanatory.  I received one of the mitten kits for Christmas so now I finally have a good sense of the yarn I need to use and I have multiple books with Latvian mitten patterns so I feel all set to either knit the mittens from the kit or another pattern or maybe even multiple.  I didn't knit any colorwork mittens at all this year so I am feeling ready to get started on some again really soon.

Knitting a couple more sweaters is on the list as well.  I have had years where I've been able to knit several, but for the last couple years I've only managed to finish two for the year.  I think in some ways I needed a breather and time to work on other things.  I would actually like to make more than 2 sweaters this coming year, but I will feel happy if I can at least maintain my current rate.  I have a bit of a backlog of handspun sweater quantities because I have completed several large spins in the last couple years so it is a priority to make at least one of them with handspun.  Honestly those are the yarns I am most excited to work with anyway.  The handspun sweaters I made in 2023 are at the top of my favorites list.

Next up is my sock goal.  I've knit at least a dozen pairs for the past few years, so 6 pairs is completely achievable.  I guess I would like to give myself a little bit of a rest on them in some ways, but I also really like to have a pair going at all times.  I purchased a lot of sock yarn this past year, some at festivals but some I ordered in colorways that I knew gift recipients would like.  I think I have 4 full skeins of fingering weight sock yarn, plus one skein of DK weight sock yarn, and then a half skein and two sets of mini skeins in fingering weight.  I would like to use all of that in at least some quantity and I'm sure I will pick up a few skeins this year as well at festivals.  I never feel bad about buying sock yarn because I am always using it, but I do want to use it within about a year of purchase before it starts to feel stale to me.

My final knitting goal is a little vague because it is one I want to keep open for exploration.  There are several special knitting techniques I've not used much, if at all.  Some of them I have maybe tested a little on a swatch once upon a time, or only used in a small quantity, or if I ever used it for something it has been years since I've tried it again.  I'm thinking about things like intarsia, double knitting, entrelac, and even brioche.  I'm currently working on a project that has a small amount of brioche, but I am not well-versed in it at all.  I'm not sure how many of those things I will do, but I would like to do at least a project that has me doing one of them.

Now we are into spinning territory.  This is also "learning" territory for me.  I joined the Wool 'n Spinning Wool Circle this year to work through Sarah Anderson's book The Spinner's Book of Yarn Designs.  I was doing really well with keeping on track though the summer, but this fall was really busy and I got behind.  I would like to get caught up now.  I did do a little sample of the chain-ply yarn with the remainder of a bobbin I had, I feel like that is good enough since I've done chain-ply, but the upcoming yarns will be ply structures I haven't spend any real time on yet.  I need to spin up singles to get caught up on October and November's yarns and then I hope to catch up to where the study is in real time and stay on track until its conclusion at the end of 2025.

I have a couple sweater quantities worth of fiber that I processed this year and are now waiting to be spun,  I definitely want to get at least one of them done, especially because the next goal is to prep another sweater quantity's worth of fiber on the drum carder.  I have commercial combed top I've been wanting to blend up as well as some clean, nice combing waste I want to blend with some sari silk.  I want to finally get around to some of these projects now that I'm all caught up on fleeces.  Along the same lines, I want to give myself time to play with blending in smaller quantities too.  I have a lot of luxury fibers in 4 oz or less that I would like to play around with blending into wool like Mellyknits does in her batts.  I just got a 120 tpi drum for my drum carder so that is better suited to that sort of thing and I am really excited to play around with it.  I also just want to play around with my blending board more, I haven't really taken it down to play with recently and I have stuff I can use on it.

That's really it, I think it is a good list that has me doing a variety of things but all of them are really achievable.  The hardest part may be deciding what to start with!

To expand on the stash...

 I'm back with more thoughts.

This time brought to you by another craftsnark thread.  I'm not really interested in discussing the subject of the thread, suffice to say there are many red flags that her behavior is over the line for what is reasonable and healthy.  

What I want to talk about is the posts that inevitably show up that are usually some combination of self-flagellation and justification for the posters own stash.  Never mind that nobody else is aware of that individual's stash, the personal conviction of the poster drives them to apologize for their own collection and justify its existence.  

Could we stop doing this?  I think part of that behavior is that if you are going to criticize someone else for their "overconsumption" than you need to prove that you are different.  No one wants to feel like a hypocrite.  The other part is that people sometimes take things way too personally.  Even though the criticism was never directed at them, it hits too close to home now.  In addition, we are talking about a craft that is predominately (although certainly not exclusively!) populated by female identifying people and I can't shake the feeling that some of this justification and apology is just automatic because so many of those people have been conditioned to believe they shouldn't be taking up space.  Add in stereotypes about how much women love shopping, and horrible misogynistic jokes about women "spending all the money" and now we have a lot of people who feel defensive anytime stash is brought up, especially if having a stash is being described as "gross" and "overconsumption" and "irresponsible."  I don't know, maybe these feelings carry over to other gender identities as well, but as a cis female person myself, I know what it can bring up for me.    

Let's talk about the Flatiron!

I have been the happy owner of a Schacht Flatiron spinning wheel for the last two and half years.  With Andrea Mowry's 100 days of longdraw challenge that kicked off at the beginning of the month I am seeing a lot of Flatirons in my Instagram stories and in my feed these days.  I have also been participating in the 100 days spin-a-long although I haven't really posted anything since taking photos while spinning is difficult without setting up a tripod or something.  Besides that, I am still chugging away at a sweater spin so it would be the same thing day after day.

I am not surprised to see the Flatiron out in full force for woolen spinning.  It is a really good wheel to spin longdraw on, and that was a big part of my consideration for getting it.  Of course you don't need a saxony style wheel to do longdraw, I did a whole sweater spin on my Kiwi; however, it was after that spin on the Kiwi that I decided if I was going to keep spinning large quantities of woolen spun yarn I would probably do myself a lot of favors to have a wheel that was a bit more ergonomically friendly to that style spinning.  The reason a saxony works so well is that with the flyer on the side you are able to draft across the front of your body instead of needing to repeatedly twist your trunk to one side for every draw.

I needed some time to save up for a second wheel anyway, so I spend probably at least a year thinking pretty seriously about that I wanted before I was able to get my Flatiron.  My basic considerations beyond "saxony" where that I needed something still relatively affordable, I still wanted a modern/currently being manufactured wheel, and wanted something I liked the look of.  I know the Flatiron is a little polarizing, but I do really have a preference for a more modern aesthetic when it comes to spinning wheels, and the Flatiron fit into that just fine.  I wasn't really tied to single or double treadle, but I definitely didn't mind it being a double treadle since that was what I was used to.  I really liked that the Flatiron would give me a wider range of ratios than my Kiwi had, and I liked that I would be able to try new drive systems.

In September 2021 I had a little bit of serendipitous luck.  One Sunday morning I opened up Facebook to find a very recent post in one of the spinning related groups I was in from a weaving store in Texas.  They were Schacht dealers and had a few wheels in stock in their store that they were discounting a trying to move out.  They had a couple Flatirons available, and I was just about $100 shy of having saved up what they were asking.  It was too good of a price to pass up and I was mostly there anyway, so I went ahead and made the purchase.

Right off the bat, and this may be a positive or negative depending on your perspective, but if you purchase a new Flatiron it is an assembly required wheel.  The instructions Schacht provides are decent, but I do recall running into a few spots where I needed a little more details and help.  Thankfully, there is an epic Flatiron thread on the Schacht Ravelry group forum and I was able to find the answers to a lot of my questions by searching that thread.  I was able to build it mostly by myself, I think I may have asked my husband for a little assistance on some parts, but I was able to handle it on my own for those most part.  Now the really good thing about the Flatiron, and something that sets it apart from most other saxony wheels, is that you get to decide if you want the flyer on the right or the left.  Most saxony wheels are designed with the flyer on the left, and mine is built that way too, but if your left hand is your fiber supply hand and your right hand is your orifice hand, being able to build a wheel to accommodate for that would make such a huge difference!

The ability to customize is definitely a huge "pro" of the Flatiron.  In addition to choosing the orientation of the wheel, you can also choose between all three drive systems.  The Flatiron can be set up in double drive or single drive, and in single drive you can switch between flyer-led (aka Scotch tension) and bobbin-led (aka Irish tension).  When I first started spinning on it I went for Scotch tension because that was what I was familiar with and there was a lot of new stuff to get used to without also learning a new drive system immediately, but I didn't wait long to try out double drive.  I have also done a little bit of spinning with it set up as Irish tension, but I do not prefer that and haven't really encountered a good reason to choose that particular set-up on this wheel.  It is also pretty easy to switch between drive systems, although I would not do it mid-spin.  The bobbin needs to be oriented differently for single and double drive.  If you are set up in single drive the brake band has a different closed hook to thread through depending on if it is going over the flyer whorl (Irish) or the bobbin whorl (Scotch).  I just leave the stretchy single-drive driveband inside the wheel and tie it up around the front leg when not in use (like when I spin in dd) since to remove or replace it you do need to unscrew some things around the drivewheel hub.  

Beyond the drive system options, the wheel is really versatile with regards to spinning ratios.  The wheel comes with the medium and fast whorls giving a range of 10.4:1 to 17.4:1 standard, but there are also extra slow, slow, high, and super high whorls available increasing the range from 4.6:1 up to 26.1:1.  There is also a bulky plyer flyer available with larger bobbins, larger orifice, and large sliding hooks, but I do not have that yet so I'm not really able to offer much insight into that advantages of that.  That particular add-on is pricey, so maybe someday I will get it, but it isn't as affordable as adding a whorl.  As a sidenote, it is probably worth mentioning that if you want to spin in double drive with the high or super high speed whorl you also need to purchase a high speed bobbin because the bobbin whorl on the regular bobbin is bigger than those high speed whorls and therefore if you try to spin you won't get any take-up.  The double drive bobbin whorl on the high speed bobbin is smaller.

As far as cons go, most are pretty minor.  I do get mildly frustrated sometimes that the orifice hook tends to want to catch the driveband when it is off the wheel (to replace bobbins for example) and so many times the driveband will get caught on it when I'm trying to get it back on the wheel and whorls.  That is an easy fix, I just need to remember to remove the orifice hook first or watch and be careful not to catch it. 

The wheel isn't especially heavy, I can easily lift it up on a table to tie on a driveband or to clean, but it isn't a particularly portable wheel.  That is a lot about size and shape, but it is pretty much never going to be the wheel I drag around the house with me or take to a spin-in.  That's fine- but maybe worth understanding if you are hoping to do that.

During the Ply Guild Spin-In on Sunday, someone mentioned that they feel the orifice is too low.  That was a surprising take to me but I am short so it could be that it just happens to fit my body better or it could be about how I sit at the wheel.  I typically draft about 12-24" back from the orifice, and my hands are generally just above my lap when drafting at a treadle wheel (they might be higher if I am spinning on an e-spinner sitting on a table) so I haven't found that the height of the orifice is an issue for me.  

Sitting at the Flatiron was definitely a different experience initially having previously only spun on a castle style wheel.  It did take a little getting used to, the spots I was sitting with my Kiwi didn't work as well with my Flatiron.  Ultimately I moved it up to my craft space upstairs and now I use it sitting on my office chair.  That has a couple advantages too- for one, I can adjust the height of my chair to get it just right and for another- my chair swivels so it further helps me ergonomically when I do longdraw.  Many saxony wheels, and definitely antique wheels, are single treadle.  A single treadle wheel can sometimes give you a little more flexibility as to positioning, but a double treadle kind of requires you sit in a particular way in order to operate both treadles.  I do find that on the Flatiron, I technically can operate it by only pushing on one treadle, it is much more comfortable to use both.  In general, I find the Flatiron doesn't treadle quite as easily as my Kiwi does, I think this is due to the angle of the treadles and the Flatiron's are just a few degrees higher.  Put a pin in the "harder to treadle" thing though, I am going to come back to that.

The biggest thing to realize about the Flatiron though is that everything is adjustable.  In the most recent episode of the Ply Guild (Season 1, Episode 7.2 Maggie Casey talks about how wheels have a "fidget factor."  Now a wheel like the Ashford Kiwi 3 is a really straightforward wheel, there aren't many things to adjust- you can change the ratio, you can change the tension on your brake band, you can (and should!) oil it.  Changing the bobbin is straightforward.  The Schacht Flatiron on the other hand is a wheel with a very high "fidget factor".  There are so many places that you can loosen or tighten or adjust, and that has its benefits and it also can create some frustration.  If something isn't quite right you can definitely fix it to make it work better.  Knowing what exactly to adjust is sometimes a challenge.  In single drive, brake band tension is an obvious place to fine tune.  But the whole mother of all tilts as well so even though you aren't adjusting it like you will in double drive, it might still need adjusted a little for the driveband to be at the correct tension, especially if you had switched back to single drive after using double drive.  I have found that living in a climate that is humid in the summer and dry in the winter I sometimes need to adjust some of the bolts on my wheel as the wood swells and shrinks with changing humidity.  Remember I said that sometimes the wheel feels harder to treadle?  If I feel like it is taking more force than it should even after oiling I have found that is usually a sign that I need to make a *slight* adjustment the the bolt at the front of the drivewheel hub and a little bit of a turn to loosen it makes for easy, effortless treadling again.  

The mother of all has a lot of places that can be adjusted.  Obviously it tilts to adjust the tension on the drive band.  The front maiden opens to change the bobbin but you can adjust the degree to which it tightens.  The bearings on both the front and rear maidens swivel.   Some of the adjustments knobs also have parts on them that can be loosened or tightened so if something isn't working quite right it could be that a bolt on the other end isn't tight enough or it is too loose.  

Even after 2.5 years I am still learning about what can be adjusted and what parts may be creating issues.  For example, just today I was having trouble after changing my bobbin.  (For context, I'm spinning in double drive on the 17.4:1 ratio and I am spinning Shetland rolags longdraw.)  I knew I needed a little less tension with an empty bobbin than what I had with a full bobbin, so I ever so slightly adjusted the mother of all to the right.  Unfortunately, it was still a little too much because then I wasn't getting enough tension to make the flyer spin and get take-up.  I adjusted back to the left and then I had twist but the take-up was way too high and the twist was also weirdly not quite enough and so I was having a frustrating time and ending up with a lot of broken singles.  I tried to find a sweet spot.  I tried cross lacing, which helped a little.  Then I started playing around and oiled some more and somehow in all that decided to try moving this screw that stabilizes the front maiden.  Guess what?  That was it! It was apparently too tight against the front maiden and once I loosened it suddenly the flyer was really going and I was getting twist in my yarn and I could back the tension off a little and I was good to go.  I don't even know how some of these things get adjusted sometimes.  But this is not a completely atypical experience for me.  Like I said, I'm still learning this wheel and the mechanics and what affects what.  When I find the right spot, it spins so, so well.  Until I get there though, it can take some real patience.  For this reason, I would not really recommend this wheel to someone who was just learning to spin as a first wheel. But if you've been spinning for awhile and have a good grasp on spinning wheel mechanics (or want to understand them better) or you really want a wheel that gives you some real versatility in what it can do, I absolutely would recommend this wheel for you.  It is a really good wheel, it can do a lot, and I am so happy I was able to get it when I did.

We need to talk about Stash

This is a complex topic.  I've read numerous posts about it in various forums, watched multiple creators tackle the subject on their YouTube channel, and I've even read entire books devoted to the subject.

Speaking of books, I highly, highly recommend A Stash of One's Own by Clara Parkes if this is a subject you grapple with on a regular basis.  It is a compilation of essays about stash, all with different perspectives, and I feel that it really helps explore the idea of what stash is and what it means to different people.  I've read it multiple times myself and it has really helped me form some of my own ideas around my personal stash.  

There's lots of reasons knitters have stashes.  Spinners often also have stashes for similar reasons.

One of the things I keep seeing lately is a lot of judgement and disgust by some people at the "over consumerism" of stashes.  I think this is somewhat a generational thing, this is somewhat just general frustration over a much larger problem in our world, this is definitely at least in part a backlash against "influencer culture" and "hauls."  

For every Reddit post decrying people having and displaying their massive yarn stashes, 10 more users will leave a comment justifying their own.  I try not to do this myself because I feel comfortable with what I have, I regularly evaluate my stash and my purchasing vs using habits, and frankly, I don't need to justify myself to a stranger on the internet who wasn't even talking about me in the first place.  

While I've given a lot of thought to my yarn stash, I haven't exactly had the same deep introspection my fiber stash for spinning.  This is probably in part because no one is making Reddit posts decrying the existence of fleece closets.  Not that I have one of those.  I just hear they exist.

Tonight though, after seeing another one of the aforementioned Reddit posts on the weekly BEC thread in r/Craftsnark, I go to thinking about this more.

Roughly a third of my yarn stash is handspun yarn, and I am someone who regularly uses my handspun!  The truth is that I can produce yarn much faster than I can knit it.  Of course the proportion has been gradually changing as well as I purchases less and less commercial yarn these days while I continue to spin at a fairly consistent rate.  That isn't the point though.  

When people buy yarn, a lot of times they buy it with a project in mind, or at least a rough idea of the product category or how they might use it.  At the very least, if it isn't just meant to be something pretty to look at and collect, it is meant to be knit with, eventually.

Fiber is a little bit different.  Sure, sometimes it is purchased with the idea of making a specific type of yarn to be knit into a specific project and of course sometimes dyed braids are purchased with that same "it is so pretty, I'll figure it out later" thought process.  I guess I can't speak for anyone else, but that is really only a portion of my stash.  I also have fibers meant to be used in smaller quantities and blended into other fibers for effect.  I have mill ends in an array of colors, I have sparkle, I have luxury fibers.  I also have fiber that is meant to practice on.  I bought a pound of Heinz 57 blend so that I always have combed top to grab and practice on when I want to try something out or practice something new.  I have fibers that I haven't really learned to spin well yet: cotton, flax, hemp, various types of silk, camelid fibers.  I have wool that ranges from 1 oz samples of combed top to an entire raw fleece of sheep breeds (or in the case of the fleece, a cross) I want to work with and haven't tried yet.  I even have a couple small bins that contain clean locks, processed wool, singles, plied yarn, and knit samples that I created for a demonstration last fall and I may use again in the future.  

I think you can probably see a common theme when I'm describing what is in my fiber stash.  Yes, there is fiber ready to spin and become a project; however, there is a large portion of my fiber stash that is meant for play, exploration, and learning.  When you learn to spin it isn't as simple as just buy some fiber, learn to spin, make the yarn you want for your project, and you're good.  It is a skill.  It takes a lot of practice to develop the skills to be able to create the yarn you want to make.  It takes a lot of learning and hand-on experience to gain that technical knowledge.  If you want to exercise that creativity muscle, it really helps to have materials to work with and combine.  My fiber stash is not primarily about acquiring and it definitely isn't for show, it is about having the materials at hand to develop my skills.  If I want to spin, I need fiber.  I need various types of fiber, I need multiple colors, and I need multiple fiber preparations to really be able to do all the things I want to do.  

This is the part that is getting lost and I think is really frustrating me in this discussion about stash.  I'm talking about my fiber stash here because it is so clear to me when I look at what I have and what its purpose is.  Yarn stashes can be very similar though.  Especially when you are talking about someone who has been knitting for several years, they absolutely can represent that knitter's journey as they've developed their skills, honed in on their preferences, tried new fibers or yarn types, and gathered materials that will spark their creativity.

I'm not advocating for anyone to go max out their credit card so that they too can record YouTube videos in front of a giant wall of yarn they cannot hope to ever use.  Is that even really happening though?  Yeah, I've seen a few channels where the answer might be "maybe?" but by-and-large,  I don't really think it is.  Knitters develop stashes for lots of reasons and just because some possibly are building them through "haul" mentality, I don't think that is the primary driving force for most people, and really, I wish I would stop seeing so many posts that are so critical of people ensuring that they have the materials they need to continue their hobby.  If you read A Stash of One's Own, take note of Debbie Stoller's essay at the end.  I think it is important.

Thoughts on Choosing Spinning Wheels, Especially for Beginners

I keep getting drawn into these discussions and question in on-line forums and groups about choosing spinning wheels.  I know I've written about this before, but for some reason, I get almost fired up about this topic.

I think my real issue is that I find the way some spinners approach this to be essentially gatekeeping.

'"You HAVE to try out wheels before buying one."

"THAT [affordable] wheel is a beginner wheel."

"THAT wheel ($) isn't as good as THIS wheel ($$$)"

Spinning wheels can be expensive.  Maybe for some people spending $500-600 isn't that different that $800-900, but it can really make the difference between being able to get a wheel or not for other people.  It makes me upset when new spinners are being steered away from perfectly good wheels because of someone else's preferences or snobbery.

I don't want new spinners to get a good working wheel and then feel like they aren't enough because someone else makes snide comments and turns their nose up at it.

So here are some things I think new spinners looking for their first wheel should know:

• It is great if you can try out some wheels before buying, but it is also ok if you aren't able to.  I wrote a whole post about this.
• Definitely listen to that advice about staying away from antique wheels that you randomly find for sale.  There are so many potential issues and challenges with them.  Secondhand is fine, but I would recommend only considering wheels that are still currently in production (so you can get replacement parts if need be) and I would recommend only buying them from a spinner and purchasing in person so that the seller can demonstrate that the wheel is in working order.  Non-spinners selling a wheel they have somehow acquired often don't know enough about wheels to know whether they actually will spin yarn. Sometimes they assume it works as long as the drive wheel spins by moving it with their hand.  Plus, there are a lot of scammers hitting FB fiber arts groups lately, so you really have to be careful about that.
• If you are buying new, please know that there are many different wheels available and they are all valid and just a little bit of basic research should give you a good idea about whether the wheel will meet your basic needs.  It is helpful if you know what type of yarn you want to produce, if you want to spin mainly really bulk, high texture  "art" yarns or know that you are going to want to spin a lot of super fine laceweight, you are going to need to be a little more choosey about your wheel, but if you just want to make fingering to bulky yarns, most wheels out there are going to let you do that.
• I don't like wheels being labeled as "beginner" wheels, I think it gives the wrong idea.  I think I've written a blog post about this too.  Here's the thing- some wheels are more beginner friendly than others.  That doesn't mean that they are only good for beginners and that after you've been spinning a few months or even a few years, those wheels won't work for you anymore.  It just means that those wheels are ones that it is easier to learn on.
• What is a good beginner wheel?  I feel like that is another blog post, and this is my own opinion, but basically one that is affordable, currently being produced, I lean towards single drive, flyer-led (aka "Scotch") tension, and an "upright"/"castle" style wheel that is easier to transport.  I would lean towards something that is simpler rather than a wheel that has all the bells and whistles right off the bat.  Not only are those wheels more expensive, when there are so many things to adjust it can be overwhelming to figure out what needs to be adjusted.  For example, I love my Flat Iron, but I can adjust so many things on there, I think it would have been totally overwhelming for me when I was just getting acquainted with a spinning wheel. 
• When you are asking for advice about wheels, a lot of times you may be getting advice from someone who has a lot of experience.  Sometimes people forget what it is like to be a beginner though, so sometimes I see them recommending wheels with features that they like now that they've been spinning for many years, but may be overkill for someone until they reach a point that they decide that is something they would also really like.  For example- high ratios.  If you get to spinning and realize you are one of those people who really likes to draft super fast (and probably super fine as well) and you like to have ratios that get to be >20:1, then yes,  you want a wheel that can offer you those ratios.  Not everyone is going to want or need that though, and it is silly to suggest that everyone needs to have a wheel that offers that, especially starting out.
• Which brings up another point-  I said there isn't such thing as a "beginner" wheel.  There is also no one, true, perfect, be-all-end-all wheel.  I get it though.  When you are starting out spinning, and  you see the price of spinning wheels, it is enough money that purchasing a wheel is a big investment, so the idea of purchasing multiple wheels can be really hard to swallow.  Therefore, when considering that wheel purchase, a new spinner wants to be sure that they are making a wise investment.  They want to know that their wheel is going to meet their needs.  They don't want to have to turn around and buy a different or additional wheel in the future.  The good news here is that many spinners do have only one wheel and are perfectly happy spinning on it, and it will basically do what they want it to.  It is also not unusual at all to find spinners with multiple wheels, and it usually isn't because they made a poor choice with their first wheel.  Sometimes it is because they just wanted to have something different and expand their range of what is possible.  Sometimes they thought they wanted one thing and found they really like spinning in another way that a different wheel can help them achieve more easily.  Sometimes people need a wheel that will travel easily, or perhaps one that accommodates an injury better.  And sometimes people just like collecting them, although that is less to the point.  I guess my point is, I know we don't want to scare off new spinners by suggesting that eventually they might want to own multiple wheels, but it is worthwhile to understand that no wheel can be everything and do everything well, and maybe it isn't reasonable or necessary to expect that of your wheel, so go with one that will do  your average, "typical" spinning well and then expand later if your spinning leads you in that direction.
• Speaking of opinions, while I think it is good to have an idea of what people to like or recommend, you do need to take some of it with a grain of salt.  People have their favorites and their brand loyalty and that is going to color what they suggest of course.  I don't have any evidence of this, but I do think there may be some people out there who dealers for one company and like to bad-mouth some others, because sometimes there is incorrect information  being repeated out there about wheels.  I would always take the opinion of someone who actually owns and spins on a wheel over the opinion of someone who has just heard something or is only looking at specs without actually experiencing the wheel.  Also sometimes I think personal preferences for aesthetics play into this.  Which by the way, it is completely valid in my opinion to let the looks of a wheel be a factor in your decision.  It shouldn't be the only factor, but you should get a wheel that you like looking at and enjoy having in your home.  
• One final thing I would maybe keep in mind- if someone does express a poor experience with a particular wheel, it is possible it was just that individual wheel.  If you hear it a lot, from multiple people, then let that hold more weight.  But if someone sat down to try out a wheel once and reports that they found the wheel "clunky" or "unstable" I think there is a really good possibility that the particular wheel they tried had something that needed loosened or tightened or needed some oil somewhere.  In fact, you may want to keep that in mind if you do have an opportunity to try a wheel.  If something feels off, maybe it is just that wheel.  If something doesn't fit your body right, that is going to be the same across multiple wheels.  So if you had your heart set on a wheel but then try it out and don't like it, maybe see if you can try another one before writing it off.  Also, do keep in mind that it can take a minute to settle in with a wheel especially when if you aren't used to spinning on any wheel.

I think that is all I have to get off my chest for today.  Stay tuned because I have some thoughts about handspun yarn and am just struggling to get those thoughts out on the page in a coherent manner.  

An Unpopular Spinning Opinion

Earlier this afternoon I saw that Tazhi of Stitches and Starlight asked for unpopular spinning opinions on her IG stories because she was considering making one of those videos reacting to viewers "unpopular" opinions.  I'm not sure if she will decide to make the video, or include my answer, or even agree with me, but I really want to expand on it here.  I actually thought I had at one point, but apparently I just alluded to it and said that it was a blog post for another day.  Well, I guess that day is here!

What I said was something like "It is ok if you can't test out a new spinning wheel before buying.  Most of the time you will be just fine!"

[So...a couple disclaimers and clarifications right off the bat. To clarify, I am talking about a spinner or would-be spinner selecting a make/model of spinning wheel to purchase new, out of the box, from a dealer.  I am NOT talking about testing out an individual wheel that someone is interested in purchasing second-hand to determine if it is in working order or whatever.  In addition, I am not discouraging anyone from testing out wheels if that is an option for them.  I'm just saying it isn't a requirement.  Lastly, you know how I say "most?"  Anyone who has a unique physical challenge (i.e. knee issues) or known specific needs or is just really, really particular  is going to be better off making an effort to test to be sure they aren't getting a wheel that is impossible for them to use or is particularly uncomfortable for their body.]

Why do I consider my statement and unpopular spinning opinion?

Spend any amount of time on a spinning forum and you will see someone ask for advice on which wheel they should purchase (usually as a beginner) or someone will ask for opinions on Wheel A vs Wheel B.  Underneath those questions you will get a handful of real responses to the actual question, but mostly you will get a chorus of "try them out!" and "go to your lys/fiber guild/festival and test them!"  So clearly the idea that you should go "test spin" several wheels before purchasing one is popular advice.  On the surface, it is good, practical advice.  Experiencing a wheel first hand is going to give you more information about it than reading an internet stranger's opinion could alone.  Here's why I would like to see people stop giving that as the default answer so much and why my opinion is that test spinning usually isn't nearly as necessary as some people would have you believe.

The first, and most minor issue I have is that apparently this is advice that needs to be repeated multiple times in the same post.  I wonder if it would get under my skin nearly as bad as it does if I saw it less.  Honestly, I think most people looking for a wheel have probably heard that advice at least once in their preliminary search so repeating it is just kind of unhelpful.  I think that if someone has got so far into considering a wheel that they've joined a spinning forum to ask a question about wheels, they've probably done enough of a search to know what is around them and they are asking on-line because they are coming up short on answers in real life, which bring me to my next point, which is...

Not everyone lives near a store that sells wheels!  In my fantasy world, spinning wheel dealerships would be as common as car dealerships, but sadly, in reality that just isn't the case.  The nearest store to me that sells multiple brands of wheels is The Woolery.  According to Google Maps that is a 10-11 hour round trip.  It wouldn't be completely out of the question to make it a weekend trip, but at least for my life right now, it would be a hassle and take a bit of planning, not to mention it would get a bit expensive when you factor in gas, food, and lodging that the trip would require.  There is a yarn store about an hour and half away from me that is also a Schacht dealer.  I know that store will rent out a Ladybug for a week at a time, but that is just one wheel and it is still a bit of hassle since it would require a minimum of two trips in a short time span.  As for festivals, my local festival is on the small side, and there are usually a few booths with wheels you can test, but it is pretty limited.  For example, I have seen someone testing a Spinolution wheel once and last year I got to sit down at a Lendrum, but it isn't like there's an opportunity to test out any wheel you like.  Plus, with a fiber festival, you would have to hope it lines up with when you are actually looking to purchase something.  We do have some fiber guilds in our region, but as far as I know, none of them have wheels to rent or borrow, and testing a wheel would depend on someone having it and being willing to let you try it out.  I think many spinners are generous, but if someone is in the middle of a spin at guild meeting it isn't going to be practical for someone to test out the wheel mid-project.  

All the above said- I very well may have more potential opportunities to test at least a few wheels than many other people.  I get frustrated when people are fortunate enough to have a lot of resources available to them and assume everyone has the same opportunities and resources in their location.  Which is really why I am putting my unpopular opinion out there.  I'm afraid that the "try it out first!" advice is actually creating a barrier to entry.

I really believe that most spinners can learn to spin on most modern wheels.  Sure, I have ideas about some specific wheels and features that are more beginner friendly, but ultimately if you want to learn to spin, you are going to learn how to do it on the wheel that you are spinning on.  If the wheel works, you'll learn.  I have two treadle wheels and an e-spinner.  They've each taken me a little time to get used to and they all have a different feel, but they are all terrific and I have just come to realize that spinning on a new-to-you wheel is going to come with a get-to-know-you period.  For the record, I didn't spin on any of them before I got them.  Maybe I'm just lucky, maybe I did enough research ahead of time to be sure that what I was getting was what I wanted, but mostly I think that the goldilocks thing with wheels is more than a little overhyped.

So next time you see someone ask that question about wheels, please answer what they are actually asking, and if you really must throw in that tidbit about testing first, please emphasize that it is a suggestion and a great idea if it is an available option for them, and not a requirement for having a successful spinning wheel purchase.

Everything Old is New Again...

I learned to knit in 2005.  It was the height of the Stitch 'n Bitch era, the scarf knitters, and fun fur.  In a discussion on Reddit that I read recently, someone pointed out that the resurgence of knitting (most specifically in the U.S.) came in those post-9/11 and Afghanistan/Iraq years.  The writer saw it as an attempt to connect to something tangible and creative and maybe a little nostalgic? or domestic? when the wider world felt increasingly scary and unsettled.  I'm sure there were new knitters of all generations at that time, but the Stitch 'n Bitch groups, the blogs, and later the podcasts that popped up were mostly populated by younger Gen X and older Millennials.  (Side note- I really prefer the term Xennial, and my definition has a a simple cut off line.  Xennials had already graduated from High School when 9/11 happened. )   

I didn't notice it at first, perhaps because I'm not on TikTok, but in the last few years there has been another knitting boom.  This time it is people (and most especially Gen-Z 20-somethings) who picked up knitting at some point in the pandemic, perhaps out of the need for a hobby to fill the time, but likely for similar reasons that people did 15-20 years ago.

Now that I've realized this is happening, it is really interesting to observe what's different, what's similar, the trends then versus now.

One thing I am noticing now is the sudden interest in spinning, particularly among prominent YouTubers.  I remember this really picking up in about 2006 or 2007.  Suddenly all the big bloggers were buying wheels and learning to spin.  Of course my interest was piqued too, but other than an ill-fated attempt at spinning on a drop spindle, it didn't go anywhere at that time.

This time I will actually know what they are all talking about though.  I'm really interested to see where the spinning goes this time, what it creates, etc.  Without having actually been involved in the spinning last time I can't speak to it too much, but I do think there was a lot of focus on the dyed fiber at that point.  The indie-dyed yarn had really taken off at that point and so that trend carried over into fiber.  I know there were people talking about spinning breed specific wool back then too, but it seems like the dyed braids were most prominent.  I'm sure they will be just as appealing to new spinners now, but I also wonder if there will be an even greater focus on breed-specific wool and natural color fleece?  Considering the trend of neutrals we've been seeing so much over the last several months in knitting, I wouldn't be surprised if the undyed fibers are just as appealing.  Of course with the  Shave 'Em to Save 'Em program to thank, we also have a head start on shining a spotlight on specific breeds and rare ones in particular.  

I know I'm not the only spinner who learned to spin because or SE2SE.  It is interesting to see that there was a separate spinning boom related to that and I'm curious what might change or come about with a new spinning boom from the knitter to spinner pipeline this time.