In a spin
Jul 25th, 2007 | By woolgatherer | Category: DemiarchiveBack from spinning.
After a late-night out, catching storm petrels, and a morning spent: reinstalling my Dragon; then driving to spinning; doing my spinning; being among the ladies and the chatter; and driving home again… well, my poor head is in a tizz. I think I’m going to spend my afternoon spinning quietly in the conservatory.
This morning I did a show and tell on my ivy socks and my Clapotis, and then concentrated on spinning the pink Merino that I had already pre-drafted. I then took that bobbin off temporarily, fitted a new one, and got out the white Cheviot. G showed me how to spin off the fold, and helped me towards an understanding of how the Scotch tension works. Then I worked hard at spinning up the white tops and managed to spin about a third of the bobbin.
It would be tempting fate to claim that spinning the Cheviot is a doddle, so I’ll simply say (very quietly) - it goes a lot faster than anything I’ve tried to date. I now plan to see how it goes without my support systems in place. But first, I think I’ll take a couple of paracetamol.
Oh, cake today was actually apple strudel, hot from the oven. Scrummy.


Sounds wonderful - my spinning club meets only once a month. What sort of wheel have you got? Oh, and - whats a dragon? (blushes at my ignorance)
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I have a Haldane Hebridean, circa 1970, and a brand new Ashford Traditional, about 3 weeks old now.
My Dragon is my speech-to-text processor. It’s supposed to save my sore arm from too much keying and mousing but is still at the stage where I get too frustrated and my hands keep drifting back into use. If you see really odd spelling/phrasing/punctuation? That’ll be my Dragon speaking.
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WOW, how cool is that!!!! Though obviously I wish you didnt have a sore are - have you had an accident. My baby brother (42) is very dyslexic and has this microphone thingy to his computer, some og the interpretations are hilarious!!!!
I have just ordered my first wheel - an Ashford Traveller with double drive. It will arrive in about 5 weeks : )
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The only accident I had, Claire, was in working in Higher Education for so many years. Lots of computer use without proper keyboard training (cash constraints) and lots of using cramped desk conditions (space constraints) and inadequate equipment (cash constraints again). It has all added up to a chronic nerve damage. Any kind of use of my right arm gives me lots of pain from my neck down to my fingertips. So my Dragon is supposed to take some of the strain off. I have been trying to use it for years and years now, but it frustrates me mightily.
*This* time really is the time when I must get to grips with it and become fluent. I *have* to stop my hands straying to the mouse and the keyboard.
That’s very slow delivery on the Ashford? My order was faxed Sunday night and the wheel arrived Tuesday morning - a small miracle when you live out here. Is it because of fitting the double drive? Though I would not have thought that took long - it’s a standard modification.
It’s not coming direct from New Zealand, is it???
I got mine from here
http://www.twistfibrecraft.co.uk/
they dispatch within 48 hours, according to their Order page details. Good prices, too!
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