Fiber Project Gallery

Including Spinning, Knitting, and More

I don’t just make spindles, I spin with them too.

Spinning

The drop spindle gets its name from the fact that it hangs from the yarn you are making and gets closer to the floor as you work. Using a spindle lets you have full control over the yarn your making and allows you to make it most anywhere. Once your learn the basic motions involved in spinning your body does the rest. This makes spinning incredibly relaxing, even more so than knitting or crocheting. Shown below are some of my projects. There are many more but these made it in front of the camera at the right times.

A drop spindle of Tulip Poplar holding two ply yarn being spun from a pair of plying balls. Also a top whorl drop spindle of Sycamore on Maple with singles being spun. Fiber from Kid Hollow Farm, spindles and spinning by Cynthia D. Haney.
A good side by side view of two ply on the larger drop spindle, made of Tulip Poplar. Next to it the singles in progress on a spindle with a Sycamore whorl on a Maple shaft. The fiber was grown, dyed, and blended by Kid Hollow Farm a mohair wool blend.
Roving blended in shades of blue, pink, and purple by Kid Hollow Farm. Being spun into singles on a top whorl drop spindle made by Cynthia D. Haney of Sycamore on a Maple shaft.
A better look of the roving used for spinning the singles that were also shown in the first picture.
Roving hand dyed by Unplanned Peacock spun into singles on both a dogwood on walnut and walnut on maple top whorl drop spindles. Spindles and spinning from the hands of Cynthia Haney.
In progress view of singles from roving by Unplanned Peacock, a local independent dyer. 4oz. of fiber in the firefly colorway. Spun half on my dogwood on walnut drop spindle and half on my walnut on maple drop spindle.
Ball of hand spun single and poplar top whorl drop spindle with two ply result. Fiber is a superwash top hand dyed by Wild Hare Studio. Spindles and spinning from the hands of Cynthia Haney.
Singles in the ball ready to be plied, two ply on the tulip poplar top whorl drop spindle. The fiber is a hand dyed super wash top from Wild Hare a local independent hand dyer, 4oz.
Spindle hand spun merino silk blind two ply on dogwood hand turned niddy-noddy.
So I did get a picture of this project as I finished the last of four skeins for a total of over 1,000 yards of two ply. Still all spindle spun and plied. This is a blend of merino & silk from a de-stash. Shown on my Dogwood niddy-noddy Already in progress of becoming a raglan sleeved pullover.
Three skeins of hand spun two ply yarn, spun and plied on drop spindles. One ply is natural Tunis sheep's wool the other natural colored llama. Spun by Cynthia Haney.
The results of a great deal of spinning in public. The one ply of white is the natural shade of Tunis sheep’s wool. The other is natural colored llama fiber.
Two ply hand spun yarn on drop spindle hand turned by Cynthia Haney in progress of skeining onto a hand turned niddy-noddy
This is Corriedale roving bought already dyed. I spun it all with my spindles and as you can see used them to make the two ply. The dark purple and lavender creating a barber pole effect. Spindle is walnut on a maple shaft and the niddy-noddy is dogwood. Ended up with 388yds from 4.25oz.
Chain plying in progress using single hand spindle spun from lamb's wool top by Wild Hare Fiber Studio. Drop spindle hand turned by Cynthia D. Haney who also did the spinning.
Left spindle dogwood whorl on walnut shaft holding what is left of a single that it spun sitting in an oak stand. On the right walnut spindle with poplar shaft holding the chain plied results sitting in a walnut stand. The fiber is hand dyed lamb’s wool top from Wild Hare Fiber Studio (of Etsy and Virginia fiber festivals). It is the first fiber I bought but this spinning took place later.
First three ply still on the spindle
My first three ply from Bluefaced Leicester, BFL, roving, on one of my plying spindles.
Dogwood niddy-noddy with skein of three ply hand spindle spun BFL wool yarn. Both made by Cynthia Haney
Same three ply on my first niddy-noddy hand turned from Dogwood.
Knitting

As a knitter now I get to use my own hand spun and sometimes dyed yarn.

Celtic knot mittens from hand spun and dyed yarn
Mittens from my first three ply hand spun BFL that I dyed after plying.
Hand spun alpaca yarn hand dyed and knit into fingerless gloves in purple with blue and pink accents
Pair of fingerless gloves in hand spun three ply alpaca dyed with food dye and vinegar into vivid pink, purple, and blue pattern. Entered finished gloves in Fall Fiber Festivals Skein and Garment Competition 2013.
Tam hand knit from yarn hand spun and plied on drop spindles hand turned by Cynthia Haney.
Using some of the yarn I spun from the first fiber I bought, shown above, from Wild Hare Fiber Studio. I knit this Tam. Pattern is Cafe au Lait Tam by Kathryn C.
Orange hat knit by with yarn spun by Cynthia D. Haney. The fiber was dyed by Unplanned Peacock.
After I made a two ply yarn with the orange Unplanned Peacock fiber, pictured further above, I knit it into this freeform hat. My inspiration was the fun hats seen during football season, the color being close to one of my alma matter’s colors, and the need for a warm fall hat.
Sweater hand knit from yarn hand spun and plied on drop spindles all made by Cynthia D. Haney.
After finishing the grey merino silk blend two ply, shown on niddy-noddy above. I started this sweater a basic top down raglan sleeved knit pullover. Knowing I was going to run out of yarn I planned to use a different handspun for the sleeves. The dark purple Wild Hare Studio superwash that I also made as two ply coordinated well. I striped the two together near the top of the sleeve and then used the last of the grey for the cuff. My first sweater knit entirely from my handspun, all the spinning and plying on my own spindles.