weave4fun

Did I mention I was making yarn? Probably, I know I've been wittering on about the twisting machine and the twist measuring machine lately. Well, here are my first proper results. The one on the right is called Stretch Starlight and is made with 97/3 merino/lycra with small pieces of English 56 thrown in and the one on the right is called Nebula, which has a greater amount of a longer staple woollen fibre of unknown origin attached to a regular worsted yarn. These yarns are not yet perfect, but I think I'm getting closer. I still have problems with the fibres not binding into the twist perfectly. Of course, the Boyd isn't actually designed in any way to bind fibre into a twist, but it's a wee hack I guess. How are these made? Well, these are what's called Siro yarns. What this means is they're folded yarns made of singles which are practically unspun. In effect this means that when you remove the folded twist what you're left with is roving.

Not much else to say. Sometimes you run out of heddles, or perhaps you have to add one after you're started warping due to a threading error, so here's how I do it.

I have been attempting to add flecks of colour to yarns by untwisting and then retwisting them. Here is a wee video of the machine I've been using. There is a good reason why what I'm trying to do isn't working, which I shall go into tomorrow. I'll have to make a video for that too. It involves the mechanical nature of the actual machine. I had it in my head that you could do both S and Z twist on it at the same time, but that is clearly impossible as all spinners spin in the same direction due to being driven by the same drive belt. I hope it's maybe possible to reverse the direction of the belt, but I doubt it, I think this is just an S-twister.

Hold onto your seatbelts, this episode is action packed.  There's Yarn! There's twist! There's measurement! Precision! Science! And Good Old-Fashioned Textile Testing! What more could you ask for? What's that I hear you say? An explanatory video of the Boyd yarn twisting machine? Well of course good people, that you shall also have! Right after this commercial, for science, precision and textile testing! This is the twist measurement machine This is where the twist is measured. You can widen the gap, but currently it is set at one inch. The twist comes up on this readout. First place one end of your yarn in this little pointed clamp, and fasten tightly. Then take the yarn through the other, open, clamp, over the little guide wheel and through the little eyelet. Now, to keep it taut, you attach a little weight. Bigger weights for heavier yarn, but this is a very light yarn, so we use a litt