Sunday, November 22, 2009

How do I do it? The In's and Out's of Corespinning, Spinning Sequins & Adding in unusal objects. Techniques & Tricks!

I've had LOTS of people ask me to give some tricks and tips for some of my art yarn techniques. So, at least once a month I'm going to post a video demonstration of a different technique. Please feel free to give me some suggestions on what technique's you'd like me to show.

I've gotten the most requests for corespinning.. so here we go as our first in the How do I do it? series- Corespinning the In's and Out's!

First of all it's important to have all of your supplies ready and at your fingertips-


After you are prepped and ready to go.. you have to attach the core to your yarn before you can begin wrapping the fiber. This clip shows how to attach your core, and begin corespinning. I explain where to pinch- so you DO NOT build up too much twist. That's the biggest problem I hear from people, is that their corespun yarns are totally overspun. If you try to pinch to the side of the core, rather than onto it, it should help take care of that overspinning.


In this third part, I show you how to spin sequins strands securely into your corespun yarns. I also talk about how to prep them for spinning.


Next we come to almost the end of my yarn and I want to spin in an add in that's too large to fit thru the orifice. I show the trick I've come up with to bypass the orifice- by spinning in the dangly ornament BEHIND the oriface- so it can wind right onto the bobbin! It's pretty cool!!


Finally, I show how to end your corespun yarn, so that the core is secure inside the yarn and you don't have to worry about the fiber unwrapping from the core.


Here's the final yarn.. this pic was taken before the twist was set.. but it'll do-


So that's it.. that's how I spin my corespun yarns- and some of my tricks for adding in fun stuff!! Please post any questions you have- and share your corespun yarns!! I'd also love to know any thing else you've seen in my shop that you'd like to see me demonstrate.

20 comments:

Anonymous said...

These videos are fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing your techniques. The way you explain how to add in items and how to spin a string of sequins is very clear and well demonstrated and the way you worked out how to add in that star from behind the orifice is inspired! I also learnt something new about regular corespinning, as I hadn't thought about spinning a bit of regular single at the beginning and end of the yarn to help stop it unravelling. Thanks! You're a great teacher! :D

mistyknits said...

You are truly an artist. I appreciate this tutorial on corespinning. I have read the few books that are out there on corespinning, but wasn't able to completely visualize how it is done until your videos. Thank you for the work you put into helping me (and others) learn.

Esther said...

Thanks!! I'm so glad you're finding them helpful!!

Amelia of Ask The Bellwether said...

Thanks for the clear instructions and terrific tips on spinning core yarns. The way you put the star on the top of the tree is really clever, and I learned many other tips as well.

Esther said...

wow!! Thanks so much! That's such a compliment coming from you! I've turned to your blog for many tips and tricks myself!!
xoxo

Split Rock Ranch said...

Wow! Totally awesome! I learned so much from watching these videos and I only hope that I can do my Christmas Tree batt justice! I think I have do a corespun yarn using a different batt first so I can get the hang of corespinning before attempting my Christmas Tree batt. Now, I would love to see what somebody makes with this yarn! I'm kind of stumped there...

Esther said...

Hi Brenda! I can't wait to see what you spin up!! I think I'm going to knit a scarf with my Christmas Tree yarn. I envision it to look like a tree.. with the presents hanging at the bottom.. the ornaments and garland throughout the "tree" part and the star was the last thing I spun in, so that should be at the top..

Mokihana said...

Thank you SO much! These are fantastic videos! I also like the kitty in the window!

Denise Katz said...

These are so GREAT!! Thank you for taking the time to do them!

Do you need to ply corespun yarn?

cniotalai said...

These are fantastic and very generous! I have one question though: How do you set the twist on yarns that have paper add-ins, such as the presents? Do you steam set? It doesn't seem like some of your add-ins could be submerged. Thanks again for your generous sharing of information.

Esther said...

Denise-
You don't really need to ply your corespun yarns to bring balance.. as they really shouldn't build up that much twist like a regular single. In fact.. I would have trouble building up enough twist in a corespun yarn to even hold a ply.. My translucent corespun yarns that come off the bobbin completely balanced However- that being said, when learning this technique it's VERY easy to build up too much twist.. so plying the yarn would bring some balance. But once you are comfortable with the action of spinning without building twist, you don't *have* to ply your corespun yarns unless you want to!!

Cinotalai-
Thanks so much!! I am a true believer in sharing art and techniques.. it makes us all better spinners. I am also a fan o free software.. and the such! LOL!
As for setting the yarn.. some of the ornaments are totally fine in water.. but you're right about the presents.. they probably shouldn't be submerged. I do steam set a lot of my yarns with poofy add in's and danglies so they don't get caught on stuff or get squooshed.
To steam set you can use a garment steamer (which works AWESOME!!) I've also set the yarn in a strainer over a boiling pot of water.

I really thank everyone for their support. I had to teach myself how to corespin.. and even though there is some other instruction out there now, I haven't ever found anything that deals with how to start and finish the yarn so the core is secure, and how to spin the yarn without building up too much twist.. both are the questions I get the most.. so I hope I've helped explain those
xoxo

bibandtucker said...

THANKYOU!!!! This is so generous of you to share your method and tips.. As a new spinner, I really appreciate it :-). Kate

Bionic Laura said...

Thanks so much for this video. I've done a couple of core spun yarns but they were over twisted, I should be able to solve that problem now having seen how you do it. There are some great tips in the videos, like how to get things that are bigger than the oriface into the yarn. The video is great, really clear so you could see what was happening.

Thanks!

UrbanGypZ said...

Awesome demos! I love the big star one. I would have never thought to spin on the other side of the oriface! Thanks!!

VictoriaG said...

Whoa! What a wonderful assortment of information I got out of these videos! Excellent! Thanks so very much! I am a victim of the "too much twist"...but now I understand how to try and get past that problem...also! The add-in behind the orifice! Amazing! Never had thought of that...going to try it next! And! The spinning of the basic single before and after the corespun...yep, a great, great plan!
I will be back to view the videos after I try this out...I'm sure I'll learn more and catch more each time I watch!
~Vicki (nonaofsav on Rav)

Jamie said...

Amazing amount of helpful information and techniques in your videos! I've been spinning for years and have never explored any of the ideas you presented - you've opened up a whole new way of spinning to me. Thank you!

picperfic said...

wow, thank you for all these wonderful videos, I am doing a class with Lexi in July at Knit Nation in London...I can hardly wait :)

Dave said...

This is absolutely and incredibly marvelous -- thank you so much!! I was finally able to produce a corespun yarn. It was only six yards, but still, it's a start. :-)

I haven't been able to find anything, though, on how to finish the yarn. My Google skills have let me down. Hot soak and whack? Steam set? Or, don't touch it in case it disintegrates? LOL! Any info you could provide would be greatly appreciated.

Anonymous said...

Amazing tutorial!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge I am going to try it today.

Star said...

Thank you so much for your clear videos about core spinning. I had tried after checking a few books, but ended up plying the two threads. Now I know how to really do it. Thanks so much.
Off to the spinning wheel now to have a go!
Star