My coworkers and I are so excited that we are finally offering spinning supplies, because we’ve been crazy about spinning for a long time. I learned how to knit first, and then my love of yarn drove me to try to spin with a drop spindle made out of a cd and a dowel, and later I bought a spinning wheel. Kelley actually learned how to spin before she started knitting. In college, she had a work study job at her college’s library, and many of her coworkers were spinners and taught her! Alison is a spinning maniac, bringing in hanks of handspun to the office almost every Monday morning.
We all hang out after work for informal craft nights, but we thought it would be fun for everyone to bring their spinning wheels to work so we could gather and spin together!
Kerin’s wheel is a Babe Production wheel. She nicknamed it “Greased Lightning” because it has such a fast uptake, but Kerin has no trouble keeping up with it. It’s neat because this wheel is made of PVC pipes and a wheelchair wheel, and it is very lightweight.
Amy works in our IT department. She has a Kromski Symphony wheel. She claims to be a beginning spinner, but she picked it up really quickly! She’s going on a spinning vacation this weekend.
Alison also has a Kromski wheel, but hers is a Polonaise. Her wheel looks really large, compared to the upright Castle wheels, but it is surprisingly lightweight and fits into the backseat of her small car.
I have a Schacht Matchless. It is my dream wheel, and I got it through serendipitous circumstances at the Black Sheep Gathering last year. I also customized it with a purple drive band and purpleheart orifice hook and WPI tool.
You can see Kelley’s wheel in the spinning video. She was spinning on her Ashford Joy, which is a small travel wheel. It has a padded carrying case and it folds up flat, so you can bring your spinning wheel wherever you go (which Kelley does). It looks so tiny next to the other wheels!
We made a video of our spin along. We each talked about our wheels and what we were spinning. Then it sort of devolved into good natured “spinning smack talk” which is pretty hilarious.
