Let's start with a big Woo-Hoo! for the latest Natalies. Here's even a photo of the wood selection in this batch -- Ebony, Cocobolo, Canarywood, Bocote, and Purpleheart. Wowzer. The Canarywood Natalie is usually under an ounce; I've had many requests for lighter Natalies, so here it is. But at that weight, this spindle design has a shorter spin-time. The more typical 1.2-1.3 ounce Natalie has what I'd consider to be a reasonable spindle spin-time. The center-weighted Natalie spindle is a fast spinner, not a long spinner. This design is based on the historical silk spindles in Bette Hochberg's book Handspindles.
And another cheer for the latest Forresters. Wow -- from the drilled whorls that minimize weight mid-whorl to the latest Linums and Pyrography spindles, wait -- there's a sheep in this batch too! Does he spin? You betcha!We've finally, for our nalbinding buddies out there, restocked the Nalbinding instruction manual "Lots of Socks!" by Larry Schmitt. Now, I've been asked to teach Nalbinding this September ... so I'd best get the spinning done and the nalbinding underway. There are some great Nalbinding videos (in English) on a German video website, check them out for help with Asle Stitch, Oslo Stitch, and more.
In closing, you will find the latest Rhyme Times has seven terrific new colorways in it. A great time to subscribe, as two of these are only available in limited runs so they may not last until the next issue! This physical newsletter of Crosspatch Creations and Three Bags Full fibers also features subscriber-only specials. And stay tuned for the colors from the last issue coming to the website soon: Sage Brush Hill, Peacock Tales, and more (pictured is Black Hills Gold, batt, yarn sample and mitered knit sample). Our regular blog entries are chock-full of spinning, knitting, and sock machine tips, along with occasional news of my own projects and the occasional "blogofile" thing. Use the Categories to check out what interests you, or just browse the archives.
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