Yarn management with your drop spindle

Once you master the basics of the drop spindle, it's time to move on to slightly more advanced topics. One thing that most drop spindlers experience is a frustration at the time it takes to spin that fiber into yarn. It can also be frustrating when your spindle doesn't spin right - it wobbles and swings and generally moves in a very distracting fashion.

Luckily there is one simple solution which addresses both of these problems, and it has to do with cop management.

The "cop" is the big wad of fiber which you have spun up and wound onto your spindle. As you spin and wind on, the cop gets bigger and bigger. What might have been an unnoticeable issue when the cop is small can be magnified as your cop grows larger, and create real issues.

Your drop spindle has been created to be in perfect balance. But the cop, if it is uneven or lumpy, can work to throw that balance off. Ideally your cop will be pear-shaped or oval-ish, with the bulk of the cop centered either in the middle of the shaft or tucked up under the head of the spindle (for top-whorl spindles).

Another reason to manage the shape of your cop is that it can greatly speed up your yarn production. Most people start by winding on their singles almost perpendicular to the angle of the shaft. This makes perfect sense from the outside; it looks tidy, and distributes your fiber evenly. However, it is also incredibly slow, compared to winding your cop on in an X shape.

The next time you are winding on, count the number of times you have to turn the spindle. Then try wrapping the fiber in an X pattern, diagonally across the angle of the shaft, back and forth. You may be surprised at how much efficiency you gain! And the X shape will help prevent uneven lumps from forming in your cop.

Image courtesy of Flickr/Carissa Marie