Plying Chained Singles by D ODIE R USH

S PINNING B ASICS Plying Chained Singles BY D ODIE R USH

ommonly known among spin- If you are trying this technique for the ﬁrst time, you may want to practice with Cners as “Navajo-plying,” plying waste yarn—a weaving or knitting mill- spun yarn or crochet cotton—before chained singles produces a three-ply using your precious handspun! First determine whether the yarn has been yarn from a bobbin of singles yarn spun S, the wheel turning to the left (counterclockwise), or Z, the wheel turn- and is accomplished by “chaining” ing to the right (clockwise), and then ply in the opposite direction. loops; each new loop is drawn A preview through the previous loop.1 With this Your forward hand will pinch off the twist, guide it into the chained singles, technique, you can create three-ply and roll the bumps created where the loops join. Your back hand will form yarn from one bobbin of singles the loops. Start by tying a yard-long leader to instead of three. You may be familiar the bobbin on the ﬂyer spindle. Thread the leader over the hooks and through with chaining a warp for weaving, the orifice. Double back the end of the leader to form a 5-inch loop and tie a creating a crochet chain, or making knot. Select a large whorl to give you a low twist ratio. This allows more control H a chain stitch in embroidery, but you S as you practice the motions. Hold the U

R leader and begin to treadle slowly. Check Y R can’t make a stable yarn just chain- A the pull on the leader as it is drawn C

Y through the orifice and winds onto the B S

ing a strand of spun singles. The O bobbin. Adjust the tension for a slightly T

O faster draw-in than you used when H chained singles need sufﬁcient twist P spinning the singles. If you’ve spun a singles yarn from a Put the yarn bobbin onto a lazy kate. in the opposite direction to balance variegated roving or batt, you can pre- I like to place the kate on the floor serve solid sections of color in the plied between my feet. Draw the end of the the twist of the singles. yarn or gradually move from one color yarn up from the kate and fold it to form to the next. Plying chained singles re- an 8-inch loop. Pass the yarn loop 1 Though plying chained singles is normally re- duces the length of a color section of through the leader loop (Figure 1). Pull ferred to as “Navajo-plying,” questions have been raised about the origins of the term and whether singles yarn to one-third of the original the yarn loop toward your body with your or not it is accurate. Plying chained singles is a de- length. For example, to ply 5 inches of back hand, centering it over the yarn scriptive term for making a three-ply yarn from a singles yarn. color, you will need to spin 15 inches coming from the kate. Pinch the junc- of singles in that color. ture of the loops with the ﬁngers of your

1 2 forward hand, folding back 4 or 5 inch- hand, pull the strand coming from the doesn’t twist in either direction. How- es of the beginning of the loop (Figure kate through the loop to form the next ever, some of the twist energy has been 2). There are four strands of yarn at the loop (Figure 8). Pick up the yarn com- set if the singles yarn has been stored on pinch, counting the tail from the loop. ing from the kate (third ply) with your the bobbin for several hours or more. If Use the thumb and little finger of your index finger (Figure 9). Resume tread- so, to test for the amount of twist, take back hand to spread and tension the two ling and guide the twist along the strands about 3 feet of the singles and fold the sides of the loop (Figure 3). Pick up the (Figure 10). Repeat these motions. With yarn to make 1 foot of three-ply, knot strand coming from the kate (the third practice you will be able to increase both ends, and put it into water to allow ply) with your index finger (Figure 4). speed. the twist energies to balance. Match the Begin to treadle slowly in the direc- To tighten the bump formed where ply twist to this sample. Or, save a three- tion opposite to which the singles yarn the loops overlap, roll the join back and ply sample for comparison when spin- was spun. Maintain equal tension on all forth between the thumb and index fin- ning the singles. three plies with your spread fingers. As ger of your forward hand. Rolling the Loops can be large or small. If you are twist builds up between the orifice and join lets in extra twist, minimizing the plying yarn with color sequences, watch the fingers pinching at the end of the size of the bump. for the color changes. Adjust the loop leader, slide the pinch along the three A three-ply yarn needs about three- size to place colors where you would like strands without allowing any one strand fourths of the twists per inch that were them to appear; pull more yarn from the to twist around another (Figure 5). Stop put in the singles. If the singles yarn has kate to lengthen loops, or pull less to sliding the pinch when 3 or 4 inches of not been resting on the bobbin before make shorter loops. loop remain (Figure 6). Move your hands plying, you can test the twist by letting Treadle slowly to give your hands time forward toward the orifice to let the plied 12 to 15 inches of plied yarn hang with- to form loops or adjust colors. As you yarn wind onto the flyer bobbin, and then out tension between your hand and the form loops, you may see thick or thin stop treadling (Figure 7). With the back orifice. You want a relaxed yarn that sections. Compensate by altering the

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SPRING 2006I SPIN. OFFI 31 Copyright Spin.Off ® magazine, Interweave Press, LLC. Not to be reprinted. All rights reserved. loop length; place a thick section Pull out any unattached strands and tie between two thin strands, or let three a knot to prevent raveling. c thin strands meet at the bump of joining loops. DODIE RUSH learned to spin on a rented wheel . If your back hand finds manipulating when she attended her first SOAR (Spin Off Autumn Retreat) in 1990. She lives in the loops awkward, reversing hands may Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with her husband, help. As you become comfortable with Cary, who took the photos for this article. the motions, you’ll develop a smooth, faster treadling rhythm. To pause while Sources plying, keep the working loop open by Fournier, Nola, and Jane Fournier. In Sheep’s Clothing. Loveland, Colorado: Interweave placing the sides of the loop around the Press, 1995. hooks on the flyer, or put the loop over Irwin, Bobbie. The Spinner’s Companion. a knob. Wind the plied yarn onto a niddy- Loveland, Colorado: Interweave Press, noddy and cut it free at the leader loop. 2001.

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