Drop spindle tuition

Come and learn to process an alpaca fleece and turn it into your very own ball of yarn.
 
During this day long session you will learn how to process a whole alpaca fleece and spin it into homemade yarn. We will explore entirely hand based techniques just as the alpaca herders of the Andes have used for thousands of years.
 
You will get to select your fleece and meet the alpaca from which it came! 

Please bring a packed lunch.
 
More and more people are becoming interested in how their fabrics are sourced and how their clothes and textiles are made. Over a few generations we've shifted from a knowledge of working with fibres to make our own clothes to fast fashion and little connection to the makers. Spinning your own yarn is a step towards making greater use of local and sustainable fibres when making our textiles and clothes.
 
Come and be part of the revival of this heritage craft!
 
Drop spindle, carders and alpaca fibre provided to use during the session. Bring your own spindle if you'd like to take it away with you and continue. 
 
In this session you will be introduced to the basic techniques of:
Skirting a fleece (preparing it for use)
Carding (encouraging all of the fibres to move in the same direction)
Creating rolags (preparing the carded fibres for spinning)
Spinning (using a drop spindle to hand spin the fibre into a single thread)
Plying (strengthening the threads by plying them together using a traditional hand method)
Winding a skein (finalising your yarn using a traditional hand and foot method)
 
Included in the price of the session: 
Drop spindle to use during session
Carders to use during the session 
Alpaca fleece to spin 
A discount on entire raw fleece blankets or bags of carded fleece if you wish to buy your own
Unlimited hot drinks
Alpaca meet and greet 
 
Once purchased, please contact me to organise a date and time for your session: farm@hideawaywood.co.uk.

Carly