Cotton Series: Resources and Summary

As I sat down to gather resources, do research, and write up the second half of the posts for this series I realized that what I wanted to say had already been said, much better than I can say it, by many many others. So, instead of rehashing what others had written about cotton physiology …

Cotton Series: Intermission

No new posts in the Cotton Series for the rest of this month (maybe longer) as I'm taking a break to finish up the second half of the series. I ended up having a pretty significant relapse this winter so didn't get as much written as I had hoped, hence the long break. I will …

Cotton Series: Plying Singles and Finishing Your Yarn

Plying your Singles So I’ve found that plying cotton is just like plying any other fiber, just with a few extra considerations: If you’re plying on a drop spindle, you want to make sure it is a light enough spindle that the plied yarn can support the weight of it + the yarn you’ve wound …

Cotton Series: Wheel Spinning

Last week we talked about spinning cotton on spindles. Read it here! Wheel Spinning So I’ll be honest, spinning cotton on wheels is where I have the least experience. I’ve only had a charkha for about two years, and my wheel for less than that, and when I go to spin cotton, I reach for …

Spinning Cotton on a Wheel Transcript

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FFq-rcXLprg Video Transcript: Hello Everyone! I thought I would show you how I spin cotton sliver on my Schacht Matchless. I have my matchless set up in scotch tension where the flyer is the one that's being driven by the drive band and the bobbin is attached to the tensioning device; the knob is on …

Spinning Cotton Sliver on a Kuchulu Spindle Transcript

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yAAqi1jJU8s Video Transcript: Spinning some natural brown cotton sliver on my mountain mahogany Kuchulu. That's it. I don't say much in this video.

Spinning Cotton on a Drop Spindle Transcript

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7Nx3_xuyzQ Video Transcript: Hello everyone just a short video this time. I wanted to show you how I spin cotton on a drop spindle.  This is the drop spindle that I use to spin cotton; it's a Jenkins Kuchulu. The ones I have are between 6 grams and 10 grams in weight. They are the only …

Cotton Series: Spindle Spinning

Woo Hoo! We made it through the processing and now it’s time to spin! If you missed any of our processing posts you can catch up here. General Cotton Spinning Tips  Cotton is not as grippy as animal fiber, so that combined with its shorter staple length means that it will need more twist to …

Spinning Cotton on Supported Spindles Transcript

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CI-uWRVbBg&t=13s Video Transcript: Hello it's me again, Jen. I thought today I would show you how I spin cotton punis on supported spindles. I have four different types of supported spindles here with me today. This is a bead type spindle; it is from Grizzly Mountain Arts, wood burned like an acorn, super cute. This …

Cotton Series: Fiber Preps and Making Punis

Last week we talked about removing seeds from cotton. If you missed it you can check it out here! Fiber Preparations for Spinning If you look for fiber for spinning cotton online, you’re likely to encounter a variety of preparations. Here are some of the most common ones: Punis Tight rolls of fiber, similar to …