08.28.08
Ladybug, Ladybug I Love You. Yes, I Do. . .
A couple weeks ago I found to my surprise and delight that Custom Handweaving was going to have a booth at the Bead Show at the Pasadena Hilton. The reason I was excited about that bit of news is that they are one of the few vendors who sell spinning wheels near me and I’ve been contemplating getting a wheel for quite some time, now. Custom Handweaving is actually located in Redondo Beach, which is about a 45 minute drive away from me. But Pasadena is only about 15 minutes away from me, so I broke into my piggy back and jumped at the chance to see what spinning wheels were going to be on display.
When I arrived, I found that Nancy, the owner of Custom Handweaving and a very nice lady, brought a nice selection of wheels. I originally had been eyeballing the Ashford Double Treadle Traveler spinning wheel on the net because it was compact, but still had a nice country look to it. Since I’ve never owned my own wheel before, I really didn’t know what to look for aside from versatility and aesthetics. I basically knew I wanted one that was decent looking so that I could leave it out in the house and that it had to be somewhat small because I don’t have much room here for more gadgets. Plus a small wheel would make it easy to transport if I wanted to take it to a spinning group meeting or just somewhere else to spin. When I got to the show, I was able to try out a few different models and brands, including the Ashford Double Treadle Traveler. I say “try out” meaning treadling, since I’ve never used a spinning wheel before, but only a hand spindle. What I found was a bit unexpected for me, but I’m happy with my final choice. After a little bit of treadling and contemplation, it was only a matter of minutes before I became the owner of my very own spinning wheel! Woo hoo! I know, I know. “Woo hoo” over a spinning wheel? Yes, something only other fiber artists/addicts can understand. . . It doesn’t “look” like what I had in mind for a spinning wheel, but somehow I still think it has a cute look to it, anyway. Plus it’s pretty compact, and best of all, the treadling is extremely smooth! When I tried out the floor sample, I fell in love with it. That baby had to be mine! So, I dug deep in my very shallow pockets, and I forked over my dough. This is what I now have as my very own. . .
Ladies and Gentlemen, I’m pleased to introduce the Ladybug Spinning Wheel by Schacht Spindle Co. Inc. (Rah, rah, rah! Roar. Applause.)
Yeah, I know. It doesn’t quite look like the spinning wheel that Sleeping Beauty pricked her finger on, but hey, I like it anyway! And it spins like a charm! I will admit that at first I felt very uncoordinated. I had to concentrate on getting the wheel to spin in one direction and at a constant rate. Once I had my feet doing what it should, I found that I wasn’t using my hands to draft the wool. Once I started to draft the wool, my feet would stop treadling and/or I would pause then start the wheel in the other direction, ack! Any spinner knows that I would never get any yarn spun if I kept up those antics. So it took a bit of practice, and I can now say that I’m much more coordinated and am actually able to spin on this thing.
Okay, so for a little info on this new baby. It is new, not only to me, but it’s one of Schacht’s newer models. Hee, I’m just so happy with it I have to show another view of it.
Now that red flywheel may look familiar for some reason. At first I thought of a steam ship or a fire engine, but I thought, “No, there’s something else about that flywheel. . .” As it turns out, Schacht actually makes other things aside from spinning wheels. I think they’ve made old cars, and they make bicycles. . . And yep, a better look at that flywheel pretty much has “bicycle rim” written all over it. I noticed that there is even a “hole” where the stem of an air tube (or inner tube) would come out! Ha!
But honestly, that didn’t deter me one bit as when I felt how smooth it treadled, I realized that they’re likely using their bicycle assembly/design knowledge to make such a smooth treadling animal. I personally don’t know why they call it the ladybug, but I’m guessing that’s why they chose to have a red flywheel. And as a nice little touch (the type I appreciate), each Ladybug Spinning wheel has a tiny ladybug affixed to it somewhere, but each one has the ladybug placed in a different spot. So one of the first things I looked for when I pull the wheel out of the packaging box was where my ladybug was placed? I found it on the rear maiden.
Ah, thar she be. 
Okay, so before I sign off, I did want to mention how nice it was doing business with Nancy in that along with the purchase, she also threw in 1 pound of wool for practice spinning as well as a little oil bottle for the wheel. The wheel came with two other bobbins, and I also purchased a couple of carders. With my wheel purchase, I also have one free spinning lesson, but I just don’t know when I’ll get the chance to drive all the way out to Redondo Beach. It must be the current gas prices that really have me turned off about driving too much these days. And am I glad that these spinning wheels don’t use fuel, ha!
Okay, now I better get some use out of this stuff, so toodles for now!
Marlakins
patti said,
August 29, 2008 at 9:27 pm
Okay, this is cool. I can’t believe you can make your own yarn. Do you dye it too or leave it in it’s natural color? Where do you get your wool? Straight from a farm? Very very cool.
Have tons of fun!
patti
Administrator said,
August 30, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Hi Patti:
I haven’t gotten to the dying part of it, yet, but I hope to eventually. So far I’m trying to get a hang of the spinning. You can purchase wool in different stages from whole raw, unwashed fleeces, to whole washed fleeces, to plain roving, or dyed roving. There are also different types of fibers, some pure fibers and others that are blends and already dyed. So far I’ve only used various sheep fibers in their natural colors, which are from the whitish, to varying shades of browns and greys. I do have a pound of a silk blend that I haven’t tried yet. That should be interesting. And I also found a source for alpaca.
There are various suppliers who sell these fibers in various stages. Some are direct from farms, while others are just middle men. I did manage to get two whole, unwashed fleeces that I hope to spin up eventually. I don’t plan to dye these as I like their original color already. At this point I’m just learning and practicing with the spinning,, so no dying yet.. But when of if I ever do get into dying, I will hopefully only use natural dyes or at least non-toxic ones. A while back I did post some of my hand-spinning progress, including some of the yarn that I made with a hand spindle. I will say that I’m enjoying it more with the ladybug, than my hand spindle. Not to mention it is so much faster. What I’m trying to do at this point is just spin a little every day until I have enough to knit with. No marathon spinning as of yet, just a little here and there, which surprisingly amounts to something.
Marla