It's official...I'm now a spinner and happy yarn-maker. (The yarn pictured above is a 2-ply I spun and plied on a Turkish style spindle my husband made) I just woke up one day and wanted to learn to spin. I watched practically every video on YouTube and requested many books from my local library on the subject of handspinning and spindling as I knew a spinning wheel was out of the question. I received the bottom whorl drop spindle and fiber I ordered from Etsy.com then visited my LYS to sign up for a spindling class. By the time I showed up for my first class I pretty much knew what I was doing but had fun anyway. I showed my husband several more drop spindles and expressed my interest in a kick spindle, practically begged him to make them for me, especially the kick spindle. Well, he did it! I've been happily spinning on my kick spindle since 4 am Sunday morning and love, love, love it! I expected my leg to get tired of using the kick spindle but it doesn't. I think it has to do with the height of the chair I'm using. I tried it while sitting in my recliner and, sure enough, my quadriceps screamed at me to stop after just a couple of minutes. I now use my husband's computer chair at it's highest height setting and it's perfect. My leg naturally swings at the right height to kick the wheel, almost effortlessly. My favorite thing about the kick spindle is the ease at which I can wind on the spun singles then back around the cup hook to begin spinning again. I can't wait to ply on the kick spindle. I have an idea it will be a dream!
I think he'd be upset if he knew I was blogging this picture. He is not happy with the way it looks as I was urging him to just "slap it together" so I could use it already! But now that he knows how it works and the proper angles, he wants to make me another one, but prettier. Okay, I can live with that! LOL First of all, the base need not be so long but it is nice and sturdy without any wobbling or moving at all. That was my only complaint about the kick spindles I've seen for sale. The bases look too clunky and unstable. He also wants to find another ball bearing to go into the upright support so that it might spin longer and faster. He wants to make it more decorative by carving designs into the kick wheel and perhaps make it more portable. Right now you can remove the spindle, whorl and kick wheel but the upright support is fixed. It was a learning experience for him and I am the happy recipient of his experiment.
