Spinning Magic: Learning the Secrets of Flax Spinning || Craftmas Day 2

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Last time, we processed wild growing flax plants to extract the linen fibers, and today I am going to try to spin them into yarn! I've never really spun before, so this will be a learning process, starting with spinning wool, making a distaff, dressing a distaff and finally spinning flax fibers into linen yarn.
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Engineering knits is a place for people who enjoy all kinds of vintage and antique crafts - from sewing to knitting, crochet to embroidery I like to try it all. I definitely have a preference for historical fibre crafts, and it is my dream to one day make an entire outfit from sheep to sweater. I hope you enjoy watching me and my favorite companion, Nutella, struggle through some fascinating projects!

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Опубликовано:

3 дек 2023

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Комментарии : 116

@JillianEve 6 месяцев назад

Fantastic job! After you said you were just diving in because you wanted your excitement to overcome your perfectionism I was just so thrilled. That's exactly what I tell people who want to spin something that "isn't beginner friendly." Enthusiasm will get you through! Thank you for sharing this journey! I'm looking forward to seeing what you spin up next! Happy spinning! 😍🌱🧶✨

@kristalburns3490 6 месяцев назад

You first yarn on the drop spindle was exactly what to expect as a beginner spinner. We have to stop beating ourselves up for not being perfect right out the gate.

@crowznest438 6 месяцев назад

Every spinner has a bobbin like that. I've still got mine from about 40 years ago.

@lyndasmith593 6 месяцев назад

I applaud your efforts. I'm 77 and all my life I've tried to teach myself the crafts that I enjoy. I too am a perfectionist so therefore I buy all the materials I get ready and then it doesn't go anywhere because I can't get it right. Perhaps that's the same reason I didn't do well at piano practice practice practice. I think you did a great job with following the instructions getting the books, watching the tutorials which we didn't have back in the day, and having the patience to really work through it and get yourself centered. The only thing I remember about linen or flax was it one day the beautiful little blue flower would be out and the next day it would be gone and I could not figure that out and that's before I realized that it's a flax plant and just what that meant. I thought that was quite charming and I really would like to get that book and read up on the many many many years spent learning these crafts by our ancestors I love the history. Thank you and please keep trying it's really encouraging to those of us who love watching this and again applaud you for staying with it till you at least get something if not perfect something that you did in my advice.... Always keep your tries find a place to put them so then a few years you can look back with those fond memories and believe me they will be fond and you will smile. Thanks for the vid.. I will keep following your triumphs.

@Rotten_Ralph 6 месяцев назад

You have a good way of saying that. My personal mantra, and experience is that you have to be willing to create a complete disaster and destroy your first attempt. Remember the first pancake, or crepe is not going on the plate to be served.

@evelineherber256 6 месяцев назад

@@lyndasmith593❤

@TheDesertMarmot 6 месяцев назад

It looks better than my first attempt lol

@RetroClaude 6 месяцев назад

I love that you've jumped right into this! You're first attempt is always going to be a dodgy so why not make it special so that you look on it with fondness? Lumps and bumps and all! ❤️

@OrrieInBetween 6 месяцев назад

Highly recommend Sally Pointer's channel for historical usages and methods of processing linen

@seraphinasullivan4849 6 месяцев назад

Reminds me of something a lady from my hometown's spinner and weavers' guild said about uneven yarn: that it's not *bad*, it's just novelty

@bunhelsingslegacy3549 6 месяцев назад

Hehe, I'm gonna use that on other things.. .My drywalling patch isn't bad, it's novelty! :)

@seraphinasullivan4849 6 месяцев назад

@@bunhelsingslegacy3549 lol, careful with that, you may just start an interior design trend!

@resourcedragon 6 месяцев назад

Like, people either sing in unison or in harmony. (Some of the harmonies may sound a little strange but that's not the topic of this post...)

@bigsky14 6 месяцев назад

I think it's good to dive in like this. The internet encourages certain personality types to obsess over codifying and turning everything into discretely defined processes, then anybody else who comes along later looking to "learn" is first shoved into this incredibly narrow pedagogy before they've even started out. The reality of learning these crafts when they were genuinely practiced was the exact opposite. It was growing up around the equipment day in day out, getting to know it both holistically and "out of order" just by exposure to different stages of the processes happening at different times all year. Even actual apprentices were rarely put on a "curriculum" they were told to stand there with a broom in their hand for 18 hours a day "soaking it all in," getting shoved into various hands-on tasks on a totally spontaneous basis. Personally I'm impressed by your final result, well done!

@Pickles6115 6 месяцев назад

I watch a youtube video by Rob Stephens called Flax to Linen : from sowing to sewing. Don't know if you've seen it but it's amazing all that goes into sowing and cultivating it. At that time I was a major gardener nutcase (my hubby exact words lol) Its was fun growing it, but I gave it to my bestie. She was into textiles and such. Good luck next time, you'll get the hang of it. Happy holidays.

@deenawang8271 6 месяцев назад

My guess as to why the distaff didn't work is because the staple length isn't long enough. It looks like you were using flax prepared as a "roving", which would have a shorter staple length than true line flax. Line flax is sold in a bundle that is approximately the length of the staple, whereas the "roving" is a bunch of shorter staples mushed together. I suspect that the distaff will only work if the staple length is >= the distance between the distaff and the orifice.

@rebekahchalkley3252 6 месяцев назад

Eugenio Monesmo has a couple of great documentary videos on his channel, showing old-school Spaniards taking linen and hemp from planting to finished woven work. Super interesting stuff. His videos are in Spanish but have English subtitles. The interesting thing about his videos is that you see the work done at a little bit of a larger scale (e.g. planting a field of flax seed for the linen) and also you get to see older people who have long years of practice at doing all the steps, so you can see how it would have looked for our ancestors to do enough for the whole family's garments.

@iokheaira 6 месяцев назад

You're doing well! The problem with the purchased flax is that the fibres are too short for a distaff dressed that way - those methods are designed for managing long line flax, which is around 30cm/1ft long. The purchased flax "roving" is designed for machine spinning, which requires shorter fibres, and as you've noticed, you can handle it much like you'd handle wool roving with long staple length. You could also try dressing the distaff with the flax roving in the same way as you dress a wool distaff, there are several methods, one being that you make a gigantic rolag and tie that to a stick or a paddle-shaped thing at the end of a stick. You then just need to make sure you let the twist climb much closer to the fibre source to maintain thread integrity. And maybe test a flaxseed goo recipe for wetting the fibre instead of saliva 😉 Have fun!

@accidentalspaceexplorer 6 месяцев назад

Along the lines of the 20,000 years of women's work book, I'd really recommend Worn: A People's History of Clothing! It'll probably be less detailed than the 20,000 years one on certain topics but it's more about the change in how we view clothing and the way that textiles have shaped our modern life, through five different fibers (wool, cotton, linen, silk, and plastic)

@Bellbebell 6 месяцев назад

Evie: spinning Mother to us all!!

@edendeckard1783 6 месяцев назад

When I saw the thumbnail I was so exitedd let's effing gooooooo ( living my spinning dreams through you)

@PelafinaLievre 6 месяцев назад

You are the second person I’ve seen start with flax as your first spin. It’s like having your first knitting be intarsia

@smilyface3364 6 месяцев назад

Some people do better that way. They don't want 20 plain sweaters before trying colorwork, they just jump in and learn exactly what they want.

@mamelvik 6 месяцев назад

In Norwegian we have the word "syklubb" (sewing club) which is used in very much the same way about that type of gathering of women. The gossip part reminded me of the word, because it's sometimes heavily implied that the crafting is just an excuse to get together and talk. Very impressive job with this project! I'm trying to get into spinning wool, which I find challenging enough.

@hiwakoo 6 месяцев назад

In German the phrase "aus dem Nähkästchen plaudern " literaly means to gossip 😀 I can see the relation there.

@dreamingfool2 6 месяцев назад

When spinning flash keep a damp rag or a tin of water to dampen the flax/your fingers as you spin. This helps keep it from breaking or fraying and makes it stronger. You'll see this done to flax when it's being spun no matter what application it's being used for. There's is a video of an Italian flax rope maker who shows the old way of making flax rope and he used a damp cloth while spinning.

@monika_do_dziela 6 месяцев назад

Thank you for sharing your learning process. 😊 When I was little, during winter time, old women in my village ioln Poland came to house one of them to work together and chat and eat. I remember they were tearing goose feathers for bed duvet.

@mariebray9831 6 месяцев назад

I haven't used a spinning wheel since the 1970s. You remind me how relaxing it is to do, once you get over the first few hours of practice.

@olgakorn53 6 месяцев назад

Bernadette Banner also recently spun her own thread from flax. Was really cool to watch her get better and better at it.

@maryannraley 6 месяцев назад

Berandette's video is great.

@JulianaAndersson 6 месяцев назад

I love how your attempt yarns look! You will never be able to get those newbie spin looks once you know how to spin... save your attempts they will come in handy down the road ❤❤

@laureljohnson5560 6 месяцев назад

I am so impressed and awed. You are amazing. Thoroughly enjoying the flax to yarn. Showing how you tackle a project you are not proficient in, and how you work through the problems is extremely helpful. Thank you.

@wildsheepc 6 месяцев назад

Inspirational, really!

@elfieblue3175 6 месяцев назад

47 seconds: that was MY first yarn! I used an e-spinner for it, too. It looks great.

@amelia13131 6 месяцев назад

I'm sure you've seen his videos in your research, but Rob Stephens here on youtube has some videos showing his process growing flax to spinning it into yarn. They really made me want to learn to spin, but I keep telling myself I can't take on another hobby! I'm really enjoying craftmas so far!

@crowznest438 6 месяцев назад

Since the fibers are pretty short, tie them farther down the distaff to get closer to the orifice and only tie it at the top of the bundle with the ribbon for easy access to the fiber since it is a small amount. Spinning flax from a rolag will make a hairy yarn even with water and you want to spin from aligned fibers for a smooth, strong thread.

@TruFlyFox 6 месяцев назад

Evie makes spinning look easy. I swear it's magic.

@resourcedragon 6 месяцев назад

It does look like magic when she does it but I think you'll find it's just a *_lot_* of practice!

@kirstenpaff8946 6 месяцев назад

I love the little Räuchermännchen you have in the intro.

@anneostsee2764 6 месяцев назад

Dich auf deutsch zu hören ist so cool, lach. 😅 Ich bewundere deine Ausdauer und Leidenschaft.

@fikanera838 6 месяцев назад

This is so fascinating! It's interesting to compare your process with that in Bernadette's video, since you started with growing the plants, sort of the 'behind the scenes' part of the process. Looking forward to the next video!

@sutarikun 6 месяцев назад

In my year and a half of wheel spinning and two years or so of spindle spinning, the hardest thing to do is to find what works best for me with a specific fiber and learning to pivot. Hitting a stride as well as you did in a few days (heck, really in a few hours) is incredibly impressive! I look forward to seeing more in this progression.

@deejcarter2003 6 месяцев назад

I love how persistent you are.🥰 Spinning is challenging and it does come down to putting in the time. I encourage new spinner to spin at least 10 to 15 min. a day. I did notice at the beginning you just needed to draft the fiber before the twist entered. Also it looks like you bought tow flax or roving, which is the shorter bits that’s left over after processing line flax. Line flax comes in a large bundle that’s twisted back on it self. You are doing awesome, keep it up and have fun.🎉

@JennCampbell 6 месяцев назад

Have you tried rubbing and scraping? Often plant fibers are processed in ways including these steps. Before you dry the stems, put them on a flat surface. Using a hand size, smooth rock hit the stems to break the layers up. Using a dull knife or a butter knife gently scrape the unwanted materials off of the long fiber strands. Now dry the strands. After you dry the stems hold them between your flat hands. Rub your hands back and forth quickly. This will remove the bark and inner pulp without damaging the fibers. And remember to slightly dampen the fibers before working them. Good luck! ❤

@Hippiechick11 6 месяцев назад

I'm very impressed! That is a skill that doesn't come easily, but you did get usable yarn!

@Odontecete 6 месяцев назад

Nicely done! I'm happy that you discovered different fiber preps as prepping your fiber is essential and it's more than just processing. As you continue on your spinning journey, please add a little water to your flax as you spin it. Flax is a wet spun fiber (although I thought I saw you lick your finger tips which works but a little bowl of water saves your fingers more). Happy Spinning!

@su.mioiyu-5008 6 месяцев назад

I learned from your exprimenting that the shorter fibre can be carded into a rolag. Very much happy to see you tackle spinning. I learned to spin wool on a drop spindle before I got to my wheel. I still like the spindle for plying due to making a larger quantity than plying on my wheel. Its fun and I enjoy seeing you and please continue--

@kataetwas2825 6 месяцев назад

So now we're part of your 'Spinnstube'.😊

@Catherine-mp6xk 5 месяцев назад

I also learned how to spin on a spinning wheel this year after years on a drop spindle. I had the exact opposite problem that you had - my yarn was always super thin! I also discovered that learning how to work with my wheel was super hard! It was so encouraging to see you learn and then seeing the final thread! And I'm going to have to check out that book on women's work....

@helenedesilets6808 6 месяцев назад

Just a tip, when spinning with a single threadle like you have, it is a good idea to introduce a weight to your wheel so that the resting position of the wheel is just right , meaning that the threadle is raised into the perfect position to start threadleling. sorry for the bas spelling english is not my first language

@lizzieholland 6 месяцев назад

Stinging nettle may be an even older fibre than linen, but as its not easily farmed, better foraged, its a whole other deep dive. Im very impressed by your determination and the way you have thrown yourself into your project, amazing! Reminds me of when I was a beginner spinner. I still haven't been brave enough to try flax, but I'm less likely to use flax in my main craft, knitting. Good luck with your future spinning!

@JustIsold 6 месяцев назад

I would look up park and draft for spindles! It can really help you get the motions down before combining everything :)

@ManyInterestsLittleTime 6 месяцев назад

I recommend treadling ten times and stopping then with the loaded tension, you can focus on your drawing technique. Ten to the hip is a good ratio for worsted.

@SusanS588 6 месяцев назад

Giggled when I saw you using dog brushes. I used to show a coated dog breed and saw s fairly coarse tined slicker brush for sale at one of my favorite vendors. The vendor was appalled as she knew what breed I had. I had to let her know that I wouldn’t be using it on my Beardies (it would have ruined their coats) but to open up wool locks. It was much,much cheaper than a textile flicker brush.

@evelineherber256 6 месяцев назад

❤ Wie heisst es doch?! Übung macht den Meister! Genau das zeigst du. Leider ging das in unserer mehr und mehr schnelllebigen Zeit vergessen und wir sehen nur das "perfekte" Ergebnis. Der Weg dahin ist manchmal seeehr weit. Handarbeit ist oft durchhalten, durchbeissen - und plötzlich gehts wie von allein. Welch eine Freude überkommt dann einen 🥰💝. Ich werde noch diesen Monat 57 und du erinnerst mich grad an mich und das Obige. Du machst mir Mut ❤. Danke Du bist eine tolle, junge Frau. Weiter viel Freude und Inspiration bei deinem Tun. Gruss aus der kleinen Schweiz ❄️☔️☀️

@abarn9541 5 месяцев назад

Happy early birthday!

@evelineherber256 5 месяцев назад

💝 thank you ❤ It was at the 24th - but we were sick😳 startet the 19th. Now we are better😅

@Wildevis 6 месяцев назад

Great video as spinning is something I have not tried and probably never will. I do appreciate you showing the struggles of learning a new skill, without air brushing it. I am considering getting a hand spindle just to practise for fun, just to say I have done it

@greenecrayon 6 месяцев назад

Okay, so the "Women's Work" book has been on my to read list and you just reminded me and turns out my library has it so i put it on reserve so i can go read it.

@genier7829 6 месяцев назад

My guess is the low humidity of the room and the very dry fibers that make the yarn break so readily. Linen thread and fabric is actually stronger when wet than when dry, I hypothesize the same is true of the fiber.

@bradleyelders7904 6 месяцев назад

I was so happy to see you split that combed top into multiple pieces! That was my first reaction to watching you spin the blue knitpicks top-too much fiber in your drafting zone! At least for doing short forward draw like you are learning. Happy spinning!

@DeniseSkidmore 6 месяцев назад

A thin yarn like that may call for a different gear ratio (double drive) or tension (single drive) to get more rotations for less draw in.

@elena---c1558 6 месяцев назад

so cool! I've been wanting to learn to spin for ages, and seeing you give it a go is really inspiring! It's so cool that you spun up something you grew

@arrosa6049 6 месяцев назад

Fiber Love Diary is also so very helpful and she just put out a beginners spinning course

@resourcedragon 6 месяцев назад

I'd agree with the people who said that the problem with your commercial line flax was that it wasn't long enough. (One clever person has even suggested that it was intended for roving, so your instincts were right.) But flax for use with a distaff should be a good 2 - 3 feet long.

@bunhelsingslegacy3549 6 месяцев назад

Thanks so much for showing your progression, it's a good "is this normal or am I that awful at this?" check for those of us who plan to get into spinning. Do you remember how uneven your first crochet project was? I sure do, I used to crochet so tight the hook would squeak and I'd cramp my hands. It took me three full size baby blankets to sort out my tension issues, fortunately all my friends were getting pregnant right about then, so I definitely don't regret putting in the time letting my hands learn how to do the thing. And I'm gonna be bookmarking this video for the comments from the experienced spinners! I've been watching JillianEve too and right around 7 minutes in, looking at your thinner more even spin I was thinking, "Yesss! She's getting there!!" And I purchased some dog brushes last week for fibre use!! It was awesome to see you using them to make rolags! I've been collecting bunny hair for years with the intent of spinning it eventually but I need to figure out what I'll be mixing it with as it's not got a nearly long enough staple length to work on its own (regular rabbit, not angora), and the end product will probably end up shedding constantly just like the bunnies it came from!!

@LadyPatienceK 6 месяцев назад

Yay! I've been waiting for this. 😊

@maximilianeees.1256 6 месяцев назад

Es macht so Spass deine Videos anzusehen. Danke dafür

@gypsyjade7170 6 месяцев назад

I have been using a drop spindle for about 3 months, I totally suck! Like a buck ten I am wow 😯 bad at it, but I keep trying 😅

@mandmhutchins5202 6 месяцев назад

Lovely a new video!

@janeplass7305 6 месяцев назад

Good for you for jumping right in. As others have commented, your commercial flax preparation had shorter fibers than true line flax. Another way to spin it would be to wrap it loosely in a towel. Hold the towel in your lap and spin from one open end.

@daedubois9428 6 месяцев назад

I'm loving the spinning content. 😊

@gwenrushing9794 6 месяцев назад

This is so cool and very inspiring.

@jewelnelson5597 6 месяцев назад

This is fun🎉. You're doing all the things I wanted to do. Thanks for sharing all your processes and thoughts.

@ericaelmstead 6 месяцев назад

This is so awesome! I love your videos so much - thank you for sharing your process and congrats on your first home-grown and home-spun fiber!

@kat_livescolor 6 месяцев назад

So interesting to watch this process! I really love your channel and am so happy to have found it! Have a very merry Christmas, you, yours, and precious Nutella 🎄😁🫶❤️

@likeavirshin 6 месяцев назад

I found your videos and experiments fascinating. I could watch them for hours! And I really enjoy the way you organize the information and the clips. The final product ends up being also very entertaining and cohesive. Love you! ❤

@StephanieMayfieldDIG 6 месяцев назад

Love this series!

@melahatali2104 6 месяцев назад

Fascinating, thank you ❤

@raevynwoods9403 6 месяцев назад

So glad to finally see the spinning wheel in action! And I'm very impressed with your end result, I've never spun flax myself but it looks... temperamental :P

@moonbasket 6 месяцев назад

Oooo. So exciting! I recently got started spinning with a supported spindle. I'm spinning up some purple wool I ordered from a local store and I love it.

@kywire._ 6 месяцев назад

Evie says there’s no one right way to go about learning how to spin, and you can start wherever you want :~) way to go!!

@bluedragon9410 6 месяцев назад

This is so amazing! I really want to get into this form of craft, but I keep reminding myself that I only just finished my first crochet project, I have time to learn this later.

@laurahi3468 6 месяцев назад

You are just amazing, you are doing the thing I've always dreamed of (though mind you I've wanted to start with a sheep instead of flax, but still 😅) also, I am German and I've never heard the term "Spinnstube" but as soon as you've said it the feeling you described was there, so I'm looking forward to a lot of this Gemütlichkeit over the holiday period now while knitting ❤

@kevinwarwick6245 6 месяцев назад

Oh wonderful! I have been on a very similar journey but with milkweed bast fibers. I also have milkweed floss saved to try and make something out of it.

@c0ldlight1 6 месяцев назад

Oh this is wonderful. I've spun wool but never flax - I'm excited to see where this takes you. What will you weave?

@Rotten_Ralph 6 месяцев назад

Have you considered a damp paper towel on your knee where you can quickly dampen your fingers when you change your hand forward and back?

@auroradrates8286 6 месяцев назад

You did good for a couple of days of spinning! The best tip I've ever gotten was, if you have to pull the fiber too hard while drafting, your hands are too close together.

@user-kv3rj4cv8i 6 месяцев назад

Yeah! I loooove it! You make me come back to an original dream, having a Spinnrad. Its soooo expensive...

@KnittingLulu 6 месяцев назад

This is so fascinating! I am enjoying your Craftmas _>

@jennglow4647 6 месяцев назад

Cool 😀

@harribo7065 6 месяцев назад

I think you were working with your distaff too high up. I'm absolutely loving this festive series though, i love learning new things and the best way to do that is to follow along with somebody else's journey with them! Thank you for the interesting content! You are making me extremely jealous though as I've been want a spinning wheel for ages now, i use a drop spindle and have used different types of wheels at various classes but I've never stayed the fiber journey right at the very beginning, the growing! I will also be purchasing the book that was recommended to you, it sounds like a good read. 😊

@sagenelson527 6 месяцев назад

Is there a pattern for your sweater? The one with the red flowers/snowflakes on the yoke? It's absolutely gorgeous and I want to make one for myself now🤩

@kalliamazing 6 месяцев назад

I would also love to know if there's a pattern for that sweater!

@melindaloustalot6975 6 месяцев назад

At 21:36 hence the term "spinster."

@argonwheatbelly637 6 месяцев назад

Flax threads. 40,000 years and counting.

@JulianaAndersson 6 месяцев назад

The brake is the most important adjustment... less is more

@Riley-joned 6 месяцев назад

Do you ever do your own dyeing?

@The_Crafting_Gamer 6 месяцев назад

Just very nosy what games do you like to watch I watch a lot of gamestoo while I do stuff but also play games when I need to change from handcraft. Can you link the title of the book and where to buy it, thx in advance love all your craing stugg

@gerdine9258 6 месяцев назад

I have an obbservation. A bit before 10:10 it seems like you use your right hand to pull back the fibers from this 'spin' and using your left hand as a stop for the spin in de fibers and just moving it back when a bit of roving is 'ready'. What I'm going to say now is purely a guess. But what if you keep your right hand kinda stationary with the roving and use your left hand to pull out fibers from the roving bit by bit and let the spin go into that bit by bit? I'm not a spinner and maybe this makes no sense. I'm just a Jillian Eve fan and my gut tells me it could make a difference. But then, maybe not.😅

@KelseyDrummer 6 месяцев назад

My mom is an amazing spinner. I don't have the patience. 😂

@EverythingHumorous 5 месяцев назад

Is it possible to spin a string of linen with a string of wool?especially if each string is multiple ply (for example 8 ply strings) or they can't combine they'd fall apart?