Spin It: Making and Using a Drop Spindle

I recently decided that the idea of spinning my own yarn was just too tempting to ignore. I swoon over yummy handspun yarn at the knit shop; I have dreams of sitting on my window bench, deep in relaxation, spinning my own yarn.

Handwork is an important part of the Waldorf method of homeschooling, and includes natural clay modeling, beeswax crayons, wet-on-wet watercolor, wood work, knitting and finger knitting, embroidery, and of course – cleaning wool and spinning yarn. So armed with an EXTRA excuse to learn this ancient skill, I embarked on a woolly adventure…

My first step is to experiment with the simplest, most timeless design – a drop spindle. From what I have read, this is not only a great beginner’s tool that is super affordable and versatile, it can also be used as you advance and is great practice for if you do decide to purchase a more costly spinning wheel.

First, here’s a book I would recommend: Respect the Spindle!

Now, you can purchase wool roving ready to spin or you can go a step or two back and buy some wool that you need to clean, card and dye yourself. I’ll be doing this soon too, but for now let’s just assume you have your wool ready.

Making your own spindle is super easy and cheap (I added the parts I needed to a purchase of wooden eggs from Casey’s Wood – which cost me $1.55! I’ve included links to these parts in the instructions but you can also find them at your local craft store, most likely). Purchase a wooden toy wheel ($.60) and a dowel ($.80) to fit. Stick the dowel into the wheel with about an inch or so sticking out the other side (this is called the low “whorl”). Then cut the dowel on the other side down to about a foot long (hint – you can use the rest for another spindle or you can even make your own knitting needles with it!)

Next, drill a tiny hole into the end of the short side of the dowel, straight into the shaft to guide a 1/4″ cup hook ($.15) to the end of the short side to act as a catch for your yarn. Sharpen the the longer end of the dowel to a dull point so it can spin easily on a surface if you want to do it that way.

You will need about 18″ of “leader” yarn to get started (which can be a piece of your store bought yarn or hand spin a little to get you started), which you tie to the shaft right above the wheel (or as we’ll now call it, the “whorl”.) Then take that yarn around the whorl and loop it around the lower whorl (the small end of the dowel sticking out the other side) to act as a stabilizer. Then bring it back down around the whorl and draw it through your hook.

Now you’re ready to spin!

I found the following video the most helpful to me for this part, so I’ll leave it to her to show you. There are other YouTube videos by this gal and they are great as well!

Happy Spinning!

P.S. Tip: If you don’t want to make your own, there are some really beautiful handmade top whorl drop spindles on Etsy!