Plying handspun yarns
Regular plying
Regular plying consists of taking 2 or more singles and twisting them together. This can be done on either a spinning wheel or a spindle. When plying, the singles are kept separate, either with the fingers or with a tool. This tool can be anything from the top of a salt dispenser, and the singles threaded through the holes, or a specially carved piece of wood with holes in it. The singles are kept separate to ensure that they do not get tangled and so the tension can be controlled. Most spinners who use spinning wheels ply from bobbins or spools. This is easier than plying from balls because there is less chance for the yarn to become tangled and knotted. So that the bobbins can unwind freely, they are put in a device called a Lazy Kate, or sometimes simply ''kate''. The simplest lazy kate consists of wooden bars with a metal rod running between them. Most hold three or four bobbins. The bobbin sits on the metal rod. Other lazy kates are built with devices that create an adjustable amount of tension, which adds control to how much string is unwound using a given amount of force. Some spinning wheels come with a built-in lazy kate. On a drop spindle, two-ply is created by placing the spools on a lazy kate, tying the ends together onto the drop spindle, holding equal lengths of singles together and dropping the spindle. The weight of the drop spindle, combined with the twist in the singles, causes the drop spindle to turn in the opposite direction that the singles were twisted in until the two singles are plied together.Chain plying
Chain plying (also known asCenter-pull ball plying
Center-pull ball plying results in yarn similar in appearance to regular plying. However, it doesn’t require a lazy kate or multiple bobbins. It requires a single bobbin and a center-pull ball winder or a nostepinne to create the center-pull ball that is plied with. Once the ball is wound, the single from both the center and outside are held together, in a similar manner to the regular plying method, then twisted together. This results in a two-ply yarn. Center-pull ball plying results in one single being more tightly wound than the other, causing a fluffier and looser texture when knit, compared to the regular plying method.Machined yarns
Machines that ply yarn use the 'regular' method mentioned above. The main difference is that gears control the intake, making sure that the strands all have the same tension and the same length. Other than that, the process for plying is exactly the same as when hand done.Novelty yarns
Many novelty yarns make use of special plying techniques to gain their special effects. By varying the tension in the strands, or the relative sizes of the strands, or many other factors different effects can be achieved. For example, when a soft, thick strand is plied against a tightly twisted thin strand, the resulting yarn spirals. Another example is bouclé, which is a yarn where one strand is held loosely and allowed to make loops on the other yarn while plying.See also
*References
Bibliography
* Abby Franquemont, ''Respect the Spindle, spin infinite yarns with one amazing tool'', Interweave (2009) , pp100–111.External links
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