 So much to love with these spindles Maker: Ed Tabachek Weight: 50 g / 1 7/8 oz Length: 10" Shaft 3" Whorl Style: Top Whorl Woods: Kingwood with Maple Shaft  My sample this week is Falkland wool from Tale and Tendril in the colourway Madonna & Child. This spindle holds a special place in my heart because it was my very first spindle. I first heard about Tabachek spindles from my spinning teacher Deb, she told me they were the best and luckily they were available in my LYS. Since I was just learning to spin, I was looking for a spindle that I could use as a beginner but I still wanted it to look really nice. I was happy that this spindle was lightweight and that, as my spinning evolved I could still use it to spin a variety of yarn weights. The size was also big enough that I could pack a substantial amount of yarn on it. It still hasn't let me down. The hook is strong and much nicer than your average cup hook and there is nice detailing at the top of the shaft. Each of his spindle models are similar but the woods he uses set them apart. I love how he uses contrasting woods/colours and the grain in this particular spindle is really pretty.  He bowls out the underside of the whorl which makes these spindles rim weighted. Upon closer inspection, the carving is flawless. The top of the whorl has concentric circles and even the side of the whorl is shaped with carvings as well. There are 3 notches in his spindles; at 2:00, 6:00 and 11:00 which is different from the regular placings. I like these better. The notches are also neatly made, and look like they are integrated into the whorl as opposed to an afterthought. Look at that grain!
 I made this spindle bag out of my first handspun yarn. I wheel spun two bobbins and plyed them together. The yarn was so underplyed I re-plyed it on this spindle. It important to save your first handspun and a spindle bag is a great item to make.  I was lucky enough to have Ed Tabachek in my Spindle class I took at Olds last year. He is a very humble man and very friendly. His wife Jo-Anne is also a recent graduate of the Master Spinners Program and for her thesis she used Tabachek spindles exclusively.
Spindle rating: Length of spin: 24.4 seconds (average of three tests) Fibre storage ability: Excellent Looks: Wonderful Overall Rating: 10/10 Ed has been going through some health issues and his spindles have become difficult to obtain. I have seen some for sale on the Spindle Candy group and people are asking a lot more than they bought the spindles for. I am very lucky to have at least one of each of his spindles (The Deluxe is the largest). He also makes Russians and Tibetan support spindles as well as spindle bowls and nostepinne's. I'm very glad to have Tabachek's in my collection and if you come across one you will love them too.
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 Ahhh Goldings, always eye-catching <3 Maker: Golding Weight: 50 g / 1 7/8 oz Length: 10" Shaft 3" Whorl Style: Top Whorl Woods: Cherry with Walnut Shaft My sample is merino/silk from The Wacky Windmill in the Pixie colourway If you love spindles, chances are you have heard of Goldings and if you have ever checked their website you will drool over all other thier other fibre equipment. These are top of the line items, and handcrafted with extreme skill. Each spindle is unique and if you look through thier pages, you can see that there is literally something for everyone. Whatever you interests, Golding has a spindle for you. Really. Go look.  This spindle is on the heavy side (compared to others) but it is a great plying spindle and I had no troubles spinning the fibre for my sample. The signature bronze ring around the whorl is one of the Golding giveaways. These spindle spin for.ev.er and when you think they have stopped and you look down, they are still spinning and haven't slowed down. Just look at the spin time below compared to my other reviews. Golding's ring spindles are very rim weighted, they maximize spin energy. The bronze is tarnish resistant and if you polish it, it will shine nicely, otherwise you can leave it and it will darken and still look amazing.  I really love the grooves along the length of the lower portion (3.5") of the shaft. This feature makes it easy to grip when flicking your spindle or winding your yarn on. They aren't rough at all but they provide the perfect amount of grab and adds character to what could be a boring shaft.  I saved the best for last - the whorl. Hand carved and quite beautiful. Looks equally stunning when its still as when its spinning. Perfectly balanced and surrounded with bronze. The whorl has 2 notches; one at each side and the hook is bronze and a swan neck shape. Elegant. There is a lot of depth to the Celtic knots, Golding did a great job at making the wood look like it has been tied.
Spindle rating:
Length of spin: 37.8 seconds (average of three tests) Fibre storage ability: Excellent Looks: Amazing Overall Rating: 10/10 These spindles speak for themselves. Try one out and you will totally understand. They feel the quality they are and they are wonderful works of art and totally unique. I really like knowing that quite a bit of time went into each one and I appreciate that. Stay tuned for more Goldings in the future.  Looking for your daily dose of fibre? I know exactly where to turn. Kim from The Wacky Windmill was in Regina for the Regina Weavers & Spinners Guild monthly Fibre night (we are SO lucky). She brought with her a wonderful collection of hand-dyed yarns, fibre, notions, project bags and everything else a fibre artist needs. As I was helping put product on the tables I couldn't resist wanting to keep it all! Kim's good friend and awesome knitter Donna was there to enable (I mean answer questions) and she displayed some of her beautiful hand knit items made with Kim's yarn.  I managed to snag a few things that I couldn't live without. The yarn is destined to become a shawl, it's SW Merino/Stellina so it has a beautiful shimmer and all the best colours rolled into one. The two braids at the front are SW BFL in hot pink/black and white. The braid at the top left is Merino/Silk and apparently I bought fibre just like this a few years ago (obviously it's wonderful). The last two on the table are a past club colourway and my all time favourite in the luxurious blend of SW Merino/Sea Cell *sigh*. I <3 The Wacky Windmill. The project bag at the top of the photo is the perfect size and how could I not love: a) a bag b) a bag with sheep c) a bag with sheep that holds fibre?!
 I spun this Falkland in the "Pot of Gold" colourway for Kim's SAL (Spin-a-long). This was the softest Falkland I have ever worked with. She is hosting another challenge this month and you can check her Ravelry group for more info The prizes are gorgeous!  While we were hanging out and spinning, I asked Kim a few questions (as an adoring fan) and thought others might be wondering some of the same things I was.
Where do you find inspiration? I find it all over the place; photos, nature, other dyers. I’ll notice color ideas on my way home from work or when I go snow boarding – there are lots of nice colour combos on the slopes. Sometimes I will also randomly grab containers and see what happens. How do you come up with colourway names? I sometimes ask other people around what they think the yarn or fibre looks like. We bounce ideas back and fourth. My husband doesn’t offer a whole lot but when he comes up with something it works well – like “Charred Oak”. Sometimes the names revolve around themes such as my silk yarn which is named after characters from the game Clue. “Tea Cup Elephant” was based on a dream I had. “Stow Away” was named because I found that braid among other fibre it didn’t belong with.  What is your favourite colour? My favourite colour is green which may be why there is so much of it in the shop all the time. What other artistic hobbies do you do? I spin, knit, crochet, I’ve dabbled in weaving, I like to sew and quilt. I make soap, lotion and lip balm. I also like gardening, although I sometimes forget to water. I really enjoy renovating too. How has your work evolved since you started? When I first started dyeing I used Wilton dyes but they kept breaking and the colours sometimes ended up looking like mud. I was afraid of acid dyes – the name "acid" scared me, but when I used them for the first time and my hands didn’t burn off I realized how great they are. I have done a lot of research and looked into different fibres and how they appeal to people and take on colour. I have taught myself a lot about different ways to dye and have tried kettle dyeing, hand painting, dip dyeing, sprinkle dyeing and infusion. I like experimenting to try and get different effects. I am more adventurous than I used to be, and I will try mixing dyes to see how they turn out and will also try colour combinations that may not appeal to me but they do to others. I love seeing how each fibre artist adds their own techniques to my fibres, like in the club shipments, everyone comes up with a different way to spin or ply their yarns and come up with a unique end result.  What are your favourite fibres? To dye? I love the way Superwash Merino and Falkland take colour, but SW Merino is slippery when you rinse. To spin: BFL hands down. BFL and Merino plyed work really well together, the combination makes the yarn softer. What does your studio look like? Unfinished drywall, cement floors and poor lighting. I used to work in the kitchen but I have now moved downstairs. I have tables and a sink and stove down there, I need to work on the lighting but I have my own space now and it’s wooly. My rabbit Sunny is my dye buddy. Tell me about your pets: When I learned you can spin angora I found my first rabbit; Suzuki (Suzi) (3yrs) from a breeder in Vulcan. She is a French German Angora cross Red Eye White (REW). Gremlin is an English Angora Lop Cross rescue (received from the same breeder). We have fostered him for 2 years. His original owner passed away which caused him some health related stress issues, but he is a sweet boy. Sunny, which is short for Sunflower (1yr) is a French Lop Cross. She was a Christmas present and she is my biggest bunny. She loves to be held, pet and cuddled and really doesn’t like when she’s on my lap and I'm playing on my cell phone.  I also have 2 dogs; Boo who is 11 and Gracie who is 7. They are Maltese / Shih Tzu X's and are my sweethearts. I've had them both since they were puppies.
Where can we see your work this year? May 3rd – Regina Weavers & Spinners Mini Retreat May 30th – Kings College HWSDA Conference June 13 & 14 – Fibre Arts Week in Pincher Creek June 23 – 27th – Olds Fibre Week Oct 4th & 5th – Knit City in Vancouver Watch for more updates throughout the year! Where can we find you online? ~ The Wacky Windmill group on Ravelry ~ Etsy ~ Twitter @TheWackyWindmill ~ Email Kim ~ The Wacky Windmill Website and Blog
I want to share my Wacky Windmill love with you too - I have a skein of TWW Getting Heavy in the colourway "Seriously Disturbed" to give one of you! It is 250 yards of soft, fluffy wool and one of my favourite yarn bases.  To win, you must comment on this entry with shawl pattern recommendations - just kidding ;P just let me know what you would like to make with this yarn and what you love about Kim and The Wacky Windmill.
This giveaway will end on April 19th Congrats to Linda! Thanks to everyone who entered. Stay tuned for more giveaways. |
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