Warp and Spin

Guides

First projects for spinners and weavers. Pick one and start.

10 first-project guides

A heap of colourful wool yarn balls
Photo: Margarida Afonso, Unsplash

First projects

  • A basket of raw fleece in cream and brown
    Photo: K Adams, Unsplash

    First project

    How to Card Wool with a Drum Carder, Step by Step

    Wash, tease, feed, crank, doff and clean: how to card wool on a drum carder, with Ashford's and Strauch's instructions to keep beside you.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    How to Start Spinning Yarn: A First-Wheel Guide

    Go from a bundle of wool to your first plied skein: what to gather, setting up the wheel, treadling, drafting, plying and winding your skein.

    Updated

  • Close-up of pink, red, yellow and blue warp threads on a wooden loom
    Photo: Mick Haupt, Unsplash

    First project

    How to Start Weaving: Your First Loom and Scarf

    How to start weaving: pick a rigid heddle loom, warp it, weave a first scarf, and fix common slips, with Ashford's and Kromski's instructions.

    Updated

  • Close-up of pink, red, yellow and blue warp threads on a wooden loom
    Photo: Mick Haupt, Unsplash

    First project

    How to Warp a Rigid Heddle Loom, Step by Step

    Direct warping on a rigid heddle loom in 15 steps from Ashford's own booklet: a 2 m warp, 84 ends, plus indirect and solo options.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    Spinning and Weaving Glossary: The Words, Explained

    What is a maiden bar? A shed? A sett? A friendly glossary of spinning and weaving words, from fleece and roving to flyer, orifice and heddle.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    Spinning or Weaving? Where to Start With a First Craft

    Want to make yarn, start spinning. Want to make cloth, start weaving. See what each involves, what you need for a first project, and how to try it first.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    What Is Spinning Yarn? From Fleece to Skein

    Spinning turns loose fiber into yarn by drawing it out and adding twist. See each stage, why people still do it by hand, and spindle, wheel or e-spinner.

    Updated

  • Close-up of pink, red, yellow and blue warp threads on a wooden loom
    Photo: Mick Haupt, Unsplash

    First project

    What Is Weaving, and What Is a Loom? A Plain Guide

    Weaving crosses one set of threads over and under another. A loom holds them taut. See how it works, the kinds of loom, and what you can make on each.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    Who Spins and Weaves? The People Who Take It Up

    A student raised with sheep, a Diné weaver, a knitter in lockdown: how real people came to spinning and weaving, in their own words.

    Updated

  • A wooden spinning wheel by a sunlit window
    Photo: Erik Mclean, Unsplash

    First project

    Why People Love Fiber Crafts, in Their Own Words

    Slowness, making for family, and belonging: what spinners and weavers say they get from their craft, in their own words, and how to try it yourself.

    Updated