Wonderful informative books on spinning. Some are more basic while others are highly detailed and diagrammed for advanced spinning. Check out some of these wonderful titles~
FLEECE & FIBER SOURCEBOOK: Every once in a while there is a book that lives up to it’s hype. Only once in a blue moon are we lucky enough to get a book that surpasses all the stories that have led up to it. The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook is a blue moon book. The spinning world has been buzzing about this book for years, and Deb Robson has been kind enough to share writing the process on her blog, but that still didn’t prepare me for the completeness of the book. The sheer complexity of the subject made clear, useful and not just interesting, but fascinating. More than 200 animal fibers and breeds laid out and dissected by an animal expert and a spinning expert jump off of the page in concise prose that speaks to the history of the breed; fleece, fiber and lock characteristics; using the fiber in dyeing, spinning, knitting and weaving. The photography is crisp enough to count crimps and shows fiber as washed and unwashed; prepped and spun, and sometimes knit or woven. The authors manage to do all of this using 2-4 pages per breed. 448 Pages. Hardcover.
FIELD GUIDE TO FLEECE: With this compact portable (Fits in my purse:) reference in hand, crafters can quickly and easily look up any of 100 different sheep breeds, the characteristics of their fleece, and the kinds of projects for which their fleece is best suited. Each breed profile includes a photograph of the animal and information about its origin and conservation status, as well as the weight, staple length, fiber diameter, and natural colors of its fleece. This is a great primer for beginners, and a handy guide for anyone who loves working with fleece. Every sheep breed has a two page display. The name of the breed and a clear picture of what this breed looks like on the left side, and a clipped lock and more information on the right side. There also is a measuring tape pictured with each lock, so you have and idea of staple length.
The pictures are wonderfully clear. 232 pages. Paperback.
ASHFORD BOOK OF HAND SPINNING: By Jo Reeve. Learn to hand spin with fibre artist Jo Reeve. Jo, the author of the very popular Ashford Book of Carding, has twenty-seven years of spinning experience and will show you how to spin from the beginning through to advanced techniques. Learn how to create unique yarns using different techniques and fibres and make five easy projects using your handspun yarn. Step by step instructions and gorgeous colour photographs will take you on a new journey of creativity.
START SPINNING: If you're just going to get one book to learn to spin, this is it. It has lovely pictures and covers the topic really well. For knitters, crocheters, and weavers ready to make their own yarn, this handy guide provides detailed instructions for spinning both on a spindle and a wheel, and offers a special section devoted to troubleshooting and wheel maintenance that keeps projects on track. It offers a comprehensive look at the various available fiber options, choosing and preparing each type of fiber for use, and crafting these materials into ready-to-work pieces. A final chapter on the various uses of spun yarn focuses on project planning, with definitions and context for measuring wraps per inch, determining yards for specific projects, and choosing a yarn size. 120 pages. Paperback. Also available in DVD. Choose from drop down box at upper right.
HAND WOOLCOMBING AND SPINNING by Peter Teal: Hardback. 212 Pages. The classic book on how to use English Woolcombs continuing into worsted spinning. Packed full of technical information, essential for the spinners book shelf. His book is helpful in pointing out the things to be mindful of at the fibre prep stage in order to achieve consistent results. This book will really take your spinning to a new level, gain the ability to control the factors that create yarn so that you can design a yarn based on the potential of the wool, and then produce it. It helps reader to understand the nuances of fleece washing and preparation, basic dying, setting up the wheel and how changes affect spinning the yarn. He explains the nuances, with easily understandable charts and formulas, of twist, grist, drafting, and other skills of spinning worsted. More importantly, Teal explains clearly not only how those things work, but how to put them into practice without a lot of anguish. He shows photos of how to position the hands, and encourages experimentation to find what works best for you. While this book was written on use of English combs, the information overall about fiber prep, combing in general and result oriented spinning, is fabulous. You'll never part with this book once you have it. It should be in every spinner's library.
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