How To
Make a Simple Drop Spindle.
These instructions assume you know how to spin or are learning to spin on a drop spindle.
I made a very simple drop spindle that has the added feature that you don't have to unwind the yarn when you are done.
First, I rounded up a dowel (mine is about a half-inch dowel, about 11 inches long) and two strips of wood (mine are 5 x 1 1/4 x 3/8) and one small cup hook.
Drill a hole in the center of the two strips of wood the size as the dowel so it will fit in snugly, but you still can move them about. Drill a tiny hole in one end of the dowel so it doesn't split when you screw the cup hook in. Sand all pieces and sand the dowel ends so the weighted end is tapered and the cup hook end is rounded.
Screw the cup hook in the rounded end. Insert the dowel in the holes in the wood strips and position them about 2/3 of the length of the dowel away from the cup hook end. Swivel the strips so they are at right angles to each other.
Tie on a leader yarn (a different colored yarn is helpful) under the wood strips and wind it around the wooden slats - not the shaft - bring it up and give a wind around the cup hook and start spinning.
Instead of winding the yarn around the shaft, wind the yarn about the wood strips, over and under. I usually do it on the diagonal, but it doesn't seem to matter much.
When your spindle is full, simply pull the dowel out, slide the wood strips out and you're left with a center pull ball! You're ready to ply!
Tip:. If you only have the one ball and want to ply it, simply take the two ends - one from the side and one from the center and ply together.
© Lana Pettey 2009