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3
Place the swivels in the holes on top of the box,
leaving the stick on the top outside of the box
(Figure 2). Tip: I often tape the stick down.4
Next, poke two small holes into each long side
of the box. The two holes should be about one
inch apart, but the vertical placement will depend
on your spindle and cop. The holes should fall
below the spindle cop but high enough to capture
the spindle shaft.5
Thread a tapestry needle with the remaining
yarn. Pull the yarn through the four holes
in the side of the box to create a loop as follows:
insert the needle into the hole closest to the back
of the shoebox, across the inside of the box, and out
through the hole closest to the back of the box on
the other side. Then, on the same side of the box,
insert the needle into the hole closest to the front
(Figure 3), across the inside of the box, and out
through the remaining hole on the other side. Cut
the yarn, leaving enough to tie a knot to secure the
loop on the outside of the box.Twist the yarn before inserting the spindle shaft, cre-
ating a bit of tension to slow the spindle’s rotation.Ready to Ply
Before you insert your spindles, twist the yarn loop
(Figure 4). More twists will result in more tension on
your spindle, so you might need to adjust later. Then
insert the spindle shaft into the twisted loop and hang
the spindle hook on a swivel. Repeat for the second
spindle. As you begin working, you might find that the
box is top-heavy. If it is unsteady, stabilize the box by
adding weight to the bottom under the spindles with
something handy, such as a book or coffee mug.
Now you are ready to ply onto either another spindle
or a wheel. When I do not have a spare plying spindle or
the time to sit in one place to ply, I use this kate to hold the
spindles while I wind a plying ball. To do this, I hold the
singles parallel to each other and under steady tension as I
wind them into one firm ball of yarn. Later I can use this
plying ball with a spindle to add plying twist.
If I have only one spindle with me, I use the spindle
kate to hold that spindle while I create a center-pull ball
using a nearby piece of paper to roll up a s a nøstepinne.
Then I can spin a two-ply yarn using the outside
and inside ends of the center-pull ball. Spindles are
wonderfully portable, and your plying tools can be, too. ●Karen Williams lives in Alaska. She frequently combines
her love of textiles with her love of travel and the outdoors.
Some of her favorite travel memories are textile related,
since language and culture are not barriers when meeting
fellow textile enthusiasts. Karen started spinning to support
her knitting habit. However, she recently started spinning
for weaving, proving that spinning can be a slippery slope.How About Three-Ply?
If I want to create a three-ply yarn but the box
is not wide enough for three spindles in a row,
I create a second row for the third spindle so
that the three spindles are in a triangle forma-
tion. This additional spindle requires its own
stick, swivel, and tension yarn loop.Figure 2Figure 3Figure 4