Hand spinning

Wiltshire Green Woollies is located in a small village called Collingbourne Kingston in one of the most ancient and beautiful parts of England, Salisbury Plain.  We have our own mixed-herd flock of sheep, which are hand-sheared, with the fleeces sorted and washed ready for dyeing and spinning.  

This two-day hand spinning course takes place in the stunning Wiltshire countryside and can be taken in conjunction with the three-day natural dyeing course.  Attendees who have just completed the natural dyeing course will be working with their own dyed fleece.  We will start this course by learning about fleece selection and preparation, then progress to carding our fleeces on a drum carder. 

Claire will guide attendees slowly & carefully though the spinning process, starting off with drafting on the drop spindling and, when that has been mastered, moving on to the spinning wheel: setting up a wheel and the principles of tension. Attendees will transform their prepared batts into spun singles and learn the principles behind plying and create and finish their own skeins of hand spun fibre.  By the end of the course attendees will have developed a working knowledge of the all the techniques necessary to go away and start spinning their own yarn.
 

The course covers:
• Fibre selection and preparation

 • Carding and Blending fibres using a drum carder
• Techniques for drafting using a drop spindle

 • Setting up your wheel
• Spinning on a wheel  
• Plying – making a 2 ply yarn
• The Niddy Noddy, Skein making and finishing
• Next steps
 

There are no hidden costs as all materials and equipment needed to complete this course are provided.  Attendees receive a Course Companion and will keep their own hand-dyed and hand spun yarn.  There are at least six hours of tuition each day with time for one-to-one tuition throughout the course.

If local accommodation is required, we recommend the stunning Old School House Bed & Breakfast in our village.