A Distaff Spinner’s Diary
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distaff-spinner.bsky.social
A Distaff Spinner’s Diary
@distaff-spinner.bsky.social
140 followers 73 following 98 posts
Spinning yarn the old fashioned way with a distaff and spindle, or spinning wheel. Taking raw fibres through each process, slowly, step by step, to finished article. Growing dye plants for natural colour and wild flowers for the bees and butterflies. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿
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distaff-spinner.bsky.social
This scarf has been on my knitting needles since last December. Knitting long, straight pieces has never held much enjoyment for me, so it did get neglected for long periods. Yarn is handspun cashmere at around 26 WPI. Glad to have it finished at last!
#cashmere #handspun #handknitted
A hand knitted pale beige cashmere scarf is arranged on a dark red background. The scarf is knitted in a lace pattern which looks like vertical columns of leaves down its length.
November 2, 2025 at 6:14 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
My current WIP is a granny square knee blanket. It started life as squares for a cardigan, but I think I will get more use out of a blanket, so here it is. All hand spun yarn, dyed with plant dyes many of which are from my garden.

#grannysquares #crochet #handspun #plantdyed #homegrowncolour
Close up view of a crocheted granny square blanket showing the border being worked. The squares are each of three contrasting colours with a white border and each has been slip stitched to the next. A wooden crochet hook lies in the top right corner, inserted into a loop on the edge of the border, ready to make the next stitch. In the bottom right corner is a ball of caramel coloured yarn which the border is currently being worked with. A close up view of a crocheted granny square blanket showing the squares being slip stitched together. Each square has three contrasting colours and a white border and most of the seams are completed, just the vertical seam on the right needs to be finished. A wooden crochet hook lies inserted into the work at the point the seam has reached and the ball of white yarn being used for the seam lies on the blanket.
September 27, 2025 at 7:52 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
The sulphur cosmos have produced a bumper crop this summer. This hand spun Romney yarn takes the colour very well. The skein on the left is from 50% WOF of dried flowers, on the right is the exhaust colour.
#plantdyed #handspun #sulphurcosmos #naturaldyes
A skein of hand spun yarn soaking in an orange dye bath. Dried orange sulphur cosmos flowers. Two hand spun skeins of yarn lying vertically side by side on a linen background. The left hand skein is a vibrant orange colour whilst the right hand skein appears a strong yellow.
August 27, 2025 at 6:36 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
In the current hot weather it's a treat to find some shade outdoors and just sit and spin for a while. The wool on my distaff is hand combed Romney from Fernhill Fleece and Fibre.

#distaffspinning #suspendedspinning #handspinning #wool #heritagecraft
August 16, 2025 at 2:11 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
The latest batch from the dye pot, all hand spun Romney yarn this time dyed with sulphur cosmos on the left, logwood in the centre and cochineal on the right.

#handspun #handdyed #naturaldyes #plantdyes
Three small skeins of hand spun Romney yarn lying vertically side by side. The two on the left are a strong orange colour and the one on the right is a paler orange in colour. Three skeins of hand spun Romney yarn lying vertically side by side. The far left skein is a dark, almost navy blue, the middle one is slightly paler and the one on the far right is a deep purple colour. Two small skeins lying vertically side by side. The one on the left is a bright red in colour and the one on the right is a strong pink.
August 13, 2025 at 9:41 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Three more hand spun Romney skeins, fresh from the dye pot. Left and centre are dyed with home grown madder, the skein on the right is dyed with Saxon Blue (sulphonated indigo).

#handspunyarn #handdyed #plantdyed #naturaldye
August 11, 2025 at 5:13 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
After finishing spinning the first of four Romney fleeces, I have made a start on dyeing the skeins. This first batch is dyed with cochineal, logwood and home grown coreopsis.
#handspun #romney #plantdyed #cochineal #logwood #coreopsis
Five skeins of hand spun Romney wool lying vertically side by side on an unbleached linen cloth. The skein on the far left is a strong pink, the next skein a deep pinky red, the middle skein is lavender blue the next is a darker blue and the far right skein is yellow.
August 10, 2025 at 4:24 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
These are my finished skeins from #tourdefleece2025. Some were spun with distaff and spindle whilst on holiday, the rest were spun on my Schacht Matchless at home. Full details in alt text.
#handspun #handspinning #wool #handspunyarn #heritagecraft
A collection of skeins of hand spun yarn in various sizes and colours. Top left of picture, three large skeins of natural white Romney yarn spun on a spinning wheel. Top right, three smaller skeins, a grey Romney, a black Romney Shetland and a white Portland spun with distaff and spindle. Bottom left a skein of singles dyed in shades of blue and purple lying beside a smaller skein dyed with pinks and greens, both wheel spun. Bottom right, six small breed study sample skeins, all distaff and spindle spun. The breeds are Clun Forest, Shropshire, Devon Closewool, British Milksheep, Teeswater and Dorset Down.
July 30, 2025 at 7:17 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
My final spin of #tourdefleece2025 took place at Tretower Castle. I'm spinning Romney wool, using a distaff and medieval style spindle and a short suspension technique.
#distaffspinning #handspinning #Romney #wool #heritagecraft
July 28, 2025 at 12:58 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Yesterday’s spin for #tourdefleece was a gorgeously squishy Romney fibre from Fernhill Fleece & Fibre. Spun on my Schacht Matchless.
#romney #handspun #handspinning #wool
Picture shows a bobbin on a spinning wheel filled with a white 2ply yarn.
July 26, 2025 at 8:23 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Whilst on holiday last week, I came across a walnut tree, a rare find here in the UK. We’d had a couple of windy nights and the ground was covered with immature walnuts, which I quickly scooped into a bag. Today I dyed a gradient set of hand spun mini skeins using the outer husks from the walnuts.
Five mini skeins of hand spun yarn lying vertically, side by side, on a grey background. The skeins are dyed in a gradient of warm brown tones with the darkest on the left and lightest on the right. #handspun #walnut #plantdye #plantdyedyarn
July 23, 2025 at 3:17 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Last week I was on holiday in Lincolnshire and, as usual, my distaff and spindle came with me. I found some lovely places to spin, but probably the best was in the Great Hall at Gainsborough Old Hall. The wool I am spinning is Portland, a British rare breed and one of my favourites.
#handspinning
July 20, 2025 at 5:15 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
The French marigolds and coreopsis are flowering well in the garden and I have been picking and drying them for some time. I have just used up the remainder of last year’s marigold flowers and dyed one skein of Romney yarn and two of Portland, all hand spun.
#plantdye #naturaldye #handspun
Three skeins of hand spun yarn lying vertically on a natural linen cloth. The right hand skein is a rich deep golden yellow and the other two are slightly paler. A plastic box filled with freshly picked flower heads in bright oranges and yellows.
July 4, 2025 at 3:21 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
My hand spun Icelandic socks are finally finished. They are a very warm, sturdy pair of socks and hopefully will prove to be hard wearing.

#handknittedsocks #handspun #icelandic
A pair of feet wearing hand knitted socks in a pale grey hand spun yarn. The socks have an all over cabled rib pattern. The feet are resting on a blue checked hand woven blanket.
July 3, 2025 at 12:07 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
I’ve been told that hand spun Icelandic yarn makes good socks, so….
#handspun #icelandic #sockknitting #handspunsocksarethebest
A sock in the process of being knitted is lying on a blue and green checked, hand woven background. The sock is being knitted in grey yarn on four needles. The cuff of the sock has a cabled rib pattern and the knitting has reached to just past the heel. Beside the knitting, to the right, sits the ball of grey yarn being used to knit the sock, with a sort grey cable needle pushed through the right hand side of it.
June 16, 2025 at 8:06 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
It was a lovely afternoon for sitting in the sun, spinning, at Caldicot Castle. With children playing on the grass, jackdaws calling from the tops of the towers and the scent of roses filling the air.
#distaffspinning #handspinning #caldicotcastle
June 14, 2025 at 8:31 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
This þel fibre, from the Icelandic fleece I have just spun, was so beautifully soft the temptation to face plant into it was huge! (Yes, I did, more than once.)

#icelandic #handspinning #cardedfibre
Three rolled batts of soft white fibre lying side by side on a linen sheet.
June 11, 2025 at 8:07 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
My latest spin, newly completed, is an Icelandic fleece from a sheep called Gústi who belongs to @becbriar.bsky.social
Ten skeins of hand spun yarn in shades of pale grey.
June 10, 2025 at 6:11 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Two more sets of mini skeins in a gradient of colours. The yarn is hand spun Romney, the left hand set are dyed with cochineal and the right hand set, with onion skins. Each skein is approx 50m.
#handspun #handdyed #plantdyed
Five small skeins of yarn are lined up vertically side by side, dyed in a gradient of pinks, from the dark pinky red on the left to the pale blush pink on the right. Five small skeins of hand spun yarn lay vertically side by side. They are dyed in a gradient of golden yellow shades, with the darkest on the left and the palest on the right.
June 5, 2025 at 10:56 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Demonstrating medieval style distaff spinning at The Spring Festival.

#distaffspinning #handspinning #medieval
A woman is seated facing the camera, spinning wool with a distaff and spindle. She is dressed in 14th century clothes, wearing a long sleeved floor length red gown and a white linen veil and wimple.
June 1, 2025 at 8:07 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
This coming weekend I will be demonstrating distaff spinning on the European Wool Association stand at the Spring Festival. I will have some of my hand spun, plant dyed yarns with me for sale.
#distaffspinning #handspinning #springfestival #plantdyedyarn
Advertisement for the Spring Festival at the Royal Welsh Showground on Saturday and Sunday 17th and 28th May.
May 16, 2025 at 12:25 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Last year I had too much Japanese indigo to use it all fresh, so I dried it for future use. Today I used it for the first time and was very pleased with the results on this mini skein set.

#japaneseindigo #handspunyarn #plantdye #naturaldye
Five mini skeins of yarn are lying vertically side by side on an unbleached linen background. The skeins are dyed in a blue gradient, with the far left skein being the darkest blue and the far right being the palest.
May 6, 2025 at 7:54 PM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Another set of gradient dyed mini skeins, this time dyed with cochineal. The yarn is hand spun Romney fibre.

#handspun #handdyed #naturaldye
Five mini skeins of yarn lying side by side on a grey background. The skeins are dyed with cochineal to give a gradient of shades, from very pale pink on the left, to a dark red on the left.
May 5, 2025 at 7:41 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Third set of hand spun Romney mini skeins. These are dyed with coreopsis tinctoria, grown in the garden last summer.

#handspun #plantdyed #coreopsis
Five hand spun skeins lying vertically side by side on an unbleached background. The skeins are dyed in a gradient of colour with a very pale peach coloured skein on the left. The skeins get darker each time until the far right one is a deep pumpkin orange.
April 28, 2025 at 9:53 AM
distaff-spinner.bsky.social
Second set of gradient dyed mini skeins. These hand spun Romney skeins are dyed with home grown madder, harvested last year.
Five skeins of yarn lying vertically side by side on an unbleached linen background. The hand spun skeins are dyed in a gradient of colours from home grown madder root. The far left skein is a pale salmon pink colour. Each skein gets gradually darker until the far right one is a deep rusty red.
April 28, 2025 at 9:42 AM