So you've spun your yarn, either onto your spinning wheel bobbin or drop spindle, and are ready to knit or crochet it right up yes? just one more thing is needed and that is set the twist in your yarn.
Remove your spun yarn from your bobbin or spindle onto your Niddy Noddy or back of a chair, separate out some strands and tie some cotton thread around your yarn in a figure of eight to keep in it place, do this in at least two places.
You will need to set the twist in your yarn, either as a single or as a plied yarn but it's very easy to do.
Simply grab a sink or bowl and get yourself some warm water, you can also wash your yarn with some shampoo at this stage too if you like.
Remove your spun yarn from your bobbin or spindle onto your Niddy Noddy or back of a chair, separate out some strands and tie some cotton thread around your yarn in a figure of eight to keep in it place, do this in at least two places.
Now take off your skein and dip it gently into your warm water, try not to agitate your yarn too much. Rinse a couple of times in more warm water if using shampoo and then squeeze out the water as best as you can in your hands gently, do not wring out your yarn. Now place your yarn into a towel to squeeze out any remaining water.
To see if your yarn's twist is balance let the skein hang from your hands and see if the yarn wants to twist around on itself, if it doesnt twist or barely twists then it is a balanced yarn and will work great for knitting up. If it does twist quite noticably don't panic too much, hang the skein to dry in a warm area with a small weight connected at the bottom to stretch out your yarn just a little, be careful not to over-stretch and damage your yarn. Do bear in mind that this will straighten the skein and will remove a little of its elasticity but tensioned yarns are great for weaving.
Testing if your hand spun is well balance is a good way to work out what you wish to do with your completed yarn. If you are not happy with adding tension then you can always run your yarn through your wheel again to either add more spin or less spin.
But most of all just enjoy it and don't worry too much if it doesn't work out first time! You can always call it art yarn and it will still be beautiful.
