The Nightmare Is Finished!!

There has to be an easier way to do this. Plying the yarn was a nightmare. This is the first time I have spun so much yarn at one time before plying. I had about 100 grams total and as I spun I wound them onto toilet paper rolls for about 50 grams on each roll. The curling back of the strands and tangling was horrible. Maggie came up with the wonderful idea of putting tissues into the tp rolls to try and make a tensioned lazy kate. That made things easier but it still was very difficult. I finally finsihed the plying this morning. I had about 80 grams plied when both strands broke. I used that as an excuse to take the yarn off the spindle and start fresh. The spindle was really too heavy the way it was. First I took the rest of the 2 rolls and wound them together into one. Both rolls didn't have the same yardage so I just cut the single ply I had left over and used the Handy Andy to Andean ply that. Doing the Handy Andy first saved my sanity. Then I plied the single roll with the 2 stands rolled together. That was MUCH easier to ply. I'll have to keep that in mind for next time. I did have to break the yarn a few times because some of the curling back singles got tangled but on the whole it still was a lot easier. When I plied the last bit I was ready to chuck what was left in the garbage when it got tangled but I couldn't do it. That's why I just ripped out the part that gave me trouble and continued. Everything is now on the Niddy Noddy. I just washed it. As you can see it's now hanging to dry. I'll check the yardage after it's dry. I tried to do that when I was winding it on the noddy but it just didn't work out. I was already frustrated enough by this point from the yarn breaking etc.so I gave up trying to run it through the yarn meter as I wound the noddy.

I love spindle spinning but plying is enough to make me not want to do it. I think next time I am going to try and spin as much as I can on one spindle and then leave it on the spindle. I'll rest the spindle in a shoe box and rest the second spindle in another shoe box and try plying it that way and see if it works. I should have my wheel in about 2 weeks and I imagine that plying will have to be easier from bobbins then it is with the spindle.