Eventually, yes – weaving is the plan for these yarns.

But that’s not the reason why I had to ply.

I needed some empty bobbins.   I got myself into a bit of a pickle spinning new-to-me fibers and  ‘forgot’ that in order to make a 3-ply yarn, I would need one bobbin for each ply.  1+1+1 = ?  (Arithmetic – sheesh!)

The thing is, until recently, my preference (my habit) has been to make 2-ply yarns.  With 2 empty standard size bobbins and a jumbo flyer

I always have a way to make two bobbins full of singles and ply them onto the jumbo bobbin (plus the added bonus of one big skein/no knots).

But there are differences between Cashmere and the so-called “rug wools”  – beyond the most obvious.  And I’m curious about what it takes to make warp for a rug.  So I decided to explore the potential of having an additional ply (and got pretty excited about the possibilities).

But lo and behold – all my so-called ‘extra’ bobbins were otherwise engaged.

It’s not unusual for me to have several bobbins of spun singles waiting to be plied.  It doesn’t bother me to let them sit there until I’m ready to take them to the next level.  And I like looking at them – all proud and pretty on their lazy kates.

But it’s not considered best practices.

Fibers twisted together (yarn) and wound under tension (into a ball or around the core of a bobbin)-  over a period of time – may appear to have lost their characteristic elasticity.  And appearance is key – because it becomes  difficult to accurately gauge the true nature of that fiber or yarn as it appears in it’s stretched-out state.

What that means is – I might not be able to tell how much plying twist I’ll need just by looking at the singles that I’ve oh so carelessly left sitting on their bobbins for who knows how long.

But here’s the thing.
In my experience, based on what I know about the yarns I spin –

Leaving singles on a bobbin is not the problem.

The question of whether or not it’s “good” for my yarn gets filed into a category I call:  “not important, doesn’t matter, and I don’t care.”

If you’re having a whole lot of fun spinning and spinning – and spinning – you may wind up with a bunch of spun singles and nowhere to move them.

The problem is not having any empty bobbins.

When you’re enthusiastically engaged and eager to continue along a particular creative path (like spinning), it seems to me that “best practices” include being able to keep doing what you’re doing when you’re on a “roll” rather than lose your momentum, or worse – feel frustrated at having to stop.

You don’t have to be afraid that your singles will languish if you leave them on a  lazy kate for a while.  It’s OK to let them wait their turn if you have something better (more important, different or exciting) to do.
Develop your own best practice.
Get into the habit of writing down where the drive band is when you spin. (Which whorl are you using?).
Be aware of your natural treadling pace and drafting style.  (How many times do you push down on the treadle before your newly formed yarn moves through the orifice and onto the bobbin?)

Write it down. Those little bits of information will help you pick up where you left off.

Sometimes what feels like an interruption turns into a good thing.

Now I have 6 empty bobbins.   Maybe it’s time to try a 4 or 5-ply?
Nah.

Now I gotta go weave.