What Materials Do You Need to Spin Cotton?

Crafting cotton into yarn requires a few special tools and a lot of practice.

People have been hand spinning cotton for thousands of years. Today, turning cotton to fabric is primarily performed by machinery in large manufacturing plants. There are, however, a substantial number of people who enjoy the age old art of spinning, and with an understanding of the techniques required and with the proper tools, you, too, can spin your own cotton. Spinning cotton usually means you'll need four things: clean (ginned) cotton, carding tools, a puni stick and a spindle or wheel.

Cotton

With your cotton spun, there's no end to the things you can create.

The primary objective in spinning cotton is to transform the short, individual cotton fibers into a long and continuous strand of yarn, but you need to have all the seeds, dirt and other detritus removed from the cotton before you begin. A long time ago, cotton was cleaned by hand. Today, we have machines that meticulously separate the cotton fibers from the seeds and other debris.

Carders

Carding tools are like giant brushes. They are needed to prepare the cotton for the puni stick -- which must be done before any attempt at spinning can begin. Carding prepares the fibers for efficient blending by separating and straightening them. For cotton, the carding tools must have very fine teeth to accommodate the wispy, short pieces of the fiber. As of 2011, these tools generally cost around $50.

Punis

A puni stick is, essentially, a long 1/4 inch dowel that you roll the carded cotton around, creating a puni in preparation for spinning. You can pick up a cheap dowel at any hardware store or even use a knitting needle. The carded cotton is wrapped around the stick in an even consistency, then pulled off the stick so that the spinner can begin using the fused fiber bundle with a spindle or wheel. Ready-to-spin punis are available online or through specialized fiber shops.

Spindles

The Tahkli spindle is favored among avid hand-spinners for use with cotton, as its designed for spinning fine, short fibers. They are fairly inexpensive and are convenient for the spinner on the go, as they are small and portable. Essentially, any type of lightweight spindle works well with cotton. The spindle is the device responsible for turning your fibers to yarn as it twists. It is held in one hand by a piece of "leader" yarn, to which the first bit of fiber is attached. The other hand spins the spindle and the first hand feeds in fiber, which is twisted as it is caught up in the other fibers as they are being twisted by the spindle's movement.

Wheels

Modern day spinning wheels are much the same as they've always been.

Any type of wheel can be used to spin cotton.They all provide the same function which is to twist and spin your fibers into a yarn or thread. Some wheels might require minor mechanical adjustments and additional practice as they are believed to be more challenging than spinning by hand. The MRC Seeds website recommends Charkha wheels for beginners, as it is thought to be easier to use with cotton than many other bigger wheels. Most wheels, despite their different names, follow the basic spinning style of the original, old-world spinning wheels. A treadle is worked with the foot while the yarn is fed over a spinning wheel, with the spinner adding in fiber as the yarn is twisted by the wheel's movement.

References

• Cotton Spinning with Joanne Ruane: Spin Cotton
• Cotton: The Story of Cotton
• MRC Seeds: Cotton Seed Specialist: Spinning Wheels
• The Joy of Handspinning: Styles of Spinning Wheels
• New England Simple Living: Hand Spinning: Laurie A.E. O'Meara

Resources

• The Woolery: Your Fiber Arts Supplier Since 1981: Welcome to the Woolery!
• Spinning Cotton on a Tahkli You Tube: Support Spindle with Ruthanne McCaulley