Transfuge ou converti? Überläufer oder Konvertit? Tránsfuga o convertido? Casadh-cóta nó tiontú?

Well, it’s been a long time since the last post, but activities have continued. Last year I was delighted to have had an article accepted by Spin Off magazine (Fall issue) on Turkish Spindles. I wrote about preferring natural wooden spindles to 3D-printed ones and I never thought I’d be turned…

A little over a year ago, a new yarn store opened locally and I was alerted to the opening by a friend’s post on Facebook. So of I trotted to Skein Machine… I may be posting an updated article I wrote on the store soon, so rather than repeat things I’ll just mention that on my way out, I noticed a wooden drop spindle in the glass counter. Naturally I had to ask for a close-up look. This started a conversation about spindles and the fact that Matt (co-owner) was developing 3D-printed Turkish spindles.

Long story short, I was more than willing to test these out and provide constructive feedback. Why the change of heart? Matt explained that these were made from PLA: plant-based “plastic”. Aha! eco-friendly stuff that Star Trek would have been using so early on in the Captain’s log. While the waste can’t currently go in the green bin, I reckon that pretty soon local governments will have to set up dedicated recycling programs (it seems that the PLA requires a certain level of humidity and the right bacteria to decompose).

OK, so back to the converted… We bought a 3d-printer and naturally the first thing I wanted to try was a drop spindle. Disaster. Tried a few more times. Since then I’ve managed to produce various designs in different weights and colours and use the slightly-less-than-perfect ones myself. There’s a lot of fun to be had in thinking up new and quirky designs – all of which have to be well-balanced.

While I never intended my blog to be commercial, I’ll just say that I don’t get paid by others for advertising (other than accepting ads on the website to keep my subscription rates down). Why am I telling you this? Because I started selling the spindles (and other crafty items) at Skein Machine and also at the Guild . At this point I have no aim to sell them directly; I can only imagine the work that would entail.

And Spin Off? The staff I had contact with were such a pleasure to work with – at all times they were so positive and constructive!