Viking Inspired Whorl Ideas~ New Glass Whorl Styles

It's time to talk about whorls again! For the last several years I have been making handmade glass whorls that are used for Viking style spinning. Slowly but surely, things keep moving along. First there were single whorls, then pairs of whorls that spun together, and now I seem to be in a phase of making longer single whorls. My busy brain is always ready to pursue a new idea; then it seems I abandon old things and move on! 

There are a few different design ideas affecting my whorl making these days. First and foremost are single conical whorls, which are a bit longer and thinner than past styles. The shape simply appeals to me. It seems like the extra weight near the center is making them spin nicely and possibly longer than the shorter, wider whorls. The conical shape also allows extra weight at the outside edge. Some extra added glass 'bobbles' can add yet more weight at the outside, as well as visual interest. 

The next thing is colors and designs~ oh my! This is where I get excited. I've been making a lot of two-tone beads with a line of something or other swirled between. Sometimes there's a touch of frit (wee bits of broken glass) involved, or goldstone, or a glass that changes colors and reacts in the flame. I may even add a little handmade murrini to jazz up the bobbles between the colors. There's often a bit of a 'happy accident' involved (and sometimes an unhappy accident~ ha,ha). The style can seem rather simple, but again, the look just hits me right.

  Finally, there's encased silver foil with frit or murrini or something trapped within or added on the outside. These are not new techniques for me, but not something I've concentrated on much in the world of whorls. An additional part of this idea is something I am calling an accidental whorl, though it has now become an 'accidentally on purpose' whorl. These babies tend towards a round or bicone shape and were originally made to be worn. One day I made one that seemed just a little bit too large to actually wear and still stand upright. I popped it on a spindle and, well, it spun like a top. Because these were originally meant as wearable beads, the holes are straight. 

One more little flight of thought~ one may wonder, why not just make whorls like the wearable beads? Can it be done? Of course it can, however... I often find that a particular type of bead begs a particular shape or design. I could not tell you why! Have I ever made a bead that is similar in shape and design with a tapered hole? Why yes, but it seems it is not something that my brain directs me to do with ease!

Here's that red accidental whorl spinning its little heart out!

Medieval glass bead spindle special tips

The other day, I had the good fortune to meet someone who had been gifted a glass bead spindle from my etsy shop. She had some questions about things that I had never thought about, so here are a few extra special tips to help modern gals learn about going Medieval with their spindle skills. And do remember to see my other spindle blogs, and the missing spindle blog and youtube channel about these for even more information! Each listing in my etsy shop tells about the weight, size and spin-ability of the whorls shown. That's a good place to start making an informed decision. These are all bottom weighted spindles meant to spin thin yarn. I have not tested them as top whorls.




First the oh-so-helpful o-rings and/or clear hair bands that will help keep your whorls from whirling away. Why do I recommend these and send them along with your order? Well, when I first began making these whorls and they were being tested by Lois, she came back and said something like~ 'these are really sturdy, they were rolling all over my concrete floor,' I looked at her and said- 'we've got to stop that!' A little thinking cap time revealed the o-ring solution. If the whorls go skidding across a hard floor too many times, they should not break, but they will get scuffed up. And it's annoying to have to go skittering after them all the time. You should be able to get more o-rings at your local hardware store in the section with all the little boxes of random hardware. I use the two smallest sizes available. The best place I've found for the clear hair bands (if you prefer those) is Sally Beauty Supply. 
(P.S.~ if your whorl does break, please tell me! They are guaranteed not to do that.)

Why are there two whorls? Well, for the weight! Use them both together when you begin, then as the cop grows you can remove the bottom whorl. As it grows even more, remove the top whorl and put the lower whorl back on. When your cop gets really heavy, you may even be able to take both whorls off and keep on spinning! The double whorl system came into being when my design partner (Lois of missingspindle fame) and I were trying to figure out a way to make the glass a bit more weighty. Since I am only able to make relatively round whorls up to a certain size & weight, we thought of adding a smaller whorl below. Et voila! The two whorl system was born. The smaller whorls can also be paired quite nicely to sit below a heavier pottery whorl~ this is mostly done for looks!

Which end of the stick is which? These sticks are tapered at each end and fatter in the center~ but one end is shorter beyond the wide bit than the other. The short end is for the whorls, while the long end is for spinning up your fiber. Please be sure there is no fiber under you whorl and that your cop is not so low that it is pushing on the whorl. It can push it right off the stick if it is.

What's with the tapered holes? My glass whorls are built on a special steel mandrel that is tapered; so the holes in the beads are not straight. Why? So they will fit on the spindle nicely; it also means there is a right and wrong way to place the whorls on the stick. To double check, put the whorl on and look up the stick to the base of the whorl. If there is a lot of 'wobble room', the whorl is likely on upside down. Flip it and check again. A small gap can often be remedied by pushing the o-ring up snugly under, or even partway into, the gap. A wobbly whorl will make for a wobbly spin. When you are checking whorl listings. be sure and read through the whole description~ if the whorls have a little wobble, I'll let you know. If they spin like the proverbial top, I'll tell you that too!

Do all whorls fit on all sticks the same way? Definitely not! Here's why. I make the whorls in my home studio, Caroline makes the sticks in Ohio, the mandrels for building the whorls were made by a glass tool maker in California. Everything is made by hand by the three of us. All my mandrels are not precisely the same size, with the same taper (I've got a couple of faves I normally use now, which helps). All of the sticks are not precisely the same size. This is one advantage to getting an entire set from me~ I have tested the whorls and paired them with the stick they fit and spin on the best! In some cases you may see that a set is only available all together. This is because the whorls have been particularly difficult to pair with a stick. In some cases I have tweaked the stick and sanded it to make sure everything works well. If you are considering buying a pair of whorls, check the photos to see how close together the two ride on the stick shown. This is a good gauge as to whether they will fit on just any old stick. If they are close together, the chances of them fitting on your stick are often a little smaller. You can also ask me if I feel they are tetchy or easy to pair up!

I hope this might answer some of the questions folks might have about all this. If you have questions, please let me know. You can visit my facebook fan page and send me a message, or message me through my etsy shop.

Spindles and Whorls~ Medieval Style!

Lights, camera and action! It's finally time for my new glass whorls to enter my etsy shop. These have been paired with lovely hand turned and hand carved recycled wooden spindles for a wonderfully modern Medieval spinning experience. Say What???!!! Well, let me 'splain a bit.

First of all, let me say that, this being a cooperative effort, things will be moving a wee bit more slowly than my usual frantic glass making mania. Right now, I make the whorls, we meet and measure and Lois makes a matching stick. But soon we will have our standards down to make it all go oh so much more smoothly. Added to that is that these glass whorls are big and they take a lot of time and energy to make. Though that's unlikely to change, I'm hoping to adjust to them over time.

The wooden spindle and whorl are not glued together- they are two separate pieces which fit together snugly. A small o-ring or rubber hairband is included to help keep the whorl from falling off and whirling across the floor.

Watch these sweet little youtube videos to see some of these spindles at work and some instructions for use. 

Now, down to brass tacks- how do these things work? A bulleted list will help, I think.
* These glass whorls are best for light or lace weight spinning. For making heavier weight yarn, add a bit more whorl weight. More glass or one of missingspindle's pottery whorls should do it!
* If adding extra weight, be sure the whorls will nest properly. Questions? Just ask the shop owner!
* Because the whorls are handmade, they may be a little unbalanced. They have all been tested with the specific stick they are sold with, but will need to be adjusted on the spindle until the place of best balance is found.
* Make sure the whorl is perpendicular on the spindle. Push up tightly and test spin. Move around slightly on the stick until you find the place of best balance (the 'sweet spot').
* Push the o-ring or hairband up below the whorl to keep it right where you want it.
* Load leader on spindle by using a lark's head knot just above the glass whorl (at the bottom of the belly).
* Wind up and around the spindle several times, with several small winds near the top.
* Top off with one or two half hitches around the indented neck to hold the leader in place.
* Spin yarn!
* When loading spun yarn on the stick, center it over the widened belly, winding up and down in a spiral.

What fun for a little different hand spinning experience! 

Spin, Spider, Spin: Experiments With Whorls, Spindles and Yarn

A spindle experiment with double whorl

Handmade spindles and glass whorls- sometimes it seems things just happen and sometimes you have to make them happen! This little tale is a combination of those two things.

Mmm... pink!

In the beginning of January, I went to the Black Sheep Spinners Guild ROC Day
 celebration. Spinning is such a big deal around here, and it's something I've always wanted to learn more about. While I was there I met a wonderful woman who showed me how to use a drop spindle (OK, it's gonna take a lot of practice to get it right!).

Masked style pattern

One thing led to another and before I left I found out that she was in search of a glass bead maker who could make her some rather large beads in particular shapes to use as whorls with her handmade Viking-style spindles. We had a short chat, I got down some basics, and we agreed to stay in touch.

I really like the design on this one!

I went home thinking- make big beads, make big beads. We met again a couple of weeks later for show and tell- she with spindles, I with some rudimentary whorls. These are smaller than a standard whorl and would be used to make light or lace weight yarns.

Love this shape!

Well, one thing led to another. I made myself a fun little drop spindle with a dowel, a wooden wheel and (of course) a glass bead for a little extra weight and got to practicing. What I do is called 'park and draft', which means I spin the spindle, stop and make the yarn over and over. It's how all the kiddies start out!

We met again, I made more whorls and started looking at all the fun shapes and styles that were traditionally used. And then we went to the monthly spinners guild meeting with our new spindles and whorls. Folks loved them! We're still working on a little bit of standardization and in the meantime, I'm having a lot of fun testing out different designs I might be able to offer.

Drying my first yarn

Stay tuned for- hopefully- some spindles and whorls for sale in my etsy shop soon!