So sure. I said I found plying on spindles quite boring. But... other people ply on spindles without any issues at all, so I figured I'd give it another try. I set up some bowls so my plying balls wouldn't go flying everywhere, and in an hour last night plied the rest of the blue Dorset (on the Tibetan spindle) and started on some four-ply (green and browns) and at the top, even five-ply!
And you know what? It wasn't boring. It was actually quite fun!
Realizing that, there are some changes coming around here. I've known for a while that spinning won't be falling by the wayside--it's too easy to spin while writing, and I will be the first one to admit that I love to spin, make spindles, and instruct others as well. However, I barely use my spinning wheels--at all, and when I do, it's been mostly for plying.
I still want to set up my lathe (this year!!) and turn spindles. However, the project spinning wheels have been languishing, and honestly, it's time for them to go.
I don't have time or space (truthfully; I need to clean out the Junk Room, not add to it) and while I see no harm in buying reasonably priced local wheels that don't need a lot of work and then reselling them, my days of multiple project wheels are drawing to a close. The only project wheel I intend to keep (and finish) is Casper. That's it. The rest of them will be put on ebay in one big lot at first, to see if anyone wants an instant project collection, along with the odd lots of parts that I still have.
And I'm going to continue to be very picky as to what I do buy.
That said, Julius, my Columbine, will hopefully be leaving soon for a long-term loan to one of my Ravelry friends, because in all honesty, I rarely use him and I would rather have someone using him than hoard a perfectly good wheel. If I come across other wheels that can be loaned to friends, then I will loan them; the rest of my wheels aren't very shippable as it stands anyway.
Sofia will be in my will; she'll never leave my possession, because I do actually use her. Gloriana is also staying, as is Eliza. The borrowed Great Wheel will stay, but I'm intending to put Agatha up for sale, because while I like Great Wheels, I really don't spin on them often. Not often enough to warrant keeping two perfectly good working wheels, at least.
The painted 1820 wheel will be put up on ebay as well. That one might be shippable; we'll see.
But really, I started seriously spinning in January of 2010. The spinning wheels went hand-in-hand there for a while, but spindles have been my loves since the very beginning. And that's unlikely to change anytime soon.
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