Judith MacKenzie McCuin

This is the first book I have read about spinning fancy yarns that has made me want to go spin them.

For me the descriptions have enough detail to be useful. Even just reading them I can feel the fibre in my fingers. However, they are also loose enough that I know I would be spinning MY yarn, not hers. The little cards are brilliant, and would be helpful when working, although not enough for some of the more advanced techniques.

I would have liked more specific information for spindling, but show more she at least acknowledges that spidles are both fun and useful. show less

The Spinner's Book of Yarn Designs Techniques for Creating 80 Yarns by Sarah Anderson
ISBN: 9781603427388 B008NEZROE
I am not a spinner but realize the quality of this book for the yarns I have worked with over the years. So many tips throughout that now answer a lot of my questions about why did the yarn twist when working cables and is the direction important.
There are chapters on: spinning basics, singles for plying, stand alone singles, spiral yarns, opposing plies,
boucles, cable yarns, show more crepe yarns, coil yarns and novelty yarns. I do think now that after reading this that it does make the light bulb come on for me. If you can understand about the yarn you can select the right yarn for the right project because you understand how it will act when knitted.
Many ways showing the differences between plies of yarn.
To me this book shows how to experiment with yarns to achieve the right balance for the item you are making.
Excellent resource book for anyone that does spin their own yarns, great glossary-very precise and bibliography. show less

This was a fantastic help in my spinning. I've learned so much from watching Youtube videos, but I kept running into trouble in different places. What can I say, youtubers aren't always great teachers. This book covers WHY you might spin using different draw techniques for different materials. It has troubleshooting guides, and lots of guidance on overspinning and underspinning. It covers a variety of ways to do each step, comparing spindle & wheel techniques. It is a very good book.

Ugh. Not the quality I would expect from a spinner this renowned, but exactly what I expected from this publishing format. Bad format, many typos and other bad editing. Several photos wasted on techniques which needed only one or two, other techniques which need many photos get short shrift. Wait for MacKenzie McCuin's next book, I hear it will be excellent.