And with that, Level 2 is off for marking.
It was a hard push on the long weekend, and most of Heritage Monday was spent on final touches, like printing labels, airing out skeins, making sure all the ‘i’s were dotted and ‘t’s were crossed, thinking and rethinking where to put the swatches and samples, lamenting our lack of a proper hole punch, and hoping that the inkjet cartridges would last until I was done printing (they did. The yellow ran out on the last picture, but it still looks okay).
I was pretty pleased with the last three skeins. I even managed a 50%/50% merino/silk blend, something I might not have tried before Level 3. I dizzed that one off the cards; I’m definitely going to do that more often for semi-worsted spinning! What a joy, an absolute joy to spin, more so than the rolled batts I’ve been doing. The merino/silk probably needed a bit more twist in the end, but it still hangs together and looks like yarn. And now, it’s all out of my hands.
I hope to pass. I expect to pass. If I had time to spare, I would probably redo a couple of skeins, but I just don’t. It will be enough. If it isn’t, then I’ll figure things out then.
Part of my problem is that I’m looking at the first skeins I spun with Level-3-eyes. But I’m also looking at them with a realization: I don’t spend enough time just spinning. I’m looking at the 10,000 hours number, and thinking to myself, ‘I haven’t spent enough time spinning that I think I should be doing Level 3!’
Spinning is a hand-skill. It isn’t something you pick up from book learning or lectures or watching someone do it. It’s a thing you have to feel, that your hands have to learn and that your brain has to understand, not just know. And to gain this knowledge, you have to do. A lot. And I feel like I need to do. More.
So for the rest of August, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to spin. If some of it ends up being good for Level 3 homework, great. If it doesn’t, I do not care. Because this is my time to sit, play, and practice. Maybe I’ll start with a Frazzlebatt. Maybe I’ll start with this lovely braid. Maybe I’ll just do a bunch of cotton spinning on my takhli. I won’t care about proper blends, how many yards, or how many plies. I may take some time and sample, plan uses for my new yarn, maybe even plan a project from start to finish. But if I don’t, I don’t care. I have a lot of hours to put in to really feel like I’ve earned the right to be in Level 3, and that’s what I’m going to do.
