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Appearing simple, just a stick and a bead, the bead whorl spindle is found among spinners across continents, around the world. Do you think the wide spread use of this tool indicates its attraction? It is portable, handy and it works! Let's take a look at the spindle parts.

THE SHAFT

Rapid twist insertion spindles have small diameter shafts. Those intended to be supported in either hand or in a small cup have points on the ends. Usually the shaft is out of a material that is lightweight and stiff, like cane, bamboo, softwood. The shaft is split into rough dimension, then tapered at both ends. It should be straight, between 8 and 12 inches long. I like barbeque skewers and sort out the bent or otherwise unacceptable ones. Chopsticks are also a good source of shaft material.

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THE BEAD

The bead acts like a flywheel and can be spherical, a disk or cylindrical. When checking out tribal or ethnic beads choose those with a tapered hole. Non-tapered hole beads can be used, but it is more complicated to fit the shaft and keep the bead in place and have the entire affaire centered and concentric. Goes without saying that you can make your own beads from real and plastic clay, glass, metal, wood, seeds, etc. Choose a bead that is of consistent weight and mass so that when it is rotated it spins true. You can bring a test shaft to try out a prospective bead.

Position the bead at least an inch from the end of the shaft. If it is a large bead, a couple of inches is good. There are bead whorl spindles with the bead in the middle of the shaft. When the bead is in the middle, then yarn can be stored both above and below the whorl. Size of bead is up to you. I have seen bead whorl beads 2 plus inches in diameter, and beads 1/4 of an inch. Larger beads are for coarser yarns, or for plying but since the spindle is worked in a supported mode, what is comfortable for you and your hands is more significant. In general small beads and lightweight spindles are for the finest yarns. One last consideration. The size of the hole in the bead determines the size of the shaft. That shaft needs to be stiff. There are lots of jewelry beads ½ inch in diameter with fine holes. A bead like that on a fine bamboo shaft can bend and bounce the spindle. You may end up using a steel double pointed knitting needle which only adds weight.

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HOW TO USE IT

A simple way to use the bead whorl spindle is with one tip in a shallow cup or bowl. This keeps the spindle from "walking" as it spins. The other tip is held by the fingers of your master hand, pinky and ring finger clustering the shaft (keeping the spindle from falling out of your palm) and index and thumb at the tip of the spindle. (See photo 1) The spindle is rotated by flicking your thumb/index fingers. For me, the most familiar movement is like snapping your fingers, thumb goes slightly up, index down which in a right handed person puts an "S" twist on the yarn. In a southpaw, a "Z". Other people favor index finger moving up, relative to the thumb, a sort of "flicking something off your finger" move which puts (right handed) a "Z" twist on the yarn. So long as you keep going the same direction you started it doesn't matter which direction you pick.

Remember I said, cluster your little and ring finger around the spindle to keep it from falling out of your hand. Practice with a bare spindle for a bit until you are familiar with its movements. The bead whorl spindle has no hook. So it is used like the spindle on a great wheel or charkha. During drafting and twisting, the yarn comes off the end of the spindle at a minor angle. Each time the spindle rotates, the yarn falls off the tip. It puts a pulse into the yarn. But if you were to angle the yarn directly off the tip of the spindle, all the yarn wrapped around the shaft would be stripped off. During twisting there must be a slight angle to the yarn.

HOW BIG?

Spin a fine yarn. Now, spin a finer yarn. This is a small, lightweight spindle. Heavy yarns stall it.

WHAT FIBERS?

Cotton, rabbit, downs, fine wools, pre-drafted silk. Anything you can draft easily with one hand. When a length is ready to be wound on, unwind the yarn by pulling on it and permit the spindle to unwind to cast it off. Change the angle of the yarn to 90 degrees and wind on the finished yarn close to the bead. (See Photo 2)

NICETIES

Since the bead whorl has no hook, it is possible to unwind it off the tip, end-feed. But in order to do this attention must be paid to how the yarn is laid onto the spindle.

I like to start with a firm first layer put on as a cylinder, an inch to 2 inches in length laid at the top of the bead. Then back at the junction of the bead and the cylinder I begin to form a cone until the cone grows in diameter and is about the size of the beads diameter. On that cone I build a series of cone on cone, each succeeding cone slightly smaller in diameter than the prior one.

At some point the spindle will get awkward, reticent and sluggish. Time to unwind it. That can be done by holding the spindle and pointing the tip at whatever tool you are unwinding onto. Unfortunately, our old friend the niddy noddy is howling bad news at this point especially with fine yarn on a small spindle. A small swift, storage or shuttle bobbin or boiling cone/cylinder are more sane choices depending on what is the next step.

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FINAL WORDS

This is intended to be an introduction, a meeting, a first step towards the large world of the bead whorl spindle. Bead whorls range all over the world and back in time. Stone, clay, wood, bone, ivory, glass spindle whorls are found often by the thousands near cities and encampments. What does that say about the tool and its product? Their use is skill-based. It takes practice to build confidence and get comfortable with them. They are easily found, ready to hand and quick. .