How to Make Inexpensive Drop Spindles at Home
4 Materials
$5
10 Minutes
Easy
The history of spinning is fascinating to me. Did you know that before the invention of the spinning wheel, drop spindles are how all threads and yarns were spun? That means that the sails on Columbus' ships were woven from yarn spun on drop spindles.
Drop spindles are a fun, easy, and inexpensive way to get into spinning yarn. They are super simple to make and will bring you countless hours of spinning fun!
Here are all the supplies you need to create your own set of drop spindles. A 36 inch, 1/4 inch diameter wooden dowel rod (or 3 12 inch ones), a pencil sharpener, some sand paper in both coarse and fine grit, and 3 wooden toy wheels that are 2 inches in diameter.
The first thing to do is to cut the dowel rod into 3 pieces that are 12 inches long. Then, using a pencil sharpener, make a point on one end of each dowel rod. I used an electric pencil sharpener, but a regular one works just as well. 
Starting with the coarser grit sand paper, you want to sand the pointy end of the dowel rod. The end needs to be blunted a little so that it will spin easily, but it won't poke a hole in anything.
Follow that up with the finer grit sand paper. Make sure that the wood grain is smoothed down well so it doesn't catch on the fibers when you spin.
And while you're in sanding mode, make sure that the flat end of the dowel is smooth as well.
Then you simply slip the pointy end of the dowel through one of the toy wheels. Push it up about an inch. It will be pretty snug so be careful to not break the dowel rod.
Do the same thing for the other 2 rods and wheels. And now you have a set of drop spindles for spinning your own yarn!
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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5 of 7 comments
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How fun. I would love to make one of these. We have one for the kids and we tried to spin the cotton we grew on it. So fun!
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I had no idea I could make my own drop spindle, thanks for explaining exactly how to make one.
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You are very welcome! I hope you try it out. :)
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