Saturday, May 13, 2017

DYI Dizzy Diz

Simple Diz made of Lilac Wood

I also a very simple Diz.  What the heck is a diz, you ask?  It's basically a 1/4-inch hole that you pass combed or carded fiber through to make roving -- which makes it easier for spinning into yarn.  Usually, I just spin from the batts made on my carder, and skip the dizzing step.  But I was recently reminded how spinning from roving is even easier.

My friend Lynda was lamenting that she had all this fiber, but no way to turn it into roving, which would make it easier to dye.  Lucky I took that spinning class 20 years ago!  There, I learned about dizzes -- You can buy fancy ones, but why?  All it is is a hole -- In the class, I remember I made a very simple diz by cutting the corner off of a recycled tofu container.  Worked great back then!

  
2 dizzes - Side view and top view. Very simple made from recycled tofu containers. 

This time, I took a few of the larger Lilac rounds, and drilled 2 sizes of holes for different gauges of roving.  This will work fine for me, though Lynda may want a larger bored hole for thicker / denser roving.

Anything with a 1/4-inch hole will work.  a button or a bead, or a wooden wheel off of a child's toy. Lynda may even end up using a recycled water bottle or milk jug with the bottom cut off to get the wider bore she'll need for denser roving.  The shape will also help to funnel the fiber into the whole and get the fibers going in the same direction. 

Here are some fancier dizzes. Just so you can see what else is out there.

And this is how you use it :
How to Prepare Wool Fiber with a Diz  This one show using the diz with a hackle :



How to Prepare Wool Fiber with a Diz

A diz is used when making a combed top. It is a disc or oval made of wood, plastic, or cardboard with a 1 to 2 i...

Spinning a batt- Dizzing

I demonstrate dizzing a batt into roving to spin. Learn More at http://www.ccfibers.com

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