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Purchased from Threadsthrutime on etsy. 6 1/2" shaft, 4" arms, weight 1.4oz/39g. Bloodwood shaft, Honduran Rosewood arms. Comparable in size to a Jenkins Turkish Delight but with a slightly longer shaft (by about an inch).
Purchased from / made by Butterfly Girl Designs, in her Etsy Shop. I switched out the shafts on these two, and like them better that way.
This one is totally my spindle, as anyone who knows me will guess immediately. I love owls! I will make more like this, though, I'm sure. I've spun on it already (see the sunset/gryffindor yarn), and it actually will spin pretty fine, so I'm really pleased with it.
Sweet Gum Spindle 2 - bottom side view. The wood came from a tree branch that fell in my neighborhood. I kicked off a branch and turned out some spindle whorls from a burly section.
Spindle is a deciduous tree native to the UK and across Europe. It is a popular ornamental plant in gardens and parks due to its bright pink or purple fruits and attractive autumn colouring, in addition to its resistance to frost and wind. It has been introduced to North America where it has become an invasive species in some areas Mature trees grow to 9m and can live for more than 100 years. The bark and twigs are deep green, becoming darker with age, and have light brown, corky markings. Twigs are thin and straight. The leaves are shiny and slightly waxy, and have tiny sharp teeth along the edges. They turn a rich orange-red before falling in autumn. Spindle is hermaphrodite, meaning each flower contains both male and female reproductive parts. Flowers have four petals and grow in clusters, in May and June, and are pollinated by insects. After pollination flowers develop into bright pink fruits with bright orange seeds, which resemble popcorn. It is native to much of Europe and can be found most commonly on the edges of forests and in hedges, scrub and hedgerows. It thrives best in chalky soils and is less common in Scotland. The leaves are eaten by caterpillars of a number of moths, including the magpie, spindle ermine, scorched carpet and a variety of micro moths, as well as the holly blue butterfly. The leave also attract aphids and therefore their predators, including hoverflies, ladybirds and lacewings, as well as the house sparrow and other species of bird. The flowers are a rich source of nectar and pollen for insects, particularly the St Mark’s fly. Its botanical name, Euonymus is from the Greek, ‘eu’, meaning ‘good’ and ‘onama’, meaning ‘name’. This is said to have meant ‘lucky’. However, in some areas, it was also thought that if the spindle flowered early, an outbreak of the plague was likely. Spindle timber is creamy white, hard and dense. In the past it was used to make ‘spindles’ for spinning and holding wool (hence its name), as well as skewers, toothpicks, pegs and knitting needles. The fruits were baked and powdered, and used to treat head lice, or mange in cattle. Both the leaves and fruit are toxic to humans - the berries have a laxative effect. Today spindle timber is used to make high-quality charcoal, for artists. Cultivated forms of the tree are also grown in gardens for autumn colour. Toxicity: All parts may cause severe discomfort if ingested.
Maple whorl 3.25" diameter, walnut shaft 8.5" long.
Weight: 28 g. (1.0 oz.)
Notched at 3:00
Acquired November 2008.
Source www.kundertspindles.com
I just sorted through all of the whorls I have in stock to pick some for a big spindle order. Didn't realise the heap would be this big :)
Golden spindles (Clavulinopsis fusiformis) at Pandapas, Montgomery County, Virginia. This was a new fungus for me!
My class spindle purchased during lessons with Diane Mulholland. Spindle is made from Cherry - not sure what wood the shaft is made from.
Russian spindle weighing 32g. Pretty sure this isn't holly as described - I think instead it's maple as there's some evidence of birds eye.