Being a creator

Five skeins of handspun yarn from natural white through medium greys to dark grey. Three of the shades have specks of colour in them.

I love being a creator – blogging, making videos, webinaring (It is a word as of kindanowish), teaching and working with wool. The response I get from you truly warms my heart. I love that I learn so much from doing what I do and from interacting with you. I can’t imagine not doing it and not developing this work. However, it takes a lot of time, energy and money to keep my work going.

This is not a post about spinning. It is about showing you what lies behind the posts, videos, webinars and courses I make and the time it takes. It is also an invitation for you to contribute to the work I do.

The joy and hard work of being a creator

Josefin Waltin spinner is a whole bundle of services for spinners. You can read in-depth blog posts, watch spinning videos, join a webinar or take an online course. If you happen to be in Sweden you can also take face-to-face courses. Hopefully there is something for everyone. While this is something that I love doing it is not done without hard work.

Blog

My fingers itch to write. I have a physical need to write, to shape my thoughts with words. Writing helps me think and deepen my understanding of the subject. Since I know I have many readers I try to be as thorough as possible and do a lot of research, testing and sampling to prepare for a post. I learn a lot from this research process too.

While I do shape and fine tune the post during the whole week, Saturday is the day I make the final adjustments and publish the post. I get up at 7 am to get some time all to myself to finish and publish the post for you.

Average preparation time per post: 3–4 hours.

Videos

I started making videos to share my love for the craft. It still works. When I make a video I explore a technique or process to learn. I also make the video to spread knowledge and encourage you to explore and learn. It is like we are on a quest for new or deeper knowledge together. Finding new angles and ways to tell the story of a particular technique or aspect of spinning drives me to continue exploring spinning through this fascinating media.

A screen shot of a video editing process
Being a creator also requires learning the tech

It starts with an idea – a technique or tool I am curious about or have got questions from you about. I shoot the video. It can take anything from an hour to a day, depending on how much I need to prepare for the shoot. Sometimes I want to shoot a whole process and then I need to do the whole process even if I only show you glimpses of it in the video. Two examples of this is Slow fashion – from sheep to sweater and Slow fashion 2 – from sheep to shawl. After shooting the video I edit, create effects, add titles and music. If I speak in the video I also add captions. It is a subtle balance between being creator and learning and understanding tech and software.

Average preparation time for a 3 minute video: 5 hours.

Webinars

Webinars is my best way to stay connected to you. I’m live and unedited and anything can happen. But to be able to talk to you there and then gives me so much.

There seems to be a high demand on this type of service. I haven’t come across anyone in this field that does webinars and I think it is a very powerful medium that works very well with spinning and wool.

Josefin Waltin drafting wool from a comb
A webinar is a perfect medium for hand spinning

When I prepare a webinar I first make an outline and write a script. Perhaps I need to prepare fiber or spin yarn for the webinar to be able to show you a special technique. I make a promo video, set up registration, send emails and prepare the studio. I rehearse at least three times before the live event.

The studio isn’t ideal, but it’s the best I can manage at the moment. I host the webinars in our tiny study. For the best lighting possible I move all the lamps I can to the room and use a king size bed sheet as a backdrop. I am afraid to move, the room is full of cables, lamps and working material come Webinar Day.

Better lighting solutions for the webinars are a priority as well as the possibility of changing camera angles or zooming.

Average preparation time for a one hour webinar: 5 hours.

Online courses

Many of you have taken my free course How to pick a supported spindle and bowl and some of you have also taken my paid course Spin on a supported spindle or the ebook version of Spin on a supported spindle. I love making these courses and keep exploring the possibilities that an online course can give. I am happy for all the feedback I get from you, it helps me become a better course creator and teacher.

A person spinning on a supported spindle
From the online course Spin on a supported spindle

Making an online course takes a lot of time. I make an outline, write the script and create extra material like pdfs, check lists, glossaries etc. After that I shoot the A-roll (the main angle with me as a talking torso) and the B-roll (closer images to show you details of a technique). I edit, add titles, images and cut the material into lecture-size pieces. I usually make a written pdf version of the whole course. The final part is captioning the whole course. This takes a lot of time since I need to transcribe everything I say and place the text chunks in the right spot with a decent duration. An estimation is that captioning takes me around 10 minutes for every video minute.

Even though the captioning takes a lot of time and energy I will not skip this part. So many people benefit from captioning. Several students who don’t consider themselves sufficient in English have told me that they wouldn’t have been able to take my courses without the written pdfs and the captions. I have not yet found a way to create optional captioning, so for the time being I burn them in and I ask those of you who are annoyed about them to be patient.

Average working time for an online course: Several weeks or months.

Patreon

To those of you who are patrons already: Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. For believing in me enough to make monthly pledges for my creative work. For those who are not patrons: Thank you for believing in me, asking questions, giving me valuable feedback and spreading my work. It warms my heart and keeps me going.

Being a creator makes my heart sing but at the same time it is hard work.Patreon is an online membership platform that allows fans to regularly provide financial support to creators. It also enables fans to get to know the creators better and get access to exclusive material. Here is a video that explains how Patreon works.

I have made four different reward tiers my patrons can choose from. The gist of it is that the more you are able to contribute monthly the better rewards I can offer you for $1, 2, 3 or 5 a month. There is also a fifth option to choose a donation amount of your choice and without rewards.

I say it again: I love doing this work for you and I can’t imagine not doing it. But it does take a lot of my time and energy on top of a family life and a full time job. I would like to be able to spend more time with my family whilst making better content for you. If I could cut back on my day job, I would have a more balanced life and get food on the table. Concrete things I would like to get to make better quality content for you are things like software for different services that makes the job easier, equipment for better audio, video and lighting and captioning services.

The material that is free today will continue to be free – blog posts, videos, the free online courses and live webinars. But with your contributions I can keep creating for you and still live a balanced life. If you like what I do and want me to be able to continue my work sustainably, consider becoming a patron.

Thank you.

Happy spinning!

Josefin Waltin sitting with a pile of wool. Locks are flying in the air around her.

You can follow me in several social media

  • This blog is my main channel. This is where I write posts about spinning, but also where I explain a bit more about videos I release. Sometimes I make videos that are on the blog only. Subscribe or make an rss feed to be sure not to miss any posts.
  • My youtube channel is where I release a lot of my videos. Subscribe to be sure not to miss anything!
  • I have a facebook page where I link to all my blog posts, you are welcome to follow me there.
  • I run an online spinning school, welcome to join a course!
  • On Patreon you can get early access to new videos and other Patreon only benefits. The contributions from my patrons is an important way to cover the costs, time and energy I put into the videos and blog posts I create. Shooting and editing a 3 minute video takes about 5 hours. Writing a blog post around 3. You can read more about my Patreon page here.
  • Follow me on Instagram.  I announce new blog posts, share images from behind the scenes and post lots of woolliness.
  • In all the social media I offer, you are more than welcome to contact me. Interacting with you helps me make better content. My private Facebook page, however, will remain private.
    If you like what I do, please tell all your fiber friends and share these links!

2018 in retrospect

A Navajo spindle. Photo by Dan Waltin

In the last few days of the year I get a little nostalgic. I browse through the months, looking at all the memories of blogging and youtubing. They are like sparkling candy in a pretty bowl. All different, all sweet and all part of the whole. In this post I look back at 2018 and forward to 2019. Here is 2018 in retrospect!

If you have been following me for a while, this might be a walk down memory lane for you too. If you are new to the blog – welcome – this post  will help you can catch up with what happened during 2018.

The stats

During 2018 I have published

  • 66 blog posts
  • 17 public youtube videos
  • 20 blog post specific videos.

That’s more than one post a week and one one video every three weeks. At the end of the summer I decided I wanted to aim at one post a week during the autumn, but I didn’t realize that I had made even more than that in the spring.

Blog statistics
The stats

I am very proud of the videos and posts I have published this year. I learn new things all the time and I have sharpened my articles and learned how to analyze and reflect to produce interesting content for you. If you have enjoyed my posts and videos during 2018 and look forward to 2019, do become a patron and support my work. This work takes up a lot of my time and I also need to finance editing software and video equipment.

I love writing the posts and making the videos. When I get home on Friday after a week of work I can’t wait for Saturday morning to publish my next post.

During the year I had most viewers in the U.S, followed by Sweden, U.K. Canada and Germany. Thank you all for following, commenting, asking questions and giving valuable feedback. You help me become a better spinner, blogger, youtuber and teacher and I couldn’t do it without you.

Popular posts

The post with the single most views was, quite surprisingly, Willowing wool. I hadn’t planned it at all, I just thought of it one morning, grabbed a fleece and a couple of sticks and started shooting. And over 2500 people have visited the post and even more people have watched the video. It was great fun to make the video and I am happy to have contributed to sharing this old technique and craft.

Josefin Waltin sitting with a pile of wool. Locks are flying in the air around her.
Wool is in the air!

The second most viewed post was, even more surprisingly, Don’t waste your wool waste. This post didn’t even have a video attached to it, which makes it even more puzzling. But it was obviously interesting to both the spinning and the gardening community.

Third in line was Spinning in the 14th century and one of my favourite videos this year. I had such a great time with Maria, who provided the costumes and helped me with the shooting. There is a big difference in quality of the video when I have company (My daughter was with me in parts of the willowing video, which is also a favourite) compared to when I do it all myself. You can see and feel the interplay in the video which gives it different dimension than my solo videos. I hope to make more videos like that during 2019.

Josefin Waltin in medieval costume
Preparing for 14th century video shoot. Photo by Dan Waltin.

Blog series

During 2018 I have made four blog series where I have focused on a theme and looked at it from different perspectives:

They have been very popular and I have loved the opportunity to dig deep in a given topic. I have learned a lot from all four of them, but one of them in particular has totally changed the way I look at – and teach – spinning.

Spinning direction

The series about spinning direction started with an injury. I had started to practice spinning with in-hand spindles where you twiddle the spindle in your hand, basically without letting go of the spindle. A short while after I had started practicing this technique, I got  a cramp in the base of my thumb and I wanted to find out why.

I talked to a vocational therapist who told me that the muscles used for pulling are twice as many as the muscles used for pushing. Being a leftie, I had been pushing the spindle for a clockwise spin. When I changed hands so that the right hand was pulling the spindle for a clockwise spin, there was no more cramp.

A hand holding a spindle
Which is your spinning hand?

This made a huge impact on my own spinning and my teaching. I taught myself to spin with my right hand as spinning hand. It was difficult in the beginning, but with practice I managed to become as skilled with my right hand as I was with my left hand.

Now I teach spinning direction in spindle spinning in all my classes – I encourage them all to learn how to use both of their hands as spinning hands. I want them to have the opportunity to spin and ply with both hands without injuries.  Both my students and I are much more aware now of how the hands move and work.

The blog series was a combination of my own reflections about spinning direction, interviews with professionals in physiology and textile history and poll results from the spinning community. It was read and appreciated by many followers. Long after the series was published I have referred spinners to it who have had questions about pain or cramp in their spinning hand when spinning on spindles. And I am happy to help.

Twined knitting mittens

The blog series about twined knitting mittens was born out of the previous blog series about spinning direction. In the series you are invited to follow me on my path from fleece to a finished pair of mittens.

After having started practicing spinning with my right hand as spinning hand I wanted to give something back to my left hand that had been struggling for so long with pushing the spindle. I wanted to spin a yarn counter-clockwise so that my left hand could pull the spindle.

There is an old Swedish technique called twined knitting. You use two strands of yarn and twine them on the wrong side of the fabric. The technique takes very long to knit, but it results in  a fabric that is very dense and warm.

Close-up of the wrong side of a twined knitted mitten.
The two yarn ends are twined on wrong side of the fabric.

To compensate for the twining, you use a yarn that is Z-plied: Spun counter-clockwise and plied clockwise. So I spun a beautiful Värmland wool on a supported spindle counter-clockwise with my left hand as spinning hand. When the yarn was finished I made a pair of mittens in twined knitting. They weigh 60 g each and my heart sings every time I wear them.

A grey mitten with a venus symbol
Twined knitting mittens. Photo by Dan Waltin.

Flax

The autumn started with a series of processing and spinning flax. I have a tiny experimental flax patch at home. I started it in 2014 and learn new things about flax processing every year. The series includes a video where I process my flax from the 2017 harvest. I went to Skansen outdoor museum and borrowed their flax processing tools and got a lot of help from the friendly staff. The 2017 harvest was the first one I felt I can actually spin with ( I haven’t yet, though). In the series I also invite the viewer to follow the retting process on my lawn, with pictures of the flax straws in different stages of the process.

Retted flax
The flax fiber is easy to pull off the cellulose core. The retting is finished!

 

Cotton

The cotton blog series started with a gift. A fellow spinner gave me 130 g of newly harvested cotton from Stockholm. I am very reluctant to buying cotton clothes because of climate reasons – the fashion industry takes up a lot of farming ground for cotton farming. The industry also uses a lot of pesticides that are harmful for biodiversity and the people working in the business. But with small-scale and locally grown cotton I had the opportunity to try a fiber that I hadn’t spun before! In the series I prepare the cotton and spin it with Tahkli, Navajo and Akha spindles.

New grounds

During the year I have investigated grounds that were new to me. It has been a truly wonderful journey, but also required a lot of energy. In the end, I am very proud of what I have achieved.

Patron launch

In February I launched my Patreon site. This is where followers have the opportunity to support my work and get extra Patreon-only benefits like previews of upcoming videos, Q&A:s and their names in the credits of my videos.

Article in Spin-off

Last June I submitted a proposal to Spin-off magazine. It was accepted, and in March it was published. The link goes to a shorter version of the article. If you want to read the whole article you need to buy the magazine. I wrote about the process of the making of the video Slow fashion 2 – from sheep to shawl (the video was published in August 2017), where I processed and spun yarn for a shawl that I wove on my rigid heddle loom.

I will be writing more articles for spinning magazines.

Business

Around the same time, I started my own business. It feels very grown-up and totally terrifying, but it also gives me a boost to ignite my entrepreneurial switch and acknowledge my work as something more than just a hobby.

Josefin Waltin wearing an apron with an embroidered sheep
My wool handling apron with sheep logo. Photo by Dan Waltin.

Teaching

2018 has been the year of teaching for me. I have been teaching supported spindle spinning in different parts of Sweden during the year. Every time I learn something new about teaching, spinning and analyzing, but most of all I have learned to see and listen what the students need and how they are most likely to understand and learn. There is a big difference between conveying a message and for the receiver to actually understand and make use of it. I’m still learning and I jump with joy every time I see a student make progress.

Online school

I have been planning and working with my online school for nearly a year now, and in December I finally launched it. The first course is a free course in How to pick a supported spindle and bowl. Over 120 people have already taken the course. Come to the school and take the course you too!

A spindle and puck
Supported spindle and bowl by Björn Peck.

I have received a lot of wonderful feedback. Many students have really enjoyed and appreciated the course and given me valuable suggestions for future courses. I am truly thankful for that, it helps me become a better teacher and course creator.

There will be more online courses in 2019!

Favourites

One of my personal favourite videos in 2018 was the one I shot in Austria about plying on the fly on a Turkish spindle. I had such a lovely time standing in the big meadow in the beautiful morning light. And a lot of you enjoyed the video as well.

A hand starting a spindle.
Plying on the fly on a Turkish spindle in Salzkammergut, Austria.

Another favourite, with some shots from Austria, was my craftivism project I choose to stay on the ground. It is a video and a theme that is very important to me: Reducing our carbon footprint by avoiding flying.

Josefin Waltin reading a book on a train
Image from I choose to stay on the ground

A third favourite was the supported spindle video A meditation that I shot by a fulling mill. A beautiful day with pale September light.

You

Even if I have published lots of videos and posts this year I couldn’t have done it without you, my followers and readers. The feedback, inspiration and love I get from you is invaluable. Keep commenting, asking questions and sharing your knowledge. It helps me make better content for you. You are my biggest inspiration!

Plans for 2019

As I write this, it is still winter, which means that I can’t shoot any videos outside. Well, I could, but not with spinning involved, my hands and the fiber won’t work in the cold. I will have to wait until spring to shoot new videos. But I do have a few unedited videos left from 2018, I will publish them until the weather permits new outdoor videos.

I will launch more online courses during the year. Hopefully I will be able to buy a better microphone, so that I can improve the audio quality in upcoming online courses. I will also offer in-person courses around Sweden, perhaps I will see you there.

Björn the wood turner and I talk regularly and we will have a workshop in his workshop (!) in January to look at new models and designs. He will open a web shop soon.

I create my videos out of a special idea I get or if I find a special location I fall in love with. I have a few plans up my sleeve, involving spindles of different kinds. My husband gave me a lightweight tripod for Christmas, so I will be able to get out and about easier. The old one weighs over 2 kg, this one was only 800 g.

If there is anything you would like me to cover in an upcoming post or video, do give me a holler.

These are some of my favorite sweets in the 2018 candy bowl. I hope you found some favourite sweets as well.

With all my heart I thank you for 2018 and wish you a happy new spinning year 2019!

Josefin Waltin spinning on a supported spindle. Photo by Dan Waltin.
Looking forward to spinning in 2019!


You can follow me on several social media:

  • This blog is my main channel. This is where I write posts about spinning, but also where I explain a bit more about videos I release. Sometimes I make videos that are on the blog only. Subscribe or make an rss feed to be sure not to miss any posts.
  • My youtube channel is where I release a lot of my videos. Subscribe to be sure not to miss anything!
  • I have a facebook page where I link to all my blog posts, you are welcome to follow me there.
  • I run an online spinning school, welcome to join a course!
  • On Patreon you can get early access to new videos and other Patreon only benefits. The contributions from my patrons is an important way to cover the costs, time and energy I put into the videos and blog posts I create. The content I create is totally free from advertisement. You can read more about my Patreon page here.
  • Follow me on Instagram.  I announce new blog posts, share images from behind the scenes and post lots of woolliness.
  • In all the social media I offer, you are more than welcome to contact me. Interacting with you helps me make better posts and videos. My private Facebook page, however, will remain private.
  • If you like what I do, please tell all your fiber friends and share these links!

Makeshift studio for online courses

A lavalier microphone

As I have mentioned before, I am planning to make online spinning courses for those who are too far from me or otherwise can’t make it to my local spinning courses. Online course making is totally new to me and I am reading up a lot, trying, failing and learning from my mistakes. My current experiment in this project is to design a makeshift studio.

Studio for control

To be able to shoot online courses I need a studio. My YouTube videos are all shot outside and without sound. I will not change that, but for online courses I need a place where I can control the audio. And I don’t want to put my home on display.

I have made a portable makeshift studio that consists of a simple backdrop, a tripod and a lavalier microphone. These will be teamed up with fill lights and noise reduction textiles depending on where I set up the studio.

Two possible studio locations

I tried the studio setup in two rooms – the “craft” room (e.g. the rubbish room) and the living room. These have different advantages and disadvantages. The craft room is very small and can be difficult to arrange for different spinning setups. It has only one window and can be a bit dark depending on time of the day and season. I can close the door and record without having to bother my family too much, and they won’t bother me. The sound is quite good in this room. The living room, on the other hand, is big and bright with windows in different directions. The sound is not as good as in the craft room. The living room is also a room where the whole family spends a lot of time and I can basically only shoot there when the family is out of the house.

Video experiment

I made a video with my two locations to see how they work in action. I also wanted to try some editing features. Please give me your feedback! What works and what doesn’t work? What do you want to see more of and what can be improved?

New and the same

Online courses are a new element in what I’m offering my viewers. I invest a lot of time and research in these so I will charge for them, but it will be money well spent.

I’m not comfortable with sharing the content of my upcoming courses on an open blog. However, I will reveal some of my ideas for my patrons on my Patreon page and patrons will get the chance to influence the content.

I will continue with the blog and the YouTube videos just as I have so far and they will always be free. However, these are also products of my time and they don’t produce themselves. Do become a patron if you like what I do.

And oh, I will iron that sheet.

 

Patreon launch!

It’s finally here, my Patreon page!

A while ago I wrote a post on Patreon and why I’m launching my own Patreon page. Patreon is an online membership platform that allows fans to regularly provide financial support to creators. It also enables fans to get to know the creators better and get access to exclusive material. Here is a video that explains how Patreon works.

So don’t hesitate, become a patron today!

Coming up in March: My Patreon launch!

Josefin Waltin spinning on a supported spindle

For quite a while I have been thinking about creating my own Patreon page, and now I am finally on my way! I will launch my Patreon page in March.

What is Patreon?

Patreon is an online membership platform that allows fans to regularly provide financial support to creators. It also enables fans to get to know the creators better and get access to exclusive material. Here is a video that explains how Patreon works.

Why I am launching my Patreon page

I love blogging making videos and I love the response I get from you, which, in turn, helps me make better videos and articles. But I do all of this in my spare time. For one three minute video I have usually spent a whole day filming and another day editing, and, of course, pre and post production. All of my videos are shot outdoors in the summer months. To be able to make videos all year round I will need to invest in studio equipment. I would like to be able to spend more time with my family whilst making better content for you. If I could cut back on my day job, I would have a more balanced living and get food on the table. Above all, I would be able get some mental space to create more and better for you.

Rewards for you

The way Patreon works, is that the patrons – hopefully you – pledge to a monthly payment of their choice. I will in turn create reward tiers depending on how much my patrons pledge. These patron-exclusive rewards could include previews of new videos, behind-the-scenes-material from released videos, patrons’ names in the video credits, Q&As, patron-only polls etc.

Do you have any suggestions for these rewards? If you were a patron, is there anything you would like to receive as a reward? I will not be able to send stuff in the mail, though. The rewards are for you and this is your chance to influence them.

Happy spinning!