I Love Books
Months ago I bought a spinning book - Spinning And Weaving With Wool - on Ebay just because it was written by Paula Simmons. I got into a bidding war and paid more than I probably should have; I hate being outbid on things and can get ummmmm. . . . shall we say a little competitive. It's been sitting on a shelf, unread and bidding it's time, until tonight.
'Spinning' is an older book, written in the late 70's. I took a spin through it (sorry) at Susie's suggestion; turns out the book has photos and tech specs of all the wheels that were in production in the 70's and early 80's. My latest find, Madame Helga, is featured on page 75.
Helga is a Clemes and Clemes Kit Wheel. Once I knew that much, I was able to Google for information. Several blogs mention the wheel and I found this photo - 
which shows exactly what parts Dick will need to manufacture to get Helga working again. She's more complete than we expected. She's missing 2 of the 3 adjustable wooden pegs holding the back of the flyer and the small piece of wood that holds the flyer to the front peg. Everything else looks like it's there. There's also a Yahoo group for Clemes owners (!); I'm hoping they'll have some good information on restoring Helga.
Most of the references I found say that Clemes wheels spin a thick yarn. They were designed for 70's spinning standards and lace weight wasn't the goal. I'm looking forward to putting Helga through her paces and seeing how well she spins. Dick is still determined to give her away but we'll see. Maybe I'll loan her out instead.
1 comments:
Congrats on your wheel! I really like mine. It's my first and only wheel, and while I don't know how to spin laceweight, I've done sock yarn on it. You may know this already because it's come up recently in the Clemes group, but that piece that connects the flyer to the wood in the front is made of leather, not wood. FYI. I hope you get to spin on her soon. I've had a hard time naming mine, but Helga inspired me a bit. Perhaps Bridget? Best, Laura
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