Plying

This is easier than plying from balls because there is less chance for the yarn to become tangled and knotted.

The simplest lazy kate consists of wooden bars with a metal rod running between them.

The spinner first makes a loop on the end of the leader—the string left on the bobbin, which the new yarn is spun from—that is large enough to slip their hand through.

Then the spinner starts applying twist to the three plies, consisting of the two sides of the loop together with the yarn pulled through it.

This technique allows the spinner to try to match up thick and thin spots in the yarn, thus making for a smoother end product.

However, it doesn’t require a lazy kate or multiple bobbins.

Once the ball is wound, the single from both the center and outside are held together, in a similar manner to the regular plying method, then twisted together.

Center-pull ball plying results in one single being more tightly wound than the other, causing a fluffier and looser texture when knit, compared to the regular plying method.

The main difference is that gears control the intake, making sure that the strands all have the same tension and the same length.