Unlike knitting and crochet, nålbinding (which I have heard pronounced as nawl-bending) is made by passing lengths of yarn through loops. Since the yarn must pass through, the crafter works with sections of yarn, rather than from a ball. A way to increase the amount of yarn that can pass through a thumb-sized loop is to use a nål (needle) with two or more holes. I also carve a channel along the holes to reduce bulk. In the picture above I have the nål loaded as much as I dare! I made 4 four-foot loops and threaded two loops through each hole. As you work, you can pull the working yarn through the hole and keep the loops neat. If you would like to see a short video on an in-process piece, here it is.

This is my forever project. I’m making something for me, so it is on the bottom of the priority list and I use it to fill the gaps between other projects. I decided to make spirals (I like spirals), and sew them all together, because it gives me flexibility if I change goals mid stream. Current goal is to make an ombre vest. I have made two hand spun yarn cakes into nålbound spirals, and have two more yarn cakes ready for nålbinding.

Aw, look how nicely the blended colors in the yarn go with the needle! I’m still plugging away at making a gazillion nålbound circles to construct a larger piece. I can usually do one spiral per car pick up line session. It is going to take awhile. The yarn is spindle spun undyed local alpaca, and the needle was carved from an aged grape vine and sealed with tung oil. I just enjoyed the color play today.