Cotton

Cotton fiber spins up into a yarn that is perfect for warm weather knitting or crochet projects because it is fairly lightweight and breathes well. However, when working with cotton fiber, you’ll want to remember that it sags when wet and that if you use it for a heavier garment it can lose its shape very easily.

Cotton fiber for spinning comes in many forms - roving, pencil roving, and punis to name just a few. Pencil roving may be the easiest fiber preparation to work with because you’ll probably want to spin cotton very fine.

Current eBay auctions for cotton fiber are listed below - click a picture or description to get more information or to place a bid!

cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-pink-purple-white-5-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Pink Purple White 5 oz
US $9.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:14:02 PST
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cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-shades-of-lime-4-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Shades of Lime 4 oz
US $7.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:14:38 PST
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cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-red-blue-brown-5-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Red Blue Brown 5 oz
US $9.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:15:06 PST
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cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-pink-yellow-blue-4-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Pink Yellow Blue 4 oz
US $7.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:15:31 PST
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cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-shades-of-blue-5-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Shades of Blue 5 oz
US $9.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:15:53 PST
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cotton-roving-fiber-for-spinning-dk-pink-purple-4-5-oz Cotton Roving Fiber for Spinning Dk Pink Purple 4.5 oz
US $7.99 (0 Bid)
End Date: Sunday Nov-23-2008 8:16:15 PST
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cotton-fibre-dyed-roving-spinning-fiber*pcharoni-*3-5oz COTTON FIBRE DYED ROVING-SPINNING FIBER*PCHARONI *3.5oz
US $10.50
End Date: Thursday Nov-27-2008 14:34:04 PST
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cotton-fibre-dyed-roving-spinning-fiber-*sunset*3-1oz COTTON FIBRE DYED ROVING-SPINNING FIBER *SUNSET*3.1oz
US $8.50
End Date: Friday Dec-05-2008 14:52:48 PST
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soda-bottle-&-cotton-blend-spinning-wheel-fiber-50-50 Soda Bottle & Cotton Blend Spinning Wheel Fiber 50/50
US $7.50
End Date: Sunday Dec-14-2008 7:02:26 PST
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new-easy-to-spin-acala-cotton-sliver-8oz-spinning-fiber New Easy to Spin Acala Cotton Sliver 8oz Spinning Fiber
US $13.50
End Date: Thursday Dec-18-2008 6:49:52 PST
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You may also want to check the listings for cotton fiber at Paradise Fibers. They have a good selection of organic cotton fiber as well as conventionally grown cotton fiber and blends.

Cotton fiber can be a bit tricky to spin, especially for the beginning spinner, because the staple length of cotton is generally quite short. Cotton fiber has traditionally been spun with a charkha, but you can use a spinning wheel. You’ll just need to spin slowly and use minimal tension. Supported spindles such as takhlis also work well for spinning cotton.

Cotton is also a great fiber to work for hand dyers because it takes up dye really well.