One of my goals for the summer was to learn how to Navajo-ply. There are a few parts, on the right side, that look alright, but the rest is an overtwisted mess. (I wound this right off the bobbin, so the twist isn’t set at all.) I watched a few more youtube videos, which illuminated some important things to keep in mind:
1. You really do need to pick up the loops with one hand. If you try to use a second hand (like I did, because the first hand was not doing a very good job), you no longer have a hand to control the twist, and you end up with the aforementioned mess. (Unless, of course, you have three hands.)
2. Treadle SLOWLY. Very slowly. If you don’t have a rhythm down for picking up new loops, there are several moments in the process where the twist has nowhere to go because you are grabbing the next loop.
I have A LOT of practicing to do, but I think I understand the concept now. I’m going to practice Navajo-plying with all of my leftovers, so I should have a bunch of mini-skeins that (in theory) chart my progress.
Here’s Boh amidst all of my knitting projects. He looks concerned. Also, I caught him investigating the other side of the room:
Taking inventory is getting to be a serious task around here!
barefoot rooster 
It looks like Boh is the one with socks in progress!! I think the secret is in teaching him to knit, THEN you could get done all you want…. :-)
I’m so glad you’re learning how to Navajo ply because then I’ll have more people to explain to ME how to do it when I’m ready ;) :D
You got the hang of it. SLOW treadle and one hand must control the twist. I use the bobbin left overs to practice and I am still a mess at it. This one takes alot of practice.
This plying scares me greatly. Thanks for testing the water! I love the idea of Boh knitting for you.
Yeah, three hands sure would be.. er… handy sometimes! Keep at it, I love navajo plying, the only downside I can see is that you don’t get so many yards of plied yarn from your singles!