Hi - I would like to learn how to spin. I live in the Los Angeles area and I have been looking on the web to find classes or someone who is willing to teach. A LYS in Santa Monica has occasional classes, but I missed the last class offering and it looks like they won’t be having another one for a looooong time. I did contact the teacher of their last class by e-mail a few weeks ago . . . . no response!!! I’ve looked for LYS offerings, Craigslist, community classes, etc and have come up empty handed. So I am taking a stab at asking if anyone on the forum might live relatively close and be willing to teach me, or if someone might have some ideas for me. 
Check for fiber guilds in your area. These links should help you find one:
http://www.fibreartsonline.com/fac/weaving/assnGeo.htm#California
Thank you so much! It was hard to really narrow my search without knowing what to look for. I couldn’t find as much with “learning how to spin” or “spinning classes”, etc. I contacted the president of the Southern California Handweaving Guild - not spinning but related. She gave me the name of a member that teaches and a link to the Los Angeles Spinning Guild’s teacher page. There’s a couple that are relatively close. One of the teachers happens to be the person I already e-mailed, but never received a response from but I will try again. Maybe my e-mail got lost in his junk folder.
Hi,
I recently wanted to learn how to spin myself. I bought a drop spindle kit from mainewoodsyarn.etsy.com. I also found some great videos from the Art of Megan - http://www.theartofmegan.com/yarn. They really helped since I didn’t have anyone to teach me directly.
Good Luck!
Jess
Evona,
Check out Abby Franquemont’s “Drop Spindle Basics” if you’re thinking about starting with a drop spindle.
I have folks spinning within 5-10 minutes using this method
Those are the videos I used to learn. I bought a kit that came with a DVD but didn’t find the info there useful. I was lucky to find Abby’s videos right off and learned a tremendous amount. I found that predrafting is a negative for me with the wool I’m using to spin. She explains things very clearly and also the whys of some things.
I’m now up to 4 spindles and 7 1/2 lbs of various wool top and just finishing my 1st pair of socks knit with my own homespun yarn.
I’m having a blast! I also plan to get Abby’s book Respect the Spindle.
Thanks so much for all your advice. I think I will look into getting a drop spindle. I watched the first video already. I would like to learn how to spin on a wheel eventually, but really can’t afford one right now anyway, so maybe this will be a good start for me. :cheering: