Hi there! I’m Sasha

Welcome to Sheepspot!

I'm Sasha Torres, and I understand that the world of handspinning can be both thrilling and overwhelming. As a retired academic with nearly four decades of experience in teaching adult learners, I've served on the faculties of Dartmouth, Brown, Johns Hopkins, and the University of Western Ontario. Add in a decade of teaching spinning, and I’ve clocked a lot of teaching hours (do the math if you dare). Explaining complex ideas clearly is my superpower.

Lots of newer spinners, especially those who are teaching themselves to spin, feel frustrated by the complexity of spinning and the challenge of sifting through conflicting information. They want to feel comfortable, confident and competent at the wheel, but still find the basics of making yarn daunting and confusing. On the other hand, more experienced spinners who’ve mastered those basics can easily get stalled spinning on their own, stuck in a rut, and  face the challenges of continuing to grow as yarn makers. 

At Sheepspot, I offer a clear and straightforward path to becoming a skillful, knowledgeable,   and versatile spinner. Through online courses and memberships, I provide structured, actionable guidance that cuts through the noise and simplifies your learning journey. I teach spinning using the proven frameworks I’ve developed that have helped hundreds of spinners create more yarns they love: The Spinner’s Journey™ and the Pillars of Skillful Spinning™.

I empathize deeply with new spinners because I struggled to learn how to spin myself and vividly remember wondering whether I’d ever get this spinning thing. That’s why I created Spin School, a five-month class in the fundamentals of handspinning. 

I can also relate to more experienced spinners whose spinning has become a bit boring and rote, because even as a professional spinner, my spinning mojo sometimes deserts me. That’s why I created The Guild by Sheepspot, my membership for intermediate and advanced spinners. The Guild is a place members can find advice, inspiration, and community that keep them growing and excited about their spinning.

I’ve hosted two spinning podcasts, SpinDoctor (2010-2014) and The Sheepspot Podcast (2018-present), which together have been downloaded more than 150,000 times. These podcasts have allowed me to connect with spinners all over the world and has attracted a community of passionate, kind, and generous spinners who inspire me and make me smile every single day. (We gather in our own little corner of the interwebs, The Flock, which you should definitely join right away! There are tons of great goodies there.)

Joining Sheepspot means embarking on a journey to transform your spinning skills while nurturing your mind and spirit. Spinning is not just about creating yarn; it’s also an amazingly effective mode of self-care that provides endless opportunities to cultivate self-compassion. Engaging in this meditative craft can improve mental health by offering a calming, creative outlet that (even better!) produces the raw material for yet more forms of mindful making, like knitting, weaving, and crochet. My goal is to demystify the complexities of spinning and make it accessible to as many people as I can.

Welcome to Sheepspot, where the art of handspinning meets clarity, community, and creativity. As your guide, I bring decades of teaching experience, a passion for spinning, and a deep empathy for the challenges spinners face. With proven frameworks, online courses, workshops, and memberships tailored to your needs, Sheepspot offers a clear path to spinning mastery.

Whether you're a novice spinner seeking guidance, or an experienced handspinner looking to reignite your passion, Sheepspot is here to support you every step of the way. Join our community of lifelong learners, where spinning is not just a craft but a journey of self-discovery.