Distaff

A distaff is a special tool that people used in the past to hold wool, flax, or other fibers as they spun them into yarn. It looks like a long stick with a wider part on one end, kind of like a giant pencil with a mushroom on top. When you are spinning yarn, you hold the distaff under your arm, with the fibers wrapped around the wider end. This helps keep the fibers organized and makes it easier to spin the yarn. People used distaffs for thousands of years, until spinning wheels were invented and made the process of spinning yarn much faster and easier.