The name of one of the classes I will be teaching at the Taos Wool Festival is Alternative Tassels and Trims.
Here are pics of two tassels I made with the alternative method I will teach in the workshop at Taos. Both of these have polymer clay tops, but our workshop tassels will have knitted or crocheted tops. However, the tassel skirt is made by the same method, using two or more strands of yarn–can be commercial or handspun. You can even string beads on a thread and spin those into the tassel.
This shows the commercial yarns I spun together to make the tassel above.
Please check back here late in July for more alternative tassel workshop samples.