Weaverly

A Good Yarn

The yak/merino roving dyed by Roz is now spun, plied, washed, and waiting for whatever happens next.

16 Straight

Today's post is especially for Peg, who is suffering from shaft envy. Continuing the theme of creative use of straight threadings, this draft is for a straight threading on 16 shafts. It could actually be woven on a very eccentric threading on 6 shafts, but I can't imagine anyone actually threading a loom that way. It could also be woven on a 4-tie threading on 9 shafts, but again, this is an unlikely threading. The idea is to make creative use of a straight threading already on the loom. So first here is the starting point: the threading, tie-up and treadling for 9 shafts (notice that fewer treadles could be used, but I am showing the complete array so that you can see that the design could be changed easily by making a few changes in the tieup):

And now the lift-plan version, for a table loom or a dobby loom:

And finally, the same draft woven on a straight threading on 16 shafts:

40 Straight

A straight threading on 40 shafts offers a wealth of possibilities, without ever rethreading the loom. Repeats for plain weave, 4-shaft weaves (twills, double plain weave, basket, etc.), 5-shaft satins, and 8-shaft twills and satins,  and 10-shaft satins all divide neatly into 40.

 

Other conveniences come to mind. Imagine a two-block pattern of reverse twill on a 40-shaft straight draw. You could have this:

or this:

or this:

You could choose any of the above without rethreading your loom; the decision would be based on the visual effect you’re aiming at: large repeat or small repeat.

Disregarding for a moment the issues of yarn diameter and sett, you could also choose a 5-end satin, and get this:

or this:

or this:

All divide evenly into 40.

You could also simulate a 13-shaft summer & winter point threading, and get the following draft (treadling & tieup version is shown, followed by liftplan version). 

   

And to drive the point home, here is the same design on a 40-shaft straight threading:

I hope this leads you to think of all the ways you can use a straight threading on your own loom, whether 8 shafts or 88 :-)

A Mystery Solved

Somehow this weaving was not going well. When I cut it off, it didn't look any better. The colors were muddy, and I expected way more contrast. But I couldn't figure out what the problem was. I spent a couple of days going over the original design files in Photoshop®, and examined my weave blanket for errors in the pattern presets. No clues. Then I went back to the loom-ready file, and discovered that the total number of picks was not an exact multiple of the number of shuttles (three). That threw the color rotation off by one pick, a very stupid mistake. 

Only one thing to do—correct the file and reweave the piece. Much better. Here it is about one third finished. I will sleep well tonight.

Mindful People

Danny Gregory is one of my heros. He turned a personal disaster into an opportunity for growth, and his books about journaling and forging connections are inspiring. And he seems like a nice guy! His newest book, An Illustrated Life, featuring other sketchbook artists is about to be released, and in connection with the release he podcasted some terrific interviews with the artists included in his book. The podcasts are wonderful to listen to while you are weaving or walking or spinning or whatever.

And—thanks to Danny for alerting me to this gem of a little movie. It's all about the love of doing something well, and being respectful of one's materials and tools. If you have six minutes to spare, you must see this. Perhaps if, like me, you love the mechanical aspects of your looms, you will see something familiar here.

Inside and Outside

Now I'm back to weaving. Sometimes in order to get started you just have to start. Brilliant.

But while I wasn't looking, this is what was going on outside:

Fall. How did that happen? I'm not ready!

Monday Morning Blues – and Greens

Sometimes it's hard to get jump-started on Monday morning. When I'm out of ready ideas, I frequently open WeaveMaker and use the cornucopia tool to help. With a straight threading on 40 shafts, I ask the cornucopia to pick lift plans from (for example) the Tabby Twill category. I leave the Float Histogram window open so that I can spot the choices with floats of 5 or fewer: 

The maximum float length in this example is 4. That works! Here's the draft, which repeats every 40 picks:

Then, using WeaveMaker's weave simulation tool, with a blue warp and lime weft, the fabric looks something like this:

And in all cases, follow Stephanie's practice: click to embiggen.

A Tangle of Tigers

How could this happen? Both soccer teams are named the Tigers; one wears orange shirts, the other wears tan. So at the beginning of the game I was confused by cries of "Go, Tigers!", as I'm sure the players were, too. Coach Willy took matters in hand (in foot, actually), and began referring to the Tan Tigers. Good solution, Willy. Go, Tan!

This all took place yesterday, under a blue, blue sky, with not a hint of breeze. Meanwhile, in the lower part of SC, Tropical Storm Hanna brought wind and rain. When people hear that I'm from South Carolina, they often assume Charleston, beaches, semi-tropical weather. Actually my part of the state is in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, and is very different from Charleston geographically, culturally, and meteorologically. We call ourselves the Upstate. We do get tornadoes. That's another story.

Circles Again

Additional views of the shawl first posted August 27. First is roughly lifesize, and next is magnified around 6x. In the Aug. 27 post, the border areas were shown; today's views show the center section, in which the pattern is more complex. The warp is mixed bamboo (blues), and the weft is space-dyed rayon. Ordinarily space-dyed yarns in the weft produce unpredictable splotches, but I think here they are OK, as they're broken up by the circle pattern. In the enlarged view you can see the three weaves very clearly: 4/1, 1/4, and 3/2 satin. Click on pictures to see full size.

Jacquard Class Deadline Draws Near

Only three weeks left until the registration deadline for the Jacquard Design and Weaving Course at AVL. The 4-day workshop will highlight the use of Photoshop to prepare loom-ready files for the new Jacq3G, and students will be able to weave their designs during class. This event is a repeat of the workshop held at AVL last February. Dates are October 27-30, 2008. There are still a few openings left — call today to reserve your place.