Weaverly

Giraffe Day

There are a few accidental convergences here today. The following two I offer with no additional comment.

And transitioning from blocks to curves, this beauty caught my eye again. The black swans are very tame and they are a treat to watch as I walk around the lake.

The following draft is one I did years ago and posted. It was created according to the principles of network drafting. It has caught the attention of other weavers and I occasionally see it reposted on social media.

Time to get it woven! Here is a brand new tencel warp on 16 shafts. The structure is 1/3 and 3/1 opposing twills. I call it Giraffe.

In the Department of Books: I have just finished reading The Magic Kingdom by Russell Banks.

Local Color

Yesterday was Dye Day at Pat's studio. Here are Patti, Pat, and Ruth about to begin work. Pat is reviewing some basics. Just in case.

A few hours later, the colorful result. Skeins, skeins, and more skeins, and a few warps. We all went home happy. Thanks, Pat, for sharing your studio and your knowledge with us.

Back in the home studio, a couple of finished scarves from one cotton crackle warp, both with the same treadling. On the left, a rayon weft. On the right, handspun cotton. The character and drape are totally different.

I enjoyed this warp so much that I tied on another to the end of it, this one purple rayon and pale green cotton. Same treadling, too. The weft this time is light gray silk.

Bruce and I had planned to go riding out in the country today, to see what we could see, and we were not lucky with the weather. Constant rain. We went anyway. Here is a picture of the iconic Union County (SC) Courthouse, as seen through the front windshield of the car from the parking lot across the street. 

Department of Books:

Recently finished Portrait of a Lady by Henry James, Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy, and All Things Cease to Appear by Elizabeth Brundage.

More Crackle Samples

Sampling crackle on four shafts is endlessly entertaining. 

Here's what the previous sample looks like after washing. 

And a few more post-wash samples, with various wefts.

No block changes for this one, just one block repeated endlessly. It makes a great stripe pattern.

When the blue and white warp was finished, I tied on another 2-color warp, using some fibers of unknown provenance from my stash. I think they were tencel and bamboo, but there might have been some soy silk in there too (???). The two warp colors are dark blue and pumpkin. The weft is purple, also unknown fiber. I wove 72" with hemstitching, and cut it off and washed it and ironed it. About 15% shrinkage, and now it has a lovely drape. The selvedges are a bit problematic. In spite of floating selvedges, the best I can say about them is that they are consistent.

Well, that was fun. I have an increasing respect for crackle. So simple yet so complex. With the warp that is left, I am using some more stash yarn, a pale gray cotton, machine spun but strongly resembling a thick and thin handspun. Same block liftplan as the previous. 

This piece will not be long enough for a scarf, but I'll put it aside with my other strip weaves and eventually it will make its way into a combo garment. 

Crackle

I'm thinking about ways to use a 4 shaft loom, and put a small sample warp onto my table loom, leaving 4 of the 8 shafts vacant. The warp is navy and yellow, end-and-end. Mercerized 10/2 cotton, 28 epi.

The threading is an original crackle variation.

Playing with blocks with a 16/4 cotton weft in turquoise.

Now some blocks with a weft of silk nail, natural.

Modifying the block sizes, with a peach silk weft.

Alternating weft colors with the block changes, here in cottons.

Meanwhile, in the kitchen, the Christmas cactus is running riot. 

In the Department of Books, I have a really, really good one to recommend to you today. It's Florida by Lauren Groff.