Doodling around at the computer, I came up with this 16-shaft draft with amalgamation. I'm still tinkering with it, but will probably use something similar as my next warp on the dobby loom. Click to enlarge.
Meanwhile, I've been enjoying hiking. These pictures are from yesterday at the Carrick Creek Trail at Table Rock State Park.
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Just finished reading Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller. Gorgeous.
I pass this loom a dozen times a day; it's impossible to ignore it, especially when it is bare. Took care of that issue over the weekend by winding a new linen warp, with lots of red, gold, lavender, and eggplant. Here it is beamed and partially threaded.
And after a lovely walk in the woods, it's now ready to weave. Thank you, Rumpelstiltskin (I wish).
In the picture below I'm trying out various weft colors and weaves.
I finally settled on this crepe structure.
And I'm weaving it with a bright blue weft.
In these glorious early autumn days I try not to neglect the outdoors, even though weaving is pulling me equally hard in the other direction. I tried a different route in my morning walk, and was rewarded with this intriguing little hidden space over a stream. I'd never seen it before.
The seasonal color is just starting to appear hereabouts. How is it where you are?
Back in the studio I shifted my attention to an old 4-shaft project on the floor loom. It was a longish mixed warp, and I had originally done some pattern weaving on it, but I got bored and then realized that this was a perfect opportunity for stashbusting. I got out a box of partially wound bobbins which needed to be emptied, and just randomly wove then off in plain weave, hit-or-miss fashion. I got to the end of the warp with most of the bobbins emptied, and cut off this 3-yard length of plain weave rainbow cloth. There is enough here for a garment of some sort. The weight is perfect for this climate. So there's a sewing project for some long winter's evening...
Happy Autumn Equinox, everyone. It's officially when green turns to yellow and red, although that's a little slow here. The last few days have been rainy and super-saturated with color.
Red has been creeping into my weaving as well. The scarf in singles linen advances slowly because I have to take special care with the selvedges.
But I love the yarn and do not mind the slow, meditative weaving. I am hoping that this will change into a soft and drapey fabric after washing.
On the dobby loom there is also some red, but in this case the weaving is faster. Clack clack and repeat.
This runner was cut off yesterday. I usually hem these things immediately and wash them, but in this case I couldn't decide which side is the "right" side. So I let it sit overnight. The warp is still the Eggplant and Wasabi Euroflax 30/2 linen and the wefts in this case are red and beige.
In the Department of Books, I just finished reading Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín.
It's never just one thing that influences a design choice. My daily visits to the farm are a rich source of patterns. These new furrows are starkly outlined in the early morning light.
The last few days I've spent a lot of time following the black swans around, and the patterns made by their long curved necks are compelling.
And then there are the colors. Oddly for this time of year, I've been noticing more green.
So I tied on a new warp to the interleaved threading on the 16-shaft loom, and it is half green, half eggplant, and all linen. I love the scary-looking birds' nests that arise during the tying-on. It's like a magic trick when you pull the knots through and wind the whole thing on.
Here's the loom all tidy and ready to go.
Laundry Art. Here's the first sample off the loom and just washed, waiting to dry. The wefts in these swatches are all linen of different types and colors.
I've selected forest green and yellow linen wefts for the first runner. Definitely a green vibe. Amazing to see all the shades of green that emerge.
If you turn around and look at this from a different angle, the color relationships change.
And if I get tired of monotone, I can always go to the bakery and get more inspiration.
After spending two solid days preparing the green and black warp, I discovered three threading errors. They were not the kind for which you can throw in a few repair heddles and forge ahead. A total cutoff and rethreading was necessary.
Then I wove a few inches on the corrected threading, and discovered two new denting errors! Oy vay.
Time to get my ducks in a row.
No more sleeping on the job.
So yesterday I was busy as a bee.
No rest for the weary.
I'll never thread another black warp, she said. Never say never.
I absolutely wanted this warp, black and olive green, end and end, so I ignored my previous prohibition and wound it anyway. It went on the beam very smoothly, and here it is ready for threading.
Lo and behold, it was not that difficult. Something about the haptics of selecting the threads from the cross. Maybe it was muscle memory. Whatever it was, the threading and denting went quickly
Yesterday, after a few technical issues with TempoTreadle, which were quickly ironed out by the good folks at LoftyFiber, I was ready to go. It's a parallel or interleaved threading, aka echo weave, woven as doubleweave on 8 shafts.
Taking a break from the studio, I walked around the lake in spite of the drizzle. It was quite refreshing.
At the Sustainability Center the little black & white cat was as friendly as ever. She appears to be quite interested in tomatoes.
Stopping for groceries on the way home I was stopped in my tracks at the bakery display, where a new batch of cakes had just been put in the refrigerated case. I didn't buy any of these, but I was sorely tempted by that chocolate ganache in the bottom row.
Another day, another warp. Three ends held together on the warping board, then taken randomly in the threading. Blue, green, violet. The weft is purple. The draft, an original huck-like texture on 16 shafts. 10/2 mercerized cotton @ 24 epi and ppi. Yardage for a garment.
Time passes, the seasons change. A tree came down on the Trail after the recent snow.
Snow doesn't last long around here, but there was enough for a small snowman. I think a biker must have taken a two-minute break for this one.
If you are following the saga of the Monstera, the leaf we have been watching is almost completely open. The energy revealed in this unfurling is impressive.
Back in the studio, I basted narrow woven strips together...
...then stitched overlapped seams on the sewing machine, and laid out the pattern pieces.
After cutting, I fused 1/2" strips of lightweight interfacing to all the cut edges to halt unraveling.
After sewing the shoulder seams together and sewing a bias strip facing around the neck edge, I tried the partial garment on and discovered, to my horror, that I couldn't get it on over my head, even though in the test garment it was big enough. Seems that the fused interfacings on the neck edge didn't allow enough give in what would otherwise be a bias situation. After a bit of tugging and adjusting, and more than a few bad words, I salvaged the situation. Whew.
The garment is now finished and it fits, and I love it. I'll try to get some decent pictures and show it to you when next we meet.
BTW, I've had my second Covid shot and have experienced no side effects whatsoever. Life is good.
I know I'm a little late to the celebration, but couldn't resist posting this picture. That's me a couple of years ago, hence the short hair, and as for Bernie, he is good at time travel.
Back to business. More thoughts on proxy designing for a straight threading on 16 shafts. What if I did a point twill threading for 4 shafts, which repeats every 16 ends? I could then weave the resulting draft on 16 shafts. Two examples shown below. Click to enlarge.
I haven't woven these yet, but intend to soon. It will be interesting to see how they behave after washing, always the acid test.
Out with the old, in with the new. The knots rose over the horizon, signaling that it would soon be time to cut off.
Five yards of jin (AKA turned taqueté) cut off and washed.
Then there was this (Hallelujah!).
in between moments of watching the screen, transfixed, I did wind a new warp. Shades of blue.
And tied it onto the old warp, straight threading on 16 shafts.
Did some playing with drafts. How about imagining a pointed threading on 9 shafts, and then weaving some of the samples on the straight 16-shaft threading? Think about it.
Wove all ten of these samples. When the parade was over, I cut the samples from the loom and washed them.
After washing & ironing, some were awful, some pretty good, and this one was a definite keeper.
So I'll be weaving off the rest of the warp in that draft, with a lavender weft. Warp and weft are 10/2 cotton, 24 epi and ppi. Click to enlarge.
I slept very well last night.
Did you?