I've been planning a particular weaving project for a couple of weeks. I've been dreaming about it at night. I promised myself after my two sampler projects I could work with nicer yarn. I'd been measuring out the warp for days after work - all 120 inches worth for each of the 260 warp threads - and finally finished that last night. So today was the day to get started!
Measuring off a warp with a warping board (that thing with all the pegs) is infinitely easier than measuring out 10 strands by hand, tying them in to a bundle, then measuring out the next 10 strands... That's what I had been doing before Mother came to the rescue with a gift card that allowed me to get that warping board! Yay, Mother! And trying to wind yarn on to bobbins from a skein is made enormously easier with my new Will Taylor skein winder. I just got that this week - it had been on order since December or so. You can't rush art, and that skeinwinder is awesome.
All told, it took about 6 hours to fully dress the loom, and if anyone out there thinks that weaving is easy work, you try dressing a loom! My back is sooooo sore from leaning over, reaching through the frame to get the yarn, counting everything very carefully... Anywho, the end result is proving to be everything I'd hoped for. I started weaving as soon as the loom was ready.
I'm using a twill pattern from "The Handweaver's Pattern Directory" by Anne Dixon. Nice book of patterns - I highly recommend it!
I did tie the loom properly this time, so what you see below this time is in fact the top of the fabric:
And here is the reverse side:
And here is trouble:
Tomorrow I'll do some more weaving in the morning, then I'll be heading over to Berkeley for the first of a 3-part dyeing class with Kristine of A Verb For Keeping Warm. She is an excellent indie dyer and I can't wait to learn from such an artist! All in all, it's proving to be an excellent weekend.
6 comments:
Lovely!!! Yummy! - and yeppers, once it is dressed, you are practially done!
thats something beautiful!!! ill see you at AVFKW tomorrow (im taking the support spindle class at the same time!)
Oh my god that is beautiful!!!!!!!!
very pretty fabric!
Did you trying removing the beater frame and the front beam so you could get closer in with a chair and not have to lean over them? Good ergonomics are important!
What I should have done is a) removed the beater peg so I could have folded the loom tighter and thus raised it higher, and b) got a shorter chair. I shall do better next time!
uh-oh - sore back from bending over? Is there any way you can jiggle things around so as to pull up a chair?
Six hours; you're faster than I am (yet!) -- how many ends total?
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