Plain weave double weave! Success at last! Well, sort of...

September 17, 2011

I finally figured out how to do plain wv dbl wv.  Love this crappy table I got off the side of the road.  It makes a great table to hook my loom up to.  Nice and heavy.

All I really did was the same thing I do with warp face weave and space the warps further apart.  I twined the bottom edges for spacing and used double stranded worsted weight yarns for the continuous heddles.  Works great so far.  Now to figure out the patterning.

I did alot of reading to figure this out!  Handwoven turned out to have a great article in their Jan/Feb 2011 on dbl wv bk marks that made it finally click.  However, I am not using 4 shaft/sheds I am picking and counting the same way I do for warp face dbl wv.  I will indeed develop the other two sets of heddles later on to see if I can make it even quicker.  I just felt like it was taking longer to set up than it would take to weave the piece anyway, so who needs two more sets of heddles.  If it was any faster it would defeat all of the prep work, kind of a let down to be finished so soon.

It is also just a practice piece with mystery yarn, so definitely alot of learning going on.

This just lets you see the table.

Here you see where I twined and lashed my warp to the bar.  I am trying to accomplish a 4 salvaged piece.  In other words no fringe.  As well as having interchangeable colors from back to front.

Of course Wiggles has to supervise.  See the little weaving...on the back the colors are reversed.  Notice how you can see the up and down threads (warp) and the side to side threads (weft)...not what I usually do.

The back side.

The front side.

And here I decided to switch the colors, now they opposite color is showing!

Update:  Later the same day...


Been working on this all day and I have learned some things if you guys are interested.

First off I was using the same dbl wv system Laverne taught us…stick shed and heddle shed with separating out each color as needed by picking. When I tried to do a pattern it was a dismal failure this way. Just couldn’t seem to get it to work. Soooo…back to the books.

I went ahead and put in 4 sets of continuous string heddles, per the draft (just learning to read these also, another new skill). Somehow I had trouble, couldn’t get it to work with the treadling sequence my books gave. So I persevered and figured out the sequence for putting which ever color I wanted on the top face. Maybe I threaded wrong for the sheds/shafts, but I did get it to work. Eventually.

When I replaced my original heddles and stick shed with the string heddles, I only used single worsted for the heddles…instead of double stranded worsted as I had in the start. I am now getting narrowing. I have unwoven several times and I can’t figure out if I am having problems because my heddles aren’t as thick and helping out with the spacing, or if you just get different tension in general with 4 sets of string heddles. Or if maybe I am just frustrated and tired. lol I did find that the tension was very different when I used string heddles on my few pebble weaves. so it might just be the nature of the beast.

Then I tried, per, the instructions to do a pattern. A simple diamond. Still can’t seem to get it. Weird. I am also finding that I horribly miss the clean lines of my warp face dbl wv…instead of the stepping on the edges of this weave. I know true Finnweave, which is not reversible, gives cleaner lines, but I am threaded for ldld (supposed to be more attractive on the back if not completely reversible), not llddlldd. So I am committed at this point, as I refuse to redo the heddles yet again. I am also finding that I prefer finger picking/counting to all of these fiddly string heddles (no offense Laverne, I know how you love using all of the heddles). Maybe I just like to more tactile feel of getting down in there with my fingers/hands. I am also thinking…that I may have more design freedom without all of these heddles…will have to keep at it to figure that one out.

So for now, my shoulders are screaming, and my brain is fried…but I am closer to achieving the goal than ever before. I can at least get double face plain weave, which by the way is very very near to balanced. More so in the part that is narrowing. In the first part I get 9wpi and 8ppi…in the part that narrowed I am getting 8x8.

So those are my thought on plain dbl wv up to this point. whew, tired…

September 18, 2011  Sunday


Well I got a diamond of sorts.  Unfortunately one side isn't closed/connected.  Hmmm, definitely not my best work.  But o.k. for a first attempt.  It also kept getting more and more narrow as well.  Better next time.

New to me Cricket Rigid Heddle loom.

 June 10th

 

A couple of wonderful ladies on Ravelry gifted me a cricket loom.  One of them had taken a saw to it and made some um...modifications.  I assembled, sanded and oiled it, then decided to see if I could use it for my warp face weaving's.  ( I sold the Mini Wave as I have definitely outgrown it.)  

This will allow me to go wider without having to spend alot of money I don't have.  Thanks so much ladies!  You know who you are.

This warp fought me all the way to the end. For some reason I have had multiple bad starts with one weft double weave. I think it has something to do with the fact that I would a figure eight on stakes (c clamps in this case) instead of using a warp board…somehow I kept having one shed totally floating on the backside. 

Weird, right, it’s not like I don’t know how to do double weave. 

So I took it off the backstrap and mounted it onto the new to me Cricket rigid heddle loo. Without the heddle of course. Just used it as a frame like many of you have done. It was definitely a practice piece…the first on the cricket. It measures 1 3/4 in wide and the woven web is 10 and 1/2 in long. I find I am really drawn to the Bedouin designs of late. When I couldn’t get the double weave to cooperate I switched over to double weft double weave and just left the edge warps doubled. Thus the speckled sides. It has absolutely no purpose yet…I tried to use it as a collar for Lacy, but she said it was too wide and too long. eh It is what it is. I am just glad to be back weaving a little bit.

I have a narrow brown, baby blue and teal piece on the backstrap…since my creative juices have stopped flowing I think that is my next piece to try to complete. We’ll see. Wish me luck!

My second double weft double weave!

May 16, 2011

The first attempt was horrific.  I am pretty happy with this one though!  Just a practice piece, but I love how dramatic the true white is with the red.

Another warp band!

Well its confirmed!  I am no seamstress!  I tried to make little purses/make-up bag/cell phone pouch out of my warp face bands today.  What a disaster.  These weavings are as forgiving as my tapestries!  Every stitch pulls and snags!  I even tried the sewing machine, and I HATE sewing.  I destroyed one small piece, and learned alot.  

I also completed another band.

I have done waaayyyyyyy too much research and still can't get the hang of how to get rid of the stripe background.  No successes there either. And, now I can't even figure out how to sew the bands I have already done into something useful.  FRUSTRATION, FRUSTRATION, FRUSTRATION!  They are too short for belts, too long for bracelets, too narrow for dresser scarves...they might be good for the top of a toilet tank.  LOL  How many people will use it for that though.  Most of the color schemes wouldn't work for that either. 

So I warped up the Mini with a plain red band.  Just for some mindless weaving.  I am indeed getting better at the edges, and consistency.  Yeah!  Tried to do some brocade/inlay, another dismal failure. 

Still, I think you should see the new band.  So here it is.  Please remember I am new to this.  The warp was perfect this time.  No saggy spots, not much waste.  YEAH!  I used mini blind slats this time and the last, I also used ONLY mercerized cotton.  Much easier. 

I will be glad when I can weave something without as many angles!  

Here are the pics!  Feedback welcome.