Home made spindle and cotton sliver!

May 22, 2011  Sunday

I decided since I already had the fiber to add some Indigo to my spinning project.  

I already have plenty of white, spun, re-spun and plied.  I also have a good size ball of denim blue completed to go with it.  Now I am working on the Indigo.  

I have a hard time with the turkish spindle arms getting in my way and bumping things when I support spin in my recliner.  The tahkli is so small I fill it very quickly...so I made myself a light weight support/drop spindle out of a dowel and some wooden toy wheels I had around the house.  

I used it as a support spindle today...off and on ALL day.  I probably got this fiber when I purchased my wheel in 2005.  I have 8 oz. of it....TONS...lol

I forgot to weigh the spindle so I have no idea who much I have spun.  For those of you who don't spin, it probably doesn't look like much.  But for those who do, especially those who spin cotton, you know there are yards and yards and yards on this little spindle (maybe miles).  I think it is about the size of #10 crochet thread.  I am glad to report that my consistency has improved greatly over the last few months.  Still got lots to do though if I am going to do a warp face project with it.  I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.   

Poncho project!

May 21, 2011   Saturday

So I took all of my bands down off my curtain rod (I hang them up just so I can look at them)...got out the straight pins (my hands are now officially pin cushions) and a piece of 'practice' fabric the size I wanted to poncho to be and started playing around with the placement.  Grrrrrrrr

Keep in mind that I live in the DEEP south USA and I never took out not one jacket this Winter.  Only long sleeve shirts and sweaters.  I wanted a 'light' poncho.  Imagine my surprise that the thing weighs 50 lbs.  BUMMER!  BUMMER!  BUMMER!    So then I talked to my friend who sews and asked....how about we just use the bands for trim on a poncho?  Say all around the outer edge's and the neckline, with a kind of muffler (pocket) for my hands?  Maybe even a muffler pocket on each side so it is reversible.

So more pinning.

It is still heavy so I will have to have to think hard about what fabric to use to keep it from hanging funky.  I wish she had been here...but that will come.  On the good side I have tons of bands to choose from...I almost had enough to fill the practice fabric.  But for now I am not sure I even want a poncho ;((((.  A good 1/3 of the pieces are wide and short...not long strips...more like table center pieces, great for gift giving...especially since I have no job.  Even then I still have plenty of LONG bands for trim on a poncho.

I have never had a handwoven wearable piece...certainly not of my own weavings.  The closest I got to wearing my own fiber art was hand knit socks...which I love...but again the DEEP south...don't wear socks much and knitting kills my old lady hands.  So basically I am back to the drawing board...but very prepared for the holiday season already this year.  That is a plus though.

At the very least I am having to re-think the project...

My third Double weft Double Weave!

May 26, 2011

I LOVE THIS!  And I discovered that I can really cut down on mistakes if I put a little mirror underneath the weaving where I can see the reverse side.   OMG...I finally did it!  Double weft double weave...can you tell whee the plain weave meets the double weave?

Here it is all fresh off of the loom.  I can't decide which side I like best!  I think this one might be an envelope pouch when it grows up!

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.

WoooHooooo! Warp floats Galore!!!!

 June 25, 2011

WoooHoooo!  I finally figured out how to do warp floats that cover up the striped background!  This was a hard won victory!

The warp gave me fits as I am trying a new warping system.  I am using bar clamps instead of a warp board. AND of course I miscounted and had to lift 4 warps at a time instead of 2 like the design called for.  BUT it worked!  I am soooooo proud of myself.

I forgot to take pics of the warping process.  But I will when I do it again.  For now I just want to bask in the glory!

Thanks to Laverne for tutorials...once again!

Six tips for your Creative Life

May 15, 2011

Taken from the Interweave Insider newsletter!

 SOLID ADVISE, IN MY HUMBLE OPINION!

1. I schedule my crafting. Literally. I enter craft time into my computer calendar, block out specific times, and set up reminders to be emailed to my inbox. Sounds a bit dorky, perhaps–but it works.

2. I keep my appointments. No canceling on my knitting dates. No standing up my spindles. These craft times are commitments and I treat them as such.

3. I gather everything I need for each project and put it together in one place. When I say everything, I mean every single thing: Pattern, needles, extra yarn, notions, scissors, measuring tape, the whole burrito. (I have lots of measuring tapes. I bet you do too. Check the cracks in the sofa cushions.) I put each project's supplies into a portable bin so I can carry the project to the best location for the day's task, whether knitting, spinning, seaming, or beading.

4. I let those around me know I will be (generally) unavailable during my scheduled project times. I turn off my phone, close my laptop, and kiss my husband on the cheek as I leave the room on the days he works from home. Now, I know that many of you have kids, and kids are impossible to ignore. Maybe Mr. Knitter can bathe them and read them a story so you can go work a few rows of your knitting? 

5. I choose a specific work area, and clear it of distractions. I trying to keep the top of my desk and studio table (relatively) tidy. This is a big effort for me. (I think I must be part Chaos Demon.) And when I simply cannot focus on my knitting or spinning any other way, if the weather is nice, I banish myself to the front or back porch.

6. I make sure I have music or a good audio book on my iPod. Music and audio books help me focus, so that the Little Voices In My Head do not ramble on with distracting comments while I am trying to work.

Look what DANA did!

May 9, 2011  Monday

I can't wait to feel better...BUT LOOK WHAT DANA DID!  First she put the hardware on the dble wv I did for her nephew's guitar strap.

AND look what she did for her second backstrap project.  These are my scroll designs, Laverne Waddington's blog is where the 3d effect came from and she also did basic diamonds AND this is only her second backstrap piece, further she has never done warpface EVER.  WOW!  I am soooo proud of both of us.

Catching up on my posting!

May 8, 2011  Mother's Day

Of course I have to be one of the people that cervical cryo is VERY hard on!  So I haven't been doing as much weaving as usual, and certainly no posting as much as usual.

But, the antibiotics have kicked in and I am starting to feel a little better.  A leeeeeetle.

I have been concentrating on backstrap weaving and it seems that it is indeed hard on my back.  Actually it isn't the weaving itself that gets me...it is the warping.  The only place I have to lay the warp out and place my saver cords...and I use lots of saver cords...is on my bed.  Which means leaning over.  Remember most of my warps are between 5 and 7 ft. 

Also, if I owned my warp board I would hang it on the wall...as it belongs to someone else... it is propped against the wall...on my bed.  More leaning. Then placing the string heddles and making sure the sheds are correct...you get the picture.  

It is only worse when I find a mistake in the warping and have to keep at it trying to correct things.  Let's not forget I am a frugal soul and hate throwing out a warp AT ALL.  But it is what it is.  I can only get better from here.

So in the end here is what I have accomplished.  

First a blue and lime green piece.  Five ft. long warp, 55 or so warps wide, plain weave.  Ignore the old lady legs and notice that I am tied onto a wooden chair...I am actually sitting in my recliner.

The completed piece has ridges that are very visible in places.  I believe this is caused by the tension being too tight.  Ms. Carol, my roommate snapped this one right up!

Then we have my first pick up piece on a backstrap.  Just pleased as punch that I got it warped up.  Mystery yarn, same size as the blue and green piece.  This one is teal and mocha brown (mystery yarn, scratchy and shrank horribly when washed) and I used a hook design that I got off of Laverne Waddington's blog.  We all know I am one of her keenest fans.

 Then I had two botched warps...my back started killing me again...so I am back to my Mini Wave and a band for my poncho project. 

This one is 7 ft. long and 80 warps per shed wide.  I have 50 threads in my pattern area.  First we have my mark...the infamous heart.

Then I finally got to do the indigenous flower design that I have on multiple sites on the internet.  This design always seems elongated when I do it.  That is why I have not done it as of yet.  Each time it looked more like a geometric design than a flower.  I have even tried lifting pairs instead of individual warps and it is the same way for me.  ?????

Last but not least I am using my own scrolls side by side...it almost looks like a heart too!  I got that idea from Laverne!

I found another flower in the 'Byways in Hand weaving' book, it looks kind of like a tulip.  I had to chart it myself for this technique, so I am not sure if it will work yet.  The book is geared to 4 shaft looms and I don't quite understand some of her pictures and instructions.  So sometimes they work and sometimes not so much.

  So my design factors (hopefully) will be yellower petal flower, blue scrolls, yellow tulip, blue scrolls, repeat.  That is the plan at this point anyway.  Always subject to adjustments.  LOL

Dana has made HUGE strides in her backstrap adventure.  She surprised me and did her second warp alone AND with horizontal stripes.  She has been experimenting with her pick up floats. 

I can't wait to see her progress as well as pictures of Ryan's birthday pictures.  I hope he likes his guitar strap.  ;-}

Pictures finally came!!!

He looks proud!

So that brings us mostly up to date.  I am still healing and will keep you posted.  

I am excited to be back into the successful weaving, instead of the possession of learning a new loom.  The backstrap bug bites me hard, just a little OCD going on there and I won't get my poncho bands finished in time for cooler weather if I don't keep at it.  I am going to do the weaving, the design, the assemblage sewing, lining and all, and we all know I am sew not a seamstress.  But I figure if Dana can get the hang of backstrap weaving this fast, then I should be able to tap into all of her textile knowledge and learn to do a little sewing.  I hope.  

I told her that I want to do it all myself, that I just want her to instruct, unless I find myself destroying my weaving's.  Her response was "  Knowing that...you will have a hard time getting me to rescue you". 

She knows I am excited to finally have something to wear that I have done completely on my own.  Except for spinning the yarn anyway.  

Dana learns backstrap in ONE sitting!

I passed the backstrap addiction on to my friend DANA!  

I taught her to wind a warp on a warp board, mount it onto a backstrap cross...of course it was only a 3 ft warp and of course we screwed up the cross and had to re heddle it a second time...then it was letter perfect!  It is 50 warps wide and here in the pics you can see we used mini blind slats for spacers and she is weaving her very first warp face structure!

You might also notice that she found some great nylon that seems to be working beautifully for her heddles.  No un-tying, even when pulled on aggressively, no shredding, etc...

If you look very closely you can see a little bit of the braided ends of the backstrap I made her.  She is using the same Garnet, gold and black yarn.  She is going to make a cell ph. case for her sister's birthday!  Actually 2 of the, her sister's job requires she carry both.

When we got to a breaking point, took us about 3 hrs., and she had woven an inch or so, we went inside to eat big 'ole Ribeye steaks and baked potatoe.  MAN, I so needed to get out of the house.  Their place is way out in the woods, so we worked on the front port in beautiful Spring weather.  It was soooooo much fun to spend the day with such good people, doing what I love most and passing it on to someone who is JUST as interested.  

Versus them looking at me like I am nuts when I say I weave.  LOL

Dana is gonna try backstrap weaving!

Okay...soooooo...once I got the correct type yarn on the backstrap the weaving is reasonably easy.  At least in plain weave.

I chose some #3 in colors of my friend Dana's Alma mater.  Garnet, gold and black.  When she took at look at it she asked me if  it would be long enough for her to use as a 'backstrap'.  I was thrilled, as I am going for my steak cookout, payment for the guitar strap, tomorrow.

So today when I got up, I quickly completed the weaving and made it into a strap for her.  I even have extra dowels.  I am so excited about tomorrow I can hardly stand myself.

Success with a Backstrap!

I have been attempting this for a couple of years.  Off and on for sure since I moved here last March...I have had some small successes.  But this one is finally working, and I kind of understand the process.  The warp is washcloth cotton, just for practice.  Things fell into place when I found some braided nylon for the heddles.  No more sticky heddles...I can finally concentrate on weaving instead of fighting with it.  The next one I will warp one intended to keep.  It will probably still be plain weave though, as I need some vertical stripes for my poncho project.  I think this warp was 5 ft. and it is wider now than at the beginning.  Oh well.  

Keep your fingers crossed for me.  It can only get better from here!

And completed!  No idea what to do with it yet, but I am sure something will come to me.

And then when it grew up it became........A BACKSTRAP for Marsha!

And I even sewed the seam with the machine and sparkly gold thread!

Completed Guitar Strap!

I think Ryan will wear it proudly.  It came out to be 48 1/2 in long, (I needed 48) and 1 7/8 in. wide.  WOO HOO!  Longest double weave yet!  Done 5 days early.

Houston We have FLAMES!

Just getting started but by George I think I got it!