Shadow Weave finished.....

It was an interesting adventure - shadow weave. Not really my cup of tea. I think I might turn the large piece into a pillow. I will sit it on the shelf until it decides. Maybe it wants to be a purse or "?".

This next photo is some of the different treadlings.

Shadow Weave Runner

And so I begin.

I can see that this is a plain weave structure, but with the colors and the different tie-ups on my four shafts, I haven't figured it out yet. But sure is pretty! I didn't realize that shadow weave was this interesting. It will look better once it is off the loom and finished.

Floating Selvedge

This shadow weave project will need a floating selvedge to help keep the edges tidy. Put one on each side. I am hanging them off the back beam with a weight. I am using the same threads as the warp, but some people use fishing line..... use what ever works for you.

These threads are sleyed through the reed but do not go through a heddle. As you weave, you will go over the floating thread as you enter the shed and go under the floating thread as you exit the shed.

I find my husbands clips from his garage are just the right weight! Thanks Hubby!!

More Shadow Weave Prep

I usually thread the loom front to back as shown here. As this is pretty straight forward of every other thread is either black or blue, so the color choice is helping me keep my threading in order. For every four threads I need two blue and two black. 

Here also is one of my ways to keep track of the threading. I usually print out a copy of the draft and then use a marker to keep track of where I am. Works for me! This way I don't mark up the original directions with all my scribbles.

Who Knows? The Shadow Does.

On to other weave structures.

I will keep thinking about single two-tie but now I am going to weave some shadow weave. This is from a kit. I sometimes will weave other peoples stuff and try to understand what I am doing. Shadow weave may be to spacial for me..... but I will give it a go.

Two colors in the warp and weft. And I understand it is very important that you know what color you start with in the threading and the treadling. It really does create a complicated looking pattern, and only on four shafts!

I have wound my black and blue threads separately and threaded the black first then laid the blue on top and pulled it through the reed. This is when that 'cross holder' comes in very handy!

S&W , Polychrome, Taquete

It seems as I work with single two-tie (summer and winter or double two-tie, or taquete, or S&W polychrome)...... that there just seems to be more and more that can be done.

Here are my two scarves plus all the sampling on the back porch trying to dry. The scarf on the left is woven in 1-2-2-1 tie-down order as regular summer and winter. The next scarf is woven in polychrome. That is S&W using two colors of weft plus tabby. The samples are my experiments with taquete, polychrome and regular S&W. I had already tied onto this warp once, so now it is time to stop and get ready for a workshop in June for this loom.

Things I have learned: 1. Weaving with one pattern weft and a tabby same size as the warp gives your scarf a nice drape.  2. Weaving with two same sized weft threads and a smaller tabby thread your fabric is a bit stiffer. 3.  Weaving with three wefts of the same size in Taquete produces a stiff fabric.

I think I could have helped the taquete drape if I had used only in the weft one large sized thread and two small ones. That "might" have helped the drape. Also with the polychrome the choice of weft size is important.

The main thing I learned is that you can put on one long single two-tie warp and have many-many different looks by changing the tie-up and/or treadlings.

S&W Polychrome to Taquete

Now I think I am going to be weaving Taquete.

Here is a small history lesson.
According to Summer and Winter, A Weave for All Seasons by Donna Sullivan - "summer and winter polychrome is 3 blocks of single two-tie and you rotate two or more colors of pattern weft with a tabby weft"

According to Harriet Tidball, Shuttle Craft Guild Monograph Nineteen 1966, "two differently colored pattern wefts follow each tabby shot."

Well, what is it if you don't use tabby?

Lilian Whipple says in her book, Summer and Winter to Taquete (A Lesson In How To Design And Weave In Two Basic Structures)  - "My definition of Taquete is summer and winter woven without the tabby thread." The tie down threads ( 1 + 2) must always alternate and all pattern blocks must be woven as pattern or floats will appear on the top or bottom side of the fabric."

So now, what I am doing is this... I am weaving using three colors in a set rotation alternating each of three different pattern shafts. I have 12 picks I must do before I can move onto the next block. There is no set three pattern shaft to use or what order to pick them... so I am having fun designing on the loom to find my blocks.

My sequence using three colors (pattern wefts):
1+ 1st pattern - mauve
1+ 2nd pattern - rose
1+ 3 pattern - turquoise

2+ 1st pattern - mauve
2+ 2nd pattern - rose
2+ 3rd pattern - turquoise

1+ 1st pattern - mauve
1+ 2nd pattern - rose
1+ 3 pattern - turquoise

2+ 1st pattern - mauve
2+ 2nd pattern - rose
2+ 3rd pattern - turquoise

*You will need to contact Lillian Whipple for her booklet..or it might have been a download.... and the Donna Sullivan book should still be available.

Double Two-Tie Polychrome

It helps to keep your shuttles in the same color order no matter which side you are coming from.

I am weaving on a double-two tie draft in the 1-2-2-1 order. This is considered Ploychrome.

I weave two pattern treadles with each tie down. My sources said to weave in 1-2-1-2 order because it was gonna be hard to remember which shuttle to throw when and that might cut down on the errors. Not one to do what others says..... smile..... I am using the 1-2-2-1 tie down order. There are two pattern color and one tabby color.

To weave one block I have 12 picks.
1+ 1st pattern
1+ 2nd pattern
tabby a
2+ 1st pattern
2+ 2nd pattern
tabby b
2+ 1st pattern
2+ 2nd pattern
tabby a
1+ 1st pattern
1+ 2nd pattern
tabby b

S&W to Double Two-Tie

sampling for bottom scarf

I have been playing around with a "double-two tie" draft. Double meaning that instead of the usual pattern shafts being on the same shafts, I have split the two pattern shaft threads and put them on different shafts. For instance: a normal summer and winter block is threaded 1-4-2-4, but I have threaded 1-4-2-8. This can make the edges of the block not quite so sharp.

Scarf not only finished, but mailed to friend. 

Now I am working on a different warp. I have tied onto the same threading as the above scarf. I am weaving it the usual summer and winter treadling of the "O" fashion. As you can see from the top photo, I have changed the treadling a little from the completed scarf.

New warp still weaving summer and winter.

Remembering Family

Remembering my sister and mother-in-law.
White from my sister's yard and purple from my mother-in-law's farm. I think of them often, but especially this time of year.

Towels and More Towels

I finished up weaving my 'strip' towels. This was the draft from the book: A Weaver's Book of 8-Shaft Patterns edited by Carol Strickler. (page 227)

It was fun working with this draft. It still has lots of possibilities and I would have done more, but I ran out of warp and didn't want to tie on again. I used this same draft for those Christmas Ribbon Candy towels.

This is a shot from behind the loom. Candy gone... and so is the blue baby!

I have combined two different challenges. One was to weave using strips. Two was a towel exchange. A very fun adventure.

Diva Show and Tell for April 2015

It is fun and a learning activity. It is called : Show-And-Tell. We discuss our pit falls, problems, success stories, and excitement of the finished article. We get tips and tricks and even have a few to share.

Here is some of my show and tell. I still need to hem the purple runner!
The green towel is a sneak peek of next months stripe challenge. 

Rossanna had another awesome Kumihimo necklace. 

Marty used handpainted Tencel for this sweet scarf.

Marty hand spun the wool/silk blend for both warp and weft for this undulating shadow weave bed shawl. 

Just look at the colors! She also hand dyed her fibers.

Marilynn brought two 5-end advancing twill scarfs. She got that awesome blending of colors with a graduation formula she dreamed up.  And the drape is to die for. 

Carol says that Marilynn's scarf is perfect for her outfit. 

Guild Program - Plain Weave

Plain Weave is a vast subject. Linda gave a very informative program on just some of the possibilities of this weave structure.

She did have help when showing her sample of using crammed denting with plain weave.

The plain weave fabric can be altered by color, fiber, twist and thickness and the proportion of warp sett to weft picks. And using warp-faced or weft-faced patterns using plain weave is just a small drop in the plain weave bucket. 

"Plain weave fabrics can tell a story about the weavers who wove them and about the world around them. The special characteristics of different weaves reveal the history of textiles and plain weave fabrics have many names." Linda went on to have a list of 65 different names linked to plain weave. Some were familiar, but most we had never heard of.

Just a few of the names: Batiste, Bainin, Bandle, Cambric, Burlap, Nainsook, Sailcloth...the list goes on and on.......

Purple People Eater

Wasn't there a song about a purple people eater? On this towel I am crossing the blue warp threads with purple. A friend of mine is a purple person, so I had her in mind when I picked these colors.

I might have an orange towel coming up next for a friend who is into orange! Stay tuned!!

Am I Blue?

These towels are a combination of plain weave, basket weave and twill on 8-shafts. I had used some 8/2 cotton and dented it at 24 epi..... wrong..... I mean, they are OK, but not great. So instead of being blue about it, I will keep exploring this draft.

I am tying on some 10/2 cotton. I am using my handy-dandy cross holder. Works great when you need both hands free to tie knots. 

And another thing I noticed.... I did not tie up the treadles per the directions from "A Weaver's Book of 8-Shaft Patterns", edited by Carol Strickler. (page 227)  Like I said, the Christmas Ribbon Candy Towels are OK, the pattern is OK, and I will use them. But they are not 'what she wrote!'

This warp is blue 10/2 cotton and I am crossing it with white 10/2 cotton. I have kept the 24 epi. It is a one shuttle weave and is going very quickly. I am using a temple to keep the warp spread. I move it about every 1/2 inch.

A Lesson Learned - EPI and Me

These towels are woven with 8/2 cotton in the warp and weft. At an epi of 24 they turned out a little to stiff for my liking**. I was thinking about the twill, but I think between the plain weave and the basket weave I should have dented for them. The dent should have been 20 - maybe...

So another lesson learned. Think about which is the most dominant when having more than one structure in your project. I had basket weave and plain weave and just a little twill. So should have dented for the plain weave. But what is the fun if you don't learn while creating fun stuff?

I like the tracking that shows up in the plain weave area. Gives the towels a homestead look. A towel you won't be afraid to use.

**amyfiber did tell me that this was sett to close.

Christmas Candy for the Kitchen

Weft color is white.

How about these great towels using Christmas colors and strips? I have some plain weave, basket weave and point twill going along with some striping on this warp of hand towels. If you like this draft, it can be found in the book "A Weaver's Book of 8-Shaft Patterns, edited by Carol Strickler. If you have this book it is on page 227.

I have used two shades of green, a red and a white to create some strips while using only one color each for weft. I didn't do a towel with the lighter green, it just faded out. I wonder what other color combination I could come up with???

Weft color is red.

Weft color is red.

Weft color is green. 

Christmas Candy

This next run of towels could be called Christmas Candy. I found the draft in the book "A Weaver's Book of 8-Shaft Patterns", edited by Carol Strickler. This is a great resource book. This draft has plain weave, basket weave, and some point twill all in the mix. The first order of business is to get the candy, I mean, the threads on the loom.