Complete Stripe

While looking for the perfect weft color, I found that white worked best. This was a fun project where I was trying to hide pattern strips in color strips. It will need to be washed and pressed to see how it really looks.

My view from on the loom. 

Here I have tried white, red, multi-colored, and black. This is the back side view from off the loom.

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Ideas for Later

Always on the look-out for that color pallet and draft idea. How about these mushrooms I found in my yard? I can see a collaspe weave scarf in shades of gold, brown and gray.

Inspiration and My Stash

Sometimes we weave on our looms and sometimes we weave in our heads. I have been working on a weaving program for my local guild and I have been thinking!!! We all think we will use up our stash, but when we get ready to do a new project we usually just order what we want. Well, several of us do! So finding my color inspirations and them going to the stash I have these waiting in the wings!!

Here are some drafts and their inspirations that I have been 'thinking' about:

I saw this inspiration in a catalog. I liked the colors but didn't want to do their draft. This would make a great table runner.

I have had this cup laying around just waiting for something to do with it. I just love the stripes. Kitchen towels come to mind when I see the strips on the cup.

This inspiration came from some scrapbooking paper. It will be great with this summer and winter draft for a baby blanket. I may or may not add black. 

Who knew that facial tissue boxes could inspire a color way? I couldn't figure out how to get three browns from my computer program..... but I understand which is which color. (smile) I am thinking kitchen towels, or maybe a thanksgiving table runner......or using very tiny threads for jacket fabric. 

Another Awesome Picture from MO Conservation

Look at this study I did back on January 21,2012.  (you can find it in my past posts)

This was a photo taken by Noppadol Paothong for the Missouir Conservationist. I went on to weave a Bateman table runner.

Here is the latest issue of the Missouri Conservationist. I love it! I guess I am drawn to his colors and subject matter. I wonder if a summer and winter draft would do his work justice??? Something to think about on a cold and windy day.

Stash Colors and Taquete

 

 

"There are more colors in the rainbow than colors in my stash" That sounds like a famous quote, but maybe not! Or, I could have just made it famous.  

 

These are the colors I have in bamboo. My new warp is white rayon. So I am now juggling the colors back and forth to see just what I like. I am using three colors in each color stripe.

 

For example:   first combo- gold-pink-blue

        next color combo-  blue-green-purple



        next color combo- purple-pompeii- blue
and so on.......

Fall Color to Dye For

I always get a 'hanker-ing' to get out the dye pot this time of year. Color abounds!! (Click photo to enlarge.)

Found this in the neighbors yard! See how much bigger they are than the leaves?

A color-way just waiting to jump onto a handwoven textile!!!

Do you see my bunny?

Was surprised to see these two guys. I thought they would be long gone.

Dying On the Porch

Now that I have the resist threads pulled and secured on this Crackle Woven Shibori Experiment, it's time to do some dying. Here I have fuchsia and gunmetal gray and my trusty foam brush.

 

I will paint the colors on with the foam brush. I paint on one side, then turn over and do the other side. Hopefully I have pulled my resist threads tight enough to have some areas of "resist"!!

 

I will have to let it 'batch' for several hours. Some say overnight. But usually I do try to wait  half a day! Then I will need to rinse, and allow to dry COMPLETLY. If it's not dry, you will have trouble pulling out the resist threads. 

Spring Color!

Just couldn't resist going outside and taking  few photo's. I love the colors of spring.

Garments Are Finished

Thanks to my friend Becky, (greenhouse owner, spinner, weaver, knitter, inkle weaver, basket maker, natural dyer, rug hooker, and several other fiber related skills) my Gold-Purple and Sparkle garments are finished. She took time away from her Country Petals Greenhouse to help a friend who doesn't speak 'sewing machine'.






Becky speaking 'sewing machine'!!




Gold-Purple

 


    

Sparkle

 



Starting A New Project

I am going to do a couple of scarves. I have picked out my colors and fibers to use. I really like the way the Bambu feels so I have picked a couple of reds  that are Bambu and a black that was listed as rayon. The are about the weight of 10/2 cotton and I will sett them at 30 epi.



More Sparkle

Here is the sparkle warp drying on the back deck. I now have two projects that need to take a visit to a sewing machine. (This sparkle warp and the gold/purple one I did earlier.)

It has been fun working with plain weave, for a change. I felt like I could put all my 'thinking' into the color part of these two projects, and not have to worry about color and weave structure together. But I have another project already in mind, and color and structure will work hand-in-hand for it.

Sparkle Plain Weave

Now that I have my sparkle fabric off the loom, it's time to twist the fringe. then I will hand wash it and let it drip dry and then give it a gentle ironing.

Plain Weave Is Not So Plain

I am still having fun playing with these sparkle yarns and plain weave.  I believe there is a book out there whose title says it all "Plain Weave Is Anything But Plain" by Leslie Voiers. I don't know if it's still in print, but hopefully you can find it through your guild or the Complex Weavers Library. 

The Rayon Loop yarn gives this a bit of jazz.

Sparkle

I had so much fun with the last plain weave project (gold/purple) that I have another idea to try. So this colorway is Rayon Metallic Cinnamon, Rayon Metallic Curry and green Bambu. This warp is all about the sparkle!

I did not tie onto the old warp, the knots would not have gone through the reed.

If you click to enlarge, you can see that I have used my loopers to tie

onto the breast beam while sleying the reed.

Twisting Fringe

Found my faithful fringe twister.  The great thing about twisting fringe is you get to touch each thread again and feel the texture of the threads and see how the colors blend in the twist. It takes a while, but it's a great TV watching activity.

 

Gold/Purple Warp Ending?

The end is near! 

Cutting off!

Now for the part I am slow to finish: the finish!! I will have fringe to twist, washing, and ironing. Then when I think I am almost done, I will need to do a bit of sewing. More to come..........

Dimity too

Sometimes when working on my Complex Weavers samples, I do complete a project. I hand painted some tencel and crossed it with bamboo.

the finished scarf

Up-close to show the painted warp.

Gold/Purple Warp Nearing the Other Edge

I was able to get back to the Gold/Purple warp. It's center part is done (57 inches) and now I will work on the color work on the other edge. Here is where my ruler will be the main star. Who knew that all this math would come in handy when you were sitting in 4th grade math class??? I will need to match the color order from the other edge.

Gold Progress

Making progress on the gold/purple warp. I have the color work area done on one end and now am working on weaving 58 inches without a color change. I am using a paper yard tape measure-er to measure with. (try saying that three times fast!) Are you getting the idea that this might be a cocoon when done? That is what I hope this will be!! But since there will be some sewing, I am counting on my friend Becky to help with that part. I can make the fabric, I just can't sew the fabric together.

Weaving Gold

Well, not really weaving with real gold, but I am weaving the purple/gold warp now.  The  trick to this will be to match the other end of the warp. So measuring and keeping track of what colors went where is going to be very important. When I get this off the loom, you will see why that is important.