Loopers to the Rescus

Here is another example of using loopers. This was a post from October 10, 2013.

I have used my nylon potholder loopers to help me while threading the heddles. They don't slip or slide. Maybe we should change their name to 'weaving nylon choke ties that also help when threading the reed and heddles'. 

 

view from behind the beater

view from in front of the beater

Rep Workshop Prep

Trying to set up my loom for an April Rep Weave Workshop. Kelly Marshall is going to come down to our neck of the woods to help us understand this weave structure.

I have a 12 dent reed and have 4 threads per dent. Of those 4 threads I will thread them through the heddles as two working ends.  Because I am using my Baby Wolf for the workshop, I can thread the reed and the heddles as I go. I hope this keeps me from making too many errors!

I am using my handy dandy cross holder. This lets me have both my hands free to thread  the reed and heddles. I found this tip in an old Handwoven. (Sorry- don't know what year- maybe 1980's.)

This is showing that I have two working ends (4 threads) in each reed slot.

I am threading the heddles as I go along. I have two  ends in each heddle. 

Another way to dress the loom: My friend, Becky, is going to wind all the background ends and sley the reed, then wind all the pattern ends and go back across the reed and sley the pattern ends. Then she will thread the heddles. Either way should work! 

Weaving Prep Work for Snowflake Twill

So I finally finished the warping and now I have the threads pulled through the reed. I am using 8/2 cotton sett at 18 epi. I have dented 1-2-1-2 in my 12 dent reed.

Looks like I need to replace my ruler on my shuttle race. 

Another thing I need to do before I can throw that first pick is to count out my heddles and get them balanced across my heddle frame. My Macomber loom has hanging heddle frames, so it is important to get a balance on it. 

I have started counting out the heddles I will need for this project. Here I am using a paper clip to hold back the heddles not needed. 

Through the Reed

I have my tied weave scarf through the reed. Next I will need to count my heddles and then thread them. I always thread front to back. I know how to thread back to front, but my way works for me!

Since I have allowed for the two edges to have plain weave, I will not need a floating selvedge. Had I carried the summer and winter blocks to the edges, I would have.

Still thinking about what I will use for the tabby......

Finished the Heddles For Fustian

It took a while, but I now have all 720 threads of this fustian project through the reed and the heddles. Now I will need to tie onto the back and "warp-er on".

A good thing about writing your own blog, you can make up words and the word-police do not really care. This warp is 32 inches in the reed, so I think I will use my raddle to help get a nice smooth warp onto the back beam.

Slow Progress on Fustian Cloth

The nice thing about weaving for the fun of it, is ...............that you can be fast, or slow.

 

I seem to be taking working on weaving some 10 yards of fustian cloth - slow. I do have about half the warp through the reed.

I have enough heddles on all the shafts except for shaft four. That  one I am 12 threads short. Instead of rearranging and sliding and all that 'jazz', I will use 12 heddles from shaft 5 and tie them up 'as if' they were really on shaft four.

Front to Back

The slaying of the reed has begun. I most always dress my loom front-to-back. I have gone the other way a time or two, but to much thinking involved with that.

Cutting Off the Macomber

I finished the warp that was on the 10 shaft Macomber. Maybe people shouldn't try to weave during the holidays with going here and there and company and such...... My clasp weft scarf is only 36" long.... I guess I looked at the wrong notes and thought I had woven 72". Oh well, it was an experiment anyway.

The plain weave scarf is the right size, but the part where I did the pattern work doesn't really show that much. But I will go ahead and twist the fringe anyway. Who knows, it might wash up and be really something. Again, another experiment.

Before I cut this warp off the Macomber, I took my camera to see what this yarn looks like really up close. You think your yarn is really slick, but maybe not! Maybe this is why this Bambu is so soft?

Phase One Done

It was hit-and-miss, but was able to finish getting the warp through the reed...... I will lift the heddles and thread from the front of the loom. I usually put a book or kite stick under them to keep them lifted.

Next I will thread the heddles. I must take my time here, so no TV watching for this part. (But I can listen to the radio.)

Progress on Warping Weaver Rose

Getting some loom time to get the Weaver Rose warp on the Baby Wolf. This is part where I usually watch TV and then wonder why I have a denting error. After I go through the reed, I will thread the heddles then tie onto the back. Once I get started, I enjoy this part.

Setting Up The Loom

Now that I have my warp off the warping board, I take it to the loom and use my loopers attach it to the breast beam. I will sley the reed and thread the heddles.



Reed is a 15 dent reed with two ends per dent for 30 epi.




Heddles have been threaded.



dpi, epi , What???

dpi= don't play indoors, epi= eat purple ice cream, sley= kill bugs ......What do these letters really mean???

dpi = dents per inch in the reed you are using            

sley = how many ends to put into each dent 

epi = ends per inch

 dpi=15   sley= 2/15  epi=30

Reed

Well, I got the reed threaded. I decided to use a 15 dent reed and sley 30 epi. Can you see how I have used the loopers to tie the warp to the beam so it won't move while I thread the heddles?

Now to get busy on threading the heddles. I will need help again, so I am calling on my friend, Rossanna... I think she is ready to begin!