OK, here's my dilemma (again!).  Threaded my loom with a draft from Davidson's book "A Handweaver's Pattern Book" with a 22" wide warp.  Pattern is "Maltese Cross", page 145, treadling for first pattern.  Wove a beginning sample ... and it looks nothing like the pattern. 

I believe I am treadling correctly ... reading the empty spaces rather than the filled-in spaces ... because I have a jack loom.  So only thing I can figure out at this point is that I have some how threaded incorrectly?  I read the draft pattern from right to left for threading purposes. 

However, I have noticed that the arrows at the top of the threading area are going both ways?  Pointing to left and right?  I'm thinking that I should have threaded differently but am confused about what direction I need to be threading to make the pattern appear correctly? 

For example, the draft shows threading:  1, 2, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2, 3 .... for the first 8 threads.  That is how I threaded.  Would that be correct?  Then I proceed to the next 8 threads, etc. 

Am I misreading the threading order, please?

I'd appreciate any help I can get on this.  I have cut the sample off and will probably end up throwing it away as it is useless.  Way too many floating threads.  I have 330 threads total.  Am using carpet warp with a 15 dent reed.  One thread to each dent.

Oh.  And treadling - if I am reading this correctly - for the first four throws would be 1-2, 1-4, 3-4, 2-3 for a jack loom

Thanks again.  God bless.

MerryMac

P.S. I think I'm going nuts on this one.

Comments

Sun, 03/28/2010 - 14:48

lkautio (not verified)

The first 8 threads from the right are: 21412123  (you transposed the first two).  A key to checking the that the threading is correct in these overshot patterns is that they alternate odd and even.

Second problem, looks like you missed the "Use Tabby" at the top.  Just to make it quicker, let a= 13, b=24.  Your treadling should be: 

a,12,b,14,a,34,b,23,

a,12,b,12,a,12,b,14,a,14,b,14,a,34,b,34,a,34,b,23,a,23,b,23,

a,12,b,12,  etc.

The two tabbies look a little different between the specific pattern picks.  Sample starting with a or starting with b.  For one the pattern picks will nestle a bit better than the other.  It is not too critical on this one except at the 2s (doesn't matter with odd numbers of pattern repeats).

I'm wondering if you also missed that the numbers refer to number of times that pattern shot is repeated (see above)?

Hope that helps,

Laurie Autio

Sun, 03/28/2010 - 15:41

merrymac (not verified)

Thanks so much, Laurie.  I went up and checked.  I did thread correctly - just typed incorrectly.  However, I had learned that "a" - treadle 1 and 3 - was always thrown from right to left ... "b" - treadles 2 and 4 - were always thrown from the right.  Soooooo .... that's what I have been doing.  This is incorrect?  Am I understanding correctly? 

I have treadled three times, 2 times, wherever the draft said to do that.  So at least I believe I did that correctly.  :)

I was not aware about the numbering system in overshot re: even and odd.  Thanks so much for that info.

I'll retie and see if I can get the pattern going correctly with your suggestions.

Thanks so much.

God bless.

MerryMac

Sun, 03/28/2010 - 18:33

merrymac (not verified)

Laurie, you were very, very correct in wondering about my threading correctly.  I had places where I swapped what should have been thread 2 for thread 4!!!!!  I haven't a clue where my mind was going to cause that.  Anyway, not only did I do that, I also missed totally one entire 8-thread section in warping! 

Well, duh!  I have refigured my threading - correctly, I hope and am in the process of rethreading the entire 330 thread warp.  That just teaches me to be more careful in writing the draft down plus checking my figures before threading.  Lesson learned.

Thanks again for your help. 

God bless.

MerryMac