May is here. What happened to April? Cool Looking forward to seeing all the wonderful weaverliness from everyone. The projects and discussions so far this year have been very inspiring. Weave on!

Comments

Fri, 05/01/2015 - 21:17

laurafry

Not quite accurate colours but it shows the weave structure, so...

Fri, 05/01/2015 - 21:39

ReedGuy

What's the fibre? Maybe I forgot since April. ;) Nice pattern, seems the colors show it off quite well. :)

 

Ah, so nice to be outside. Replaced the stakes in the raspbery patch, burned old canes, cut down a fir that the lightning destroyed it's ability to form buds any more. And did some more weaving on my coverlet. Someone will be in tommorrow to have a look see of the loom and the coverlet. :)

Fri, 05/01/2015 - 22:37

laurafry

Warp is 2/16 bamboo from Brassard, weft is 2/10 Tencel.

cheers,

Laura

Sat, 05/02/2015 - 02:38

Artistry

Laura, The shawl looks beautiful, love the pattern . Glad you're getting outside ReedGuy , the fresh air does a weaver good! Reading away, really hoping I can work when I get back home on the 10 th. surgeries got pushed back till the 27 & 28 of May. Don't plan to be down long:) great to hear what everyone else is doing:)
Sat, 05/02/2015 - 19:36

theresasc

I am not a sampler, but here I am, sampling away.  I want to weave a bath set and I found 3 different drafts for bath towels, so I am actually sampling them to find the one I like best.  I am using 3/2 unmercerized cotton and I warped up one of my little cutie-pies - the 10" 8-shaft Kessenich.  What a trip to dress such a small loom after dressing the 63" Cranbrook!

bath set 1

Laura, I love seeing all your different shawls, they are so lovely.

Cathie, you were on my mind this week when a new-to-me book arrived, Handwoven Laces by Donna Muller - sweet book!

Sat, 05/02/2015 - 23:06

ReedGuy

A number of very colorful drafts have just been digitized, converted and added to  handweaving.net from an old German text. Worth taking a look see. The link below is a search of 4-8 shafts and maximum 10 treadles. You can change search terms on the site.

 

http://www.handweaving.net/collection-drafts/collection/62/die-farbige-gewebemusterung-franz-donat?page=2&minshafts=4&maxshafts=8&maxtreadles=10

Sun, 05/03/2015 - 19:09

msthimble

I'm happy to report that i completed 8 samples for my JOY workshop friends, stitched them, pressed and mailed ot our guild president for distribution! 

Sun, 05/03/2015 - 19:24

Erica J

I have been quite busy this weekend, month so far. I finished up a rather smaller satin sample than I had planned. My 8 shaft satin was not really very satin-ey. I've woven damask, so I know how it should look at this has a distinct twill line for some reason. I need to get the silk warp off the loom and prep the loom for my upcoming class. I will be warping up sections with similar threading and different colour repeats and we'll play with them in the class. I think I know where the class is going, but I'll report back in 2 weeks time, with photos I promise. TJ has recovered from the chicken pox and is a bit stir crazy, so taking photos of the weaving thus far has not quite happened!

Anyway I'm weaving off the rest of the straight draw threading with several of the treadling possiblities. I'm treating the 8 shafts as 4 to get the job done soon!

ReedGuy I can't wait to see what you'll get up to next. Laura, I love that you are taking it easy and still weaving at warp speed compared to me, and just stunning cloth too!

I can't wait to see what everyone gets up to this May. I'd love to see all the projects from this month posted in teh project section and shared to the group. Our group homepage would be a stunning resource and inspiration!

Tue, 05/05/2015 - 14:02

tien (not verified)

I've mostly been busy learning to draw, but I thought I'd pop in to say that I have an estimated ship date for my TC-2 jacquard loom! It will ship June 30, which means it will arrive towards the end of July through mid-August (it's shipping by sea, which takes 4-6 weeks.) Hooray!!

Tue, 05/05/2015 - 14:04

sally orgren

MS&W was incredible, as always.

The crowd as viewed from the bathroom line mid-day Saturday:

Just some of the looms for auction:

My latest addiction from the Steve Willette booth (it was a kit):

Tue, 05/05/2015 - 20:49

Sue in VT

I so miss visiting that festival! We have the VT Sheep and Wool Festival and I went last year and it was nice, and in a beautiful place, but the size and scope of MD was just overwhelmingly wonderful! But I did get Steves lucet here in VT....it took me a while to get the hang of it, but yes, it can be addictive. brought it on the plane to Asia.
Wed, 05/06/2015 - 06:30

Gone

I just finished some rag rug place mats on the Weavers Delight, just to get my feet wet. Now I'm warped up for some rugs.

Laura, It's great to see you 'back on the bench'. ;-)

 

Sat, 05/09/2015 - 03:33

laurafry

Lovely day at the Alberta conference. Not too busy so time to catch up with old and new friends. Saturday will probably be busier. I may try to get to the juried exhibit if it isn't. Cheers Laura
Sat, 05/09/2015 - 16:25

theresasc

some more towels in organic cottons using the Fibonaccci Series as my design tool.  I have always been happy with using that sequencing in the warp.  I want to have the warp wound by Wednesday, my local weaving group is meeting in my home and I would like to be able to show them all how to beam a warp back-to-front.  They are all front-to-back weavers so it will be a fun demo.

Sat, 05/09/2015 - 19:22

Erica J

I attended my guild's Come and Weave day today! I wove off the silk warp from a while back. I also finished winding the next warp, for my class next weekend. Photos to come later.

Sat, 05/09/2015 - 21:05

Dawn McCarthy

I am STILL re-setting up my drawloom after taking it down last summer to put the house on the market - Murphy's law is now we are under contract mid set up!  Finishing Ikat scarves on the AVL.

Dawn

 

Sat, 05/09/2015 - 21:31

ReedGuy

Weaving is slowed down to almost a halt for me because I'm busy in the bush again. 8-10 km of bush walking per day, GPS in one hand, and a roll of ribbon in the other. Then later in the year, swinging a clearing saw for 8 hrs. That takes a bunch of energy out of you, so rest is priority. Tommorrow, I will still do a 360 weft repeat (end section) on the first strip of the coverlet, then the next time I sit at the loom I will begin the next strip beginning with another 360 weft repeat.

Now off to relax.

The rest of you seem busy enough, going to places that I'll probably never see in this lifetime. Lots of time left for weaving I hope. ;)

Sun, 05/10/2015 - 04:35

fiberassociations

This past month has been good to me, including the CNCH conference in gorgeous Asilomar. Something weaverly most days, especially if you count reading about the lives of Mayan weavers in Chiapas and working my way (VERY slowly) through Lila O'Neale's 500 page book about weaving in Guatemala in the 1930s. Wove my first huipile ( photos soon) of organic cotton from Fox Fibers. Doing the finishing embroidery has injured my thumb so work halted there, Yesterday finished warping 360 ends for a vest from a kit of naturally dyed cotton from Mayan Hands in Guatemala. Anyone see a theme in my work these days? Am seriously looking at all the things I commit to and asking myself if I would rather do "X" or sit at the loom? Turned down 3 invitations this week because I need my protected studio time. A very good month. Wonderful to read about all the projects each of you has going.
Sun, 05/10/2015 - 07:26

Erica J

Here is my next warp it will be effectively a gamp, the first samples will be threaded with what the teachers calls a syncopated twill, which is straight draw interleaved with itself, but starting in different places. Then I'll rethread I n a variety of rosepath threadings and mix the colors differently. All the colors come from 2 photos I like. :)

Exploring Textures warp

Sun, 05/10/2015 - 11:43

sally orgren

...if you have bad yarn? This is what happens when you wind a bobbin!

...if consistent tension wasn't used when winding a warp? (These "wrinkles" showed up as the warp was unwound from the back beam)

And you can unthread a loom, or remove the lease sticks, but NEVER unthread a loom AND take out the lease sticks! (Guess who picked a cross for 240 threads this weekend?)

 

Intervention complete, this is a happy loom once again ;-)

Sun, 05/10/2015 - 15:54

Erica J

We are having perfect weather.  So I rough sleyed the reed for my next warp on the patio!

Sun, 05/10/2015 - 15:56

Erica J

Well done Sally! I'm sure yiur friend appreciated your help!

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 11:57

endorph

quiet in here - I am going to assume that means everyone is busy weaving away. I am preparing to warp the RH loom to make some fabric for a bag challenge I am participating in. The Warp can be commercial yarn but the weft has to be handspun, so I am also busy spinning away on some lovely BFL.

Beyond that I am trying to saty dry - we have have had rain for several days in a row now and the forecast calls for at least 7 more days of rain. Flood warings are all over the place and today we have the threat of more severe weather.  Wish we could share this rain with California!

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 13:36

sally orgren

...which means tying to cram more than 40 hours of work into 4 days, plus laundry, shop, get cash, pack, gas up, check the map(s), and load the travel snacks. (Maps!? you say... hey, you never know when the GPS may lose the satellite.)

I participated in a "Born to Be Shorn" event last weekend at Cooper Grist Mill in Chester, New Jersey. Once the first sheep was shorn, I didn't get much of a chance to leave the looms, as the crowd would move from one station to the next, following the fleece processing, and we let anyone who wanted to try their hand at weaving do so.

Margaret is an excellent shearer. She came to my attention a few years ago when I realized I didn't hear a sheep bleat until the very last one was getting sheared. She has a very gentle way with the animals.

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 13:52

Artistry

Yes Tina very quiet and so have I. Surgeries got moved to July. Bummer. In the meantime, I'm going to try and make a warp for some Huck Lace samples. I love Huck Lace and how it transforms from loom to wet finishing ! 16/2 linen which I love to work with. I think butter yellow. Home right now so I can take the warp to Michigan next week and weave it up! Feels right
Wed, 05/13/2015 - 15:28

laurafry

Not much new here...yet. Looks like enough warp to weave one more shawl, then will change to tea towels. Sometime soon I need to start in on place mats. I pretty much sold out last year so I need to make more. And the sun has finally put in an appearance! Spring is here! Cheers Laura
Wed, 05/13/2015 - 16:45

Erica J

Warping away! I am nearly done threading my latest wa r p. I am spwnding 2 days in a weabing course this weekend. So there will be weaving done this weekend!

Oh yes and Note to self and other when winding 2 tyreads at once do still make the cross 1:1, nor 2:2!

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 16:48

tien (not verified)

I haven't been weaving, but I have been doing fiber stuff! Behold my secret weapon for getting exercise:

Spindle and some roving

I've been trying to go walking at lunchtime, but my subconscious has little patience for what it views as unproductive activity: "Are we done yet? How long until we can do something useful??"

Then I discovered that yes, I can spindle-spin while walking briskly. 180-degree about-face from the subconscious: "Ooh, can we walk just a little bit further? I wanna make more yarn!!"

I'm amused. :-)

Other than that I've mostly been contemplating sculptural forms for woven art. While in San Francisco with a friend, I stumbled across an origami store (!) - The Paper Tree. I got really intrigued by the idea of using origami methods with fabric - not so much the traditional origami animals, etc. but more sculptural forms, curves and tessellations. Kind of like this:

sculptural origami model - concentric circles

That's a fairly simple model out of the book "Sculptural Origami", by Saadya Sternberg. There are other intriguing curved models as well. Here's my attempt at a peacock fan from the same book:

attempt at an origami peacock fan

I think it would be really interesting to do these models in fabric, with a suitable jacquard-woven fabric to match the folds. There are also origami tessellations (repeating geometric patterns) that look intriguing.

All this is intended to address a question that has been bothering me for some time: what format do I want to work in? I want to get out of clothing, but I want to do 3-dimensional forms, because I find them more interesting than 2-dimensional ones. But what does one do with cloth in 3-d that isn't clothing? Sculptural origami seems like a really intriguing possibility. So I'm exploring that some.

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 21:25

ReedGuy

In Sally's case it's maps, if the GPS loses reception. In mine it's the compass. Often I traverse in straight lines and use the GPS to take a position every so many meters. So I just keep compassing until I get a lock for a position. However, I can't do that on a perimeter traverse because the angles change too much. So basically, I'm not always navigating. I'm producing a map as I walk, since my GPS is running a GIS (named ArcPad).

 

Anyway, I did finish off the first panel of the coverlet on Sunday. :)

 

Cheerio

Thu, 05/14/2015 - 13:52

sally orgren

Tien,

Look at the work of Erik and Martin Demaine. They make their forms out of woven linen, (that looks like crisp paper), folded intricately.

The NBO (National Basketry Organization) has a fabulous site and newsletter. I never tire of seeing their members' work. (And they have a conference coming up in early July!)

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 21:34

sally orgren

...and I actually know my constellations, so I could tell which way I'm going at midnight in the northern hemisphere.

However, in overcast conditions... no sun, no compass, no map, and spotty GPS service on my phone, I can get totally lost! ;-)

Wed, 05/13/2015 - 21:40

ReedGuy

Hahaha, oh you'll just take the long way. You'll end up someplace familiar. Just stay on the roads. :D

Thu, 05/14/2015 - 02:14

Queezle

I am trying to teach myself the statistical package "r" for analyzing huge datasets, and am trying to get two papers written. This means that my only weaving time is about 20 minutes toward the end of the day.  I have promised to watch "30-rock" with my daughter, and I am trying to finish off the swedish weaving sampler before re-warping my loom.  And yes, the garden beacons, the hills taunt me with their trails, and I'm starting to think that this chapter of Mastering Weave Structures might take me 2 months.  Not such a bad thing, I actually think I could spend a year on "the distorted grid".

Thu, 05/14/2015 - 02:59

Artistry

Agreed ReedGuy! I can't tell you how many times I've taken the " scenic" route, lol ! But I bet the kids could ! 3 hours in my studio today, yay!
Thu, 05/14/2015 - 13:35

Artistry

Tien, I imagine 3D cloth which is not clothing becomes aa art piece and one figures out Ways to hang it on the wall, maybe with armatures , or as a piece of sculpture, again with armatures, or suspended from ceiling, displaying it as a art object might be as challenging as making the piece. I LOVE your idea though. 3D woven sounds so exciting. Especially the origami part. I can't wait to see your explorations in this arena! Cathie
Thu, 05/14/2015 - 18:21

sally orgren

...that would be the New England Weavers Seminars conference in early July, you will get to meet one of my looms! This is a 1950s Nadeau loom. I guess you could call it a "limited" dobby, table top model. (4 shafts, but limited as there are only 8 pin rows.)

 

He's loaded up + selt-belted in for his trip to Clayton (NY), where Peggy Hart will pick him up. Peggy will be doing a presentation at NEWS (Northampton, MA), and we are hoping someone attending NEWS can transport him down to MAFA the following week (Lancaster, PA) where I'll collect him and return him home to NJ in time for the state fair in August.

 

I am hoping I'll be able to bring him back to Clayton next spring for a presentation at the conference, but not this year, as there are still avenues in my research I'd like more time to pursue.

 

Perhaps I should attach a journal to this loom, so he can keep a record of his adventures without me?

Thu, 05/14/2015 - 18:48

laurafry

Got bogged down in administrivia and Life today.  Just one more shawl will finish off the current warp and then I get to put a tea towel warp on.  :)  The sun is shining, the trees have crowns of green and the temperature is finally warming up.  :)

cheers,

Laura

Thu, 05/14/2015 - 23:25

tien (not verified)

Yes, exactly! Thanks for pointing me at the Demaines. I doubt I'll do things as structurally complex as the Demaines' work - I want more of the woven pattern to show - but it's great inspiration.

Sat, 05/16/2015 - 21:37

laurafry

The never ending shawl warp is almost done. Yarn for the next warp (tea towels) is pulled and the warp for a special order of place mats is wound, ready to be beamed on the small loom. Another 30 minutes to finish off the shawl warp and I can start the next. :) Cheers Laura
Sat, 05/16/2015 - 22:00

Artistry

Got the warp wound for the Huck Samples, 4S. Some of the samples will be Huck texture and some Huck Lace. Lunatic Fringe 10/2 light Gray, mercerized, very pretty looks like silver:) did this while watching the Stanley Cup Playoffs:) Will beam tomorrow and start threading. With 10/2 this should go ultra fast. Also have the yarns ready for the 8 shaft Huck Lace I'll weave in Michigan.i'm remembering to take a warping board and leaving it up there this time:) 16/2 Bockens Lingarn.
Sat, 05/16/2015 - 22:44

Sue in VT

Started threading a couple of lavender and white shadow weave baby blankets in 5/2 mercerized cotton. Taking breaks to get outside to my perennial gardens to divide and move Heleniums and Shasta Daisies. The mosquitoes have awakened in northern VT and act like they own the place! Also transforming one of my recent Webs Anniversary twill tea towels into an apron - wove a couple yards of matching trim on my little Schact Inkle loom. I think it will make a lovely gift with matching towels!
Sun, 05/17/2015 - 20:27

ReedGuy

Did a 2 hour interview with a freelance writer for a local magazine today. I think I overwhelmed the poor woman. Sometimes it's hard to talk shop with a none weaver. Hopefully we won't make it too technical, but it's hard not to use the jargon of your craft. :/

Sun, 05/17/2015 - 22:31

laurafry

Got the special order place mat warp on the loom and half woven. Need to figure out the threading for the tea towel warp going onto the AVL. Cheers Laura
Sun, 05/17/2015 - 22:49

Artistry

Good for you ReedGuy! I know when the person's eyes start to gloss over you know you're in trouble! I hope they took lots of pictures of your beautiful loom and work ! Got my loom beamed and threaded today. Tomorrow ,lashing on, tie up and weaving! I hope to have all 12 samples done by Tuesday night. And yes, I am feeling a bit better:) Of course beamed and threaded to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, bust of a game today.
Mon, 05/18/2015 - 01:53

bjr1957

Have not been by in a while but that is not because I ain't been doin nothin!  My very first ever dish towels went out as wedding presents to my neice.  I knitted toppers on them so that they can hang in her kitchen and be used till they are gone.  Then I will make more!  Used 3/2 cotton for the warp and 5/2 cotton for the weft.  I used the cottolin yarn in my stash.  The cotton was also stash yarn.  I have to be creative as I can't buy anything cause I ain't working right now.  Hubby has a budget we have to stay with till things get better in the economy.

bjr

First Ever Dish Towels

Mon, 05/18/2015 - 17:01

sally orgren

It makes me wonder, "What else is in your stash? ;-)

Reedguy, let us know when the article comes out!

Mon, 05/18/2015 - 19:14

laurafry

Got the next warp beamed on my AVL this morning.  Just going to have lunch, then start threading.

Details on my blog:  http://laurasloom.blogspot.com

cheers,

Laura

Mon, 05/18/2015 - 20:04

Erica J

I learned so much this weekend not only from Anna, the teacher, but also from the other students! Here is some of the exploring I did with various colours and treadling on what Ann Dixon calls syncopated twill threading, which is, if threaded all the way across in the same colours is shadow weave.

Mon, 05/18/2015 - 20:47

sally orgren

The comfy chairs are waiting for you to attend the Weaving History Conference in Clayton next year. (Dates are May 14-15, 2016 if you want to pencil them in now.)

BTW, Sally E and I finally got to MEET after a few years of knowing each other virtually here at Weavolution! It was fun to "bookend" people with "Sallys" when we sat at the same table ;-)

 

Mon, 05/18/2015 - 22:05

Artistry

Threaded and ready to go. Will weave during the hockey game tonight:) I'm hoping to have these samples all woven up tomorrow because we leave on Weds. Gotta get my fill of hockey, no T.V. In Michigan House. It's the law:) I love stash busting!
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