In getting ready for Halloweave I almost forgot to get this posted, Welcome to October. September brought us so many great projects I look forward to seing what you all have in store for this month. Remember to join a Halloweave house and support all the projects that (hopefully) will get done this month. I have two looms warp and a stack of hemming to tackle in the next 31 days. Let's hope I can get something done!

Comments

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 05:16

laurafry

Heading off early tomorrow (and why aren't I in bed yet???) for a chick week with two fibre friends.  I'm leaving behind a shawl warp beamed but nothing else on the AVL, and a nekkid Leclerc because I managed to finish the second rayon chenille scarf and cut them off the loom this afternoon.

Doing a research project with one friend, and discussing another project with both of them.

cheers,

Laura

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 06:16

Artistry

Have fun Laura! 

Shawn, love the ondule cloth. Really the colors are beautiful and the shaping so interesting. A fan reed is on my future wish list:)

Sally, aren't guild mates fantastic? Silk is a natural for that piece! It will glisten plus  the drape should be what you're after , thinking about the shawl. Good luck with sampling and supply shopping. What is Rhinebeck?

We're traveling tomorrow, so excited, to visit our daughter. While in CA we're getting a private tour of Pixar! Too cool:)

i'm taking my Hockett loom and extra warp Instead of the Mirrex. It's so much easier to pack for this trip.I'll have more room for pretty weft colors!

committed to weaving Tapestry each day this month for Halloweave:) I said I would post a pic of the design here and I will , waiting for good light otherwise it looks like mud, lol!

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 16:20

theresasc

The music of warp sticks falling off the warp beam in the morning!  Music to my ears - I am loom-hopping this morning, working on a very old UFO that is on the 24" Kessenich floor loom. 

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 20:45

Sue in VT

Theresasc, love this "term" and your "music to my ears" reference.  These days, I'm doing some loom hopping, too, and loving it.  It's a great way to avoid the "when will this piece be done" thoughts.  Just move on and refresh yourself.  Just took some twill bookmarks off one loom, and getting ready to warp some overshot pot holders.  Then there's the zephyr herringbone on the new Ashford, and Christmas towels on the floor loom.  Sometimes I check my watch to see what day of the week it is, and reflect on the idea that retirement allows you to play all day!  

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 23:29

Sue in VT

Cant seem to get my herringbone consistent.  As I strive to become consistent, the intensity of the contrast between the brown and the cream keeps changing!  Im using a 45 degree gauge I made from a folded square sticky note, but I'm still fluctuating.  

Thu, 10/01/2015 - 23:45

laurafry

waiting for my boarding call.  Let the fun begin!   But not without me!!!

cheers

laura

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 00:54

endorph

for the first time in weeks. Thanks to Halloweave I have some motivation!

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 02:31

Queezle

Tonight was about the first weaving I've done since spring.  It feels like a big success, too.  Thank you Halloweave!

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 07:20

Artistry

Sue, it's sett and beat , hand in hand that will give you that 45 degree angle in a twill weave. Ifyou'rtre having a whole lot of trouble with your beat using Zephyr, which is silk/ wool? , I would check your sett. Of course a closer sett will raise your angle, a lower sett will decrease your angle :) it sounds like it's going to be a lovely piece!

I'm travelling today. I got a lot done yesterday in the studio. Anyone who wants to see the design painting of the rocks in the Patagonia Tapestry I'm sampling for and the yarns I'm using visit Tapestey House; Daily Spells. Imeant to post over here too but time got away from me ! 

I still have to pack!

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 13:58

sally orgren

Our Sunday demonstration was postponed due to the high amount of rain preceeding Joaquin that is arriving here in the Northeast today and tomorrow. Unfortunately, the event was moved to the Rhinebeck weekend, Oct 18. Bummer, as I have committed to volunteer elsewhere.

 

("Rhinebeck" is the hugely popular and widely attended NY State Sheep and Wool Festival. The summer season is finsihed by this granddaddy event, and Maryland Sheep & Wool heats things up in May. I am very lucky to live within driving distance of both.)

 

Guess I will be doing some project planning and perhaps warping looms this weekend.

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 15:18

theresasc

Sue, that is why one should have MANY looms Smile  By having a few looms with different projects on them, when I get bored or frustrated with one thing, I can go to another.  The way my studio is set up I am able to see all my looms from sitting at all my looms, so if something is not going well I can look up and decide to go elsewhere.  I guess I am a spoiled weaver - and darn proud of it!  LOL

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 18:05

tien (not verified)

I finished threading the TC-2!

TC-2 jacquard loom, fully threaded

And, I got 138 lbs of chocolate!

138 pounds of chocolate

How much better can life get??

Fri, 10/02/2015 - 21:51

sally orgren

it's refreshing to see a pair of familar blue "hair bobbers" on the left side of the beam. (All my looms sport a set of those when warping and beaming!)

Sat, 10/03/2015 - 09:34

ReedGuy

Trying to keep up by reading. I probably won't get back to the loom until next month to finish up my coverlet. Then I'm exploring doup leno, but not sure if it will be right away. I wanted to try sampling for quilted cloth, 2-tie over shot, 2-tie point twill, overshot towels, waffle towels, 8-shaft polkadots and some others that I can't recall.

Tien, Just itching to see your first creation off that jacquard.

Everyone keep busy at your looms. :)

 

Sat, 10/03/2015 - 09:43

Artistry

All threaded , WOW, looks great! And the chocolate I can smell it from here in Palo Alto! I felt sad driving by the Sunnyvale exit that I wouldn't get to meet with you this time, but we come out a couple of times a year so next time as planned:)

Rhinebeck sounds Fab. , you're in a great location Sally! Close to different cities and opportunities! How's the sample? How's the silk working?

sampling on my Hockett loom is going well though it looks nothing like my painting, but it will  ( I hope!) as I practice blending the colors and sharpening my eye :) too much fun:)

time to work, at the little kitchen table, watching a Ben Affleck suspense movie , drinking my early morning coffee. Who could ask for anything more?

have a productive day!

Sun, 10/04/2015 - 23:46

sally orgren

Although our demonstration for Sunday was canceled, and it proved to be a gorgeous fall day, I got a lot done this weekend.

Wet-finishing the silk and tencel sample I think I prefer the tencel. Adding extra glitz makes the fabric only slightly more scratchy than the original, which is not very scratchy at all. I think I am ready to get the materials and weave the samples. 

I was also able to put a warp on a borrowed loom for the "weave in"  next weekend, using donated 5/2 cotton. Hope these colors appeal to the new weavers.

 

Mon, 10/05/2015 - 01:07

endorph

on my Halloweave project as well as some knitting, dyeing a couple fo skeins of handspun with Kool Aid, and frogged a shawl. IT was a productive day craftwise in my house.

Mon, 10/05/2015 - 01:50

Sue in VT

Sally, love the effect of white on your bright colored warp!  Must remember that. Today I warped overshot pot holders calling for Sugar and Spice yarn in pattern weft.  Thought this little project could teach me about overshot in a low risk way.  Learning a lot.  

Mon, 10/05/2015 - 11:14

Artistry

I've been busy with the Tapestry House, weaving my daily tapestry samples hitch are quite small. Right now I'm working on colors of rocks and backgrounds:)

Sally, love what's on the demo loom!

Mon, 10/05/2015 - 14:14

tien (not verified)

Finished threading and now debugging! That is going so fast that I need to get cracking on design. :-)

working TC-2 loom!

Tue, 10/06/2015 - 17:44

ShawnC

Home from surgery (they kick you out so fast!). Painful neck and shoulders.  No lifting or bending. But I think once I'm feeling better weaving will be allowed. In the meantime, was lucky to find a vertical CM loom system (used) for my Finnish CB loom. Really love using CB for 4 shafts and with drall pulleys, but for more shafts, I'm looking forward to the CM system. Today I'll stick to occasional computer interaction, and naps.

Tue, 10/06/2015 - 21:10

sally orgren

Hope your recovery goes as quickly as possible.

Wed, 10/07/2015 - 06:51

ShawnC

Thank you, Sally! My schedule seems to be a bit off. Slept well for a couple of hours. Hard to sleep in one of these hard neck braces. But, should feel well enough tomorrow for some serious video watching and weaving reading.

Thu, 10/08/2015 - 12:07

Artistry

ShawnC, glad you're back home and that the surgery is over! It's true, they kick you out as fast as they can ! But at least I found that my bed was more comfy than theirs and it was nice not to have my vitals checked all night long:) hope that's the case for you! 

I've been working on samples of rocks for the Patagonia tapestry. I'm really glad I'm doing this because it's causing me to think do I want to stay in the realm of reality. Realistic portrayal of the rocks is rather blasé, but if I go into fantasy a bit I could make them pretty cool. So that's where I'm at. Embarking on the fantasy route.

worked last night to t.v. 'cause it's now HOCKEY SEASON ! I'm so happy, love that sport.

this morning slated for 3 types of MRI's, 3 hours in the tube, ugh. Could be worse :) plan on weaving this p.m. Too, pix soon, for feedback!

Sat, 10/10/2015 - 12:55

tien (not verified)

I think I'm finally done fixing heddles! 160 picks with not a single heddle misbehaving:

flawless weaving on TC-2 jacquard loom

I know it doesn't look like much, but after a week spent fixing heddles, this is HUGE.

There are still a few things I need to sort out, like why the strain gauges are giving weird readings, why the auto-advance isn't working, and why the warp tension keeps going "soft" on me (actually I suspect them of all being related to the strain gauge issue). But I am pretty close to done debugging!

Sat, 10/10/2015 - 13:30

ReedGuy

Way to go, now hopefully all gets ironed out for the next round. :)

Sun, 10/11/2015 - 22:17

sally orgren

Joining a guildmate at Henry Doremus House in Montville, NJ for the day. Stop by if you are in the vicinity. My guildmate will be one of the sheep-to-shawl weavers at Rhinebeck next weekend. Hey, I'll introduce you!

Sun, 10/11/2015 - 17:05

laurafry

Canadian Thanksgiving so I am counting my blessings, even though I'm in TN.  A big thank you to everyone for sharing their fibre journeys.  

Cheers

Laura

Mon, 10/12/2015 - 01:40

Artistry

Happy Thanksgiving Laura!

you've come a long way on the loom Tien! Soon it will be purring for you:)

I've been slowly working on tapestry samples of rock colors for Patagonia over at Tapestry House. This tapestry will eventually get done and it will be fun to work in a larger format :)

kudos to you, Sally, for all the demonstrations you do!

Mon, 10/12/2015 - 01:47

Artistry

Rock sample colors Patagonia/ Halloweave 2015

These are the rock colors so far, still working on possibilities. Next up though, is the shape. I will draw a rock in charcoal pencil, then weave it in grays. Then weave it in color.

Mon, 10/12/2015 - 23:15

tien (not verified)

Ooh, love the top one! But I love oranges and reds and fire colors generally, so you could see that coming. :-)

This morning I dyed three 300g skeins of cotton yarn for my first project on the TC-2 - rust orange, deep blue sky, and a dark gold-y brown. Rinsed them out at lunchtime. Will post pix once they're dry, probably tomorrow.

Tue, 10/13/2015 - 01:42

Artistry

Thanks that's my fav. too. I'm really attracted to red oranges, reds, golds and browns right now. plus I'm finding eggplant, a really deep red violet is a great mixing color in the weft bundle with red brown. I used it in the dark background at the top.

i look forward to seeing your dye work , Tien ! The colors sound luscious.

Tue, 10/13/2015 - 22:23

laurafry

or at least I'm trying.  Being away for 12 days means I have to catch up on some stuff.  I think I'm through the bulk of it.  Even managed to dress the loom with another rayon chenille warp and get started weaving.  Now I'm running out of energy.  I think maybe I will go wind another scarf warp instead of trying to weave.  Want to try something a little bit different so I'm anxious to try it out.  Probably move the 'new' warp up the queue and do it 'next' (once the current warp is off the loom).  

cheers,

Laura

Wed, 10/14/2015 - 21:24

Walkingquail

as always! The Taos Wool Festival was so much fun. I got to talk with weavers and raisers of wool bearing animals and meet sheep. goats, rabbits, llamas, alpacas and...did I miss something? It was also great fun to choose hand dyed yarn in person instead of buying over the internet.

The weather was perfect, the chile hot, the way I like it and our casita was one of the cutest Sante Fe style places I have ever stayed in, a real home.

Santa Fe was lovely too. I enjoyed the museums, weavings, pottery, jewelry, so much to look at each day my eyes get worn out! I was treated to birthday dinner at my favorite restaurant, The Shed, which refers to the original chile shed out back but makes me think of weaving, of course.

Now I am finishing up some lagging warps so I can try some new wall hangings with the wool I purchased. Every day another box arrives. Shipping is so much easier than lugging it as carryon lugguge.

Wed, 10/14/2015 - 23:25

theresasc

I am on vacation in the Smokey Mountains for a number of days, so I am just lurking in the evening.

Thu, 10/15/2015 - 14:16

sally orgren

Saturday at Rhinebeck! I'll be staying overnight with Mary U from Michigan in a cabin.

 

Sunday, I'll scoot back down for the demo that got rescheduled due to the pending hurricane a few weeks ago.

 

Weather is supposed to be a bit chilly and breezy. So the informal fashion show of handmade woolens will commence!

 

I have also made progress on my glistening snow sampling. I will be picking up final materials this weekend so I can get that warp on the loom when I return. (The sparkles may not render well in the photo, but I'll have the sample with me at Rhinebeck if you happen to see me!)

 

Thu, 10/15/2015 - 22:38

Artistry

Very nice Sally! It reminds me of a hard pack of snow with a light new snow on top that has been blown by the wind, it would crunch under foot. You'd need your woolies on with the scarf wrapped around the face. Yes, sparkling too. I love snow in all it's forms :) my Dad says it's because I didn't have to shovel it as a youngster in Winnipeg! Lol, he's probably right !

walkingquail, I've always wanted to go to the southwest , your description makes me want to go more! It will be great to see how it influences your work. Nothing like mailing boxes home:)

thereasc, on vacation in the smoky mountains! Wow, how beautiful! We're so lucky that there are so many gorgeous places in North America - I'm ready for a Road Trip !

working bit by bit on tapestry samples, manage about 2 hours a day. Just finished the gray Stone. Everything is starting to make sense and fall together for this design. I almost always go through a certain amount of angst when  working out a complicated design. It's just part of the process for me. I think most people go through this , or maybe not.

Another surgery in the works, ugh, sometime before American thanksgiving.

how are you doing ShawnC?

 

Mon, 10/19/2015 - 17:46

sally orgren

This is what I bought at Rhinebeck. (And you all know why...)

Mon, 10/19/2015 - 17:52

sally orgren

Betty and I were able to complete the Garden Weaving demo at the Raritan Headwaters Association event on Sunday, despite snow flurries finishing out the day.

They built a community Teepee loom that was very cool, and Betty had the idea for twig looms, which were very popular. I think there were more than 30 available, and there were none left at the end of the day.

Portable "Twig Loom"

Tue, 10/20/2015 - 22:06

laurafry

Have been burning through the rayon chenille to the point where there was enough space on the shelves to empty a plastic bin and a box and put the yarn out where I can see, and hopefully use, it.  The downside is that it looks like I have made zero progress stash busting!  :(

sorry about the upside down photo  for some reason Weavo and my iPad don't see eye to eye on orientation  ;)

 

cheers

laura

 

 

Wed, 10/21/2015 - 00:02

Walkingquail

Laura, I have chenille that didnt get used last year! I'd better weave some scarves too. Those colors look gorgeous!

Cathie, you must travel to the Southwest sometime. So much weaving, Hispanic and Indian. It does influence some of my work. I learned to weave at Ghost Ranch but I didn't learn the area weaving there.

I finished my towel warp, finally. Now onto something soft and colorful!

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 01:04

tien (not verified)

Spent several hours working on my rocket launch photo today. I wove a weave blanket sampling 42 variants of double weave with two warps and four wefts. Then I took photos of the weave blanket and used the photos + Photoshop to get the "average" color of each double weave variant.

After that, I took the original photo and reduced the number of colors down to the 42 colors in the weave blanket. Then I substituted the appropriate structure in the weave blanket for each of the 42 colors, and hey, a ready-to-weave photo!

Here's a screenshot showing (left to right) Arahweave's simulation of the finished fabric, the photo with the reduced color palette, and the original photo:

 

three steps along the road to weaving a photo

Next step is to weave a sample to make sure the picks per inch are correct. Then it will be time to weave the actual piece! I expect that will take me a couple of days.

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 01:35

Artistry

This is totally cool Tien! I won't pretend to understand how all this works, but I can't wait to see it woven:) the arahweave has such a woven look to it, more defined edges in the rocket exhaust, than the photos; it's really quite beautiful.

p.s. My husband , Ed, computer guru ( in my eyes) , compudobby literate ('cause he 's my go to person) is so impressed with your approach to designing this piece. I knew he would love it :)

i've been slowly picking the passes for the tapestry samples. Only have 2 more samples to do, but one of them has a bit of fussy work to it. I will have all my goals accomplished by the end of Halloweave!

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 12:09

ShawnC

You all do such amazing work, and I love to hear about your travels. Just catching up a bit. I can't believe it's already been 3 weeks since the surgery, though sometimes it feels like forever. I am still not back to the loom, so 'resigned' to reading and videos for a bit longer. The cervical collar is driving me crazy, so I'm taking some time without until it comes off for good in a week.

 

My daughter finished warping the band loom for me and I wove off the first band from the book on Norwegian band weaving. Very fun and the perfect height for a post surgery project.

 

Cathy, sorry to hear you need more surgery. I hope all goes well!

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 13:47

sally orgren

This forum is fairly quiet because everyone is racing around for Halloweave.

For years and years, I could never fathom participating due to heavy work travel for photo shoots in October. It didn't even dawn on me I could participate this year!

Of course, that was after I wound and beamed over 1,000 warps this weekend for two different projects. Sigh. Someone slap me upside the head about the end of Sepember 2016, OK?

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 16:50

laurafry

1000 warps?   Oh my!  That sounds daunting!

cheers

laura

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 16:59

tien (not verified)

"The weaver who launched 1,000 warps"?

Not quite Helen of Troy, but it does have a certain ring to it... :-)

Mon, 10/26/2015 - 20:29

sally orgren

The "glistening snow" is 840. The towel yardage a mere 240ish. The cashmere + lurex took a lot of care in winding, so that was s-l-o-w going. I usually try and wind off from more than one "package," so that cuts the time in half, and beaming is always fast.

 

But it's the threading that can really take some time, depending on the pattern.

 

Nope. Early indicators are warning that I am not in for an easy go of it on the glistening snow project!

Tue, 10/27/2015 - 22:46

Artistry

Hey, Sally, I was wondering about the great 1,000 too! 

Good luck with the glistening snow project, it will be beautiful!

my tapestry yarns from The Australian Tapestry Workshop came while I was out of town. They are so gorgeous! it only took about 10 days for them to get here:) I'll use some straight up, and weft bundle with the Vevgarn and Alf. So, so, happy!

ShawnC, glad you got to weave on the band loom! yes, another surgery, but this one won't be as bad as the other two, or so they say! It's much shorter! Should be in about 3 weeks they haven't set a date yet because more tests, but before American Thanksgiving for sure. This will be the last one, then I'm done. Not done in:)

Wed, 10/28/2015 - 19:43

Walkingquail

on something fun on my rigid heddle. It's Brook's Bouquets without pulling the weft tightly. When starting, I asked myself "this is going to look good?"

But it does look nice, texture but not the windows of lace. I do enjoy the hand manipulated weaves one can do on a rigid heddle. I know I can do it on my floor loom but so easy easy here. Its good to enjoy what I'm doing instead of feeling I just have to get it done!

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