a photoblog of what i did today..... - Page 40

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:11 PM

If I can get the pics to upload, I thought I'd share my first weaving project since before my diagnosis. I used to weave a fair bit. This is a simple shawl/throw to get me back into the swing of things. It's not my usual, I typically weave either fine, complicated stuff or nice cozy wool and silk blankets. But for a restart, this looked about right. The skein on the left is slubby natural cotton, and will be used as weft. The other materials are mercerized cotton in different colors, and a variegated textured yarn called 'Tempo'.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:20 PM

First thing - winding the warp. The warp consists of the lengthwise threads that are put on the loom under tension. It's measured on a warping board, which has pegs set at different distances so that a warp of a predetermined length can be wound. I'm winding a 3-yard warp. At one end is the 'weaver's cross', which allows me to keep the threads in order when putting the warp on the loom. The last photo shows the warp organized on the front of the loom, ready for 'sleying'. In weaver's terms, the next step is to 'sley the reed', or feed the yarn through a series of slots that hold threads at a given distance from each other. The reed for this project is 12 'dents' per inch. I will have 12 threads per inch of width in the warp.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:21 PM

Oops. Here's the pic of the warp ready for sleying.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:24 PM

After sleying the reed, each thread has to be pulled through a heddle, a wire guide that is attached to one of the eight frames (or harnesses) on my loom. Each frame can be raised or lowered individually. Threads attached to a given frame rise or fall with the frame, and patterns in the warp are created by varying the rise and fall of each thread.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:25 PM

Now the warp ends are tied onto the front apron rod.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:30 PM

The warp has been wound on the back beam. I use heavy paper (in rolls) to separate each layer of thread as it winds, so that the layers stay even and individual threads don't sink through deeper layers. There's satisfaction (to me at least) in arriving at the point of having organized so much beautiful yarn so precisely.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:33 PM

Treadles are next - I have eight, and each can be tied up with any combination of the eight harnesses. For this project, having threaded 'straight draw', I am treadling plain weave but using all eight harnesses.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:36 PM

Spinning bobbins from a skein of cotton held on an umbrella swift. The bobbin winder is held in place with a C-clamp. None of the equipment used so far is powered. I love the elegance of simple machines that people invented thousands of years ago to do a necessary task, that haven't been improved upon in essence - only in details.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:38 PM

Ready to weave!

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:42 PM

The first few throws ... at this point any errors in the warp become obvious. I check for crossed threads in front of the reed, behind the reed, and between the heddles. In this case I had two threads crossed between two of the heddles. I had to slip the threads out of the tie-ons, pull them back out of the heddles and re-thread them, pull them forward through the reed, and re-tie them in front. Then it's on to better things.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:44 PM

My weft in this project is a slubby natural cotton yarn ... I've never woven with such a variable width thread before. I'm interested to see how it works out.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:47 PM

The final setup ... heaven! I've put some placemats that I wove several years ago on the bench to soften the impact of sitting there, leaning forward to throw the shuttle. I have a nice Shetland wool color gamp blanket that was one of my first weaving projects and it's usually my bench cushion, but have still to locate it after moving.

orthodoc · 02-09-2015, 10:52 PM

One last pic of the pattern and photo beside the developing fabric. It's looking good. Fabrics on the loom tend to look like they have a lot of holes. Once they're taken off, they tighten up. But the real change comes with washing ... the fibers pull together, lock together really, and 'full' (if they're wool) or otherwise fluff and bind. The fabric then becomes much more solid, more what you expect to see.

This throw will end up around 33" by 75", I think. A nice lap throw for cool evenings that isn't too heavy. It could certainly be a shawl, as well. I'm mostly having fun with the different types of yarn and thinking already about other ways I could use slubby yarn in future projects.

I'll post a pic when it's done. Future projects include a summer-and-winter blanket and some lovely wool blankets with interesting colorways.

BigV · 02-09-2015, 11:42 PM

just. .. .. wow.

I love threads like this (I sincerely apologize for the unavoidable pun). Your WIP (work in progress) pictures help me understand what's going on in the *making* of stuff. I *love* learning stuff this way. It goes without saying that the product is lovely, I eagerly anticipate more pictures along the way as well as ones of the finished product, before and after washing.

Textiles are among the most ancient of technologies. Seeing it happen as it's happened for generations upon generations is humbling. Watching how our ancestors made things that have lasted until today. Whoa. orthodoc, well done. Please continue sharing your obvious pleasure with us.

And thanks.

Griff · 02-10-2015, 07:27 AM

Bravo! Fascinating.

02-09-2015, 10:11 PM	#1
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	If I can get the pics to upload, I thought I'd share my first weaving project since before my diagnosis. I used to weave a fair bit. This is a simple shawl/throw to get me back into the swing of things. It's not my usual, I typically weave either fine, complicated stuff or nice cozy wool and silk blankets. But for a restart, this looked about right. The skein on the left is slubby natural cotton, and will be used as weft. The other materials are mercerized cotton in different colors, and a variegated textured yarn called 'Tempo'. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:20 PM	#2
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	First thing - winding the warp. The warp consists of the lengthwise threads that are put on the loom under tension. It's measured on a warping board, which has pegs set at different distances so that a warp of a predetermined length can be wound. I'm winding a 3-yard warp. At one end is the 'weaver's cross', which allows me to keep the threads in order when putting the warp on the loom. The last photo shows the warp organized on the front of the loom, ready for 'sleying'. In weaver's terms, the next step is to 'sley the reed', or feed the yarn through a series of slots that hold threads at a given distance from each other. The reed for this project is 12 'dents' per inch. I will have 12 threads per inch of width in the warp. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:21 PM	#3
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	Oops. Here's the pic of the warp ready for sleying. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:24 PM	#4
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	After sleying the reed, each thread has to be pulled through a heddle, a wire guide that is attached to one of the eight frames (or harnesses) on my loom. Each frame can be raised or lowered individually. Threads attached to a given frame rise or fall with the frame, and patterns in the warp are created by varying the rise and fall of each thread. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:25 PM	#5
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	Now the warp ends are tied onto the front apron rod. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:30 PM	#6
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	The warp has been wound on the back beam. I use heavy paper (in rolls) to separate each layer of thread as it winds, so that the layers stay even and individual threads don't sink through deeper layers. There's satisfaction (to me at least) in arriving at the point of having organized so much beautiful yarn so precisely. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:33 PM	#7
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	Treadles are next - I have eight, and each can be tied up with any combination of the eight harnesses. For this project, having threaded 'straight draw', I am treadling plain weave but using all eight harnesses. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:36 PM	#8
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	Spinning bobbins from a skein of cotton held on an umbrella swift. The bobbin winder is held in place with a C-clamp. None of the equipment used so far is powered. I love the elegance of simple machines that people invented thousands of years ago to do a necessary task, that haven't been improved upon in essence - only in details. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:38 PM	#9
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	Ready to weave! Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:42 PM	#10
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	The first few throws ... at this point any errors in the warp become obvious. I check for crossed threads in front of the reed, behind the reed, and between the heddles. In this case I had two threads crossed between two of the heddles. I had to slip the threads out of the tie-ons, pull them back out of the heddles and re-thread them, pull them forward through the reed, and re-tie them in front. Then it's on to better things. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:44 PM	#11
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	My weft in this project is a slubby natural cotton yarn ... I've never woven with such a variable width thread before. I'm interested to see how it works out. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:47 PM	#12
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	The final setup ... heaven! I've put some placemats that I wove several years ago on the bench to soften the impact of sitting there, leaning forward to throw the shuttle. I have a nice Shetland wool color gamp blanket that was one of my first weaving projects and it's usually my bench cushion, but have still to locate it after moving. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 10:52 PM	#13
orthodoc Not Suspicious, Merely Canadian Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 3,774	One last pic of the pattern and photo beside the developing fabric. It's looking good. Fabrics on the loom tend to look like they have a lot of holes. Once they're taken off, they tighten up. But the real change comes with washing ... the fibers pull together, lock together really, and 'full' (if they're wool) or otherwise fluff and bind. The fabric then becomes much more solid, more what you expect to see. This throw will end up around 33" by 75", I think. A nice lap throw for cool evenings that isn't too heavy. It could certainly be a shawl, as well. I'm mostly having fun with the different types of yarn and thinking already about other ways I could use slubby yarn in future projects. I'll post a pic when it's done. Future projects include a summer-and-winter blanket and some lovely wool blankets with interesting colorways. Attached Images __________________ The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. - Ghandi

02-09-2015, 11:42 PM	#14
BigV Goon Squad Leader Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Seattle Posts: 27,063	just. .. .. wow. I love threads like this (I sincerely apologize for the unavoidable pun). Your WIP (work in progress) pictures help me understand what's going on in the making of stuff. I love learning stuff this way. It goes without saying that the product is lovely, I eagerly anticipate more pictures along the way as well as ones of the finished product, before and after washing. Textiles are among the most ancient of technologies. Seeing it happen as it's happened for generations upon generations is humbling. Watching how our ancestors made things that have lasted until today. Whoa. orthodoc, well done. Please continue sharing your obvious pleasure with us. And thanks. __________________ Be Just and Fear Not.

02-10-2015, 07:27 AM	#15
Griff still says videotape Join Date: Feb 2001 Posts: 26,813	Bravo! Fascinating. __________________ If you would only recognize that life is hard, things would be so much easier for you. - Louis D. Brandeis

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