It’s time for more weaving! As you can probably imagine, weaving can be a very meditative activity. Your foot presses down on the pedal (treadle) to lift the shafts, you throw the shuttle in one hand, catch it with the other hand, and then pull the beater bar towards you to compress the yarn into place. Press, throw, catch, pull, and again! Press, throw, catch, pull – you get the idea!
A little purple!
(Like most things, it’s meditative until you flub something up! Then, not so much!)
A close-up of the weft yarns!
The good news for me is I like bigger yarns, thus the whole weaving process goes faster! And each time I run out of yarns in the shuttle (these are called weft yarns), I alter things to keep it interesting!
Ah, the woven landscape…
I am currently moving from the purples into some browns. And I’ll be honest, the browns are going to get more play! It’s just a fact of life! The sun rises in the east and I like brown more than purple! What can I say?
So rich!
Almost to brown!
When figuring out the nuances of using a loom, there are always little pitfalls to watch for! I have found that my yarns will slowly inch to the right over time. I don’t know if that’s because the floor is slanted, the reed isn’t locked in tight enough, or what! But, each time I forward the yarns, I have to give the reed a little push to the left to keep everything on track! Otherwise, my fabric starts interfering with the ratchet/locking mechanism, which is bad news! I’m sure every loom has it’s quirks! Weird, right? (All the weavers in the crowd are shaking their heads sympathetically, and the non-weavers are saying “huh”??? No worries, I’m just musing!)
Nice and toasty!
Happiness is…
When I weave, I typically have some sort of noise going on – music or television, usually. If I’m watching TV, it has to be something I don’t really have to pay attention to. So, reruns usually work great! I’ve also found that cooking shows do it for me! This is crazy ironic since I don’t really cook! Go figure!
It’s a good bite!
As I mentioned in a previous post, I like to bundle of different yarns together in the shuttle. I stumbled on this technique once upon a time when my yarn wasn’t hefty enough. I combined a fine, charcoal wool with a solid, fatter yarn and completely fell in love! I find the look and the texture of the fabric to be richer and more interesting than with a single yarn! Ultimately, it just reinforces the fact that things happen for a reason! (And that, my friends, is your deep, philosophical thought of the day!)
The shuttle is stocked!
Next up, much more weaving! I’ve just started with the browns! Believe me, I’ll live here for awhile! Talk to you soon!
The fabric looks wonderful!
I always have a problem with weaving with multiple yarn in the shuttle because it gives me bad edges. Some of the yarn always sticks out. Then I have to pull it to place and that means a lot more work and time spent. But I agree, the effect is great.
Hey Sonja! The edges are a little tricky – you’re right! Because it is designed as fabric instead of a finished piece, it’s easier to ignore the wobbly edges! Thanks for the comment! chris
Hi, Chris, The subtle color variations are SOOOOOO luscious! You can have all the browns, I’ll go for the purples. Happy weaving! Lizz Wishing you peace, love, light, and the joy living of an Inspired life!
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Hey Lizz! I’m not too worried about the purples being under-represented! But, thank you for stepping up! chris