Linda's Fiber Weblog

Whew Summer Is Over

2008-09-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

Well that was a busy summer. I got to spend a week in Vermont and a one night stay on either side of that in Montreal. It was certainly nice to go back to Montreal and have time to spend enjoying the great food. There was a yarn store I was anxious to see but we forgot our travel day back was St. Jean Baptiste day and so of course everything was closed

Two days after returning we headed to Olds for Fibre Week. It is always such a great experience - so laid back and full of fibre enthusiats. This was the first time they offered a beginner weaving class since the 80's and they ended up with 2 classes. Tuesday night we closed down our booth, headed home and it was back to work Wednesday morning for me.

The summer disappeared teaching classes and developing curriculum for a revised course in one of our programs. The good news is that I will have vacation time after the Christmas break - I have done most of my teaching hours for this year. We are taking a cruise to South America and I hear Buenos Aires has some great yarn shops!

My beginner weaving class is full and many of the students have looms already. This seems to be common in the past few years. Before students would come and take the lessons but not have a loom at home. The nice point is that they usually have some idea of where they would like the classes to go for them - although some do end up seeing that there is even more than they were aware of. I give the students an outline showing what we hope to do in each sesssion and most of them are on session 2 - off to a good start.

My new AVL is warped with tea towels for the local sale in November. I have to do a sample for my complex weaver's group (deadline is October 1st) - the warp is made and I need to get that on today and woven. I have a stash of unfinished articles. Alas my other 2 looms are empty but hopefully I can get around to them over the next few weekends. Of course my 4 day weekend is after our sale.

HWSDA

2008-06-26T08:02:00.000-07:00

Computer Design and a Finished Fabric

2008-06-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

In May I taught a workshop on using the computer to design woven fabric. If you have been following my blog this fascination came out of a workshop I took with the UKWSD Online.

Learning how to take thread you already have in your stash and get to see the way it looks before doing all the weaving has been something I have tried to do for years. Back in the 80's, I designed and sold a computer drafting program for the Commodore 64 and the Amiga. While this program could show the resulting draft and analyze a pattern to show how to weave it, the result was a drawdown and not the woven fabric.

The program I use today is WeavePoint and it has a view that displays a closer rendition of the fabric. Getting the program to replicate more complicated yarns was not possible. In the workshop we used scanning and also taking photos as a way to display the yarn on screen. The above yarn was a bit of a challenge because of the fuzzy nature of the yarn. When I had the picture of the yarn on screen, I tried making the background transparent, but that was next to impossible. In the end, I was satisfied with taking the colours into a draw program and then using them in WeavePoint.

Once I applied the colours to the draft in WeavePoint, I then copied the fabric and moved it into my drawing of a cape. This is just the beginning of working on this and I still need to do some work to get the fabric clearer but it does give me a closer vision of the final product. The fabric is just off the loom and has not been finished.

I used a lace threading and treadling that produces a good hand for a soft textile. Years ago, I created a similar fabric and produce a cocoon from the fabric. The lighting on the photo is not the greatest, but if you click on the picture you can clearly see the weave structure.

Once I wet finish and complete an article with the above fabric sample, I will post it to my blog.

End Feed Shuttles

2008-06-09T07:52:00.001-07:00

The picture on the left shows the 4 types of end feed shuttles I own. From left to right the manufacturers of the shuttles are: 1. AVL, 2. Leclerc, 3. Bluster Bay, and 4. Schacht.

The first end feed shuttle I acquired on e-bay. It is a really old Leclerc and I found that by using this shuttle my edges improved instantly. I also liked the fact that you can wind on a lot more yarn than you can on the small bobbins. Years before I had a flying shuttle on my Colonial and so I just needed to review the process for winding pirns. The only drawback that this shuttle has is that there is no tensioning device.

The next end feed shuttle I acquired is the Schacht. I love the weight of the shuttle and find the shape of the ends great for when I use floating selvedges. The shape enables me to flick the first floating selvedge up and then I push the last one down with my catching hand. Before this I hated floating selvedges but I have found that this has worked well and I get to stay in rhythm while weaving.

Last Christmas I received the Bluster Bay as a gift. It is truly a beautifully crafted tool. At the top of the shuttle there are several hooks that enables lots of tensioning options.

My most recent acquisition was the shuttle I received with my new AVL. I have not used this one enough to accurately find out the pros and cons.

Each shuttle works well in different circumstances. The Bluster Bay and AVL are heavier and will work better on wider fabrics while the Schacht will always be the best for me to use when I need to use floating selvedges.

All end feed shuttles hold more yarn and save time winding bobbins. They also produced better selvedges because the yarn does not continue to spin off as the shuttle is thrown.

AVL Features and Helpful Extras

2008-06-06T07:23:00.000-07:00

The front beam on most AVL feature a sandpaper type finish called the sticky beam. This enables the warp yarns to be placed on the beam and tying knots at the front is not necessary. The resulting uniform tension has impressed me from day one. The weaver simply places the warp yarns around the beam and begins to weave.

My new loom has an auto advance. You can set the picks per inch for 10 to 120. It was really easy to set up and just took a few adjustments until I got the picks per inch I wanted. Using this feature I can now weave and not loose my rhythm by having to stop and move the warp forward.

Another feature that is new to me is the pressure roller. You can cut off the warp at any time without loosing tension and it helps to keep the warp ends down when you are first starting the weaving. The one thing that I have learnt is that you have to be careful of pinning guide lengths along the side of the material as it gets wound in with the cloth and you have to wait for it to come off the other end. I usually use adding machine tape to create all my items the same size and run the tape up the side. At the end of the first one I move the tape to the beginning of the second item and weave along following border marks, etc. With this system I have to remember not to let it wind in.

The last feature I want to mention here is the take up beam. This for me is the greatest feature on a loom. As you weave your fabric is wound onto a beam at the back of the loom. No more build up at your knees. The amount you can put on the take up beam is determined by the length of the cord running to the beam - I have put more than 60 yards of woven goods and not come near to the end - I believe it is supposed to take about 100 yards.

Needless to say I am really happy with my new loom and have some 120/2 silk I want to do a painted warp with and try my first 24 shaft pattern (once I have finished my list for the Christmas sale).

Answer to Comments and Beaters

2008-06-04T07:05:00.001-07:00

We had a great time at "Transforming Textiles", the HWSDA (Handweavers, Spinners, and Dyers of Alberta conference). I do hope my participants in my workshop had as much fun as I did. What a creative group.

Sorry it has taken so long to answer Nancy's questions. First she asked where I get my indigo. Whenever we can we head for the coast. Usually I can squeeze in a little shopping and I go to Maiwa in Vancouver. My son and his partner have also sent us gifts of natural dyes from there. They do mail order but the shop is such a wonderful place.

Nancy's next question was about the flying shuttle and I must confess I do not like weaving really wide fabrics. I have done so on occassion but do not enjoy it as much as more narrow pieces. Thus my choice of a 32 inch 24 shaft AVL. My pleasure in weaving really comes from obtaining a rhythm and throwing the shuttle back and forth. I still have a flying shuttle on my 48 inch AVL (just in case) but have sold the one that was on my 45 inch Colonial. For me I get really good selvedges with end feed shuttles.

However AVL suggests you offset the warp slightly to use the flying shuttle and not center it in the reed like we normally would. Since I have never tried this I cannot say if it works but hope this helps. "If you will be using a flyshuttle and are planning a narrow warp, you need to offset the warp 4" to the right instead of centering it."

My older AVL has an underslung beater and my Colonial has both overhead and underslung and can be changed. Since I have owned several looms over the years and have usually bought most of them previously loved, it gave me a chance to try out lots of different types. Each has there own good and bad points and it really just depends on what you like. Usually I use the overhead beater style with the Colonial because I really like the smoothness of the action. Like a counterbalance loom it is easier on the body. So my choice of beater for my new AVL was the overhead style.

The AVL overhead beater has a pin that will lock it in place so that it does not move when you are threading. The system itself with tilting and push arms make it a breeze to operate and I am really glad I choose this style of beater. It move effortlessly.

My new loom is overdue for a warp. At Christmas break, I usually make a list of things to make for our local weavers Christmas sale and next on the list are some tea towels. Off to warp!

Choosing Heddles and Threading the Loom

2008-03-23T08:41:00.001-07:00

My loom is up and running beautifully! Once the warp is beamed sectionally, I place the threads in a raddle and then hang lease sticks at the back of the heddles. Beacuse the AVL tension box creates a cross it ensures all my ends are in the correct position. Prior to using this tension box, I simply hung the various sections over one lease stick and selected the various ends from each section. The reason that I hang my lease sticks is so that the ends are at the correct height for me to thread the heddles. My looms have a variety of heddles and each has their advantages and disadvantages.

My old Clement loom is a work horse loom and has flat steel heddles. These heddles are the heaviest of all the heddles and do not bend easily. Since the eyes are fairly large and flat, they are easy to thread. This makes it great for heavier weight cotton warps.

My Colonial has wire heddles. These are slightly lighter that the flat steel heddles and still easy to thread. It takes a fair deal of bending to break these but I have seen it done - especially on looms that fold and that are being moved around alot - the heddles can get caught and bent or broken.

When it came to the AVL looms, I decided to go for Texsolv heddles. These heddles are the lightest and this was an important consideration for me as moved to looms with more shafts. At first I found them a bit ackward to work with, as the heddles are flexible and you need to hold the heddle eye to draw the thread through. But like anything else, with a little practice, you adjust to the new process.

I thread my heddles using Allan Fannin's method of placing one warp end inbetween your fingers and then drawing them through one by one according to your pattern. Usually I move the heddles to the right along the shaft and organize the pattern, then place my left hand with the threads placed in my fingers to the left of the arranged heddles and draw them through. I have found this method to be really quick. With the Texsolv heddles, I tilt my left hand so that I have my palm up, making it easier to grab the threads in order and hold the heddle firm.

Once the heddles are threaded, I use the same method of holding the threads in my left hand between my fingers and draw the threads through the reed. A few years ago, I invested in an Auto Reed Hook, and again once you get the technique it really works well. The main concept is it to make sure you push the hook in and out of the dents properly. After awhile, you get used to listening for the click. My first post has a video of the auto reed hook in action - the video was taken away from the loom on a desk and so I could not move my hand into the correct position of palms up but you can get the idea.

Now back to the loom and my next blog entry will discuss overslung and underslung beaters.

Warping Equipment and Methods

2008-03-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

Everyone approaches weaving differently. When I wove as a small child I did not worry about edges, warp tension, etc. I just created placemats for my tea set or scarves for my dolls. However when I became interested in weaving again in my twenties it was a different story - I realized that the technical side of weaving was as important as the design - thank goodness for good instructors as this was in the 70's. At first I worked on maintaining a consistent beat and getting good edges. Of course sooner or later you realize that without a well warped loom you cannot produce the cloth you would like to.

I tried many different warping methods. Warping boards and small table mills work well when you are working with warps less than 10 yards. As I slowly started putting longer and longer warps on my loom, I realized I needed to find a better system. One of my all time favourite books on weaving technology is Allan Fannin's "Handloom Weaving Technology". Over the years I have continued to reread this book anytime I am trying to make a decision about using new technology. It was at this point that I decided to start converting my looms to sectional beams. Both AVL's, the Clement and the Colonial all have sectional beams.

Both the Colonial and Clement are limited in terms of the number of yards I can put on because of the cloth build up on the front beam. The choice is to either cut it off at some point or to only put on the amount of yards that the front beam can hold without interferring with treadling. The AVL's have a take up beam and so the woven cloth is moved to a beam on the back of the loom. For me this was one of the most important considerations when buying a new loom.

A sectional warping system requires the same number of bobbins or cones as the number of ends per inch. When I weave with cotton I purchase the same number of tubes as my number of ends per inch. For example if my sett is 20 ends per inch I use 20 tubes of cotton. Often this is what determines my warp length. When I wind off bobbins, I need to calcualte the length of the warp times the number of times the bobbin will be used across the width of the warp. For example, if the loom is warped at 25 inches wide, each bobbin will be used 25 times. Once the tubes or bobbins are placed in my rack the ends are placed in a tension box and each section is wound on to the beam.

The 16 shaft AVL has a track system so that the tension box can be moved along the width of the loom aligning up with the section being wound. When I was deciding on where to put the new loom in the studio, this was something I took into consideration. If the two looms were back to back I could use the track for both looms. The AVL tension box also has a method for creating a cross in the section and I find this another really neat feature that I do not think is found on any other tension box. My 16 shaft AVL also has a counter on it so that I can keep track of the number of yarns wound on to the beam and then the number of yards woven off.

At present I am putting a 4 yard warp on the 16 shaft but it is only because DH is weaving tea towels on the Colonial and I am in a time crunch to get something woven for next May. Usually I put 50 to 80 yards on the AVL. The new 24 shaft loom has some new features and so I have also put on a short scarf warp to acquaint myself with the new features. It is now pegged and ready to go.

AVL 24 shaft loom

2008-03-09T10:46:00.000-07:00

At last a bright light to a cold snowy day - the arrival of my new loom. The boxes were neatly stacked on a plastic sheet in the garage to make the job of getting the heavy parts to the basement a little easier.

Each box is carefully labelled to make the assembly easier. Inside each of the boxes related pieces are then again numbered. DH carefully unboxed the items and moved them down to the basement keeping all parts from the same box together. When a got home from work we had a quick dinner and started the assembly. AVL provides both a printed copy of the manual and a CD version - I mainly used the printed version as I like to have the instructions in front of me.

This new loom is similar to my 1980's AVL but since some changes have been made we made a point of not assuming anything and at least taking a peak at the instructions before proceeding. The older loom is a full frame and the new smaller loom is an A frame. When I was trying to decide what type of loom to buy several reasons brought me back to AVL and this particular model type. One of the reasons is that I prefer looms with a solid square back construction. I tend to vary my weaving and although I do not tend to weave rugs or rep weave often I like to know that the loom can handle whatever I decide to weave.

The newer AVL has more shafts but is still a manual dobby. Even though I design using a computer and WeavePoint, I wanted to control the weaving without electronics involved. Maybe this is because I teach computers all day and this would not provide variety in my life. I am anxious to try out some of the new features that I have chosen and I will discuss them in future blogs. The first warp I chose to try is a simple 4 harness huck lace scarf with a multi fibre warp.

More on WeavePoint and PhotoFiltre

2008-01-03T10:42:00.000-08:00

Well here I am a year later and still fascinated by the Computer Design Study Group. The more I work with this the more I learn and think of new ways to use it. A few days ago, I decided to try designing series of items. I began by creating a transparent draft as described in my post previously. Unfortunately you cannot save the transparent draft in the proper format for uploading so it appears to right as a purple and black square. In PhotoFiltre saved as the correct format you will see a checkerboard design on the transparent threads. If you click on the photo you will see it in black and white.
Then I merged this with a colourful background and decided to try and create a tiled version as well. It is not as accurate as I was just playing and should have paid more attention when cutting the blocks to make sure it was in the proper proportion but I think you can get the idea.
The last step was to see what the tiled draft would look like in 3 different colorways. The first picture on the left shows the original draft as a scarf, the second is done using the nightshade filter, and the third one is done using the sunset filter. Click on the photos below to get a better look.

I think when I get my new 24 shaft AVL I will do something similar and create a set of scarves - the narrow width is good to get you going on a new loom. Oh it just cannot come fast enough.

I am now playing with various ways to use these tools to create a designer notebook as well as create series of designs. My jacket folder is so full of ideas! I am beginning to think this is moving me away from household items and back into clothing - here comes the 80's again - well at least it is not the 60's with all the great lumpy, bumpy yarns!

What to Do With the Last Bit of Warp

2007-12-31T13:22:00.001-08:00

Potholders seem to sell well at our guild sale and so each year I try to do a few. They are easy to weave and also work well as gifts to give someone in the Christmas season. It is also a good item to use when trying out new weave structures or for beginning weavers.

Last year I did 50 yards of placemats and of course I did not want to waste the last bit of warp but there definitely was not enough left to create another set of mats. Sometimes it is nice to get that little bonus from the end of the warp.

I usually crochet a little loop so that the potholders can hang. When I sew the sides together I reinforce the loop to make sure it will not pull out. Serging the ends and using the machine to reinforce the seams makes it a quick project and sturdy enough to stand the wear and tear of an everyday item.

The year before I did some overshot ones in Christmas colours and next year I think I will try a Summer and Winter pattern.

Ribbon Yarn and Metallic Scarf

2007-12-08T11:37:00.001-08:00

Well our guild sale went well despite our worries of moving to a new location! For those who are not aware the building we were in has been designated unsafe and we have been forced to survive out of member's homes and where we can find space for classes etc. Thank goodness for the Alberta Craft Council who have offered to store our library and thus make it accessible to our members until we find a new home.

At the college that I teach at we have an Art Committee. Since our spring sale of student art work was so successful, we decided to try a Christmas one to help raise funds for the college Shine campaign. My donation was going to be the silk hand painted scarf I wove last fall. However since I put the scarf in our guild sale and it sold I found myself in the position of having nothing artsy enough to contribute. Not to panic as I did have one weekend in between.

A quick check of my stash revealed a really neat ribbon type yarn and a metallic thread that could be incorporated into a holiday type scarf. I wanted the ribbon to stand out so I used a surface interest draft and decided the rest of the warp should be a black bamboo to enhance the colours in the ribbon. The weft was one pick of metallic thread followed by one pick of cotton. I would have loved to have used either bamboo or silk for the weft but I did not have any in my stash.

At our guild sale, I managed to buy some handspun cream yarn plied with gold metallic yarn and I plan on using this same draft to create something for next year's HWSDA conference.

Looking forward to the Christmas season and some time to spend at my looms,
Linda

Weaving pillowcases

2007-10-13T14:05:00.000-07:00

Ever since seeing some pillowcases in Handwoven magazine several years ago I have wanted to design a set. I decided to use 10/2 mercerized cotton for the warp as I had quite a bit in white and that is what was used in a sample I really liked. I should get 3 sets of pillowcases.

The pattern is a summer and winter adaptation that was published in Warp and Weft (May 1958). In their sample they used 10/2 mercerized cotton for the warp and a silk and textured yarn for their weft and the suggested use was table linens. The treadling was as drawn in. When I did my sample at the beginning of the warp, I decided I liked the look of reversing my pattern when I reached the end instead of using the as drawn in treadling. To speed up the weaving I used just one weft.

For the first set, I chose a 1 ply organic cotton I purchased off eBay last winter. The 1 ply organic cotton had to be wound on to the pirns carefully as it had a tendency to ply itself when there was any slack at all. Of course any pull and the yarn would break. I love my end feed shuttles as you can get so much more yarn on the pirn and it comes off so nicely. To maintain the tension I set the coned yarn under my tension box and wound at a consistent speed. The p icture on the left is the organic fabric on the loom. The weft is actually a light beige colour.

I am currently now weaving the second sett and this time I chose white bamboo for the weft. The fabric has a lacey block and a textured block. It was hard to get a really good picture as I could see shadows of myself in the picture and I will take another picture once the fabric is off the loom and the pillowcases are sewn.

New Loom

2007-10-06T07:46:00.000-07:00

Well the summer came and went all too soon and then there was the beginning of school year panic to overcome. Now that it is done hopefully I can get back to keeping my blog more up to date. In June our local guild was evicted from our home - although we can temporarily return once the building repairs are done we are hoping to find a permanent home. We have stored any equipment and tools we can live without, set up classes in a variety of spots, and moved study groups to guild member homes. We have a new location for our annual sale and our library will be housed at the Alberta Craft Council.

A little more than a year ago I decided I wanted to upgrade my Colonial to a dobby and found out this is no longer available. The next step was to look at computerized looms and since I am a structure person the thought of more shafts hooked me in. However, since I spend most of my day teaching computers and dealing with people, it is nice to come home and spend some time at my loom manually throwing the shuttle. I really enjoy my manual dobby AVL and decided whatever loom I choose it should be able to be converted from a manual dobby to a computerized loom should I ever desire to go that way. The manual dobby does restrict you to the number of bars you have to peg the pattern and if you should want to change the pattern you need to repeg. The computer is a problem for me not only because of my day job but also from the view of dependency on electricity.

Some of the weavers in my yahoo group suggested a list of pros and cons - something I regularly do - however because I realize how big a purchase this is for me I really needed to rehash and rehash my thoughts. Finally I decided the sticky beam and the take up beam of the AVL were things I really liked, going more than 24 would require a computer, and weaving width should be between 28 to 36 inches - even fitting this into the space that is left is tight and I do not tend to weave wide and if I did I have a 45 and 48 inch loom. My original thought was to sell the Colonial but have not had any offers and selling looms is always hard to do - like letting your children leave home.

I continually searched the Internet and scoured ads looking for new or used looms that fit my criteria and a few weeks ago I spotted a used 24 shaft Technical Dobby Loom on AVL's site. Again I went into analyize mode and decided this was it - it even has a sectional beam. Shipping date is December 13th and now I am like a little kid who cannot wait!

Anyway back to the real world - at present I am weaving pillowcases on my 16S AVL and will post pictures and info over the next few days.

Indigo Dyeing

2007-08-25T10:49:00.001-07:00

I finally took the pictures of my indigo dyeing. The skein on the left is a one ply silk that was originally it's natural colour. The skein on the right is tencel and it was originally a beige colour. The tencel, as you can see, is slightly darker.

I plan on using the silk as a weft in a scarf and not sure what I will do with the tencel as it is a very small skein. Any ideas?

Using the Painted Simulation in Planning Projects

2007-08-07T07:19:00.000-07:00

It seems that it takes me forever to get started on projects. First I usually decide on the article, then the weave structure, followed by the yarn and sett. At this point I normally use my computer drawdown program WeavePoint to play with colours, balance borders, etc.

A short warp for me is usually 9 yards and more commonly I put on 20 to 50 yards - might as well make good use of the planning time. All of my looms are equipped with sectionally warping. When I plan painted warps I try to think in 1 inch strips even if it means it spans more than the inch.

The really great thing about the computer simulation for the painted warps will be that I will have a record to go back to look at. Normally I try to create a visual using watercolours or do a quick sketch of the pattern and then write down the colours. Needless to say I am excited to try this out but have a few projects planned and need to get to them first. Yesterday I did get the Oilers flag turned into tab curtains for my grandson. Now I need to create duck curtains for the new grand baby due any time now. and of course there was not enough fabric, so I will need to be creative.

Transfer of Weaving Drafts to Simulated Painted Warp

2007-08-05T11:45:00.001-07:00

If you have been following my blog, you will know that last year our Online Group did a workshop dealing with Computer Designs. Many of us decided we wanted to continue on with this topic. While catching up on my reading, I found an article in the Complex Weavers Journal entitled "Painting on the Computer - Simulation of Warp Painting by Marg Coe. Marg used Fiberworks PCW and Corel Photo-Paint.

I decided to see if I could do something similar using WeavePoint and PhotoFiltre and these are my first attempts.

Creating the Simulation Base Warp

Open a new document in PhotoFiltre – size should be the desired size with a white background – I simulated a scarf and choose 800 pixels by 2400 pixels.
Use the rectangle shape tool to create a rectangle and fill the rectangle with the Colour, Gradient tool. Select any two colours of your choice and either choose top to bottom or bottom to top. As I went across my painting design I flipped the direction of the grading to provide variety. Each rectangle would represent a section of warp.

Adding Special Effects to the Warp

To darken the warp, I added Night Effect (must admit it is one of my favourites). To redden you can use Sunset. You may also choose to add both – one on top of the other. The order will make a difference, so play around. If you do not like it, click Undo.
I then choose to add watercolour 2 and then watercolour 1.

Adding the Weaving Pattern

Create or open a weaving draft where the warp is white and the weft is the desired colour.
Edit – Copy Image – you will get a message that the image has been copied to the clipboard and that the image is ready to be used in other programs.
Edit Paste as New Image.
Magnify the design so that you can see one of the white warps and click on the Magic Wand Tool – ensure you then click on one of the white warps in the design.
Image – Transparent Colour – set the tolerance to 100. Click OK.
Select an area of the design (make sure it is balanced). In this step you will also be removing the threading, treadling, and tieup.
Make your warp design the active window and click on Edit, Paste to paste in the drawdown. I then dragged my design to fit the scarf like image.

The picture on the left shows a design super imposed
before adding night effect.

The picture on the right has had the night effect added after the draft was superimposed.

Shibori Scarf Using Lac

2007-08-03T11:03:00.001-07:00

While cleaning up my supplies in my workroom, I found an undyed silk scarf. This provided an opportunity to use one of the natural dyestuffs my son and his partner had sent us for Christmas. Decisions, decisons - which one to try. I decided to try lac - similar to cochineal.

I tightly wrapped the silk scarf around a small shibori pole (originally a piece of plastic pipe) I have, using dental floss to gather the fabric. When wrapping the fabric, I started with one of the ends and wrapped around and around, pushing the fabric up every inch or so.

The information I have stated that unmordanted yarns and fabrics would be purple. Since this is my favourite colour I went with unmordanted fabric. I soaked the scarf and added it to the dyepot wet. The resulting colour is more of a burgundy and although not purple, I am pleased with the results. I have also dyed a skein of cotton that is presently drying and of course some indigo. I am also working on a warp to be woven and then shibori dyed using the inspiration from the Online Guild Computer Workshop.

Card

2007-07-25T10:27:00.000-07:00

Several years ago I bought these card inserts. My original idea was to try to weave a structure that looked similar to stain glass and add some beads in to add some sparkle.

About a month ago I was sorting my samples to organize them. Usually I play with the last few inches of warp. One of the samples was a white warp with the metallic weft you see here. The metallic yarn was flat against the white and I realized the weft would work better with a dark warp. Since I had a few inches left over from the Kaleidscope award ribbons, off I went to the loom. Then I remembered I had these cards! Oh what would we do without our stashes. Yes I know my samples are still not organized.

Unfortunately I could not capture the sparkle from the metallic thread. I am quite pleased that even though it took 20 years, the result has been worth it. Now off to thread my clement loom for a warp faced weave!

Trying To Finish Up Projects Before I Start New Ones!

2007-07-23T13:48:00.000-07:00

Well I am madly tying to complete some projects I have in various stages. I have sewn several pairs of mitts. Some have a crocheted edge and these 3 sets I have completed (see the picture). I am now working on those pairs that will have a knitted cuff and will post pictures when I have them completed.

I had not done these in years and a serger certainly makes it alot easier. My excess warp from the ANWG ribbons have been turned into cards and 2 small bags. The weft is a metallic so I am not sure if I will be able to get a good photo but I will try.

Wild Fibres Kaleidoscope Ribbons

2007-07-23T13:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of the award ribbons given at the Juried show.

I could not get a good photo of the little labels that were placed inside. To make the labels I first made some silk fusion from some natural silk. These were used as a backing to give the label some body. I then printed the conference logo on the printable cotton (you put these through your computer printer). To finish the labels I used machine embroidery around the edges with a thread that changes from white to a colour when put in light. Hence the reason they were hide inside the tubes - sort of a little something special.

The fabric was wrapped around the tubes and glued. I also added some beads to reflect the light.

Wild Fibres Conference and Olds Fibre Week

2007-07-17T15:30:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a while since I have posted! The spring was spent preparing our goods for our vendors booth at Wild Fibres and then a spot opened up for a vendor booth at Fibre Week. It is always nice to visit with old friends and make some new ones. Fibre people are the best.

I have just finished reorganizing after the sales and have been updating our website. During the school year I find it too hectic to get much done - the good side to having most of the summer off. Hoping to get some dyeing or yarn painting done and lots more projects - oh and what about the quilt I have been working on for 2 years. My daughter's wedding last year gave me an excuse.

Add to that our local guild has been evicted and since I am the President it has resulted in lots of emails and phone calls. We found a place for our sale but still need to find a home for our meetings, classes, and study groups to meet.

I have a few ribbons left over from conference that were not given out and will try to get some photos and put them up on the blog as promised. I also have some drafts I would like to post over the next while so please do check in to see what I have been up to. Currently I am finishing off some hats and mitts. I had not done these in years and are lot easier now that I have a serger. Will post pics of the hats and mitts once I finish them.

Celtic Bands for a Wedding Dress

2007-04-14T08:15:00.000-07:00

In July 2006, my daughter got married to the love of her life - Mikey. They wanted their wedding to reflect both backgrounds - Irish and Ukrainian. I got to sew the outfits for the flower girl, bridesmaids, maid of honour and of course, the bride. Weaving the fabric was not realistic, as I work full time. So instead I settled for weaving the bands for the arm seam and the belt.

After looking at Heather's assortment of pictures she liked, I decided the warp would be cream and the weft would be a metallic gold. When I checked my stash all my cream yarns were not the right shade - too yellow, too blue, too beige. At the HWSDA's conference last year (Jane Stafford's booth) I spotted a cone of soy - the correct shade and the perfect weight. For the weft I used a gold DMC embroidery thread. For the belt, I simply divided the plies in half. For the armband, I used 4 fine strands and re-sleyed the reed closer.

WILD FIBRES - ANWG RIBBONS WEAVING IS DONE!

2007-03-17T11:28:00.000-07:00

These ribbons were so much fun to do!

The conference theme is wild in terms of fibre use, thinking a little differently and not in the use of untamed fibres. Keeping this in mind and the name of the juried show - Kaleidscope, I tried to incorporate these ideas when designing the ribbons.

The ribbons were woven in the Wild Fibres conference colours. First prize ribbons will be yellow - the colour closest to gold, pink for second prize - closest to red and green for third prize.

I was also permitted to add black or white and decided black warp would make more of a statement. The yellow and pink ribbons used Orlec for weft and the green ribbons used 8/2 cotton.

Three special ribbons are needed and so I used different combinations of colours to make these significantly different from the regular award ribbons. People's choice will use all 3 colours.

As stated in the orignal post the draft was chosen because the wild rose represents Alberta and since the conference will be held here this year I liked the idea of using a pattern to represent the province. This pattern reminded me of our rose (see the front side of the pink ribbon).

I liked the idea that one of the peggings produced a bud like appearance (see the green ribbon photo) while the other pegging looks more like the flower. As I was weaving, I discovered that I like both sides of the fabric equally and so this added even more diversity to the ribbons. I decided to use both the fronts and the backs in the ribbon designs. The photo with more pink on the right shows the front side and the photo similar to the yellow photo shows the back side.

Since Kaleidoscopes change, I changed the treadling order to produce as many similar but different versions as I could. The ribbons are 3d and will not be flat I have also added beads to reflect light and am currently working on putting the surprise inside the ribbon - need to work on this one as my original idea is beyond my patience level. Once the conference is over I will try to remember to post some pictures of the finished item!

More On Designing Stripes Using the Computer

2007-03-03T08:35:00.000-08:00

The Online Study Group was given some photographs to work with. This time we were to start with one photo and work it all the way through to a project. The photo that I liked was called ripples.

We began doing a colour and texture study. Then we worked on proportion and stripes. The first few exercises were done by hand without the aid of the computer.

Once I reached the stripe design stage I turned to my photo application for help. Of course, my love for blue and purple colours came into play and so I filtered the picture using night effect.

I used the mosaic filter to pick up the colours and create stripes in a new image.

I then added texture to make it look more like fabric.

I then used the ripple filter to spread the stripes out in the fabric design. This muted the colours a bit and some of the other filters available enable you to keep the more brilliant colours.