Shirt Off My Back: Weaving Complete!

The fabric is OFF THE LOOM!  Yippeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

Here is the "whole nine yards"!  It's actually more like three and a half yards, but who's counting?

I zig-zagged between the pieces and cut them apart--SCARY! 

Here is an idea of what I will look like in the near future with my schnazzy new shirt on.  Can you picture it?

(please excuse the "space face")

That's a "wrap" for today. 

Next steps: 

1. wash and dry fabric

2. finalize shirt pattern

3. maybe make a "practice" shirt from commercial fabric

4. serge and cut out shirt pieces

5. sew shirt

6. maybe embroider design on neck opening

7. wash/dry/iron shirt

8. do the "Look!  I made this shirt from scratch!" dance

Shirt Tales

I've got more pics to post to update my progress on my shirt fabric.

A sketch of my overall plan for shirt pattern and a capture of my pixeLoom draft.

The reed is all sleyed--all 312 slots, all 624 threads! 

 Then it's all tied on and tensioned with a bit of waste thread woven in.  Not too bad!

The first few inches of real weaving.  

Up close and personal--count 24 vertical threads...that's only one inch!

  Overshot design detail.  I used two threads of the same thickness of the rest of the weft.  The design will be on the bottom of the shirt and on the ends of the sleeves.  It's 6 inches from bottom to top on the loom.

An underside view of the fabric so far.  Above the overshot design, the weft graduates from dark to lighter blue.  The overshot section is rolled up on the cloth beam.

Almost ready to weave the back of the shirt!

More to come...

The shirt off my back...

I'm working on weaving yardage in order to sew a shirt--a tunic.  I'm using the full width of my Baby Wolf for the first time--all 26 inches!  That means at 24 ends per inch, 625 ends total!  The warp is 10/2 cotton in royal blue.  I wove an overshot pattern in green that will be at the bottom of the shirt.  All the weft--blues and light green--is 22/2 Cottolin.

I have spent many hours scheming, designing and trying out patterns on pixeLoom.  I wound the warp in batches on my warping board.  I removed all the loom's harnesses and adjusted the number of heddles to just fit my pattern so there would be enough by not too many on each harness.  I had to adapt my pattern to share harnesses because of the high epi count.  Winding on the warp with such a thin yarn and at such a width gave me fits, but I accomplished it!

I threaded heddles, sleyed the reed (my husband likes to think of me as a weaving warrior who "slays" things--hee hee), tied on, adjusted the tension and away I went!  I've got the first 15 inches of the front (or back) woven.  I think it's turning out nicely.  I like the texture of the Cottolin for weft with the worry-free cotton warp.

I know people will ask me how many hours it took--No idea!  Maybe 30 so far?

Pics to show progress:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kangaposse/9129313679/

Threading the heddles and sleying the reed:

Grant Weaving Catch uP! Thanks again MRAC and McNight Foundation for the Next Step Fund!

In between the projects already described, I have experimented with various weaving techniques and weave structures making "practice" pieces and samples with various types of yarns as a part of my grant project...

These first two pieces (pictured far and near) are samples I wove at the MN St. Fair in the Fall of 2012 as part of the MN Weavers Guild demonstration.  It was my first public weaving experience.  I had some great interactions with people and had fun experimenting with the treadling order.  The warp was the same on both pieces but the weft was different and has sort of a color gradation cycle.  All of it was some sort of cotton weaving yearn.

 This is my first "go" at overshot weaving: front and back and close up.

This piece is a "practice" piece woven in preparation for weaving the voyageur sashes.  I ditched this design because the floats were too big for sashes--they would have gotten caught on things.

The following pics are of a long "practice" piece--again for the voyageur sashes--where I experimented with lots of different weft colors and treadling sequences.  I also had fun with different fringe-finishing techniques.

 

 

The following two pieces were woven by me during a tapestry weaving class I took at the WGM from Traudi Bestler.  It was great!

 

 I am truly enjoying the benefits of the grant and am eager to continue learning more!

Seven Sashes for Widgiwagon!

It's the time of year when groups of high school age kids embark on a 6 week canoe trek in northern MN and Canada like voyageurs past.  This year I accepted a commission to weave seven sashes for such a group.  What on earth are voyageur sashes for?  And where did they come from?  The following is a quote from this url:
http://www.tfo.org/emissions/rendezvousvoyageur/en/world/personallife/clothing.html

"The sash is essential to the voyageur's clothing kit. Other than holding his coat closed around the waist, historians also believe the sash provided back support during portages.
Many theories exist about its origins. The most probable is that it came from Native peoples, from the Great Lakes region or the Assomption area of Quebec."

And from: http://www.hoosierhandweaving.com/Hoosier_Handweaving/About_%22Voyageur%22_sashes.html

''In the 1700s and 1800s, both French voyageurs and Native Americans enjoyed wearing colorful sashes and garters for both practical and ceremonial occasions. They are known by many names: voyageur, metis (hear it inFrench) (hear it in English), Red River, Hudson's Bay, and L'Assomption sashes. The men wore them by wrapping them twice around their waists. Voyageur sashes could also be slung around the forehead to support packages being carried. In addition to their own use, voyageur sashes were also traded for pelts."

The original voyageur sashes were finger woven, but I opted to use a twill pattern on my floor loom--otherwise the trekkers from Widgiwagon would be getting their sashes in the year 2023!

The head of the group I wove sashes for picked out the colors of the wool yarn (Harrisville Highland) and suggested that the iris would represent water (lakes, rivers), the magenta would represent the landscape and the gold would represent the sun.  Accordingly, I created a design for each of the colors to match those themes.  Here is the result:

Here is my draft--created by me on pixeLoom.

Here is my loom all warped and ready to go!

Here is scarf #3 or #4 from my second warp.  I wove the sashes in two sections: the first was three sashes long, the second was four sashes long.  You can see how large the roll of fabric is down by my knees.

Here are two completely woven sashes.  The one on the left has been washed and fulled a little bit, the one on the right has not.  Notice the difference in length and the subtle difference in the design.  Fulling it makes it a more sturdy fabric and gives it a softer feel.

I think they turned out rather nice.  I hope the "voyageurs" from Widgiwagon enjoy them.










Weaving notes for future reference:
Colors of Harrisville: one cone Iris, two cones Magenta, two cones Gold (warp) and five cones Silver Mist (weft) for 10 cones total.  I ended up with an extra cone of silver mist.
epi: 10
ppi: 10
width in reed: 10" with 101 ends
final width after fulling: 8.5"
I marked the sections by tying a short piece of thread around the gold yarn on the outside.   Each section was at least 9'5" or 113" long and I left 10.5" on each for fringe.
I warped my loom twice--3 sashes in the first lot and 4 in the next..
The final length after fulling was approximately 86":  80" of woven material and 6" of fringe on each end.
Fringes: I twisted grouping of 3+3 except for one grouping which was 3+2.
Fulling: I washed them vigorously in hot soapy water and also alternated some with cold water baths with some intervals of throwing them on the tub floor.  Very exhausting!

Final words: It was a good experience and I learned a lot, though it took MUCH longer that I originally thought it would.

On the Side: In-Between-Weaving-Projects Project: Maple Syrup

When I'm not weaving something on my 8 shaft Baby Wolf loom, I'm busy doing something else with fiber or something else all together that has nothing to do with fiber.  

This Spring, I tapped our large Silver Maple tree in the back yard.  Silver Maples actually make a pretty good syrup.  It sort of has a little caramel-like flavor hint, as well as a little "spring"  or brightness in it that syrup from a Sugar Maple doesn't have.

 Above and to the left are pics of my sap collection system.  I had a total of three taps in the tree.  On good days, those 5 gal jugs were nearly full!







Below are pics of the sap before and after boiling into syrup.  It takes 20 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup.  That's a LOT of boiling!  It takes a LONG time, but it sure makes the house smell nice.

 Before boiling:

Notice how it looks just like water.  Don't be fooled!







It's nearly syrup!

Until next Spring...

Belated Christmas Presents: Dutch Towels

After completing the Packer themed towels for the Wisconsin relatives I warped and wove four blue and white (8/2 cotton) towels for the Minnesota relatives I like to call "Dutch Towels".  I'm quite happy with the results.

Here's my Wolf warped up with the
8/2 natural colored cotton.

I like to lash on my warp to save a bit of yarn.










Here are the towels in process.  I really like how the fabric turned out.

Merry Belated Christmas Minnesota Family!

The Learning Process

Yes, it's true.  Things don't always work out how we expect them to; in art as well as in life.  But, no matter the course--better or worse, there is much to be gained: experience, knowledge, forbearance, perseverance, wisdom.  In life, as well as in art.

"We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28),  ^"...And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;..." (Romans 5:3-4)

Speaking of art...I recently started this weaving project.  I had picked out a variety of yarns of silk, rayon, cotton and some synthetic blends.  There were different textures colors and thicknesses.  I had an idea in my mind's eye, but one never knows how a piece will turn out until it's turned out.  

I ruminated a while, then worked up the courage to warp my rigid heddle loom with this diverse menagerie of fibery goodness.  Below is a picture of the result (I apologize for the low photo quality.  My camera is lost and I had to use the web-cam on my lap top).  By the way, I usually use the direct warping method with my rigid heddle, using highly technical equipment--including soup cans to hold the heddle up and a large jug of vinegar sitting on a dining room chair for my warping peg.  I came up with it all by myself. Brilliant!  I know, right?

Well, I wove about 4 inches and decided I wasn't really liking the results, so I decided to un-weave it.  

Note to self: when weaving with multiple yarns on a rigid heddle, it is helpful to have a shuttle for each color that is LONG enough to go all the way across.  

Another note to self: making such shuttles works well with wood from Menards, a drill press, ban saw and belt sander.  Plan to make more in the future.  (I did make one.) 

I also decided I'd rather try my floor loom, though this would be a first for me--well, a few firsts: un-warping my rigid heddle loom, winding these sames strands as a mixed warp in a different order on my warping board without them getting all tangled in transition, and dressing my floor loom with the mixed warp.  All things considered, most of that went pretty smoothly.  

This time, I decided to go really crazy and try a twill pattern.  Note to self: don't weave twill with such wide yarn, and with such a mixed up warp.  After weaving about six inches of the pattern, I realized that what looks really cool on my little lap top using my weaving software (pixeLoom) does not necessarily look good in real life with big yarns.  **sigh**  More un--weaving.  I'll have to photograph the floor in my studio now.  It looks like a yarn hurricane hit.  I'm sure many weavers can relate.  :)

Moving on, I kept the loom warped as is was, but re-sleyed the yarn in the reed to condense it a bit where some of the thinner yarns were.  I hit a local yarn shop to scout out different weft options, picked up a beautiful lace-weight silk to make my shawl warp-dominant, and hit the loom once more.  This time I made it about two inches in and decided I needed to double up on one of my yarns.  It turns out I had just enough!  I  threaded it through my loom, tied the front ends on to the lacing holding the other yarns.  To provide tension on the back end, I experimented with different household objects and used little zip-loc bags with coins in them clothes-pinned to the yarn ends.  I know, brilliant, right? It worked!

Once again I commenced weaving, this time with the turquoise silk yarn.  I wasn't confident I had reached perfection, but I committed and wove to the end.  I pulled it off the loom and hem-stitched it and wallah:

The result: greater weaving wisdom and a very colorful, drapey, highly textured shawl.  I haven't decided what to do with the ends, and I may add some kind of embroidery detail.  Maybe...

Next on the agenda: 

1. Take a picture of the monster mess in my studio.  

2. Clean up my studio.

3. Decide what to weave next.

4. Clean the house.

Flash Back to Spring 2012

I can't reveal my latest project because it include belated Christmas presents that haven't been finished or presented yet.  Instead, I'll flash back to Spring of 2012...

Madeline,  lovely woman at the WGM had offered to be a mentor to me and teach me the ins and outs of weaving on a floor loom.  So, in a mad dash before my kids were done with school, I rented a loom at the guild for 2 weeks and under Madeline's generous tutelage created 3 woven items.  The first was a plain weave scarf with three colors of Harrisville wool that was kind of a large green and blue plaid.  (photo is a little wonky because I cropped it out of a photo of a group of items)

The second item I wove was a blue and yellow scarf with the same type of wool yarn using 4 shafts.  This one was featured in a HUGE picture on the outside of the guild this past Summer to inspire people to sign up for classes.  :)

My third and final project completed during those two weeks on the floor loom was woven on 8 shafts.  The warp is some of my hand spun (merino and silk--some of which was hand died and blended with commercially prepared fiber) and the weft was a commercial yarn that was some sort of wool/synthetic blend.  I played around a bit with my treadling on this last one.  :)

All in all I was very pleased with my work and very tired from late nights at the guild.  I'm so happy to have my very own floor loom now in my house.   :)

First Creations

I was generously blessed with a $5000 grant in 2012 to purchase a floor loom, related tools and materials.  I purchased a Schacht 8 shaft Baby Wolf loom as well as a laptop computer and PixeLoom Weaving software.  Thank you MRAC! and McKnight!  For any artist in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area interested in the grant, it's called the Next Step Fun and is offered to 30 people every year.
http://www.mrac.org/grants/NextStepGrant.asp

I had some bumps in actually getting the loom and setting it up.  The delivery folks tried to deliver it to a house a few blocks away.  Eventually it ended up at my house.  I installed the heddles (inserted eye), rollers, and the beater assembly.  The beater was off kilter and after e-mailing and calling back and forth with Schacht, I was sent a replacement one that works MUCH BETTER!

My first project was two scarves from a warp (mid-weight cotton?) that I acquired through a round-about way.  It was already measured.  I warped my loom with it and used a lovely cotton yarn for the weft purchased from my local yarn shop.  I started with a design from a weaving book (don't recall which one) but altered it a bit to fit my warp count using PixeLoom.  It was 8 epi and probably about 8-9 ppi.  Here is the result:

Both scarves (identical) were sold at our annual Weavers Guild sale "Fiber Fair" which was held in November at the Northrup King Building in Minneapolis.

My second project was a set of 5 towels in green and yellow 8/2 cotton for my Wisconsin relations.  I picked a pinwheel pattern (24 epi) and altered it with Pixeloom and here is the result:

I've warped again with a natural color (8/2 cotton) and will be using blue as weft.  Results to come...

New Beginnings

It's time I started a blog to keep track of my fiber formations and other creative concepts.

I want to start by thanking Jesus for creating me in His image and giving me the appetite and ability for making things with my hands.  May all glory and honor be to Him.  

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,  not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship,created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.  (Ephesians 2:8-10)