Thrums Placemats

Happy New Year!

Since I missed wishing you a Merry Christmas, I just thought I'd better make my New Year greeting early.

I do hope everyone had a lovely Christmas celebration and that the happy glow is ongoing. We were (yet, again) dealing with things medical so our festivities were somewhat muted, but perhaps more meaningful. In any case: Happy New Year to you and yours.

Rep Weave Placemats
I Cord thrums as thick weft

Here is a quick snapshot of my Rep Weave Placemats using the knotted thrums described earlier. Since the thrum color changes are abrupt, I designed a simple overall block design in the warp. The mats are extra wide on purpose. They are sturdy yet pliable and very good insulators, altogether satisfying to use.

Watch for a few more photos of these soon. For now, duty calls elsewhere but I'll be back.

Happy New Year 2019!

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Waste Not, Want Not

Since I tend to tie on to a warp twice for a total of three unique color ways, I’m left with back beam thrums of around one yard in length. It isn’t much more work to tie those long bits together into continuous threads.

These are a few spool knitters from my collection.
The little red one in front is the first one I bought as a child.

  

At first I used my little spool knitters with knotted thrums to create long tubes to use as thick weft in my Rep weaves. Those cords made very nice rugs, runners and placemats. But after a while the slowness of the knitting process grew tiresome and my hands grew tired, too.

Then I discovered I-Cord, a far quicker method of making the same knit tube. With short double-pointed needles I knit to the row end and without turning the work slide the stitches across the needle, pull the working yarn around behind and continue knitting. This is a huge improvement over spool knitting. It is lots quicker and isn't nearly as hard on my hands.

It's far easier to create cords from knotted Thrums with the I-Cord method.
These cords are knit from knotted 8/4 Cotton Carpet Warp Thrums.

Knitting yards and yards of multi-colored cord, I realized I was creating another version of variegated yarn. Have I mentioned my strong attraction to color? Ha!

My loved one is still very ill and we spend many long hours at various doctors’ offices and treatment centers. By the end of the year we should see a reprieve and hope for an improvement. Time will tell. In the meantime we are happy for every new dawn.

I am behind on photographing my work but promise to get around to it and to write again sooner rather than later.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Remember Spool Knitting?

Sewing thread no longer comes on wooden spools and that’s too bad. Here you see my wooden spool collection. I treasure these, a remnant from my childhood.

My wooden spool collection, two with nails added for knitting

As a little girl I learned to knit using a spool. My dad pounded nails into the top for me. Then with bits and pieces of yarn, mostly of inexpensive acrylic, I spent many happy hours producing long, usually colorful knit tubing. (Variegated yarn was my favorite even back then.) It did not matter that I had no idea how to use these in any particular way. The making of them was what mattered to me.

Did you do the same? What did you do with the knitted cord?

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Thrums Away?

8/4 Cotton Carpet Warp Thrums

Weave it and they will come. "They" are the unavoidable waste at the beginning and end of each warp.

What's to be done with thrums? What do you do with your thrums? Do you toss them away?

Upon learning to weave I was told to save my thrums. No reason was given. I tend to follow directions so with only the rare exception I blindly followed this advice, not knowing the whys or the wherefores of it.

Over the years my thrum collection has grown to fill entire bins. Thrums make good choke ties but my supply far outstrips that need. Uses for them had indeed been few – until recently.

Warp On/Weave Off,
RepWeaver

Why RepWeaver?

Rep is one of my favorite weave structures and I have woven lots and lots of Rep.

An alternate allusion is “repeat” or “repertoire”. The second usually refers to a stock set of plays, songs, etc. performed on a rotating schedule. 

For the most part I weave each of my designs three times, tying on to the first warp twice. This way I can try a variety of colors and make slight design changes on each subsequent warp, learning as I go.

Results of my Waffle Weave adventures
6 Harness Waffle Weave (far left to right) light blue, olive, red
7 Harness Waffle Weave (center left to right) dark teal, pink, dusty plum

In my waffle weave adventures I wove two variations: one on 7 harnesses, the other on 6 harnesses. Both were warped with three different color versions. Here they all are.

Fall is coming - my favorite season. It's a great time to switch gears and seek new adventures. Time to get back to Rep Weave.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

A Wave of Blue Waffles

Blue 6H Waffle Weave Towel

Here you see results of the final warp of my waffle adventures, at least the final one for now. These just happen to be my very favorite of all the Waffle Weave towel warps I have woven – six warps producing 44 towels.

For the Blue towels I tightened the sett from 34 e.p.i. to 36 e.p.i. The final combination of 16/2 cotton (Natural & Variegated) for the waffle cells partnered with 20/2 cotton (Blue) for the plain weave stripes made the best cloth of all my waffle weaving. The blue towels are pleasant to the eye and to the hand. As an extra-added bonus they are very good at soaking up water, too.

Blue Wave Waffle Towel
Front side showing border treatment

Blue Wave Waffle Towel
Reverse side showing border treatment

Someday I’d like to get back to weave waffles but for now other projects beacon. Warp Rep is on my horizon. Hooray!

Loved One's health issues continue to sap time, energy and emotion. It seems, though that improvement is on the horizon. So maybe life will get back to some kind of new normal. Time will tell. Our garden also keeps me away from the loom but that is a happy distraction. Slight hints of autumn are beginning to show. Autumn is my favorite season. Happy times lie in store.

Happy Weaving!

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Green Waffles Without Ham

It sounds a bit Dr. Suess-ish but I could not resist.

Would you, could you if they were hand woven?

I do! I do like them handwoven, Sam-I-am!

Green Waffle Weave Towel
Showing hem and both sides

This warp is coming closer to the ideal combination of structure, sett and yarn size to truly please me. The colors make me happy, too. The sett is 34 e.p.i. Natural colored 16/2 cotton is combined with Olive green and variegated 20/2 cottons. Using slightly smaller sized yarns for the plain weave warps and wefts made for the best waffle weave structure yet. Every successive warp has shown slight improvement over all previous waffle warps. It is very satisfying to watch a design develop.

Two Waffle Weave Towels
Two different border design ideas

Here you see two ideas for border treatments. The folded towel starts out with the weft colors arranged as in the warp. Then after a few repeats I dropped the green and used natural in its place. It is very different. The one on the right shows the green replaced by natural for a few repeats a short way above each hem. Although I like the towel on the right best, both are nice.

My loved one's health issue continues to suck most of the time and energy out of us both. I finished weaving this warp back in April. There is one more waffle warp done since then. I will write about that one next time. And (Hooray!) there is another new warp on my loom. More to come . . .

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

The Red Ones

You may have noticed towels from my fourth adventure in waffle weave in a photo from two posts ago. Take a look at the bottom of the stack and you will see them. They are still waffle weave but slightly different from the first three.

Four Cotton Waffle Weave Hand Towels
They are in order as woven, the red one on the left.

The waffles are actually natural
with a navy blue marl through the centers.

Three previous waffle warps were all my 7-shaft version of Draft #388 from the Carol Strickler  AWeaver’s Book of 8-Shaft Patterns. The resulting towels were satisfying to weave and are pleasant to use. Yet, while weaving them the idea of trying for an even smaller waffle kept coming to me. Here you see my 6-shaft version of the same draft. The waffles are woven on four shafts with plain weave (red ends) on the other two.

Reverse side
The marled yarn is more obvious on this side.

The warp is 16/2 cotton in Natural and Red with 20/2 Navy blue marl. I didn't have a good variegated yarn for the highlights through the waffle cell centers. The marl worked just as well here. At first I chose a sett of 34 e.p.i. After sampling I decided to switch to 36 e.p.i. Weaving “to square” is always my aim and even though the change was slight it did help. Still, it isn't perfectly to square.

It's fun to be able to easily create a border effect by a slight change in weft color orders. I'm sure there are lots of possibilities to be explored for border treatments. Fun to be had!

The red ones are my favorite waffle weave towels so far. They are a slightly finer weave than the previous three versions and are a nice weight for drying hands.

Border effect by changing weft color order

Someone near and dear to me is very ill so weaving and blogging have taken a back seat lately. Warm weather and working outdoors are also keeping me from my loom. My heart is with all three and even though I am not writing as often, the work continues. I will check in here as often as I am able.

It is good to be alive. I wish you all good health, a lovely summer, beautiful gardens, happy weaving and maybe even a bit of fun as well.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Teal Waffles

A cone of 16/2 dark teal cotton found its way to my stash. It sat on the shelf for a long time. I have not been using 16/2 and since I haven’t used it I haven’t collected many cones of this size. Recent waffle adventures were the perfect chance to use what little 16/2 I had.

The "right" side of Teal Waffles hand towel

The lighter stripes in this warp are actually a lovely pale grey. I expected the bright colors in the variegated yarn to really pop where they peek through in the center of each waffle cell. It seems the teal yarn has a bit more loft than yarns in previous warps. It bloomed slightly in the wash and now the colors barely show at all.

The "wrong" side of Teal Waffles hand towel

The reverse side is nice though. That is where those colors really sing. When the towels were all finished and washed I wished they'd been hemmed to the other side making the reverse the "right" side. 

The nice thing is, when drying hands, both sides of the towel are easily visible and enjoyed. And besides, there is always the next warp.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

A Sweet Stack of Waffles

A great waffle stack
Towels from four warps beginning with the first one on down

Look at that sweet stack of waffles! These are what I still have of four separate waffle warps. There are fewer left of the top two because they were the earliest. Additional Waffle Weave warps have come off my loom since my previous post when I whacked the pink towel. My fifth waffle warp is off the loom and waiting to be cut apart and hemmed. There will be more about the latter warps in future posts. I am having a lot of fun weaving waffles. Can you tell?

The latest addition to our back garden
We look forward to warm weather
 out in the new Gazebo.

In the mean time the great outdoors has been calling and keeping me busy. Yard work is fun in spite of frequent pouring rain. We dodge the drenching when we can and put up with the damp when we must. Going outside and thinking about growing things (things other than weeds!) is invigorating. Often even if I don’t feel like it, I head out there thinking of doing a specific small task or two. Before I know it I am enjoying the work and making real progress. My husband and I look forward to warmer, dryer weather. We look forward to leaves on trees, colorful flowers and fresh vegetables in our own yard. All the toil is worth the resulting satisfaction and enjoyment.

It can be like that with weaving, too. Sometimes it seems so pointless. Why am I doing this? It takes so much time. Perfectly acceptable commercially woven towels, rag rugs, baby blankets, etc. are available at discount stores. Yet, there is a difference. Having beautiful and useful handwoven things in our home is satisfying. Cloth of my own making speaks to me of who I am and what I have accomplished. Working at the warping mill, the loom, the sewing machine is what I do and have always done best. Color, proportion and design speak to me. A long list of ideas and goals spurs me on to create. Even repeating a draft can be an adventure. There is always another color arrangement, another yarn combination, another end purpose. The possibilities are endless and fascinating. The end product gives me satisfaction; the process brings me joy. And giving handwoven gifts is a unique way to express my love for friends and family.

Detail, Pink 7H Waffle Weave Towel
16/2 Cotton, Sett: 36 e.p.i.

Detail, Reverse side Pink 7H Waffle Weave Towel

Lately there have been some distractions and distresses in my life. But somehow, even if it’s late at night, I find time to weave. I create unique gifts, beautify my home, and feed my creative spirit. I weave. What could be better? Sunny weather, maybe??? Ha!

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

A Slice of Pink -OR- Don’t Try This at Home

Oops!

It was late at night and I was in a hurry to finish. This is one way to add to my personal collection of kitchen hand towels. But I wouldn’t recommend it.

As soon as I took the last snip it was clear what was wrong. All the way up through the scissors I could feel the difference between single and double layers. Alas!

If not for the purple borders I could have salvaged this towel by hemming it slightly shorter. Oh, well. We will use it here at home and it will serve as a reminder to me: Slow down, be careful and get more sleep.

This one is a "keeper"

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Departures

Departure #1: A new technique

Each year my guild hosts a summer meeting. Topics vary but it is always a chance to gather with friends and learn something new, perhaps a bit tangential to weaving. At last summer’s program I learned Locker Hooking, an easy and satisfying technique in which fabric loops are pulled up through a canvas and locked into place by way of a cord running through the loops. After the program I was inspired to hook a larger piece.

When I finally managed to find a large piece of canvas I eagerly began hooking a piano-key border in black and blue strips cut from tee shirts. The single knit fabric makes a nice cushy structure and I was pleased. But once the border was in place I could not decide how to proceed with the center/main design area of the rug. I wanted to hook detailed images but was afraid because this was my first stab at Locker Hooking a big project on my own.

Locker Hooked Pond Rug

Please permit here a slight departure. Over the past summer my husband and I have been working to redesign our back yard. We increased the size of our little Goldfish Pond from 150 gallons to 300 gallons. It is only a stock tank sunk into the ground but we like it. With twice the space our fish are flourishing and we have employed new technologies for fighting algae. In the past Raccoons and Great Blue Herons have decimated our fish population but we decided not to add a protective cover mesh on the new pond. Instead we built a camouflaged hidey cave on the pond floor. Five months later the water is still clear, our fish are survivors and we can see and enjoy them better. Knock on wood!

Chart on page 141 inspired
my Pond Rug design

Anyway, ponds and fish had been on my mind when I finally came back around to Locker Hooking. Searching for inspiration I scoured my library for charted needlework designs. In “The Filet Crochet Book” by Chris Rankin I found a design of fish and flowers breaking through borders. Adjusting the figures to fit my canvas, I added the water lily leaves and bud and then filled the background to look like water. There was a bright orange tee shirt in my rag stash – perfect for either Goldfish or Koi. It all came together nicely and I spent many hours over Christmas and into January happily hooking.

Departure #2: Time Away

The entire second half of January I was away from home. Somewhere in my travels I caught this year’s dreadful cold/flu. Four weeks later I am still coughing and wheezing but feeling grateful to be improving every day. I finished my pond rug the night before I left on the trip but haven’t had time or energy to post about it until now.

Return: Home Again and Back to Weaving

The Pond Rug works well in front of our refrigerator where it catches errant ice cubes from the (ridiculous and messy) in-door dispenser. It makes me smile every time I step in the pond!

While I was away my husband bought me another package of the hard-to-find hooking canvas. Further pond ideas are dancing in my head. Maybe they are “swimming” in my head? But those will have to percolate in my mind for a bit because these days I am back at my loom and Waffle Weaving away. It is all fun!

May you stay well.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver