Before We Weave Ahead

My Structures Study Group has moved ahead to another weaving technique. Before we head over there, here are a few more photos of my Color and Weave adventures.

Changing color order in the weft changes the direction of all the little stripes. This swatch is 16/2 cotton sett at 30 e.p.i. The draft is an 8H Shadow Weave, #271 from Stickler.

Here is an experiment using variegated yarns at regular intervals in both warp and weft. The draft is the same. This warp is 20/2 cotton sett at 35 e.p.i. These colors really sing, don't they?

These two photos are another warp of Stickler #271. This time I used 8/2 Tencel in Silver Grey and Hunter. The scarf is hemmed because I always have trouble with scarf fringes catching on things and generally getting in my way. The extra little bit here is woven with the opposite color order. I was sorry that there wasn't enough warp left to weave and entire scarf this way.

Now for the RANT portion of my message:

Why does everything always have to change? I was happy with the old light bulbs, toilets that effectively flushed, detergents that fought grease, so many things . . . There are those who consider change to be progress. I like tried and true. Old is not necessarily bad. If that is too stick-in-the-mud, fine. But it is my opinion and I will gladly stand my ground because it is my ground.

And now Blogger has changed. The old one was fine and even though comments seemed unworkable, I was happy with the old interface. Why do we constantly have to reinvent the wheel?

Okay, I put that out there and I do appreciate your patience with my rant. Fortunately, I was able to revert. Otherwise this post would not be published. It may not even look right when it does. We shall see.

Warp On/Weave Off,
RepWeaver

Cottolin Gothic

Cottolin Towels woven in
8H Gothic Cross Shadow Weave

It’s a rare rainy July morning and I'm Back-Blogged. I've simply lost track of the order of recent projects. I wove these towels months ago and can't remember what came before and what came after them. Checking my records will set it right.

Piles of recent work with my camera perched among them cover our dining room table awaiting attention. Lots of weaving time has been one of the few benefits of being stuck in since March. That and lots of gardening time. But since the virus hit my husband has been working from home and my computer time has been limited so posting opportunities have been few.

The Bull’s Eye Cottolin towels were such a success that I wanted to weave more. A fellow Structures Study Group member, Shelly, shared a draft for another Gothic Cross Shadow Weave that I liked very much. At the meeting she wore a smashing scarf she’d woven using this draft. I immediately wanted to weave her Gothic Cross. The draft comes from 1000 Patterns in 4, 6, 8 Harness Shadow Weave by Marian Powell.

Here I used 22/2 Cottolin sett at 20 e.p.i. The first warp is Natural paired with #2048 Dark Olive Grey. The second warp is Natural paired with #2080 Red.

Gothic Cross in Natural and Dark Olive Grey

Gothic Cross with the weft color order reversed

This design is dramatic but really very simple. The colors are used every other one in both warp and weft. The first photo is woven according to the draft. The second one shows the effect of changing the order of the two colors in the weft. Isn't the difference striking?

This swatch shows the effect of
throwing two Natural weft shots in a row.

These were fun to weave. They are fun to use, too. The time was well spent. If you are stuck at home, think about weaving some for yourself and for those you love.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

 

Cottolin Gothic Towels, Detail

Yarns with a Mysterious Past

A group of scarves from the same warp
various weft colors and color orders
8H Shadow Weave, Strickler #271

Sometimes yarns come to me without a clue to their source or history. Several large cones of a yarn marked 8/2 “Rayon Slub” have been on my shelf for rather a long while. There is no knowing how long they sat on the shelf of an unknown weaver before they found their way to me. These are yarns with a mysterious past.

I have woven with this 8/2 “Rayon Slub” before and it made a lovely, soft, lustrous cloth. But this time around I noticed something new.

The draft for these scarves is an 8H Shadow Weave, #271 in Carol Strickler’s book. The warp is two colors, “Ink” and White. It was fun to try using different combinations of colors and color orders for the weft colors. The variations can be dramatically different. 

I wove six scarves each 6” x 70” finished. At each end I wove 36 shots with sewing thread as weft for the hems. Each of them was hemmed on the sewing machine using a triple-stitch zigzag. Then they all went into the washer and the dryer for finishing. It was then that I noticed the problem.

Various weft colors and weft color orders

They all washed beautifully but what I could not escape was a nasty chemical odor. It would seem that chemicals used to produce this yarn lingered long afterward. Here I had spent many hours weaving six lovely scarves unwearable by anyone with a sense of smell. Bother!

Turning to the Internet to search for explanation and/or solution I read various methods to reduce the odor. One suggestion was to launder using Borax and hot water. I tried this on the scarf with purple as a weft color. The purple bled into the white warp but it actually looks pretty that way. Still the stench remained. Nothing I tried worked to remove it.

What could I do? What did I do? I folded those six scarves into a nice neat pile, stuffed them onto an upper shelf and forgot about them.

That was way back in March. We have all been thinking about other things since then. Who knew a virus from China would stop just about everything? Our home office has become a virtual workplace, leaving little time for fun stuff such as blogging. But today, a rare day of availability, while writing to post I went to find these scarves.

The infamous "stinky" purple scarf, washed with hot water and Borax
The purple weft bled to dye the white warp lavender
Once the odor dissipated the result is a nice scarf.

Wonder of wonders, the odor is gone! The “aged” scarves are no longer stinky. Perhaps wet finished unleashed residual chemicals that have off-gassed over time. Unless someone can enlighten me further, I’ll go with that explanation. I am please that these scarves will be wearable and the weaving of them was not in vain.

Stay well and keep weaving.

Warp On/Weave Off,

RepWeaver

Tax Day and Bull’s Eyes

Kitchen Hand Towel
Navy & Natural 22/2 Cottolin, Color & Weave Effect

After Samitum my Structures Group turned to Shadow Weave. The topic was soon expanded to Color and Weave Effect. A draft that caught my eye is in a wonderful book titled “Favorite Scandinavian Projects to Weave: 45 Stylish Designs for the Modern Home” by Tina Ignell of Scandinavian Weaving Magazine. For my study group project I chose the draft “Black and White Hand Towels with Color Effects” found on page 62.

On my shelf for some time now have been several full tubes of Cottolin plus many partial tubes of varying amounts. Some of it once belonged to fellow weavers and friends so it holds special meaning for me. Some of it came to me when a workshop was cancelled after the Sept. 11^th attacks. It is that old. I have been meaning to get around to using these Cottolins. This draft proved the perfect opportunity.

Cottolin Towels hanging off the back of my loom
Four different warps/Four color ways
I had fun trying highlight colors for selvedges and hems

Cottolin makes an excellent Kitchen Towel. It is strong, absorbent, has a pleasing hand, is readily available and comes in beautiful colors. It is pleasant to work with, too. I used much of the yarn from my stash. Isn't stash busting one of the best reasons for placing a new yarn order?

The structure for these kitchen towels is an 8 Harness point twill with both warp and weft ends alternating between black and natural. The Bull’s eye effect is striking and simple. The towels are a joy to weave and to use.

Kitchen Hand Towel
Garnet & Natural 22/2 Cottolin, Color & Weave Effect

This book is fantastic. I aim to weave several of the projects. Be aware that in early editions of the book this draft contains errors. Check for the “Errata” supplement page containing corrections for three of the book’s projects.

There are times when everything seems wrong. Times when it seems there's a Bull's Eye on your back. Being April 15, here in the USA it is Tax Day. Sadly it is an extra stressful occasion for many, many Americans. May each of you here and across the globe be and remain well. May the challenges we face make us stronger, encourage us to greater achievement and gratitude for good times. Spring is here. It is a time of renewal and looking ahead to brighter days.

Warp On/Weave Off, 

RepWeaver