Tag Archive | loom

More Finished UFO’s

Jun6

Okay, I’m late posting again but it is June, busy weather as I’m sure you know. Got the garden Mostly in, but it keeps going from cold and wet to blazing hot, not good for gardens or people! Today is over cast but not raining. Yet. Forecast is for clearing and moderate temps. I’ll believe it when I see it…

…Like you do with my promised posting!  Ah well. I frogged the supposed shrug as it was a garment no one could wear. Now it’s just a plain tunic, comfortable but not very flattering for me. There is no shaping, I could not find a belt but as I have no waist, I’m not sure that would matter. I thought of letting Madelyn model it but it’s way too big for her.

But here it is laid out flat. The neckline was a picot, bind off. The sleeves an applied I-Cord.  The hem also Picot bind off. I picked up the stitches, knit around and then worked the BO.

 

12″ Alpaca squares woven in three colors

Picked up stitches, worked 3 rows of stockinet- knit side inside so it would curl to the right side and then the Picot Bind off.

Applied I-cord for the sleeve.

Picked up hem stitches then knit in the round one round and bound off with the picot stitch. I didn’t want this one to curl.

And I found an anonymous old lady to model it. I think I need some sleeves under but this yarn does not sit well over clothing. It sticks and refuses to drape as it should. Works like your old sunday school flannel board! lol But this yarn is soooo comfy! Even tho it isn’t really a flattering garment I might wear it a lot just because it feels so good! I am at least happy that I finally found a use for all those squares and that lovely yarn.  Now I just have a vast selection of demo squares to make into something. And as we are coming up in fair season again I think I should plan a bit better with yarn choice so that I have a better chance of actually using the squares I weave while showing folk how it’;s done.

It was suggested  I do a WAL for making pants. I wasn’t thrilled with the idea but I saw a pair this morning somewhere that I think just might work this way. I wonder if I could possibly find that photo again… What’s chances? lol

School Weaving

May2

Had 5 kids at the table, 2 boys & 3 girls. One 1st grader, 1 6th grader and three in the 3rd. Small schools are interesting and fun! They all did well and finished their little rug. They took the cardboard loom and the wooden needles that Randy and I made home with them, hopefully to get used again.  I wouldn’t mind doing more with them.

My first grader drew this tiger for me. He says Thank You! lol

  

Ellie’s mom posted this the next morning. She says, “Ellie is weaving at breakfast this morning! Thanks again for sharing your skill.” Love it when they vole it!

Another project.

Apr29

 

Been meaning to make another one of these for some time now. Gabi’s WAL got me inspired.  The only towel in my stash was one I got for xmas from my $store shopping MIL a couple years ago. I just happen to have some kitchen cotton in the green-ish colors of the wreath. So here it is. I worked a slip stitch up from the outside bottom of each tri to kind of reinforce the edges for the tie string to hang from.  The ends are sewn into the hems  where I stitched the tris to the towel. The towel is cut about 2/3 of the towel and cut edge zig zagged, then gathered this time. I fitted it to the edge of the tri and pinned closely and sewed it down, on the back side first, then the same on the front side. Then stitched another row about a half inch above that to encase the raw edge of the towel. This one has not been washed yet so you may see some ends that will be clipped later.

This is a photo of the first one I made before I chained on the tie strings. It is no longer photogenic! lol But it’s been very handy and is still working despite it’s less than stellar condition. This one was pleated rather than gathered. You can do the dame thing with the towels you weave, too. But this is a quick  project. They make nice gifts as well.

I’m still working on the idea for an apron.

Up next is…

Apr9

It was supposed to be my new sweater but  was not working out for that. I bought this alpaca yarn on a good sale as it was being discontinued so I have a limited amount to work with. It’s Blue Sky, I’m sure I can get more. I think it was just the colorways that were being discontinued. Anyway, I think I found a way to use all these 12″ squares. It’s a knitting pattern but so simple that it will work for the squares. It’s just a matter of will it fit me?! I’m forging ahead and hoping for the best! lol

So here’s my layout. I have enough (I hope) Navy to knit the ribbing. If not I also still have some of the colors so it could be as colorful, almost, as the squares. Well, these are the blocks but I cannot get a picture of my present layout. It’s a camera issue. But this one is going to take awhile as I did not weave the ends in as I went. I’m sure I have advised you to do so, in the past. I guess this is another case of “do as I say, not as I do!’ lol It will be sewn together with an overhand stitch. Pinned each time to avoid stretching out of shape. It’s a very soft yarn. Soft and drape-y.

 

       

The other thing is that it is also getting toward gardening season. The rain (knock knock) has stopped and the sun is out. Water is quite high in streams and the lake. We’ll have a full lake this summer! Took a ride north yesterday and got a picture of Scott Mountain creek! It hasn’t run like this in years! I wish you could hear it as well. It was Roaring!! Love it! all the branch creeks and seasonal streamlets were adding to it and by the time it reached the Trinity River and on down the canyon to join Coffee Creek, that one was roaring as well! But CC does not seem close at all to flood tho a lot of people who have moved up here in recent years may be a bit anxious since they’ll never have seen spring run-off.

 

Another one done!

Mar26

This one I’ve learned to hate! I’ve assembled and frogged and reassembled and frogged… So what do you do then? Something that can’t,  at least easily, be undone. Get out the Singer! So here is the Singer Infinity Cowel. Done & finished.

It’s been so long-3 years, I think – that the band is gone & I’ve no idea what it is. A nice yarn… just wasn’t working for me.

I’m beginning g to feel a bit more like I may live. Still not over it, but better. Himself has it now, of course.

More….

Mar23

I’m going to have to put the red & green on hold for a bit. The idea was an apron, but I found the ball band which informed me that this was a fine wool. Not a good choice for such a utility garment! So in looking for another, I discovered several. The Grey has had me stumped for a few years. I think I’ll go with the stack of triangles. Already partly assembled it should not take long to come up with a pretty cowel. This fat yarn is also very soft! Don’t know why the photo won’t enlarge but you get the idea. I wove these on the 7″ Quilt Weaver Triangle. Still working on the finishing. Keep your fingers xed for me! That’s when you are not weaving yourself, of course!

 

Happy New Year 2019

Jan6

All my resolutions to keep this blog regular have failed so I guess I’ll just promise to do it when I think of it this year!  sigh….

  

But today it’s snowing. Lovely! If we get enough of this stuff maybe we won’t have such a “hot” summer this year!

Elsewhere I have been busy in the shop, & I’m signed up to teach a pin weaving class at Black Sheep this year. I’m a little disappointed that they did not take my more advanced class but am happy to be teaching the beginner class anyway. That’ll be the 4″ Multi, if you are interested. I’m going to offer the advanced class to OFFF and Lambtown. Maybe one of them will take it.

     I got out the peg loom and my Pentdelton Mills selvages with weaving a rug in mind. However, my sample turned out way too thick for a kitchen rug, which is what I had in mind, so I guess I’ll make a set of chair pads instead. My sample is rather pretty, even dh said so.

   And today I baked my Windmill Cookies. I paid $7 for a little jar of Mace so I thought I’d better use it. And I’ll see if I can find some other uses for this fancy spice. I like the flavor but it won’t go with everything.

And I read that modern mother’s like sleep sacks for their babies rather than blankets. I have to admit it makes sense. They were talking about babies smothering in the blankets. That seems unlikely to me, I never heard of a baby smothering in it’s blankets and the only problem I’ve ever found with them is keeping the baby covered. They sometimes kick them off in the night so that’s why I think the sleep sack is a good idea. It’s kind of like the old gown with the ribbon tied at the bottom, Kind of an extra long sweater with the hem sewn shut. I’m going to make one for my niece’s girl, due in April. Still trying to decide on the yarn to use.  The snow is so pretty, but I’m not wading out to the yarn shed today. I’ll wait until it’s done and not quite so cold and wet! But I have some alpaca squares I wove for a sweater for myself but found that I am not going to have enough. Maybe I’ll make one using those. Not exactly baby colors but maybe modern mother’s don’t do pink and blue anymore, either.

And I’m in a KAL with the doll knitters. That’s for movie evenings. Well, That’s about it. I think tonight will be comfort food. I’m thinking something featuring macaroni and tuna. Hope the power stays on….

Hope your new year is getting off to a lovely start!

 

A quick note…

May19

I posted  again under Pages but it apparently doesn’t send out or post to facebook. I need to explore this option more, I guess. Anyway, if you want to see the bit about weaving with wire you’ll find the link above.

MIL goes home tomorrow so I’ll be spending the last day with her. We’ve had a fun week but naturally I haven’t got a lot done on the looms or in the garden. Hope you are enjoying these brief spring (or autumn) days! It’s been lovely weather here. Two signs of spring.. Lupin and strawberries!

Spring

May4

I love the pink oaks. They may not show a lot of leaves but the little ones they have are such a pretty color. The dogwoods have blossomed out, too. Yes, I know they aren’t flowers but, like ducks, if it looks like a flower and blooms like a flower than I’m calling it a flower. I saw lupine, mules ears sunflowers, pinks, poppy’s, buck brush, red bud,  and the lilacs in the farm yards are also bursting out. Of course, I did not remember to take my camera today but I got this one yesterday.

I stopped at Greenview on the way home and got Himself 4 more asparagus plants. He’d better get them planted this time and not let them dry up first like he did last year.  I also got some onions sets: white, yellow, and red, & some bigger starting pots for the melons and winter squashes. The little starting tray I bought is only about 2 inches deep at the most. Since the seeds want to be planted an inch deep and will put down long roots immediately, I decided to give them a little more starting room in case we get another cold spell and they don’t get planted out right away. He’s picking up the deer fence today

The email I got from the wordpress tutorial today wants me to “create a feature” which is a post I commit to making posts on a subject at regular intervals. I think it’s going to have to be about weaving. You may wonder where the weaving content has gone these days. Well, it’s spring and gardening season, but  weaving is still important here and still happening tho slowly and pretty much in the background just now. However… keep watching! I am going to do this! Meanwhile, a bit of history, here’s what I did when I started out in this type of weaving. It was a 7′ hypotenuses triangle for shawls.

 Amy’s  Elsie’s  has a shiny strand woven in. Karen’s

  

Two views pf Kathy’s.  One before and one after weaving in the ribbons.

Below is a wool plaid shawl for my Pop and one for Stephanie of very soft furry nylon.

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Progress! No- really!

Apr20

I am just one shy of halfway done weaving my blocks. Counted 11 today. Yeah, not nearly one a day, but I think I denied that possibility right from the start. But now that Baseball season has started I will probably get more done as I can do that and listen to the game at the same time!  I think they are looking good (the squares, if not the team) but also they seem to have a little more draw-up than I figured on so I’ll likely end up needing more squares. Which may mean some creative coloring in order to do it since I have a limited amount of this yarn. Well, I have never objected to colorful so we’ll see.

I’ve up dated this blog so that I can post videos on it but so far have not been able to make that work. In part, I’m sure because of my very slow connection here in the backwoods. I’m going to try again today or tomorrow. A nice summer day, I think people are going to want to be outdoors instead of sitting by the fire with the internet so maybe there’ll be a little extra bandwidth for me!

If I can get this working I’ll have all sorts of things to share with you, we can weave together at last… so keep your fingers x-ed for me!!