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~ Jean Williams, Handweaver

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Tag Archives: Table Runners

Another One for the Books

14 Monday Nov 2016

Posted by jeanweaves in Weaving Inspiration

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Columbia Weavers & Spinners Guild, Scarves, Table Runners, Textiles, Towels, Weaving

2016 Holiday Exhibition and Sale Postcard

2016 Holiday Exhibition and Sale Postcard

The annual Holiday Exhibition and Sale for our local Columbia Weavers and Spinners Guild has just finished. Those participants selling, and many fellow guild members besides, put in hours preparing our wares for the big weekend and so enjoy each other’s company for the three day event.

The wall of scarves

The wall of scarves

I only do this one local event each year and I have great respect for those who sell at multiple events throughout the season. Just the set-up and take-down require a lot of energy, muscle, and forethought—how best to display and how best to store for another event. But before the weekend ever arrives, there is also all the loving labor that goes into each piece.

The ever popular towel display

The ever popular towel display

Those of us who produce to exhibit and sell soak up the inspiration of seeing how others use their talents. And we usually support each other generously and treasure each item we bring home!

And of course we take notes for 2017. Always planning ahead. Always room for improvement. Isn’t inspiration great!

Have you been to any local art fairs lately?

Happiness Is…

17 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by jeanweaves in creating, Looms, Planning

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Creativity, Handweaving, Projects, Table Runners

View from the front, warp chains threaded through the reed.

8-shaft loom, ready to thread

Happiness is discovering that the runner ordered to match a previous purchase was woven on the 8-shaft loom, not the draw loom.

This is a game-changer in terms of how long it will take to weave the order. The draw loom takes way longer to thread than the 8-shaft loom. The current project on the 8-shaft loom takes way less time to weave off than the damask on the draw loom.

The draw loom with damask project

The draw loom with damask project

You would think I’d remember which loom I used to weave a project. After all, I only have the two looms. But once I take one warp off and put another on, my mind moves to the next combination of colors, weaves, and threads.

Throw in the holidays, family obligations out of state, along with another weaving order, and the difference in looms makes me very happy indeed. This is indeed doable!

I hope you find similar fortuitous discoveries during this busy season!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

New Year, Revisiting Old Techniques

16 Friday Jan 2015

Posted by jeanweaves in Doubleweave, Planning, Weaving Inspiration

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creative inspiration, Double Weave, Handwoven Magazine, Table Runners, Weaver's, Weaving

January holds all sorts of possibilities. Old deadlines are past and there’s time now to consider more carefully what goes on the loom rather than assuming it will be another towel run. This is a great time to revisit those weave structures that I don’t get to work on usually.

Last January I sampled some Finn weave and figured double weave. That was a small project just to see if I could do it. But all through the year, a thought was niggling at the back of my mind: what if I set up the draw loom for double weave? I’ve done it before, although it’s been many years ago. Can I do it again?

Double weave articles abound in Weaver's and Handwoven.

Double weave articles abound in Weaver’s and Handwoven.

The first step for now was to review what resources I have on double weave. I have many back issues of Weaver’s and Handwoven. “Colonial Double Weave” by Madelyn Van der Hoogt in Weaver’s Issue 12 has great cross-section drawings of what the threads are actually doing and how to weave an overshot pattern as double weave. Then Weaver’s Issue 17 has several articles on double weave color and design. Weaver’s Issue 32 has articles by Bonnie Inouye and Doramay Keasbey on manipulating double weave drafts. And the November/December 2011 Handwoven has an article by Judith Yamamoto and Patricia Stewart on two different takes of one draft.

A page from a 2002 double weave workshop

A page from a 2002 double weave workshop

I’ve also attended numerous workshops over the years, one of which was entirely on double weave. Ingrid Boesel visited our guild in 2002 to teach about color in double weave. My binder included photos of our round-robin projects along with the drafts. It’s fascinating to see how different colors affect the look of a fabric.

Looking through these articles and studies was just the jump start I needed. A warp of dark blue and medium blues went on my small loom to refresh my memory. I sampled a selection of weft colors, settled on one, and took off.

Double weave sample (lower right) and resulting runner

Double weave sample (lower right) and resulting runner

Overall I’m pleased with the result and am already winding a follow-up warp with improvements. My “light” side doesn’t have to be stripes to match block arrangements; I’m blending the light colors to see how that looks. I’m also going to sett the warp closer (48 epi for 10/2 mercerized cotton vs. 40 epi as in the first warp). And I do have to be careful about weft skips on the underside, but because this is plain weave, the repairs are not difficult. And then there’s the question of whether or not to join at the edges. I chose to join on this runner, but it puckers a little because of that, meaning one layer pulled in more. I’ll have to leave the edges open next time. An ounce of prevention…

Once I get warmed up, my plan is to expand to the draw loom. With my 20 pattern shafts, I think I can weave five pattern blocks of double weave compared to just two blocks on my 8-shaft loom. An exploration of block arrangement and manipulation is in the wings!

Moving into Autumn

06 Friday Sep 2013

Posted by jeanweaves in Overshot, Table Runners, Towels, Uncategorized

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Table Runners, Towels, Weaving

Autumn is my favorite season.  The weather cools down (or is supposed to!). Leaves start to change color in our part of the country. Winter squashes like butternut and acorn ripen. Apples appear in the farmers’ market. Hmmm…nice time of year!

The lemon yellow and daffodil gold hand towels are finished and off the loom. Spearmint green worked well as a weft, so that showed up in more than just one towel. These soft colors complement each other. The burnt orange pushed the yellow to the other side of the spectrum and resulted in a sassy, bold look that made the woven motif pop!

autum-1The hand towels were quickly replaced on the small loom with warp for overshot table runners. Overshot is a weave structure most often seen in early American coverlets. Snowballs, roses, stars, pine trees and other figures combine to make the overall design. Usually, overshot is woven on a finer warp using a heavier “pattern” weft alternating with a finer “tie-down” weft. Having two wefts means weaving with two shuttles but they are needed to create a stable cloth.

The longer floating weft threads of overshot give the structure its name. Each throw of the shuttle is called a “shot.” The pattern weft is shot over several warp threads before being tied down. The advantages are very clear motifs and uninterrupted colors. Because of the floats, an overshot works better in textiles like coverlets or table runners rather than kitchen towels. For these runners, the red threads float over the natural threads to show a bright rose-like figure.

autum-2The variety of overshot designs make them popular for traditional weaving. Volumes have been written, tracing the motifs through the various parts of the country.American Woven Coverlets by Carol Strickler (1987, Interweave Press) is a great resource. American Star Work Coverlets by Judith Gordon (1995, Design Books) is another. Look them up to find out more about overshot!

Greetings from the Weaving Room!

09 Friday Aug 2013

Posted by jeanweaves in Table Runners, Towels, Uncategorized

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Damask, Table Runners, Towels, Weaving

It’s another pleasant, late summer day in Missouri. The beans are slowing down and the tomatoes are trying to ripen before the squirrels get them. They are on their own. I’m working on a couple new warps!

Last week, I put the draw attachment back on my Glimakra loom and rethreaded a damask warp, this one in forest green to grace holiday tables. I’m using a star pattern from an early coverlet which repeats for the length. The beauty of this damask threading is that I can change patterns at will and get a variety of designs on one warp.

tumblr_inline_mr9nl1hHDc1qz4rgpThe other warp on my smaller loom is for hand towels. I combined a lemon yellow cotton with a daffodil cotton to make nice, thirsty towels. I just wish I had more of each color to use as weft as well, but alas, both cones are empty now. So it’s time to get creative in using what’s on the shelf: perhaps a soft spearmint green, perhaps a bold orange, maybe a paler butter yellow. We’ll see what works.

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