More Mat Musings

This is the last of Project 3's small mats, Mat #6. It's the thickest of the 6. It's small, thicker, but not at all difficult. I was amazed at how much THICKER it is than the other 5 mats. My overshot tabby yarn was also wool, not the cotton called for in our instructions. I'll get a little braver later this week and wash one of these mats...right now I'm just petting and admiring them.

Dianna

Small Mat Musings

Project 3 is so much FUN!!

Here is the table runner, hot off the loom, so to speak.

A BIGGGG hint in choosing which colors to use was given by Zina Mae....take the 5-7 yarns you think you'd like to use, then twist them together, like you see in this photo. the colors should flow together without 'fighting' with one another.

I would recommend finding your WEFT yarns first...then find your cotton warp. I did NOT use any cotton in my weft. I found wool weft yarn which matched the cotton warp. My whole Project was woven using wool weft.

Other small hints:

Use the hem stitch on each end of your mats and runner. This way, when you take it off the loom, it's FINISHED...just cut them apart!

If you use a 4 inch divider between mats, you'll get a little longer fringe, in case you'd like to tie knots.

Remember: you don't need any great amount of any one yarn.

Don't forget to consider a floating selvage....or just be prepared to fuss a little with those selvages when patterning.

Bookmarks GALLORE!!

Well, I have BOOKMARKS!!! and lots of them. Actually, I have two very long and colorful BANDS. I had enough warp left from finishing Project 2, I just played with the 8/4 cotton. I have learned alot about making the WARP look interesting by using different colors in the WEFT. It's been fun. Dianna

I'm concerned about the edges also..the manual states..."cut off the filler about 1" beyond the selvage and begin the next color from the opposite side". OK , but how do we deal with all these 1" tails on the edge? Generally these can be doubled back, but not on this narrow warp. Any ideas?

Meet Half of the Ayottes

Bob titles this Boo (Roberta) at the loom.

So here is half of the authors of our Handweaving with Robert and Roberta. Roberta, please tell us what you are weaving that is so colorful! And is this still your origianl LeClerc loom?

My apologies that two of the photos in the previous post don't show themselves. I don't know why. I keep playing with options like downloading a web album via Picassa to attach an entire album to the blog but my computer is too old/weak to pull it off. Possibly those two photos got messed up in my attempts. A new computer by April?

Are you bookmarks multiplying?

I'm working on Bookmark H. How about you? Notice my treadling error. A design element?
Some things I've changed:
1. I'm weaving A into B, then placing spacers for the fringe, then C into D, then spacers, etc. The idea is to sew
these 15-inch strips together to make a placemat.
2. I'm hem stitching the ends, since that is a new skill for me and this is good practice.

Some Questions I have for our next meeting:
1. How did you carry the yarns up the sides to the next color change? Or did you cut the yarns and pull them to the back? Or another good idea?
2. How did you do your edges? Exactly as the book suggested? Or with a floating selvege as Dianna showed us last time? Or another way?
3. Did anyone else merely skim the directions? I've reversed the Light and Dark yarns on at least one bookmark. I know better when I'm sewing. So why did I think I could get away with it when weaving?


Tips I've heard:
1. Photocopy your diagrams to mark your own design notes on them.
2. Size 3 crochet yarns might substitute for the 8/4 cotton. Can you tell from these photos? If you are waiting for a yarn order, this might give you something to warp with until your order arrives.

3. Sharon O found a nifty document holder that can attach to your computer. She has hers on her loom to hold her design notes/ pattern.

Tell us your tips. Post your photos!

Children's Garden Full of Weavers

So much to learn and so little time! But some mentors stepped up and we are getting warped! ("You have to be warped to weave." Syne Mitchell, http://www.weavecast.com/ ) Thanks to Dorothy Hill for helping new weavers learn the warping boards; Dianna Chesley, Lois Johnson, Cheryl Reed for helping to sley the reeds; Jane Campbell for tutoring in accessing this blog, and the rest who put the DFA motto of "Each one, Teach one" into practice. Dianna gave us some tips she gleaned from Larry Taylor. Lois shared how she uses the basic plans, even for these bookmarks in Project One, to make other items. Her Handweaving with R & R is a reference book after it was an instructional course.

Share what you plan to weave for Project One in addition to the bookmarks or instead of them.