Day: January 12, 2016

Tools Day: Magnets

Karen

I am trying a new thing–magnets. Little magnets hold a cartoon in place behind my small tapestry. The magnets need to be strong so the cartoon does not shift. Yet, I want to be able to adjust or to completely remove the cartoon easily.

Small tapestry woven from the back, line by line.
Small tapestry is woven from the back, line by line. Three strands of Fåro wool are blended for the weft.

I have noticed other tapestry weavers using small rare earth magnets for this purpose, so I decided to give it a try. “Steve, do we have any rare earth magnets on hand?,” I asked. Steve went out to the garage, and came back with these. Perfect! Finally, a use for the magnets he had salvaged from worn out electric toothbrushes over the years!

Magnets for holding a cartoon behind a small tapestry weaving.
Magnets, salvaged from worn-out electric toothbrushes, give an extremely tight grasp for holding a cartoon behind a small tapestry.
Magnets hold the cartoon behind the weaving. Old toothbrush magnets!
With magnets in place, it is easy to raise the cartoon to ink the warp at strategic points, and then to let the cartoon drop out of the way while weaving. The tight toothbrush magnets keep the cartoon from shifting out of place.
Bridge under construction... Small tapestry.
Bridge under construction…

May you know what to discard and what to keep.

Until next time,
Karen