New Handwoven Band Is Just Right

I have an ample stash of handwoven bands. Still, I am making a new handwoven band that is “just right” for the strap on a simple shoulder bag I am making from a rag rug remnant. I pull several near-empty tubes of 12/6 cotton rug warp from the shelves to wind a five-meter warp. I enjoy finding bits of rug warp that can work together—all left over from various rag rug projects.

Using 12/6 cotton rug warp to thread the heddles on the Glimåkra two-treadle band loom.

I warp the band loom and start weaving. Ah, what a pleasure to make a specific strap for a specific bag! And all of it from what I have on hand. It’s a picture of the way love takes odds and ends like you and me, and finds a way to make us fit together.

Band for handbag strap is about 4.2cm wide. The warp is long enough for a handbag strap, plus a few meters extra. 🙂
Blue 12/6 cotton weft makes the selvedges look good, since it is the same blue as the outer threads on both sides of the band.
Band-loom weaving is rhythmic and relaxing. Some unevenness in the warp is evidenced by the slight curve at the fell line. I’m not worried. It will straighten itself out as I keep weaving.

It’s like preparing a simple meal for family. You figure out what you have, you scrape together what you can, and you spend time in the kitchen to put it all together. It’s not fancy, nor is it perfect. But it’s good. Love, after all, is the primary ingredient for a good family meal. Love is the primary ingredient for a lot of good things, isn’t it?

May your family meals be really good.

Happy weaving,
Karen

Last Little Bit of Warp

All the rugs in the set are woven, and there is a little bit of warp left on the loom. Not enough for another rug. Now what? This is where the fun begins! I have some ideas to play out on the loom. End-of-Warp experiments yield fantastic results.

I arrange remaining weft fabric strips into piles of blue, green, red, and yellow/white. Double binding uses a sequence of dark and light wefts. So, I work through the color piles in order, starting with the blues for one pick, and then, going in reverse order, the yellows/whites for the next pick. The result is vertical columns of adjacent blocks that have the color order going in opposite directions, with the reds converging in the middle.

Cushion cover: Off the loom, I fold this attractive rag weave rectangle in half, short sides together, and machine-stitch the two long sides closed. The remaining open end has handwoven bands, from my ever-ready band stash, for tie closures. Voila! With a cushion inserted, I have a new seat cushion for driving the truck. It’s perfect!

Ink and watercolor sketch as part of my new sketchbook practice.

May you use every last bit of your warp.

Happy experimenting,
Karen

Looms Have Personality and Year in Review Video

How do you keep five floor looms busy? You sit at them, one loom at a time. Each loom has its own personality. Or, just maybe, the personality of the loom is more about how the loom makes me feel when I’m active with the loom to turn threads into cloth.

The 120cm Glimåkra Standard Vertical Countermarch is my Queen of Looms.
Now: Spaced Rep rag rugs. Two more rugs on this warp.
Next: Jämtlandsdräll (Crackle) rag rugs

The 100cm Glimåkra Ideal Horizontal Countermarch is my Workhorse of Looms.
Now: Empty
Next: Pictorial Tapestry (subject matter to be determined)

The 70cm Isenhower Little Horizontal Countermarch is my Princess of Looms.
Now: Pictorial Tapestry sampler. Currently, “Figs and Coffee.”
Next: unknown

The 120cm Glimåkra Standard Horizontal Countermarch with Myrehed Combination Drawloom Attachment is my Gentle Giant of Looms.
Now: Being dressed for cottolin/linen napkins in 6-shaft broken twill
Next: unknown

The 70cm Glimåkra Julia Horizontal Countermarch is my Cinderella of Looms.
Now: Two-block broken twill cottolin/linen placemats
Next: Fabric for a stylish cape, using a vintage sewing pattern

Let’s take a look back to see how these looms showed their personalities in 2022!

What personality does your loom(s) have?

May your heart and soul flourish in the new year.

Happy Weaving New Year,
Karen

Let it Snow! Drawloom Treasures

Let it snow indoors! New Christmas snowflake banners are suspended up high, above our kitchen counter, facing our open living room. The three mostly-blue banners hang in mid-air so they can be viewed from either side. These are lasting treasures from the drawloom that I can bring out year after year. They’ll never get old.

Making loops from a handwoven band for hanging the banners. First, I zigzag to secure ends, and then cut the strips apart.
Handwoven linen band is cut into segments.
Loops are machine-stitched to back of banner hem with two rows of straight basting stitches (easy to remove later).

Christmas is new every year. There are new sights and sounds that add to the season. The message of Christmas is the same as always, though, that God loved us in this way—he sent his Son Jesus to be born into our world so that whoever believes in him may be born into God’s family. The newness is in God’s mercy, new every morning.

Ready for display!

Raise banners of joy to celebrate. Glory to the newborn King.

Merry Christmas!

May you celebrate from the heart.

Glad tidings of Christ’s birth,
Karen

Elegant Linen at the Top

Linen puts elegance in the picture. That’s why I am using 16/2 linen to make hanging loops for my three Christmas Snowflake banners. Before I hang the festive banners, though, I am embracing Thanksgiving. More than a food-filled holiday, Givingthanks is a treasure-filled way of living.

Short warping sticks on the warp beam of the Glimåkra Band Loom help the linen warp threads wind on with even tension. Blue basket underneath catches the warping sticks as they fall when I advance the warp.
Band made with 16/2 linen, warp and weft, is a sturdy band. The saturated blue shows off the glimmering luster of linen.
I like to weave as far as I possibly can, sometimes squeezing the last few weft picks through an increasingly smaller shed. Until it is nearly impossible to do one more pick.
Weaving to the end.
Cutting off reveals a lustrous woven band, perfect for the Christmas Snowflake Banners.

Our heavenly Father’s faithfulness is displayed like a banner in our lives when we attach the elegance of a thankful heart to everything we encounter. This season of gratitude extends for a lifetime.

Christmas Snowflake Banners, woven on the drawloom. Each banner will have three or more loops at the top edge, through which a rod will be inserted for suspending the festive banners for display.

Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give him thanks. Praise his name. For the LORD is good. His loyal love endures, and he is faithful through all generations.

May you overflow with thanks.

Thankful for you,
Karen