band loom – Page 5 – Warped for Good

Tried and True: Another Use for Thrums

May 14, 2019May 13, 2019 Karen

Handwoven towels need handwoven hanging tabs. I finished the Vavstuga cottolin towel warp, so now it’s time to put my band loom to use. Why not use the warp thrums to make the woven band? The length of the thrums is too short for the band loom, so I am knotting two ends together for each strand.

Thrums are used to make a warp for the Glimåkra band loom. — Thrums ends are tied together to make a warp long enough for the Glimåkra band loom.

Glimakra band loom. — Cottolin band warp is from the towel warp. Unbleached cottolin is used for the weft.

Everything is starting out just fine, but my inexperience with the “weaver’s knot” proves problematic. One by one, the knots are working themselves loose. I re-tie each failed knot into a confident square knot. Finally, after three weaver’s knot failures, I decided to advance the warp far enough to get past the knots altogether. Smooth sailing after that, and I still ended up with plenty of woven band for the six woven towels.

Woven band for hanging tabs on handwoven towels. — Weaving about 30 cm before the knots, and about 40 cm after the knots. Each hanging tab is about 10 cm, so I have plenty of woven band for the six towels.

Using thrums to make coordinating tabs for handwoven towels. — Unwashed towel fabric. Using warp thread from the towels is a great way to make coordinating hanging tabs, as well as a satisfying use for some of the thrums.

I like finding another good use for the thrums. So, I will do this again. But next time, I’ll do a refresher on knot tying before I begin.

May your knots hold tight.

All the best,
Karen

Handwoven Treasured Leftovers

April 2, 2019April 1, 2019 Karen

In my bin of handwoven fabric, most of the pieces are leftovers, like a short section from the end of a towel warp, or a colorful sampling of weft from the beginning of a warp. But a few of these woven treasures are good-sized pieces that can be used to make something. So, since I want to make a bag for my large Freja tapestry frame, I look through my selection of handwoven fabric pieces.

Piecing handwoven fabric to make a large bag. — Piecing handwoven fabric to get the large side panels needed for the bag.

Making bag from handwoven fabric. — Lightweight fusible interfacing is applied to the back of the fabric. I adapted and enlarged McCall’s pattern 3894, and used the pattern instructions for the sequence of steps to make the bag.

Patterned band woven on the band loom. — Patterned band woven on the band loom, used for straps on the bag.

Sewing a bag from handwoven fabric. — Topstitching with red thread.

I find just what I need! Coming across these two significant lengths of fabric is like getting reacquainted with old friends. The meter of red and black cotton eight-shaft twill is something I wove in a Vavstuga class. And the blue cotton warp-printed yardage is fabric I wove to make a tiered skirt, a favorite garment that hangs in my closet. (See Quiet Friday: Handwoven Skirt.)

Bag with Freja loom is ready for a travel excursion in the Casita.

In the Casita - handwoven articles. — In the Casita.

Bag from handwoven fabric for Freja tapestry loom.

Casita tapestry to work on in the Casita. — Casita tapestry for quiet evenings in Big Bend state park in Texas. I may be able to finish it on this trip.

Bag for tapestry frame - made from handwoven cloth. — Blue cotton warp-printed fabric, red eight-shaft twill, and patterned band from the band loom. Treasures from the past, assembled together for a joyful today.

Treasures from the past come into today to bring value and meaning. Put treasures in your today that will add value to tomorrow. Everything can change in a day, so we can’t put our confidence in tomorrow. But every new day is from the Lord, who holds the future in his hands. Today is a gift. Live it fully. Who knows? Your joy today may be tomorrow’s treasure.

May you find treasures from the past.

Love,
Karen

Weaving History Carries Memories – Year in Review Video

January 8, 2019January 6, 2019 Karen

Transition. Changes. Adventure into the unknown. That describes 2018 for Steve and me. When I review my weaving history for the year, everything on the loom is attached to a memory. Like an old song that awakens our thoughts to past experiences, the Lizard tapestry certainly sparks in me revived memories of our transition season and the moving of looms. See Quiet Friday: Tapestry in Transition.

Removing the warp beam. Relocating the loom. — Steve unscrews a bolster that holds one side of the warp beam so I can remove the warp beam.

I began 2018 with a plan to weave coordinated fabrics for our Texas hill country home—towels, upholstery for bar stools, and placemats, explained in this post: Harmonized Weaving for the New Year. Accomplished! I also committed to weaving a gift for each of my three daughters (daughter and two son’s wives), as described in this post: Weaving a Gift. Accomplished two out of three! The final gift is nearing halfway on the loom right now.

Hemstitching at the beginning of the cotton throw. — Cotton throw has hemstitching at the beginning. The ends will be twisted for fringe when it’s taken from the loom.

Eight-shaft twill in an undulating pattern. Lightweight cotton throw. — Eight-shaft twill in an undulating pattern. Single-shuttle weaving gets me off to a fast start for 2019.

2019 is a continuation of transition, changes, and adventure, as we tiptoe into this retirement chapter. A drawloom is in the forecast, as well as some travel tapestry weaving, and more rag rugs, towels, scarves, and throws. And anything else we can think up. It’s going to be a good year! Thank you for coming along. I’m grateful to have you as a friend.

May you have much to look forward to.

Blessings to you,
Karen

Quiet Friday: Threads of Love

September 28, 2018September 27, 2018 Karen

Talk about thick and thirsty towels! Double weave makes these hand towels thick. And the linen in the cottolin threads makes them highly absorbent. The colors are fantastic together. When our daughter Melody moves with her little family to Chile, she can set up her new home with these made-for-her towels. My love is woven into every single pick.

I have included two short little videos just for the fun of it. Enjoy!

This project started in my weaving studio in our Houston home, where I beamed the warp.

And then we decided to move! We sold the house and moved into an apartment. The big loom was dismantled, with the towel warp on the back beam. Then, we moved all the pieces to our Texas hill country home.

Recently, I spent a week there to finish dressing the loom and weave all four towels. Whew! (Here’s what I did that week: Testing Color Surprises with My Little Helper and Weaving Deadline)

I wove hanging tabs on my band loom. And I discovered that I could showcase both sides of the colorful towel if I stitch the hanging tab on the side of the towel, off center.

The towels are hemmed and pressed, ready to brighten the day!

May you put threads of love into everything you do.

Love,
Karen

Tools Day: Band Loom Warping Board

September 11, 2018September 10, 2018 Karen

It is almost effortless to make a short warp for the band loom. All you need is a peg at the beginning and a peg at the end. You can use a spoke of the warp beam wheel, for instance, at one end, and the leg of an upside-down stool at the other. I normally use my warping reel, though, for even a simple warp, because the reel is so handy. However, I don’t have my warping reel here at the apartment, so I am turning my band loom into a handy warping board for this band loom project.

Using the Glimakra band loom as a warping board. — Using the Glimåkra band loom to measure a narrow cottolin warp.

How to Use the Band Loom as a Warping Board

Tools and supplies:

Glimåkra band loom
Thread for weaving a narrow band
Basket and/or spool holder(s)
Scissors

How to use the band loom as a warping board. — Starting at one peg and ending at another. The band loom becomes a simple tool for winding a short warp.

For a warp of approximately two meters:

Put the warp thread on the floor below—quills in a basket, and/or thread tubes on spool holders.
Using two or more ends, tie the ends together with an overhand knot. (I used three ends together for this warp.)
Bring the warp ends up around the warp beam and over the back beam.
Loop the knot on the starting peg.
Draw the ends from the starting peg to the ending peg, around the band loom, following this path:

Starting peg–upper heddle peg nearest back beam
Lower heddle peg nearest back beam
Back beam
Warp beam
Cloth beam
Front beam
Lower heddle peg nearest front beam
Ending peg–upper heddle peg nearest front beam

Follow the winding path in reverse order back to the starting peg.
Continue winding until you have reached the desired number of ends.
Cut the ends and tie off at the starting peg or the ending peg.
Tie one or two choke ties, if needed. (I didn’t need them for this short warp.)
Carefully remove the warp and dress the band loom as usual. (For a tutorial on dressing the band loom, click here: Quiet Friday: Band Loom Warping and Weaving.)
Weave to your heart’s content.

Weaving hanging tabs for towels on my Glimakra band loom. — One meter of woven band is cut off. The remaining band warp is tied back on. Weaving can resume at any time.

Preparing to sew handwoven ribbons onto handwoven towels for hanging. — Ends secured, and cut in 10.5 cm lengths, the tabs are ready to be sewn onto the double weave towels.

May you find tools you didn’t know you had.

Happy band weaving,
Karen