Category: drawloom

Fox on the Drawloom Is Simply Complex

Karen

Gray Fox is showing his stride. That bushy tail is impressive. On the drawloom I get to determine exactly where that tail will swish. Where the tail crosses into the side border, I switch from pulling one pattern shaft draw handle to pulling individual single unit draw cords. That’s where the complexity of the combination drawloom really shines. It gives me extraordinary flexibility for weaving the designs I have in mind.

Hem area is black. Wide gold checked border goes across the bottom and top of the napkin, and up both sides.
Pattern shafts hold the units needed for the horizontal and vertical borders. The vertical border checks are produced with just two pattern shafts. Where the vertical border is interrupted, I am able to choose the single units needed to fill the pattern. (This also means that I use single units directly across on the left border, too.)
Just past midway on this napkin.

In some ways I think of the drawloom as a tool of simplicity. Despite the countless cords and shafts, every piece has a simple purpose. Each single unit draw cord, for example, simply lifts a single unit of 6 threads. That’s all it does. Complexity is a matter of perspective.

May you enjoy the simple things you find in complexity.

All the best,
Karen

Armadillo Leads Critter Parade on the Drawloom

Karen

My husband and I coined the word “lapkin” when our children were young. Lap + napkin = lapkin. We wanted our children to learn the courtesy of placing a napkin on their lap when they were seated for a meal. “Lapkin check!” was a fun game we made of it. The armadillo on the drawloom is a lapkin, if I ever saw one. This thirsty cloth will soak up any drips and spills, smeary hands, or messy mouths that come in contact with it.

Napkin starts with a dark blue hem and gold checkerboard border. I like this view which makes it look like the armadillo feet have really long legs. Single unit draw cords are pulled (drawn) to raise warp ends that form the pattern in the cloth.
Armadillo reaches into one border with its snout, and into the other border with its tail.

Armadillo is the first of a dozen critters that will parade across this loom. Armadillo napkin is the only one of its kind. I’m certain of that. (Fox is up next.)

Simple checkerboard side borders give a fun outline to every napkin.
Just a few pattern shafts (six draw handles) are needed for making the horizontal checkerboard border across the width of the napkins.
Six-shaft broken twill makes an interesting all-over pattern in the cloth.
Teal blue hem ends the Armadillo napkin. Red picks serve as a dividing/cutting line. Fox is next!

Lapkins give us a discreet way to stay tidy at the table. Armadillo, however, doesn’t intend to stay discreet. I’m pretty certain of that, too.

May your courtesy lessons be fun.

Happy weaving.
Karen

My Favorite Handwovens on Display

Karen

Five of my favorite handwoven works are on display in a local exhibit. The Southwest Gourd and Fiber Fine Art Show is the current exhibit (through July 1) at the Kerr Arts and Cultural Center in Kerrville, Texas. This is a competitive show featuring artists from across the US. Steve made beautiful wooden hanging and mounting devices for my pieces. Winter Window is a double-binding rag rug that is displayed as a wall hanging. I thoroughly enjoyed the design process for this rag rug, so I am happy that Winter Window received a Judge’s Special Award.

Southwest Gourd and Fiber Fine Art Show at Kerr Arts and Cultural Center in Kerrville, Texas.
Light as Air Lace
Draped Lace in Three-Shaft Lace Weave
Warp: Linen
Weft: Linen
Christmas Snowflakes Triptych
Banners in Six-Shaft Irregular Satin, Drawloom 30 pattern shafts, 148 single units
Warp: Linen/Cotton blend
Weft: Linen
Joseph’s Coat
Wall Hanging in Four-Shaft Swedish Monksbelt
Warp: Cotton
Weft: Wool and Cotton
Winter Window
Rag Rug in Four-Shaft Double Binding
Warp: Cotton
Weft: Cotton fabric strips
Eye of the Beholder
Pictorial Tapestry in Four-Shaft Rosepath
Warp: Linen
Weft: Wool and Linen
Artist Reception and Awards evening. Winter Window receives a Judge’s Special Award.

If you hang a rag rug on the wall it becomes fine art. And I’m ok with that.

May others enjoy seeing what you enjoy making.

Happy Weaving,
Karen

Check for Accuracy Now or Backtrack Later

Karen

It pays to check your work. I have reached a new level of experience in distributing patterns shafts. I know how to do it backwards and forwards now. Literally. Unfortunately, I moved almost all of the pattern shafts before noticing that the spacing between units is not quite right. Uh oh! So, one by one, I reversed the distribution of pattern shafts to get back to the point of error—the very beginning. The reverse move was …more complicated.

Distribution of pattern shafts is part of the setup for the drawloom. It is a multi-step process that moves the pattern shafts, one at a time, from the heddle bar at the back of the loom to the pattern shaft holders just behind the ground shafts at the front of the loom. Sound complicated? It’s not that hard, and is fun to do after you’ve done it a few times.

Lesson learned: Check my work. I am off by only one unit of threads. That small miss, however, is enough to sabotage the whole project if not corrected. The sooner I check my work against the master plan the better. Fortunately, everything at the loom is fixable. It’s never too late to start again.

First, I use an old inkle band to slip between heddles that I am separating to transfer to a pattern shaft. Because I am using a combination of pattern shafts AND single units, I separate the heddles on the “front” side. If I were usining only pattern shafts and no single units, I could separate the heddles from the back while standing behind the loom.
I insert a pattern shaft through the separated pattern heddles. Then I remove the inkle band and hang it around my neck, ready for the next transfer.
I slip the waiting heddle bar through the pattern shafts that have not been separated…
…and remove the first heddle bar. This releases the separated pattern heddles onto the pattern shaft, which is hanging in a pair of holding cords. From here, the pattern shaft is moved forward to the pattern shaft holders. (I also adjust the clip overhead that connects the thread unit to a single unit draw cord.)
After backtracking and starting over, I now diligently check the number and spacing of units on the heddle bar after every pattern shaft is moved into position. Success!
Twelve pattern shafts, plus one X shaft. This project uses pattern shafts for the borders only – top, bottom, and sides. The rest of the pattern areas will use single-unit designs.

The sooner I check my life against God’s master plan the better. Fortunately, everything is forgivable. It’s never too late to start again.

All set and ready to go! Everything works. After a bit more testing of weft colors and patterns, it’s critter time. Watch for Mr. Armadillo first!

May you check for accuracy sooner than later.

Be blessed,
Karen