Change Things Up

Karen

Imagine the possibilities! Everything can change before your eyes when you are weaving. Put a different weft in the shuttle and the cloth takes on a new look. The warp becomes the canvas that the weft paints with color. The brown and gold in this warp influence the color outcome, but this twill structure favors the weft color. For someone who enjoys variety, I love how easy it is to create variations on one long warp.

Red weft transforms the brown warp into a deep, rich red color.
Narrow black stripes for the border of this red towel. The red weft transforms the brown warp into a deep, rich red color.

Most things are not that easy to change. Take people, for instance. Sure, I can make myself look good when I want to, changing my hair or clothing styles, and even saying nice things. But changing my attitude or perspective on the inside is another story. And forget about trying to change someone else. We all know that doesn’t work.

At times, I am so set in my ways it seems impossible to change. And trying harder just works for a short time. Only God can change a human heart. God makes things possible. He takes a simple warp, like yours and mine, and covers it with color, giving a fresh start whenever we need it.

May you find possible change.

With you,
Karen

Now What Are You Counting?

Karen

Have you noticed how much counting there is with weaving? I am constantly counting something! This time it’s rya strands. Wrap three threads around a four-inch cardboard template, counting eighteen times around; cut the ends; repeat. Separate into nine groups of three strands each. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine groups. Tie rya knots–one knot, two knots, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine knots; repeat.

Prepared groups of threads for rya knots.
Åsborya wool, Mora wool, and linen are wrapped together around a template, and then cut. The group of threads is held together in a clothespin until ready to use.

I like to count the good things that touch my life. Family, friends, health, beauty in nature, and pleasant adventures, to name a few. These are the things that shine through, even in difficult times. These are the things worth counting.

Separating threads into "triplets" for rya knots.
Group of natural color threads are separated into wool-wool-linen triplets for rya knots.

Thankfulness to God acknowledges that the good things woven into our lives come from his benevolent hand. God is always inviting us to walk with him. Thankfulness steps us into that inspiring walk.

What are some of the good things you’ve been thankful for lately?

May you have more blessings than you can count.

Thankful for you,
Karen

(There is a discount coupon code on my About page just for you, my reader friends, to use in my Etsy Shop during August, 2014.)

Tools Day: Jury Rigging

Karen

Resourcefulness, make-do ability, outside-the-box thinking, solution-minded questions, and a little stubbornness. These are some of the best things to keep in the weaver’s toolbox. Jury rigging is an old nautical term having to do with sailors improvising the replacement of a damaged mast and sails, using only tools and materials that happen to be on hand. You could call it makeshift repairs or temporary contrivances. That describes what I did this week as I came near the end of the linen warp. And, like a sailor, I was working with wood, strings, and cloth.

Rya knots in linen cloth.
Warp ends on the sides have become looser than the warp that has the rya knots in it. That’s not good. Tension needs to be even across the warp.

I needed to even out the tension across the warp ends, because the outer edges were not taking up at the same rate as the warp in the center, because of the rya knots. The pictures show how I jury rigged a warping slat, empty thread tubes, S-hooks, and 2-pound walking weights to adjust the tension so I could continue weaving.

Jury rigged warp tensioning.
Adding weight to the loose sections of the warp.
Jury rigged warp tensioning
Two-pound walking weights are easy to hang from S-hooks. Using empty thread spools was a short-lived solution. That had to change when I advanced the warp.
Evening out warp tension with weights
Changing the slat so it is over the loose warp ends enables me to hang the weights directly on the slat with S-hooks.
Walking weights to tighten loose warp ends.
View from underneath, walking weights hang from warping slat to increase tension on the loose warp ends.

May you know when to make a temporary, but useful, contraption.

All the best,
Karen

(~My thank-you to you, my reader friends–a discount coupon good during August 2014 toward anything in my Etsy Shop. Find the coupon code on my About Page.~)

True Treasure

Karen

I already own a plentiful selection of handwoven towels. I am weaving the fifth towel on this warp, and there will be at least three more towels after that. So, you might think I am storing up towels. Even so, whatever I am weaving at the moment becomes my favorite thing, like a precious treasure. The intricacies of the goose-eye twill and the color interaction seem special, with fancy treadling footwork and several colors of 16/2 cotton to play with. It is a journey of discovery–of learning and being delighted with the visual and physical impact of it all. In the end, though, it’s just a towel–a thing. (I will keep one towel for my collection. The rest will go in Etsy and/or become gifts.)

Goose-eye twill towels on the loom. Karen Isenhower
Temple in place, weaving goose-eye towels progresses. Viewing the cloth as it comes over the breast beam.

The greatest treasures are intangible; and the most valuable ones are hidden, to be discovered by those who are seeking. Beware of false treasures. When we make things we hold in our hands more important than they should be, we risk overlooking the true treasures. Uncovering and collecting those timeless treasures becomes life’s most exciting adventure.

May your treasure hunt make you rich (on the inside).

Happy Discovering,
Karen

(~As a thank-you for coming here, I have a discount coupon for you on my About Page to use in my Etsy Shop during the month of August, 2014.~)

What a Colorful World!

Karen

I am ridiculously in favor of color. Bright or pastel, rich or muted, vibrant or subtle. Just give me hue, value, and intensity to work with and I’ll be happy. I dutifully wove the first four towels in nice neutrals (see one of them in this post, Goose Eyes); now, let’s see what other weft colors can do on the remainder of this ten-meter / eleven-yard warp. Look around in nature to see outrageous color combos, some of which would never pass standard color theory practices.

Cotton goose-eye towels on the loom.
Afternoon sunlight plays with the unwoven warp, while wide green-blue blocks of color and narrow royal blue stripes bring the brown and golden warp to life.

I cannot imagine a universe without color. What would we miss, for example, if everything were in gray scale? Our world began in color. That thought gives us a marvelous glimpse into the outlandish creativity of our maker. Who knows, he may be holding back a whole realm of undiscovered color that we won’t see outside of heaven.

God meets us with an open hand, giving us a feast. Yes, a feast for the eyes, to be sure, yet more than that. He gives what is needed from an open hand at the right time, satisfying true desires. The gift of color is merely a fragment of our creator’s vast generosity spilled out on creation.

May your surroundings be alive with color!

Happy weaving,
Karen

(Check my About page for Etsy Shop coupon for August, 2014.)