Tag: eternity

My Loom Is a Pipe Organ

Karen

Threading twelve shafts in three blocks is like having three four-shaft looms all in one. The three simple block patterns can be arranged in various ways, giving me infinite design options for these towels. There will be no two alike. Double weave gives us crisp lines between colors, producing amazing cloth! This is another instance where weaving on this Glimåkra Standard feels like sitting at a big pipe organ, where glorious color patterns are the music of the loom.

Twelve-shaft double weave. Endless possibilities!
Exciting color combinations!
All this with only four colors! The magic of double weave.
First towel on the warp has multiple weft color changes.
Squares in double weave hand towels.
Second towel has squares and fewer weft color changes.
Cottolin towels on the loom in doubleweave!
As the first towel wraps around the cloth beam, the second towel nears its hem.

Faith. Faith in the powerful working of God is like exploring the possibilities of handweaving. You know the systems are in place for something amazing, but you find it takes a lifetime to discover all the glorious wonders. Double weave is just a glimpse of that glory. I have faith that there is Oh so much more. Likewise, our faith in God is an ongoing discovery of his works and his ways. With every glimpse of his glory and goodness, we know there is Oh so much more. Eternity won’t be long enough… And maybe heaven will be filled with music that explodes in color.

May you know the thrill of discovery.

With faith,
Karen

Warp Chain Optimist

Karen

Is there a better picture of optimism than a warp chain? Especially warp chains that are sitting on the loom bench ready to become something! Anticipation electrifies the weaving space because fabric-making is about to happen!

Warp chains for a spaced repp rag rug.
Four bouts of 12/6 cotton rug warp for spaced rep rag rugs. The warp is eight meters long.

The Glimåkra Ideal is getting dressed for weaving rag rugs. Hooray! And the Glimåkra Standard is getting dressed for double weave baby blankets. I keep a regular cycle of weaving, cutting off, and starting over.

Warp chains of 8/2 cotton for baby blankets.
Three bouts of 8/2 cotton for double weave baby blankets, gifts for friends. The warp is three meters long.

Dress the loom. Weave a sample. Plan the next project and order supplies. Weave what’s on the loom to the finish line. Cut off. Do the finishing work. Wind the warp for the next project, and put the warp chain(s) on the loom bench. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat.

Every beginning has an end. Every warp. Every life. And even every day comes to an end. What will I make of that warp? This life? This day? Our life is a mere shadow, fading quickly. To honor our Grand Weaver, we want to value every day we’ve been given. And when our hope and trust is in Him, we know the fabric he is weaving will last forever.

May you value this day you’ve been given.

Happy weaving,
Karen

Another Classic Swedish Weave

Karen

Monksbelt is up next, another classic Swedish weave. I’m thrilled! This time I am weaving yardage, without knowing exactly how the fabric will be used. I planned this project while the rya rag rug was still on the loom; and I’m eager to get started!

Winding warp on Glimåkra warping reel.
Glimåkra warping reel not only accelerates the warp–winding process, it makes it downright fun! This is the first of four bouts of unbleached 16/2 cotton. 760 warp ends in all.

Winding the warp is a rewarding part of the process. When I wind a warp, it goes directly to a ready-and-waiting loom. So, this is a declaration of a new beginning. It is also the anticipation of future rewards. The final reward is long-lasting–a useful length of colorful handwoven fabric.

Look for rewards that will last. We get side-tracked if we look only for immediate satisfaction, or short-term success. The long view brings perspective that cannot be seen in quick snapshots. I don’t have to know exactly how things will look in the future. I can enjoy the stage of the process I am in right now. Ultimately, though, I await the finished cloth. Keeping that reward in mind brings purpose to each step along the way. The eternal reward that heaven holds for us fills each season here with meaning.

May you enjoy many rewarding experiences.

On purpose,
Karen

Zebra Warp

Karen

I changed my mind. A long zebra warp (formerly known as black and white) will not be boring. When I come to the end I’m certain I will wish I had an even longer warp. The first few picks are already amazing. Design possibilities are flying through my mind!

Zebra warp on Glimakra Ideal loom.
Zebra warp has taken over my Glimåkra Ideal loom. There are 10 1/2 meters (11 1/2 yards) of thick and thin threads.

This is plain weave. But here, the plain weave is transformed with thick and thin threads–in warp and weft. Combining thick (doubled 22/2 cottolin) and thin (30/2 cotton) gives me two blocks to work with. I am using two shuttles, one of which is a double bobbin shuttle. As always, weaving feels like magic. All I do is dress the loom and throw the shuttles, and exquisite cloth magically appears!

Black and white towels on the loom.
First few picks reveal interesting design options. Leveling string across the beginning of the warp eliminates the need to weave scrap yarn to spread the warp.
Black and white towels on the loom. Karen Isenhower
First towel has a border design–one element that sets a handwoven towel apart.

God’s faithfulness is like a long zebra warp. It doesn’t seem elaborate or noticeably fancy. It’s been there forever. His faithfulness is known among the angels and all of heaven. God’s faithful love is as constant as day and night. We take notice when we see beauty appear, like kindness from a stranger, or love from a friend, or inner peace from doing the right thing. As the shuttles of life traverse the threads, the evidence of God’s faithful love is revealed. Always and forever.

May you enjoy endless design possibilities.

Happy weaving,
Karen

Made to Fade?

Karen

You will always come back to what you love. I came back to this arrangement of stripes because I love the harmonious way the colors work together. Now used as a weft sequence, this is one of the color wrappings that I did when planning this towel warp. (You can see the rest of the color wrappings HERE.) But really, it’s just towels, it’s just colors, it’s just things that wear out.

Color wrapping used to inspire weft sequence. Karen Isenhower
Color wrapping for possible warp arrangement is now used as weft sequence. Except, since I ran out of light blue thread (remember THIS?), I am using dark blue in its place.

Everything we can touch and everything we can see is in the process of fading. Physical things deteriorate over time; they just do. The handwoven articles I so carefully make may last a human lifetime, or maybe longer. But eventually they will be no more, and any meaning they have now will be lost. (Even with my grandmother’s quilts and rugs, like THESE, I don’t know what they meant to her, and she’s no longer around to ask.) It doesn’t make sense to love things. Sure, we can touch and see them, and our me-first self wants them. But they are all going away.

It does make sense to investigate the non-physical things that never decay. When we align with the desires of our grand weaver and discover the plans he has had from the beginning of time, we are investing in heavenly pursuits that carry rewards that never fade. Ever.

May the work of your hands outlast you.

101 Thanks! Thank you, dear friend, for coming to my virtual weaving studio again and again. If you are one of the small handful (there are about eight or ten of you) that started with me 101 blog posts ago (HERE is the first post), a BIG thank-you to YOU! If you are one of the more recent guests, helping to grow this space to more than 1,200 guests a month, I am HUGELY grateful to YOU, too! You are welcome here. I am so glad you came!

Gratefully Yours,
Karen