Tag: patience

Getting to the Fun Part of the Drawloom

Karen

Now for the fun part at the drawloom! Pattern heddles are threaded, ground heddles are threaded, reed is sleyed. Ground shafts are put in place at the front of the loom, hanging under the countermarch where they belong (thanks to Steve’s help with this awkward maneuver). Warp is tied on and leveling string is in place.

Two set of heddles are threaded. Ready to sley the reed.
Warp ends are grouped in small segments for tying on.
Warping slat on each end hold up the tie-on bar for ease of tying on the first few groups of ends. I start in the center and work outward.
Warp is tied on and leveling string is secured.

It is no small matter to have this much setup completed on the drawloom. Now that I think of it, all of it is the fun part! Yes, I am looking forward to getting the single unit cords ready and distributing the pattern shafts. And yes, I am super eager to be sitting on the loom bench reaching for draw cords and pull handles, but I can wait.

Just look at that flatness! This is what I appreciate about the leveling string–it makes the warp ready for weft right at the beginning.

I am taking my time, determined to enjoy every intricate part of the process. I’m deeply grateful to know the satisfaction of being a weaver. Patience is built in.

May you appreciate each step of your journey.

Happy Weaving,
Karen

No Trapezoidal Tapestries

Karen

When you see that you are near the end of the tapestry, the temptation is to hurry up and finish. I have done that before, unfortunately. When I rush, the first thing to go is adequate bubbling of the weft. The consequence is distortion because of draw-in. It is most noticeable after the tapestry is off the loom and looks more like a trapezoid than a rectangle.

Pictorial tapestry based on a simple watercolor and ink sketch.
I can see the end of the cartoon under the warp. There is still plenty to weave, but there is less detail in the image going forward.

Ending well is as important as beginning well. So, even though I can see the end of the Figs and Coffee cartoon under the warp, I am deliberately slowing my pace to stay attentive to the sweetly-satisfying technicalities that make a good tapestry. When this cloth beam is unrolled, I will be able to say, “I gave it my best.” And I enjoyed every minute of it!

May you have pleasant endings.

Here’s a link to last week’s post, in case you missed it: Glimåkra Standard by the Front Door.

All my best,
Karen

Preview of Puckers

Karen

Like sunrays rippling on the horizon at dawn. That’s how I think of this emerging cloth. I am hopeful that the ripples we see now will become all-over puckers when this is finished. I am filled with joyful anticipation!

Preview of puckers. Warp is 22/2 cottolin and 20/2 cotton. Weft is 16/1 linen and 16/2 cotton. Differential shrinkage is what I hope to achieve.

However… This is not an effortless weave. This is double-width weaving in a very fine sett. And, 6 ends per dent, no less. I have simple 1-2-3-4 treadling, but the 20/2 cotton warp threads are relentlessly hugging each other. Consequently, I am clearing the shed with the back of my fingers again and again. I expect to have floats to repair when this “sunrise” fabric comes off the loom. With the end in mind, I patiently keep at it. It will be glorious in all its puckers. I am sure of it.

Double-width weaving is double weave that is open on one side and closed on the other side. Finished cloth will unfold and open up to be a small tablecloth.

Every dawn brings the reality of a new day. Every sunrise reveals the glory of God. Night always turns into morning. With the end in mind, our Lord patiently, kindly, gently, opens the shed in our lives again and again. As he loosens our grip on things of this world we get a preview of the glorious fabric he has in mind, puckers and all. In the full light of the risen Son, we can see the love in our Grand Weaver’s hands.

May you catch the sunrise as often as possible.

Hopefully yours,
Karen

Long Conversation with the Loom

Karen

Day after day, pick after pick, this fabric lengthens and becomes ever more significant. As daylight dims, I stay at the loom a while longer. The rhythmic series of weaving motions is soothing. A handweaver finds calm in the complexity and delight in the detail. Challenges that arise are seen as problems to be solved.

Weaving for a short while in the evening helps wind down the day.

This monksbelt table runner has been a good long conversation between the loom and me. In fifteen more centimeters (six inches) I will put the closing exclamation point at the end of this lengthy runner. The warp that remains will be my playground for some creative experimentation.

Long monksbelt table runner wraps around the cloth beam.
Monksbelt pattern with weft rep ground weave. 16/2 cotton warp. 6/1 Fårö wool pattern weft in six colors. 16/2 ground weft in three colors.

When our patience is stretched thin, when we forget why we do what we do, when hard times go on longer than we ever anticipated, we need hope. We need more than what we can gain by ourselves alone. Relationship with our heavenly Father brings hope into the fabric of our days. He beckons us to walk with him through Jesus Christ. He wants to sustain us through the long stretches of this day-by-day life. The time will come when we look back with wonder, seeing the colorful threads that have become fabric for a beautiful purpose.

May you never lose hope.

With you,
Karen

Process Review: Jubilation Bath Towels

Karen

Jubilation Bath Towels are completed, just in time for Christmas! They go with the Jubilation Hand Towels I wove earlier this year, named with my father in mind. (See Process Review: Jubilation Hand Towels.) Nothing deterred my father from deep abiding joy. These bath towels are a tribute, as well, to my husband’s patience. He requested handwoven bath towels a few years ago. Laughably, my first eager attempt resulted in towels scratchy enough to be used as sandpaper back scratchers. Now, finally, we have absorbent and soft handwoven cottolin bath towels suitable for my Prince Charming.

Cottolin bath set. Handwoven bath towels, hand towels, wash cloths.
Jubilation Bath Set. Four bath towels, four hand towels, two wash cloths. Cottolin warp and weft. Six-shaft broken and reverse twill.

Don’t you love it when the end of the warp yields bonus results? Just enough warp to make a pair of wash cloths, in which every one of the seven colors of quills was emptied. Hurrah!

Handwoven bath towel set. Glimakra Standard loom.
Cottolin bath towel set, soft and absorbent. All quills were emptied off in the final length of warp, making colorful wash cloths.

Enjoy the start-to-finish process with me in this slideshow video:

May jubilation reside in your home.

With the joy of celebrating Christ’s birth,
Karen