My adventure to Germany and Austria with my sister was incredible! Many firsts and many blessings. First time to visit Europe. First castle, first currywurst, first German symphony, first hike in the Alps, first Austrian apfelstrudel, first close-up mountain waterfall. And many, many more wonders, delights, and amazements. Any weaving? We visited a handweaving museum in Germany. And I did some occasional tapestry weaving in the evenings. The best tapestry times happened while sitting out on the balcony at our room in Innsbruck.
Weberplatz of Babelsberg. These were weavers quarters in days gone by.We had a picnic lunch on the castle steps.Weaving an image from Big Bend State Park, Texas, while enjoying the balcony view in Innsbruck, Austria.
Be open for blessings. Look for blessings. I don’t mean life should be easy, conflict free, or always comfortable. The blessings are often hidden in long hours, tired feet, and foreign words. Be ready for the best lessons the Creator has for you. The Lord’s faithfulness is stamped into the gardens, mountain peaks, and waterfalls. His glory is written on every face, voice, and pair of hands. His blessings are tucked into secret places, awaiting our delighted discoveries. Live blessed.
I am turning right around to head out on another travel adventure. This time it’s Potsdam, Germany and Innsbruck, Austria with my sister Barbara. You know what that means—prepare my smallest tapestry frame for travel weaving. Besides the loom, I need necessary tools, warp thread, weft yarn, a cartoon, extra paper and pencil, book light and extra batteries, and a small bag in which to carry it all.
Fresno Canyon in Big Bend Ranch State Park is breathtaking. Steve captured the awe last week with his Canon Rebel T3i Digital SLR camera. My dream now is to capture the view in yarn. I am making a cartoon directly from a black-and-white print of the photograph.My Fårö yarn is housed in three baskets of an Elfa cart. I look at a photo image of Fresno Canyon on my iPhone to select colors to use for the tapestry.Selected colors of yarn are wrapped on labelled embroidery floss bobbins to put in the travel tapestry bag.Weft colors are sorted and placed in the plastic pockets of this craft holder I found at Hobby Lobby.Everything needed for a little 3 1/2″ x 6″ desert vista tapestry is being tucked away in travel bags.
After that, I can pack my clothes, etc. First things first.
(By the time you read this Barbara and I will be in Germany enjoying the food, listening to fine music, and scouting out fiber-y treasures whenever we get a chance.)
It is delightful to weave in scenic surroundings! After two full days of hiking and exploring remote vistas in Big Bend Ranch State Park we had a leisurely do-nothing day. Time to take the loom outdoors. En plein air weaving!
Our campsite is at the base of Lajitas Mesa.Hiking the Fresno Divide Trail in Big Bend Ranch State Park in west Texas.Mountainous views in the desert.Fresno Canyon vista, with the mountains of Mexico in the distance.En plein air tapestry weaving during a leisurely morning. Camera tripod cover doubles as a loom topper that prevents the loom from scratching the Casita.Wool yarn for the Casita tapestry is wound on labeled cards and kept in spare Tupperware Modular Mate containers.
We also went exploring in Big Bend National Park.
Hiking in Santa Elena Canyon, with Mexico to my left and USA on my right. And the Rio Grande River in between.Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend National Park, the least visited National Park in the United States.
And then, I like to wind down the day with some quiet evening tapestry weaving in the Casita. And Steve pulls out his travel pouch for some leisurely woodcarving. Ah…all is well.
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 get the large side panels needed for the bag.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, used for straps on the bag.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-shafttwill 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.Casita tapestry for quiet evenings in Big Bend state park in Texas. I may be able to finish it on this trip.Blue cotton warp-printed fabric, red eight-shafttwill, 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.
Drive up to this storybook cottage, and you can tell there is something special about it. It’s the home of Ed and Joanne Hall. When I arrive, Joanne greets me and takes me down the hand-crafted pine stairs to her delightful weaving studio dotted with floor looms.
Driving up to the Hall’s home and Joanne’s weaving studio in Montana.Välkommen = Welcome
I recently had the joy of learning the ins and outs of drawloom weaving in this storybook studio in Montana. After the class ended, Joanne and I sat at her kitchen table to share some thoughts about weaving.
Joanne Hall Photo credit: Ed Hall
Come join us, and sit in on our conversation…
If you could keep only one loom, what would it be?
The 59” Glimåkra Standard. That would be my loom, with a drawloom. A big loom is easier to set up, easier to warp because I can step inside it, and easier to weave on than a little loom. As you get older you need every advantage you can get.
Butterfly piece was woven on the very first warp Joanne put on her drawloom. The warp is 20/2 cotton, unbleached; and the weft is 16/1 linen. Being a tapestry weaver, I had to add more colors, so I laid in some colors and then I put a little gold leaf here and there. I did not want to add anything that looked like embroidery. I wanted my new work on the drawloom to have all the elements woven in. – Joanne Hall
What would you weave on that loom?
I would mostly make narrow warps. I could weave some blankets or larger things, as well, because it’s easy on that loom. It is easy to beat and so easy to treadle. I could also weave tapestry on it.
Describe the drawloom you would use.
With the Myrehed combination, I would have both the shaft drawloom and the single unit drawloom. I do like images, like tapestry weaving, so I would enjoy weaving with the single unit drawloom.
Story of the immigrants. Three of my grandparents immigrated from Sweden to America. This tells the story of their journey–walking, riding, then endless days on the boat, then walking again, all the way to Minnesota. – Joanne Hall
Are there any weaving secrets you’d like to share?
One important thing to know is to wind a warp with more than one thread, especially a long warp. It is easier to beam and you will prevent problems when you wind with two or more threads. And doing so may also have a positive effect on weaving that warp.
Another thing to consider is that once you start weaving, plan to invest in good equipment. Some weavers start out buying the smallest, least expensive equipment. That’s okay for getting started, but don’t spend too much time with inferior equipment. Once you start warping looms, get a big vertical warping reel that is more than two yards around. You can wind a warp in half an hour, an hour at the most. And the warp will be more even and accurate than one wound on smaller equipment.
If someone wants to learn more about weaving, what is a good way to start?
Go someplace where you can take a class weaving on floor looms, even if you have never woven before. Keep in mind that researching online can be more confusing than helpful. In a class you will learn much faster and you will probably get better information.
Front door of Joanne’s father’s father’s (grandfather’s) church in the small town of Ör, in Dalsland, Sweden. The “6” near the door was part of the date on the church, 1661. Woven on single unit drawloom by Joanne Hall.From a photo Joanne took in a small red house in an outdoor museum in the place where her mother’s family lived. These wooden shoes were on a rag rug in front of the fireplace. Woven on single unit drawloom by Joanne Hall.Fence that is typical of fences all over Sweden. This came from a photo of the fence around an outdoor museum in Falköping Sweden, Joanne’s mother’s grandparent’s home. Single unit drawloom, woven by Joanne Hall.
Any final thoughts?
In Sweden, weavers guilds are different than they are here in the US. Most everyone in Sweden can join a guild, called a vävstuga, which in Sweden is a place with looms—floor looms, big floor looms. You meet there as often as you want, and you can weave on floor looms in the company of other weavers, who are very helpful. If we had that, it would be wonderful.
That would be wonderful, indeed! I think I got a little taste of that, right here in your Montana studio. Thank you!
