Tag: taquete

Quiet Friday: Kuvikas to Taqueté and video

Karen

The color is rich, the drape is fluid, and the pattern in the lustrous cloth is eye-catching. “Kuvikas to taqueté” was not an easy project. Eight shafts, double treadling, and double-bobbin shuttles with slick 8/2 Tencel weft. But the fabric is incredible!

Warp chain of 8/2 cotton.
Warp chain of 8/2 cotton hanging from warping reel.

Thanks to a unusual tie-up, two treadles are pressed simultaneously, something I had not thought possible for a countermarch loom. I started with kuvikas (summer and winter), which has tabby picks between the pattern picks. The dark teal 8/2 cotton tabby weft and the bright teal Tencel pattern weft produce a tone-on-tone effect for the square and stripe patterns. These two pieces will become the front and back of a throw pillow.

Kuvikas on the loom. (Summer and Winter)
Kuvikas panel 1 complete. I always use red thread for a cutting line between pieces, so there is no accidental cutting in the wrong place.

I then changed the treadle tie-up to switch from kuvikas to taqueté. The taqueté has no tabby weft. The teal and cream Tencel weft threads lay back-to-back, producing a double-faced fabric. This piece is being used as a table runner.

Kuvikas to taqueté, change in treadle tie-up.
Stripes in kuvikas, and then square pattern in taqueté after changing the treadle tie-up.
Finished Tencel kuvikas (summer and winter) glistens!
Finished kuvikas glistens in the sunlight.

Enjoy the little slideshow video I made for you that follows the process from three lovely aquamarine warp chains to fabric glistening in the sun on a Texas hill country table.

May you finish something that is not easy.

Happy Weaving,
Karen

Do you remember my Handwoven Thick and Thin Towels (that appeared on the cover of Handwoven), and my Black and White Towels (These Sensational Towels)? I will be teaching a workshop on that thick and thin technique at Shoppes at Fleece ‘N Flax in beautiful Eureka Springs, Arkansas August 24 – 26, 2017. You’re welcome to join us! I’d love to see you there! Contact the shop at the number below if you are interested.

https://www.facebook.com/1509042016009851/photos/a.1519556898291696.1073741829.1509042016009851/1933085693605479/?type=3&theater

Weave Amazing Taqueté Like an Octopus

Karen

I need this sample section to practice being an octopus at the loom. I switched from kuvikas to taqueté. Now I am weaving with two double-bobbin shuttles and two treadles at a time. With no intervening tabby treadles to balance my foot placement.

Kuvikas first, then taqueté. Same threading, different tie-up.
From kuvikas to taqueté. Changing the tie-up allows the loom to weave more than one structure with the same threading.

This taqueté uses the same threading as the kuvikas that preceded it. You’ve heard it said, “One change changes everything.” Try changing the tie-up. Everything changes. Treadling sequence, weft arrangement, and picks per inch. I’m struggling like a beginner with this double treadling, double double-bobbin shuttling. But I’m not quitting, because look what it weaves! The cloth is amazing.

Two double-bobbin shuttles for taqueté.
With no tabby picks in between, the double-bobbin shuttles take turns with each other.
Taqueté, with double treadling and double double-bobbin shuttling.
Each pattern block uses two treadles, pressed simultaneously. The treadling sequence changes four times for each complete row of pattern. Each block (a third) of the square-within-a-square pattern has five complete pattern rows.

One life change, good or bad, can bring a struggle. We try to move forward like we did before, but now it’s not working. Too many things are shifting at once. One thing changed, and now we are searching for sound footing. God is present even in our struggles. The warp is the same, the threading hasn’t changed, and the Grand Weaver is still at his loom. God is a very present help in trouble. God is now and near. Right now, right here. And then we get a glimpse of the cloth he is weaving… It is amazing!

May you endure through struggles.

Your weaving octopus,
Karen

Kuvikas and Taqueté

Karen

Kuvikas and taqueté. There are always new things to try. I’m back to eight shafts. This Glimåkra loom is highly adaptable. It is no problem to set up the loom for a new project. You may have guessed that I like to switch it up. Four shafts or eight shafts, two treadles or ten. And, change the tie-up, too. I don’t mind. With this project, I am going to change the treadle tie-up again at the midway point, switching from kuvikas to taqueté.

Threading eight shafts on my Glimakra Standard loom.
Threading eight shafts. Four pairs of shaft bars have been added to switch from a four-shaft project to an eight-shaft project. Four additional upper lamms and lower lamms have also been added to the loom.

If you know and practice the basics, it’s not frightening to try new weave structures. Every new experience builds on what I’ve learned before. I can trust the system of weaving that I’ve been taught, and that I practice with every project. It makes sense.

Aquamarine cotton. Threading my Glimakra Standard loom.
After the warp is beamed, the warp ends are tied with an overhand knot into groups, according to the threading pattern. In this case, 48 ends are in each group. Counting the ends into groups helps eliminate, or at least reduce, threading errors.
Threading eight shafts for kuvikas and taqueté.
Complex, but not complicated. Warp ends are inserted into specific heddles to set up the loom for a particular type of cloth. Very systematic.

Don’t be afraid. The Lord not only teaches us his ways–his system, but offers us his strength while we learn. I can trust him for that. Trust replaces fear. I don’t have to find my own way, or guess. The system works. It makes sense. I learn to weave, and live, one step at a time, with freedom to enjoy the process.

May you rise above your fears.

All the best,
Karen