Tag: threading

Heddle Shortage

Karen

I am well into threading when I realize I neglected to take into account how many heddles I need for this project! I don’t have 2,064 even if I grab all of the heddles from the other loom. This double weave throw project is at a dead end until more heddles appear. I hurriedly place an order for more heddles…

Threading heddles for double weave.
This Glimåkra Standard is one of three looms that share my supply of Texsolv heddles.

Thankfully, the new heddles arrive quickly and the project is alive again.

This is what 1,000 Texsolv heddles looks like!
This is what 1,000 Texsolv heddles looks like! I didn’t want to run out again any time soon.
New Texsolv heddles - 1,000 of them!
Heddles come in bundles of 100, held together with twist ties. WARNING: DO NOT undo the twist ties before you put the heddles on the shaft bars. You’ll be sorry…
Clipping loops on new Texsolv heddles.
Before putting the heddles on the shaft bars, and while they are still tied into bundles, clip the loops at each end.
Clipping Texsolv heddle loops.
I clip the loops on both ends of the heddles. It is easy to move heddles wherever you want if the loops are cut, including repositioning individual heddles. (It is far easier to clip the loops while the heddles are still tied together.)
New heddles on the shaft bars.
There are 100 new heddles on each shaft. The heddles that are not used will be tied up and put away in my heddle box, ready for the next time I need more heddles.

Alive. This is the Easter season when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He died, and was made alive again! What makes it even more fantastic is what that means for us. We all have a goodness shortage. And without a source of true goodness, our lifetime self-improvement project is at a dead end. Yet, through faith in the powerful working of God, we are raised with Christ. We are made alive together with him. His true goodness becomes our living source.

New bundles of Texsolv heddles stand ready to be used!
Threading progresses. New bundles of heddles stand ready to be used!

May you be supplied with more than enough.

Happy Easter,
Karen

Halfway Milestone

Karen

Halfway is a milestone when you are threading 2,064 ends. This double weave in two blocks has threading such that I can listen to podcasts without losing my place. It’s a long stretch to the halfway point.

Threading heddles, from right to left.
Threading heddles, going from right to left.

Before threading, I find the center of the warp and the group of ends that are just past center. I drape those ends on the back beam to mark the spot.

Threading 2064 ends. Halfway point is identified.
Center of the warp is identified. The ends just left of center mark the spot.
Threading heddles in my "playhouse" in the loom.
Sitting in my playhouse to thread the heddles. No hurry.

I’m excited to reach halfway in the threading! It’s a turning point. Now, while they are readily accessible, I position all of the shaft-to-lamm cords to hang down, right at the center of the warp where they belong.

Halfway finished threading heddles! Only 1,032 to go. :)
Half of the threading work is done! Only 1,032 ends to go. 🙂
Cords aligned at the center of the warp.
Center of the warp. Good time to align the cords that go from the lower shaft bars to the upper lamms.
Threading heddles for double weave on a Glimakra Standard loom.
Threading for the double weave throw continues, a few minutes here, an hour there, until all the ends are in heddles.

Have you ever reached a turning point in life, and knew it was time to position things? We try to be good and loving. But we’re never as good as we think. And we end up loving only the people we want to love. We have been separated from God. Our misdeeds push us away from him. Easter is resurrection, but before that is the cross of Christ. God so loved us that he closed the separation between us and him with the cross. That’s the turning point he offers to us, to set things right. Our part is to believe.

May you look forward to the second half.

With you,
Karen

Awaken the Empty Looms

Karen

The transformation of looms has begun! One by one, three empty looms are awakened from their rest. Two of three warps have been wound, and I have started dressing one of the looms. Soon, all three looms will be active as I weave coordinating textiles for our Texas hill country home.

Cotton and linen for planned coordinating textiles.
Cotton and linen threads for the planned coordinating textiles.
Stripes on the warp beam. So inviting!
Warp beam is clothed with a narrow-striped warp. A separate warp chain for each color and two sets of lease sticks make the beaming process a little tricky.

This loom at our hill country home has a warp designated for placemats. Color-and-weave effects will take the simple two-treadle plain weave up a notch, starting with the warp stripes. Is there anything as inviting as stripes on the warp beam? The loom that was bare now holds great promise.

Threading the loom in the best spot in the house!
Threading the loom happens in the brightest corner of the house.
Warp stripes form the base of interesting color-and-weave effects.
Warp stripes form the base of interesting color-and-weave effects.

Love transforms people. Someone who feels empty is given purpose and hope when they are loved. A reason for being. A start toward something meaningful. Real love is extreme. Love is defined by the ultimate giving up of self-centered motives, as demonstrated by Jesus Christ. This is the extreme love that we have been given, and have been called to give. We’ve known the joy of stripes on the warp beam becoming handwoven fabric before our eyes. And we relish the thought of sharing that joy with someone else.

May you awaken empty looms.

Happy weaving,
Karen

Tools Day: Countermarch Loom Pros and Con

Karen

When my long-held dream of weaving on a floor loom became a possibility, I started my journey with questions. What are the pros and cons of the different types of looms? After considerable research, a winner emerged—the Swedish countermarch loom!

Pros and Con of Countermarch Looms
(My experience is with Glimåkra. Other countermarch looms may differ.)

Pros

  • Weave anything. Rag rugs to lace-weight fabric.
  • Hanging beater. Swinging beater has momentum that enables a firm beat. No strain to shoulders, arms, or wrists. Asset for weaving rag rugs, and superb control for cloth with an open weave. Beater placement is adjustable, making it possible to weave longer before advancing the warp.
  • Rear-hinged treadles. Pressing treadles is effortless, no matter how many shafts. No strain on back, legs, knees, or ankles, even with robust weaving. Because treadles are close to each other, I press correct treadles with sock- or bare-footed ease…without having to watch my feet. Ample foot rest makes it easy to trade feet when using many treadles.
  • Clean shed. Stepping on a treadle raises and lowers shafts at the same time, so a great shed is not only possible, but usual.
Horizontal countermarch. Info about CM looms.
Glimåkra Ideal with horizontal countermarch. The cords from the countermarch jacks at the top of the loom go straight down through the warp to the lower lamms. The lower lamms connected to treadles cause shafts to lift when a treadle is depressed.
  • Even warp tension. Because shafts are both raised and lowered, tension is equal on raised and lowered warp ends. Even warp tension is good for all types of weaving. This even tension makes a tight warp possible. Perfect for linen, and for rugs.
Vertical Countermarch Loom - info about CM
Gimåkra Standard loom with vertical countermarch. Cords from the countermarch jacks go over the side of the loom to the lower lamms below. The upper lamms (not pictured) attached to treadles cause shafts to sink when a treadle is depressed.
Threading ease of countermarch looms.
Bench sits in the loom for threading heddles. I call this my little playhouse.
  • Texsolv heddles. Heddles can be easily added or removed from shafts (shafts are also easily added or removed). Quiet. Easy to thread.
  • Perfect fit. A petite person like me can weave on a large loom (my Standard is 47”/120cm) as comfortably as someone with longer arms and legs. Able to sit in upright posture for weaving.
  • Wooden. The loom is primarily wood. Bonus if you appreciate natural beauty of wood. Held together with wooden wedges and a few bolts. No screws or wing nuts.
  • Scandinavian clarity. Because of the Swedish loom, I adopt Swedish weaving practices and have an interest in traditional Scandinavian textiles. The loom fits the style. Streamlined design, precision, systematic and logical processes, and beauty with function.

Con

  • Treadle tie-ups. Shafts are connected to upper lamms and lower lamms. Treadle cords with a bead at one end are hung in the lamms. Lamms are then attached to treadles. Treadle tie-ups normally fall under the Pros category, because this is what enables the loom to have the clean shed it’s known for. But since I just finished tying up ten shafts to ten treadles (that’s 100 treadle cords), this is my least favorite part right now. 😉 (The weaving pleasure more than makes up for it, though.)
Countermarch treadle cords. Pros and cons.
One hundred treadle cords hang from upper and lower lamms. The only thing left is to attach all the cords to treadles. 😉
Treadle cords for 10 shafts! 5-shaft satin coming up!
Treadle cords are attached. Little anchor pins lock each cord into position under the treadle. After a few adjustments, the shed on each treadle is good. The loom is dressed! Five-shaft satin dräll coming up!

Conclusion:
When I weave on my Glimåkra Standard countermarch loom, I am soaring like an eagle. I’m sailing with the spinnaker up. I am a pipe organ maestro. I am dreaming while fully awake. This is everything I imagined weaving could be, only better.

Countermarch looms - pros and con.
Testing weft options. Gorgeous handcrafted damask shuttle, Chechen wood, made by Moberg Tools. Five-shaft satin dräll–a weaver’s dream.

For more in-depth information about countermarch looms, comparisons of looms, and other fantastic resources, see articles written by Joanne Hall, found at Glimåkra USA.

May you live your dream.

Very Happy Weaving,
Karen

How Long Did it Take You to Weave That?

Karen

It’s the question we expect to hear. “How long did it take you to weave that?” “…Well, hours and hours, basically.” After almost three hours of threading, I am nearly to the halfway point. How can I convey all the necessary work of dressing the loom? Or, the time it takes to practice a new skill at the loom? Or, the finishing work of twisting fringe, hand hemming, or cutting and sewing?

Threading ten shafts.
Threading ten shafts. The two newest shafts are pale compared to the others. They haven’t yet developed the golden hue of the wood around them.

With any hand-crafted article, there is more than meets the eye. Why do we want to know how long it took to make it? Are we trying to measure value, or understand the maker’s process? Or, is it simply a statement of incredulity about something we didn’t know was possible?

Threading ten shafts--in silence.
For this threading, I sit in silence. No music, no podcasts, no wandering thoughts. I’m easily thrown off by distractions, especially when threading ten shafts.
Threading linen on ten shafts.
Half of the 16/2 linen warp is threaded.

We have a Maker. He fashioned our physical selves; we see that. He also made us with heart and soul. He starts the weaving process before we are born, and takes as long as he needs for the finishing. The Lord, our Maker, includes the necessary development of our character, and the intricacy of our personality, and our dreams and hopes. We are more than meets the eye. How long does it take to make a person? A lifetime.

May you enjoy the process.

Love,
Karen