Tag: weaving hacks

Everything Is Fixable

Karen

Every now and then I forget where I left off. This happens when I get interrupted when I am not quite finished with a sequence at the end of a weaving session, or when I get interrupted when I am just getting started back on the loom. Often, the interruptions are my own thoughts going in different directions. The only loss is a few dozen weft threads that get pulled out one by one, plus the time it takes to pull them out and weave the right ones back in. Everything is fixable.

Sometimes it is necessary to backtrack. I was at a pause in weaving. When I came back to it I forgot to put in the gray weft stripe. Pulled out more rows than I wish, then resumed weaving, starting with the gray stripe.
No more troubles, just attentive weaving.
Still several meters to go on these bathroom curtains! 24/2 cotton, M’s and O’s, gray stripe is 16/2 cotton

I have come to the unfortunate realization that I am probably short on blue weft yarn and green weft yarn. This project is using yarn from my excess, and the warp yarn was measured out just so. I miscalculated on the weft yarn. My solution is to space the blue and the green weft stripes further apart. If I still run out of either color I will finish with the colors I do have. I may end up liking it better that way. Everything is fixable.

Blue weft at the front edge makes a lovely contrast with the poppy and the pumpkin warp colors.
Cart by the loom holds shuttles and yarn. You can see that I am using a 120 cm reed in a 70 cm loom. I can get away with it by having the loom in the corner of the room.
Winter wool indoors and spring blooms outdoors. Brage wool for an autumn/winter cape. Goose-eye twill on four shafts.

I did not imagine that one of the single-unit draw cords on the drawloom could snap in two while I am putting it on the hook bar. But it happened! Now what? I’m able to finish the 6-thread unit by tying a knot and maneuvering threads this way and that way. This is not acceptable for weaving the rest of the warp, however, nor even for the rest of this napkin. I just so happen to have a fancy clip that Steve brought to me a couple weeks ago, saying, “I thought you might be able to use this somewhere.” It is the perfect temporary fix for this shortened draw cord. I will replace the broken draw cord before starting the next critter napkin (roadrunner). Everything is fixable.

Wild turkey is running with his head cut off for a few days. The single-unit draw cord that raises the threads at the turkey’s chin snapped when I put it on the hook bar. I finished the 6-thread unit for that chin by tying a knot in the end of the draw cord. I need to make a permanent fix, though, because the knot makes the draw cord just a little too short.
As a temporary fix, I found a double caribiner clip that is just the right size to hold the draw cord. Before I start weaving the next critter, I will try to replace this broken draw cord with a new one.
Wild Turkey – finished!
Chart beside the loom shows my row-by-row plan for the image being woven.

Yesterday we enjoyed Easter, the day of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. We are lost without Him, suffering from our own errors, miscalculations, and brokenness. The Heavenly Father raised Jesus from the dead to prove to us that Jesus is Lord. Everything is fixable in Him.

May you find the solution you need.

Your weaving friend, Karen

Tried and True: Sheepskin Loom Bench Cover

Karen

A fluffy sheepskin stays between me and the hard wooden bench at my Glimåkra Standard loom. Softening your loom bench makes weaving that much more pleasant. Last week Jane asked a great question: How do you secure the sheepskin on the bench? To answer that, I invite you to follow along as I secure the sheepskin on my drawloom bench.

Fluffy sheepskin on my Glimåkra Standard bench.
Bench for the drawloom has sheepskin tied on with some twisted cords. Securing this sheepskin is long overdue. Thank you to Jane for prompting this project.

Make a Sheepskin Loom-Bench Cover

Supplies

  • Sheepskin
  • 6 3/8” grommets
  • Pencil
  • Grommet kit (hole punch, base, and flaring tool)
  • Small block of wood
  • Hammer
  • Tape measure
  • Texsolv cord (scissors, and small flame to sear ends)
  • 6 Arrow pegs

1 Mark placement for 6 grommets on the underside of the sheepskin.

2 With block of wood underneath, hold grommet hole punch over one of the marked positions. Tap tool with the hammer to cut a small hole.

3 Insert the protruding ring of the top grommet piece (grommet) into the fur side of the hole.

4 With fur side down on the block of wood, fit bottom grommet piece (washer) on top. Align grommet and washer between the base and flaring tool. Firmly tap with hammer until the two grommet pieces are tightly fastened together.

5 Repeat steps 2 – 4 for each of the 5 remaining grommets.

6 Lay the sheepskin fur-side down on a table or floor. Center the seat of the bench upside down on the sheepskin. Bring the sides of the sheepskin over the bench. Measure the distance between opposing grommets.

7 Double the grommet-to-grommet measurement, and cut three Texsolv cords that length. Sear the cut ends in a flame.

8 Secure the sheepskin to the seat of the bench by lacing one of the cut Texsolv cords through two opposite grommets. Tighten the cord and lock it in place with an arrow peg. Repeat for the remaining two cords.

Sit in immovable comfort.

While we’re at it, let’s fix up one more bench cover…

Scrap of rosepath rag rug is held in place with bungee cords. (Bench for my Glimåkra Ideal loom)
Cord threader pulls Texsolv through. The end knots on the rug should keep the cord from pulling the weft out (I hope).
No more bungee cords!
Sitting in style.

May you see where you can soften things up.

Happy Sitting,
Karen

Tried and True: Cheater Bar

Karen

UPDATE: I no longer use the cheater bar, as it could put too much force on the loom parts. Instead, I loosen the front ratchet first, and then I am able to loosen the back ratchet.

I have a tool that makes me stronger than I naturally am. Warp tension is extremely tight on my loom when I am weaving rugs. After advancing the warp, and locking the pawl on the cloth beam, I tighten the ratchet on the warp beam as much as I can. Then, I put all my weight into tightening the cloth beam. And then, with a bit of oomph, I lean into the handles on that cloth beam wheel to turn it one more notch on the ratchet. I pat myself on the back for exhibiting such strength. But wait, I have just created a problem. The next time I need to advance the warp, I’m not nearly strong enough to release those front and back pawls.

Meet my simplest tool: The Cheater Bar.

Cheater Bar is PVC pipe to use as a lever.
PVC pipe, 1 1/4″ x 24″

With this amazing helper, I can safely release even the most extremely tight warp tension. (But NEVER use the Cheater Bar to tighten the warp.)

Slip the end of the pipe over a handle on the ratchet wheel.
Force of the lever makes it easy to release the ratchet. CAUTION! Do not use the lever to tighten the warp beam or cloth beam. You could easily tighten it more than the loom is made to handle.

I never knew I could be this strong. Celebrate the moment! (A play on words. Steve tells me “moment” is a physics term that has to do with a force’s tendency to cause something to rotate about a specific point or axis.)

Good tools make hard things easier.

May you find strength you didn’t know you had.

Happy weaving,
Karen

Tried and True: Cutting Off for a Fresh Start

Karen

I have good reasons for cutting off this first double-binding rag rug before proceeding with the rest of the warp. This pause and reset ensures happy weaving to the end. Cutting off gives me a fresh start for the next rug.

Rug is wrapping around the cloth beam.

Reasons for cutting off rag rug before end of warp

  1. Uneven warp tension. I can improve the warp by tying back on.
  2. Large rag rag. I can get a tighter warp tension by removing the rug’s bulk from the cloth beam.
  3. New design. It helps me to see the completed rug before starting the next one, since this is a brand-new design.
Rug comes to an end with a red border/hem. A warp-thread header follows, and then a few rows of scrap header to help secure the weft until finishing knots are tied.

Steps for cutting off rag rug before end of warp (countermarch loom)

Secure everything before cutting off. Shaft bars are in shaft holders and shaft pins are put back in place.
Countermarch locking pins on this Glimåkra Ideal are wooden dowels that go through the all the holes in the countermarch jacks.
Tension on the warp is released at the back ratchet and front ratchet.
  • Mark a cutting line across the warp with a black marker. Allow at least 10 centimeters (4 inches) beyond the rug’s warp-thread header for tying knots later that will secure the weft.
Mark a cutting line across the warp. Leave enough warp at the end of the rug to tie overhand knots to secure the weft.
  • With tying back on in mind, cut one group of ends and skip the next group of ends. Continue across the warp, alternating cut and uncut groups of ends. Tie groups of cut ends in slipknots as you go.
By spacing out the cut ends, the weight of the rug is evenly distributed. There is less pulling and distortion while cutting off. At the same time I am preparing groups of ends for tying back on.
  • Make a second pass, cutting the remaining groups of ends, and tying them in slipknots.
Continue cutting off groups of ends.
  • Unroll the rug from the cloth beam. Take a photograph.
First look at the back of the rug.
  • Lay the rug out on the floor. Ooh and aah.
Double-binding rag rug, ready for finishing and hemming! I let the rug rest on the floor for a couple days to let the warp and weft relax. Next step is to tie ends into overhand knots.

May you get a fresh start whenever you need it.

Happy Weaving,
Karen

Tried and True: When the Shed is Missing

Karen

You followed all the instructions for dressing the loom, and have finished the countermarch tie-up. Now, at the moment of triumph you step on the treadles, one by one. Alas! Some or all of the treadles give you nothing you can call a shed. Now what? Maybe you relate to Laura who wrote me recently, “I can’t seem to get the treadles to make a shed.”

The solution is simple. Follow the advice in this sentence on page 37 of Learning to Warp your Loom, by Joanne Hall, “If your sheds are not good, check your loom tie-up from the top down.”

If sheds are missing, there is a good chance you have a crossed cord.

Warp is threaded, sleyed, and tied on. After arranging and connecting a few Texsolv cords, I will tie up the treadles.

Find Misaligned Cords

1 Follow each Texsolv cord, starting from the countermarch at top of the loom.

All the shafts are good to go, right? Not quite. Better see what’s happening at the top of those Texsolv cords.

2 Make sure that each cord is connected in the right order at the right place.

Is the first countermarch jack connected to the first shaft, the second jack to the second shaft, and so on?

Misaligned cords as seen from the top of the loom.

Are the cords that go to the lower lamms strictly in order?

– With horizontal countermarch, does each cord fall behind the shafts in order?

Cords from the horizontal countermarch go through the center of the warp, to be attached to lower lamms below.
Make sure each cord goes behind its corresponding shaft bars to the lamms below. When attaching the cords to the lamms, make sure the cords are attached in the correct order. If loom is already tied up, follow each cord to check that it is attached to its corresponding lamm.

– With vertical countermarch, is each cord on its pulley, and connected to lamms in the right order?

Vertical countermarch has cords that go over pulleys on the side down to the lower lamms. I have to be extra careful to keep from attaching a cord to the wrong lamm.

3 Correct any misaligned cord.

Now, step on each treadle, one by one. Decent sheds that just need a little refining? Triumph!

Helpful Habit

When attaching a cord while dressing the loom, start your hand at the top of the cord and slide it down to the point of connection. This helps you take hold of the correct cord.

Ready to connect the shaft cords on the Glimåkra Julia, made easy by the small hooks on the shaft bars. Instead of expecting the cords to hang straight down in order, I reach my hand up to the top of the cord.
Touching where the cord meets the wood, I know I have the correct cord for the shaft closest to the front of the loom. I do the same for the next cord.
My hand slides down the cord and I connect the cord to the correct shaft. Now, all that’s left is tying up the treadles. Then, we weave!

May none of your cords be crossed.

Happy Weaving,
Karen