Sunday, October 22, 2006

I don't know...trying to keep up with my blogging is just another something to accomplish. I guess right now if I can manage once a month I'm doing pretty good for me!

I'm working hard on trying to make progress on my cutpile weaving. I'm using my brother's yarns (see the shawls woven in August for our sister's wedding). Still only available in gold/rust, they are lovely colors and the shetland-silk combination works well.

This is how my weaving was looking about a week ago. It's going to be a bag, and the design is a spiral. This spiral works counter clock-wise and symbolizes Rebirth. The other panel on the bag will reverse the colors and direction and will symbolize Spirituality.







Left: More progress this week


Left: I used thrums, mostly, from the weaving of the shawls

The piece is warped on a Mirrix loom, and I was having trouble with it truncating (going flat from the pattern). So I removed some of the weaving, including the heading of soumak, and re-distributed the warp over the spring which serves as determining the sett - I took out the spring for a wider sett, replacing with a spring for a closer sett, and am very happy with the results. Now the problem is in the fell - it is not level and I think this is due to uneven tension. Do you see how it frowns? Lower at each selvege edge. I've been trying to build up with more knots at each side, and to my inexperienced hand it feels like the tension is even, but it must not be. So I'll try adding a shim under the warp at each end to see if more tension will even things out.

To follow: Super bulky weight knit vest with zipper, and shrug from Noro silk garden variegated yarn!

3 comments:

Sharon said...

I was feeling overwhelmed by unfinished projects - I'm not going to call them WIP - and thought some about selling my Mirix. I've since decided that it's a good tool and I'm the problem, not the loom. I had never thought about it for a cut pile weaving. Maybe a goal for 2007?

Purple Fuzzy Mittens said...

This is going to be beautiful! I like the simplicity, yet meaning, of the graphics.

Beryl Moody said...

Great to see that you are continuing with the knotted pile. My looms are warped with several inches of project, but have been in the studio for over two years without progress. Maybe soon:-)