Process Review: Casita Tapestry

This little Casita travel trailer is a good symbol of the retirement phase for Steve and me. I started the tapestry a few months before our move to Texas hill country, in anticipation of our new adventures. And then, the day after Steve retired we went to Rice, Texas and drove away with our new Casita La Perlita (Little Pearl), as if to say, “Let the adventure begin!”

Just off the loom - "La Perlita" Casita tapestry.
Just off the loom, La Perlita Casita. 37 cm x 26 cm (14 1/2″ x 10 1/4″)

Enjoy the Casita tapestry review.

May your adventures come at just the right time.

Happy journeying,
Karen

20 Comments

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Cutting Off a Failure

I made an embarrassing blunder. No wonder this Tuna wool resists all my efforts. It’s the wrong yarn! Tuna is 6/2 wool—twice as thick as the 6/1 wool I should be using. Cowboy Magic won’t solve this sticky problem. (I thought it would, as I expressed in this post: Tame the Wool.)

The yarn is gorgeous, but my frustration level is pushing me to throw in the towel. I tried hard to make this work. I was so convinced I had the right yarn that I missed it even when reader Joan left a gentle comment asking if 6/1 Fårö yarn would work (I’m sorry for not listening, Joan). There is nothing left but to cut off this failure.

Cutting off out of frustration.
Every shed is a struggle. It seems impossible to get a clean shed with this “sticky” yarn. (It’s not the yarn’s fault, though.)
Cutting off a failure. Ouch!
Failed piece is cut off. There are unwanted floats everywhere, and the fabric is like cardboard because of the tight sett.
Cutting off a failed double weave project. Ugh.
Bottom of the double weave has even more unwanted floats than the top layer.

In this lowest moment a thought occurs to me. Re-sley the reed. An ounce of hope rises.

Re-sleying to a coarser sett. Hoping for success.
Reed is changed from 50/10 metric to 40/10 metric. This spreads the warp an additional 19.9 cm (7 3/4″).
Wool for a double weave blanket. Second try.
Sleying is complete and the new reed is placed in the beater.
Wool warp for a double weave blanket.
Warp is tied on and leveling string is tightened. On your mark, get ready, get set…

I re-sley to a coarser reed and tie back on. I hold my breath and step on the treadles. It works. And it’s gorgeous!

Double weave wool blanket on 12 shafts. Glimakra Standard.
Go! Night and day difference in being able to clear each shed.
Double weave at its finest. Wool blanket.
Double weave at its finest.
Weaving into the sunset!
Weaving into the sunset.
Double weave Tuna wool blanket on Glimakra Standard. Success!
Clean lines of double weave, with a (very) few unwanted floats that will be easy to fix later.
Double weave wool blanket. Success after starting over!
This is now a pleasure to weave!

Have you experienced great disappointment and loss of hope? Sometimes our own failure brings us to that point. The Lord makes things new. We come to Jesus with our failed attempts, and he exchanges our used rags of effort with his clean cloth of righteousness. In his forgiveness, the failure is cut off and removed. Our threads are re-sleyed and re-tied to make us gloriously new.

May you know when to cut off and start over.

Love,
Karen

8 Comments

  • Beth says:
    May 21, 2019 at 5:24 am

    Where there’s a will, there’s a way! The “failure” would make lovely bolster pillows. We all make mistakes and move forward. The resleyed weaving is beautiful. I’m holding my breath about the project I’m about to start.

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 21, 2019 at 6:26 am

      Hi Beth, I thought about making a handbag out of the failed piece, but bolster pillows is another good idea!

      I came perilously close to pulling all the yarn off the loom and calling it a total loss. What stopped me was the beauty of the yarn itself. I just had to find a way to make it work.

      I’ll be looking for your brave project on IG.

      Thanks for your sweet encouragement,
      Karen

      Reply
  • Betsy says:
    May 21, 2019 at 7:45 am

    I’m glad you figured out what the problem was and got it fixed. The colors are so pretty!

    Looking forward to seeing you next week!

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 21, 2019 at 8:42 am

      Hi Betsy, Fortunately, most weaving problems are fixable…when we calm down enough to think it through.

      I’m looking forward to seeing you, too, at the CHT conference next week!

      All the best,
      Karen

      Reply
  • Nannette says:
    May 21, 2019 at 10:36 pm

    Hi Karen,
    Very pretty lemonade.
    Thank you for explaining how to make a correction when plans need a little help.

    Kind regards,
    Nannette

    Reply
  • Karen Reff says:
    May 26, 2019 at 8:51 am

    It’s not fun when it’s happening, but oh, how good it feels to get everything straightened out! Good for you for sticking with it!

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 26, 2019 at 7:55 pm

      Hi Karen, Thanks! I came awfully close to giving up altogether. You’re right, it feels terrific to get everything straightened out. At loom everything (or almost everything) is fixable.

      Karen

      Reply

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Tried and True: Another Use for Thrums

Handwoven towels need handwoven hanging tabs. I finished the Vavstuga cottolin towel warp, so now it’s time to put my band loom to use. Why not use the warp thrums to make the woven band? The length of the thrums is too short for the band loom, so I am knotting two ends together for each strand.

Thrums are used to make a warp for the Glimåkra band loom.
Thrums ends are tied together to make a warp long enough for the Glimåkra band loom.
Glimakra band loom.
Cottolin band warp is from the towel warp. Unbleached cottolin is used for the weft.

Everything is starting out just fine, but my inexperience with the “weaver’s knot” proves problematic. One by one, the knots are working themselves loose. I re-tie each failed knot into a confident square knot. Finally, after three weaver’s knot failures, I decided to advance the warp far enough to get past the knots altogether. Smooth sailing after that, and I still ended up with plenty of woven band for the six woven towels.

Woven band for hanging tabs on handwoven towels.
Weaving about 30 cm before the knots, and about 40 cm after the knots. Each hanging tab is about 10 cm, so I have plenty of woven band for the six towels.
Using thrums to make coordinating tabs for handwoven towels.
Unwashed towel fabric. Using warp thread from the towels is a great way to make coordinating hanging tabs, as well as a satisfying use for some of the thrums.

I like finding another good use for the thrums. So, I will do this again. But next time, I’ll do a refresher on knot tying before I begin.

May your knots hold tight.

All the best,
Karen

9 Comments

  • Nancy says:
    May 14, 2019 at 5:17 am

    What a great idea!

    Reply
  • Nannette says:
    May 14, 2019 at 6:27 am

    It is great to find a use for the thrums. I cringe when the work of the spinner is cut away. My last thrums were set aside for raspberry tie ups. Someone else I know uses hers for pillow stuffing.

    I am not familiar with a weaver’s knot. Would you have time in a future posting describe?

    Kind regards,

    Nannette

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 14, 2019 at 8:30 pm

      Hi Nannette, I haven’t found a lot of uses for thrums, so I’m happy when it works out like this.

      I don’t think you should learn the weaver’s knot from me until I get better at myself. 🙂 Jenny Bellairs shows a terrific way of tying it – see the link in her comment below this.

      All the best,
      Karen

      Reply
  • Jenny Bellairs says:
    May 14, 2019 at 7:00 am

    I know the people in the weaving industry can tie the weaver’s knot very quickly, but unless I need the tiny knot, I find it is quicker to put the two ends together and tie an overhand knot.

    I did find some instructions quite a few years ago that I was actually able to remember without looking up instructions, and made a pictorial blog post here: https://jennybellairs.blogspot.com/search?q=Weaver’s+knot

    It doesn’t seem to work well on all weights of yarn though, especially thick firm yarns.

    Karen, I enjoy your blog posts and look forward to learning something new, especially since getting my Glimakra Standard 10 shaft loom last summer.

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 14, 2019 at 8:34 pm

      Hi Jenny, Thank you so much for posting your pictorial blog post on tying this knot–Super! I definitely want to try that out. And yes, an overhand knot would have served me better in this instance. Maybe I’ll think of that next time! Thanks!

      I hope you are enjoying your Glimakra Standard 10 shaft loom as much as I enjoy mine!

      Happy weaving,
      Karen

      Reply
    • Nannette says:
      May 15, 2019 at 11:13 am

      Thank you Jenny,

      The knot looks so easy to be such a challenge. Thank you for sharing your blog. Besides Karen’s blog I have been binging on the vlog Curmudeon66 out of DePere Wisconsin. Content driven by a retired guy with the heart of a teacher.

      My Blog is all over the place. The latest weaving posting is linked below. My work is primitive at best. Hoping to improve with each project.
      http://piasinitimes.blogspot.com/2018/04/plarn-mat-for-homeless.html

      When I have time I will have to put in a few more posts of my spring projects.

      Kind regards,

      Nannette

      Reply
  • Rachel Lohman says:
    May 15, 2019 at 6:45 am

    Maybe take the trums and tie together and knit or crochet a washcloth?

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 15, 2019 at 8:33 am

      Hi Rachel, I like that idea. I’m not a knitter or crocheter, but I have friends who are. Maybe they would like to use my thrums.

      I do have plans to use my saved linen thrums for weft in washcloths. I hope to do that sometime this year.

      Thanks,
      Karen

      Reply

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Weaving Some Simple Borders

I need to free up this little loom in order to put on a different warp that has a deadline. So, now that I have returned from my travels, my attention is going to these towels. My friend is letting me weave this lovely cottolin warp that she got at Vavstuga.

Simple border stripe in first towel of the Vavstuga towel kit.
Simple border stripe in first towel. Straight twill.
Cottolin warp and 8/1 tow linen weft.
Cottolin warp and 8/1 tow linen weft.
Point twill on four shafts.
Point twill on four shafts. Three horizontal stripes made with half-bleached tow linen weft.

Straight twill, point twill, broken twill, and now “rick-rack.” And after that, a couple towels in plain weave. Everyone who weaves this Vavstuga towel kit and follows the instructions will end up with the same six towels. True? Not necessarily. I like to step off the expected path. That is why I vary the weft and include some type of simple border design on each towel.

Loom with a view. Texas Hill Country.
Three colors of 8/1 tow linen sit on the little blue table as choices for weft. Half-bleached, Unbleached, and Bronze.
Broken twill for a cottolin towel.
Changed the tie-up to broken twill, which allows me to keep a simple straight treadling pattern. Dashed weft pattern for the border stripe is produced by alternating the bronze linen weft with the half-bleached linen weft.
Color-blocked towel uses three neutral weft colors.
Long wavy vertical lines give the appearance of rick-rack. Again, I changed the tie-up to keep the simple straight treadling pattern. I use all three weft colors in this color-blocked towel.
Cottolin towels with 8/1 tow linen weft.
Plain weave, with four shafts and two treadles. The main body of the towel uses the unbleached linen weft. Two picks of half-bleached linen are sandwiched between several rows of bronze linen weft.

There is a wide path that is crowded with many people. It’s the common and expected way of life. It’s where you stay if you want to fit in with everyone else. But if you search for it, you’ll find an uncommon path. It’s narrow; and few find it. It’s the path of life that is found in Jesus Christ. Stand in the narrow path. That is where your unique features will show up as border designs that set you apart as a cherished child of God.

May you be set apart.

Happy weaving,
Karen

9 Comments

  • Joanna says:
    May 7, 2019 at 7:58 am

    What a timely post this is! I have a long striped towel warp on that I was getting seriously bored with after only two towels. Right now it’s 4S/2T in a straight draw, but I was mulling over putting more treadles on and fiddling with the tie-up. Thanks for helping me decide (I’m prone to dithering). Bless you, Karen.

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 7, 2019 at 8:29 am

      Hi Joanna, I tend to thrive on variety. Maybe you’re like me in that regard? I have changed the tie-up three times on this warp so far. With only four shafts, it’s an easy way to change things up. The instructions that came with the Vavstuga towel kit gave different tie-up options, so I thought – why not do them all? 🙂

      Happy weaving,
      Karen

      Reply
  • Kristin Martzall says:
    May 7, 2019 at 8:19 am

    Your posts are so inspiring! How do you use the grosgrain ribbon? as a measuring device? Like a cash register tape bit not as bulky and fragile.?
    Thanks ,in advance ,for your help in explaining that process!

    Kris

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 7, 2019 at 8:38 am

      Hi Kristin, Welcome!
      The marked grosgrain ribbon came with the Vavstuga towel kit. I normally use twill tape for the same purpose – to pre-measure the desired length of what I am weaving. Here’s a blog post I wrote about it: Tools Day: Measured Weaving

      Happy weaving!
      Karen

      Reply
  • Annie says:
    May 7, 2019 at 10:06 am

    Welcome home, Karen! I am sure that you missed your looms! Were you able to finish the tapestry from Big Bend?
    I also like to try different tie ups or striping when I make towels. I like the combination of striping and pattern you have with those colors.

    Reply
    • Karen says:
      May 7, 2019 at 11:36 am

      Hi Annie, I made some good progress on my Big Bend tapestry while away. But my floor looms have a louder voice in calling me than the portable frame loom does. I guess I better set aside some quiet evening time to finish the tapestry.

      Thanks!
      Karen

      Reply
  • Linda Cornell says:
    May 9, 2019 at 8:30 am

    Five sentences, so precious, choose the narrow path!

    Thank you and Blessings.

    Linda

    Reply
  • Pam Cauchon says:
    May 12, 2019 at 7:34 am

    Thank you, Karen, for such wise words. I had been questioning my decision to simplify my life. While simplification is good for contemplation it can be a bit lonely. Weaving provides those moments for contemplation and it is encouraging to hear from someone who is like-minded. To know Christ’s narrow path is well worth it. Then I realize I’m not so lonely after all. Indeed, thank you for the encouraging words.

    Reply

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