Monday, July 30, 2007

Ski Shuttle & Afghan Progress

I've made excellent weaving progress. Here's why.......

A ski shuttle is a very useful piece of equipment.
A ski shuttle. I've used stick shuttles and boat shuttles, but it wasn't until I started weaving the Project Linus blanket that I thought about getting a ski shuttle.

My longest boat shuttle holds 6 inch bobbins. For a 42 inch project on the loom using a worsted weight knitting yarn for weft, that's about 3 inches or so of weaving. Stick shuttles hold more, but blankets and afghans are too wide to pass them through the shed easily. My brand new 19.5 inch ski shuttle on the other hand, holds enough yarn for about 12 inches worth of weaving. No comparison!

So, with a little bit of snoopervision .....

Catzee discovers a nifty kitty perch.
....... the first Christmas afghan in zig zag twill is finished........

The first zig zag twill afghan completed.
I feel like I'm making good progress.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh it turned out beautiful! That zig zag effect looks great with the slight sheen of the yarn. Bravo :)

Sheepish Annie said...

Absolutely beautiful afghan! I'm sure that it was all that expert supervision that made it possible...how cute!!

Erin said...

That shuttle sure does look like it would make things move along quite quickly!

Anonymous said...

Wow, that was fast! I'm still only thinking about what I'd like to weave and you've got...what...like 12 projects already done? :-) Okay, so maybe the new tools make the difference....

Peg in South Carolina said...

When you hit the jackpot, you might think about getting the large Bluster Bay end feed shuttle. That would be faster than weaving with a ski shuttle, and probably faster to wind on as well.
I really like the way you are moving. Don't even think about crackle! Follow your nose.
I'm so glad you find blogging intensifying weaving and vice versa. It's nice to know there's at least one other crazy lady out there!

Sue said...

Beautiful!!! Can you throw the ski shuttle through the shed like you can a boat shuttle, or is it more "passing", like a stick shuttle? The curved bottom looks like it could be thrown.

Leigh said...

Thank you, Ladies! I am very happy with it and hope the recipient feels the same way.

Sue, the ski shuttle can be thrown just like a boat shuttle. It took a little getting used to, but it is fast to use and holds a lot of yarn.

Peg, an end feed shuttle is on my list of things to get. Not sure when that will happen, but I understand they are superior to weave with.

Kristi aka Fiber Fool said...

Making progress? Definitely! That is a gorgeous afghan!

bspinner said...

Beautiful!!!! And so is your helper who has found himself a nice comfortable hiding place.
As always information and pictures are enjoyable and appreicated.

Susan B. said...

Lovely!
And verrrry interesting about the ski shuttle (filing that bit away in my mind).

Anonymous said...

Very pretty! I like ski shuttles as well as boat shuttles except for the winding part.

Cathy said...

Wow - you are going to town on those afghans! This is beautiful! (Actually, I really like the first one too, even if it didn't turned out exactly as you thought it would). I've never tried a ski shuttle, but I sure do like the idea of weaving longer without having to "reload". By the way - maybe this is a very elementary topic, but I've never tied on a new warp before and I'd be very interested to see photos of that process.

Leigh said...

The ski shuttle is definitely a great tool, though I agree with Alice that it is slower to wind.

Cathy, I'll take photos of tying on the next time I do it. That would be the afghan after the one on the loom now. Thanks for the idea!

Jackie said...

Wonderful! I also like the ski shuttles when weaving wide projects.
I also had a good chuckle at your new "cat bed".
I am realizing what a gem I had in my cat. I knew that she was good around fiber, but I never realized how much other cats could do to a perfectly good bit of weaving.

Charleen said...

Gorgeous afghans, Leigh! I had thought about getting a ski shuttle when I was experimenting with rag rugs but I never got around to it. Nice to know it speeds up blanket weaving too. What kind did you get?

Great shot of Catzee!

Leigh said...

Thank you!

Charleen, the shuttle came from Glimakra Looms. I only wish I'd gotten the longer one!