Tuesday, November 05, 2024

Crackle Manners of Weaving: Shadow Effects

Samples # 16, 17, & 18 of my 4-shaft crackle manners of weaving sampler.

I found references to "shadow" in four of the resources I'm using for my crackle study.

NOTE: The term "shadow" in weaving is usually associated with "shadow weave." Traditional shadow weave is different than the samples I've done here. My briefest of explanations for shadow weave is that it's an interesting color weave, alternating contrasting colors of warp and weft threads to create interesting patterns. I've experimented with shadow weave in the past (list of posts here) and you can see some good examples here. For my crackle sampler, I'm calling these "shadow effects."

Of shadow effects I found three. To help me remember which is which, I'm calling them:
  • Shadow-y crackle
  • Shadow blocks
  • Snyder's shadow blocks
Shadow-y Crackle

"Shadow-y" is a term used by Helene Bress to distinguish it from shadow weave. It's found in the twill chapter of her The Weaving Book.  It's also described by Susan Wilson as an overshot variation. She credits Grace D. Blum's now out-of-print-book Functional Overshot for the instructions.

Sample #16: Shadow-y crackle

  • Switches the tabby and pattern wefts
    • lighter tabby yarn is used for the pattern shots (10/2 in natural)
    • darker pattern yarn is used for the tabby shots (5/2 in light green)
  • Can be used with any twill treadling pattern.
  • For the above sample, I wove it like overshot. My liftplan was:
    • (use tabby)
    • 1-2 (x 5)
    • 2-3 (x 5)
    • 3-4 (x 5)
    • 4-1 (x 5)
    • reverse
  • It was difficult to photograph because of the low contrast between the natural and green.
  • I like it. It reminds me of an heirloom tablecloth from my mother. 

Shadow Blocks

This one is called "shadow" by both Wilson and Brusic, with both crediting Mary Snyder. Yet when I compare their instructions with Snyder's I find a difference. This one is the more contemporary treadling described by Wilson and Brusic. 

Sample #17: Shadow Blocks
  • Uses two tabbies between each pattern shot.
  • Liftplan:
    • 1-2, a, b (x 5)
    • 2-3, a, b (x 5)
    • 3-4, a, b (x 5)
    • 4-1, a, b (x 5)
  • Stronger color contrast highlights the pattern

Snyder's Shadow Blocks

Sample #18: Snyder's Shadow Blocks
  • A three-shuttle weave
  • Like the previous sample, Snyder's uses two tabbies between the pattern weft shots. 
    • Tabby yarns are finer than the pattern yarn.
    • One tabby is the same as the warp
    • One tabby is a contrasting color
  • Liftplan (same as sample #17):
    • 1-2, a, b (x 5)
    • 2-3, a, b (x 5)
    • 3-4, a, b (x 5)
    • 4-1, a, b (x 5)
  • This one has more of the crackly look to it and I think it has some interesting possibilities in terms of color exploration. 
~~~

The discerning eye will likely have noticed that I'm having tension issues (!!!) It's a long warp (5 yards) and I knew it wasn't winding on evenly, but I kept on going because I didn't want to unwind it and start over. It's "just" a sampler. Oftentimes the irregularities sort themselves out with wet finishing, and that's my hope here. In the meantime, it's weave on!

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Saturday, November 02, 2024

Crackle Manners of Weaving: Lace Weaves

Samples #13, 14, & 15 of my 4-shaft crackle manners of weaving sampler.

Susan Wilson offers three treadling patterns for weaving crackle as lace
  • Bronson lace (p.39). (This one is called Snyder lace by Lucy Brusic.)
  • Mystery Lace (p. 42)
  • Two-block lace (p. 42)
Weaving notes:
  • All are one shuttle weaves.
  •  I used the same 10/2 yarn for weft as I used for warp.
  • I'm using a table loom, so the treadling plans are given as liftplans.
  • The threading and tie-up can be found in the introduction to my sampler.

As Bronson Lace

Sample #13: treadled as Bronson lace

Bronson lace treadling
  • Block A: a, 1-4, a, 1-4, a, b
  • Block B: a, 1-2, a, 1-2, a, b
  • Block C: a, 2-3, a, 2-3, a, b
  • Block D: a, 3-4, a, 3-4, a, b

As Mystery Lace

Sample #14: Treadled as Mystery lace

Mystery lace treadling
  • Block A: a, 1-4, a, b, 1-4, b
  • Block B: a, 1-2, a, b, 1-2, b
  • Block C: a, 2-3, a, b, 2-3, b
  • Block D: a, 3-4, a, b, 3-4, b

As 2-block Lace

Sample #15: Treadled as 2-block lace

2-block lace treadling
  • Block A: 3-4, 1-4, 3-4, 1-4, a, b
  • Block B: 1-4, 1-2, 1-4, 1-2, a, b
  • Block C: 1-2, 2-3, 1-2, 2-3, a, b
  • Block D: 2-3, 3-4, 2-3, 3-4, a, b

Weaving observations
  • Being a one-shuttle weave, these wove up quickly.
  • Even though I'm a color weaver, I enjoy weaving monochrome lace.
  • Of the three, the mystery lace seems to have the most obscure pattern. The Bronson is the most lace-like. The 2-block lace is the most textured. On the loom, at least.
  • Washing makes a big difference with lace weaves, however, so how they look then will give me a better idea. (Examples of huck lace, before and after washing, here.)
  • I'm thinking if I do use the summer & winter treadled crackle for fabric for dining room curtains, then lace under curtains (like shears) in the same threading might look well. 
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Thursday, October 31, 2024

Crackle Manners of Weaving: Woven as Summer & Winter

Samples #11 & 12 of my 4-shaft crackle manners of weaving sampler.

Summer & winter (S&W) combined with crackle is mentioned by both Susan Wilson (Weave Classic Crackle & More) and Lucy Brusic (A Crackle Weave Companion), but they approach it differently. Brusic refers to crackle treadling on S&W threading (page 44 of her book. It's an idea get gets Mary Snyder's The Crackle Weave), while Wilson discusses S&W treadling on crackle threading (pages 36-38). Since my sampler is threaded for crackle, Wilson's is the option I chose. 

I did a study on summer & winter years ago (list of posts here), so I had my own notes to review. I focused on the treadling, of which there are six classic ways to treadle the pattern weft in S&W (You can see examples in this post). All use tabby:
  • 1-2-1-2
  • 2-1-2-1
  • 1-2-2-1
  • 2-1-1-2
  • 1-1-1-1
  • 2-2-2-2
Wilson discusses two of them in her book:
  • 1-2-1-2
  • 1-2-2-1
The difference is in how the pattern weft threads line up, either alternating or stacked in pairs.

Left: treadled 1-2-1-2. Looks like alternating bricks.
Right: treadled 1-2-2-1. Looks like stacked bricks.

This is using the standard 2/2 balanced twill tie-up.

Numbers in right-hand column indicate shafts.
Numbers along the bottom indicate treadling.

Here are the samples.

Sample #11: 1-2-2-1 S&W treadling

Sample #12: 1-2-1-2-S&W treadling

Both samples use 10/2 doubled for their pattern wefts. By sample 12, I had figured out which shed to use for smoother looking transitions between the blocks. Consequently, I like the second one better. 

No matter what I'm weaving, my mind is always busy wondering. Some of my thoughts are creative curiosity (what if I changed this? or tried that?). Some of them contemplate practical applications (what project could I use this for?) For these samples, I'm thinking ahead to a (probably distant) future project, which is to weave drapery fabric for my dining room windows. What I want, is something to coordinate with my Blue Willow dishes. 

The Scandinavian Favorite table runner I wove last year.

Blue Willow has an intricate blue and white border pattern around the edges.


I've been looking for something that would compliment that, and I'm thinking crackle threading with summer and winter treadling could work very well. I'll add it to my list of possibilities.

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Sunday, October 27, 2024

Crackle Manners of Weaving: On Opposites


In weaving, opposites can refer to either:
  • Pattern blocks. For example, one pattern block is woven lifting one or two particular shafts, and the next block is treadled with the opposite shafts. Tabby must be used to avoid long warp floats and stabilize the fabric. My Cottage Windows table runner is woven this way.
  • Alternating opposite sheds. For example, a shed from shafts 1-2 is alternates with 3-4. Tabby is optional, but produces a more stable fabric.
Sample #9: Blocks On Opposites

The draft for this sample is based on one from Anne Dixon's The Handweaver's Pattern Directory, page 131.

Sample #9, crackle blocks on opposites

  • Warp and tabby are 10/2, pattern weft is 10/2 doubled
  • Alternates sheds 1-2 and 3-4 with tabby.

Sample #10: Opposite Sheds with Tabby

Sample #10, woven on opposite sheds

  • 2 pattern wefts in different colors with tabby
    • 1-2, a
    • 3-4, b
    • repeat as desired
  • Warp and tabby are 10/2
  • Pattern wefts are 6/2
Based on the sample photo in Weave Classic Crackle & More, I was fully expecting to not be impressed with this one. So, I was surprised when i liked the look of it. I got to thinking it would make nice yardage for a lightweight jacket or heavyweight shirt. I wove more, rotating the blocks:
  • 1-2 and 3-4
  • 2-3 and 1-4
  • 3-4 and 1-2
  • 1-4 and 2-3

It makes a nice but subtle patterned fabric. I particularly like plaids and checks, which would be easy to create with this manner of weaving. I'll keep it on my "to try" list for a future yardage project.

Another example

My Cottage Windows table runner woven on opposite blocks.

Resources
  • Wilson, Susan, Weave Classic Crackle & More, pages 45, 52
  • Brusic, Lucy M., A Crackle Weave Companion, page 29
  • Snyder, Mary E., The Crackle Weave, page 11
  • Dixon, Anne, The Handweaver's Pattern Directory, page 131

Related posts
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Saturday, October 26, 2024

Crackle Manners of Weaving: Polychrome

Poly (many), chrome (colors). In weaving, polychrome describes a category. The effect is produced by using a variety of weft colors, treadled in one of several ways to create blocks of color. 

I particularly like Susan Wilson's definition of polychrome, because it's based on her research of the weaving literature to find the common factors in all the definitions. I think this is important, because I'm seeing that many books describe only one of the various polychrome treadling patterns.

Polychrome Characteristics

  • multiple weft colors (2, 3, or 4)
  • typically a single warp color
  • the treadling pattern creates blocks of color side by side
  • includes a variety of treadling methods
  • commonly used with crackle, but also overshot and summer & winter

Because polychrome covers a number of treadling methods, I chose a few to start and added examples from other blog posts. I may try more later, depending on how much sampler warp I have.

Resources
Usually, I put my resources at the end of the post, but since I'm picking and choosing from them for my sampler, I'll list them here and refer to the page numbers with each sample.
  • Snyder, Mary E., The Crackle Weave (1961 edition)
  • Brusic, Lucy M., A Crackle Weave Companion
  • Wilson, Susan, Weave Classic Crackle & More
Sample #7: Polychrome Blocks (Snyder page 101, Brusic pages 52-53)

#7 Polychrome Blocks
  • 4 weft colors
  • woven in overshot manner
  • rotates 2 colors per block
    • pattern weft is one color
    • tabby is a different color
  • rotate through the four colors as follows:
    • Block 1 (lift shafts 1-2) 
      • pattern: color #1
      • tabby: color #2
    • Block 2 (lift shafts 2-3)
      • pattern: color #2
      • tabby: color #3
    • Block 3 (lift shafts 3-4)
      • pattern: color #3
      • tabby: color #4
    • Block 4 (lift shafts 4-1)
      • pattern: color #4
      • tabby: color #1
Sample #5 polychrome blocks detail

Weaving Notes
  • In my first picture, I can't see my blocks as distinct entities and am pondering this.
    • Firstly, I'm thinking heavier pattern wefts would bring out the blocks more.
    • Snyder's study recommends using 10/2 for both warp and weft, set at 24 e.p.i. I'm using 10/2s but my sett is 20 e.p.i. (as per Wilson's sampler instructions.) Can't help but wonder if I wouldn't like the tighter sett better.
    • Also, I'm thinking the light color warp washes out the color effect of the blocks. I'll have to experiment with a darker warp in the future.
  • Getting the sampler off the loom and wet finished with make a difference also.
  • In general, the draft seemed complicated at first, but the sheds and color rotation are logical and easy to follow.

Sample #8: Traditional Polychrome (Wilson, pages 54, 57, 58)

#8 Traditional Polychrome Crackle
  • 3 shuttles
    • 2 pattern wefts in different colors
    • 1 tabby weft, can be same as warp or a different color
  • colors and tabby are rotated in the same sequence throughout
  • treadling is a 6 pick sequence (translated here as a lift plan because I'm using a table loom)
    • Block A
      • 3-4 (weft color 1)
      • 1-4 (weft color 2)
      • tabby a
      • 3-4 (weft color 1)
      • 1-4 (weft color 2)
      • tabby b
    • Block B
      • 1-4 (weft color 1)
      • 1-2 (weft color 2)
      • tabby a
      • 1-4 (weft color 1)
      • 1-2 (weft color 2)
      • tabby b
    • Block C
      • 1-2 (weft color 1)
      • 2-3 (weft color 2)
      • tabby a
      • 1-2 (weft color 1)
      • 2-3 (weft color 2)
      • tabby b
    • Block D
      • 2-3 (weft color 1)
      • 3-4 (weft color 2)
      • tabby a
      • 2-3 (weft color 1)
      • 3-4 (weft color 2)
      • tabby b
Weaving Notes
  • In light of my observations for sample #7, I decided to use a heavier pattern weft.
    • warp and tabby are 10/2 in natural
    • pattern wefts are red and dark gray in 6/2
  • I think that was a good choice.
More examples  of polychrome from previous posts projects

Classic Crackle sample #2, details here.

On Opposites Photo is from my Cottage Windows table runner 
  • In weaving, opposites can refer to either:
    • Alternating opposite sheds. For example, a shed from shafts 1-2 is alternated with 3-4. Contrasting colors are used for the wefts. Tabby is optional, but produces a more stable fabric.
    • Pattern blocks. For example, one pattern block is treadled with shafts 2-3 for so many shots, and then treadled 1-2 for so many shots. The second block is treadled with the opposite shafts 4-1 and 3-4. With this treadling, tabby must be used to avoid long warp floats.
  • produces a weft-faced fabric
  • See Weaving On Opposites for more information.

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