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The pattern is an old one, finally found in an old weaving pamphlet. I found the plan for treadling in the introduction.
Treadle 1 lifts shafts 1 & 2Treadle 2 lifts shafts 2 & 3Treadle 3 lifts shafts 3 & 4Treadle 4 lifts shafts 1 & 4Tabby, of course, alternates 1 & 3 and 2 & 4.
With that I wrote my liftplan on a card and clipped it to my loom after making
adjustments to square the "windows."
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| I found I needed to adjust the number of lifts to square the windows. |
I started off slowly, because this was the first time to use my double bobbin shuttle and I could envision making a tangle of the threads.
I have to say that this shuttle is lovely in hand and positively zips through the shed. I chose this particular brand and model because of it's low profile. It's advertised for rigid heddle looms. but is perfect for my table loom. I like it well enough that I'll likely buy another shuttle or two from her.
Anyway, after a painstakingly slow start, I've made progress.
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I can't quite fit two full weft sections in a photo, but this way you
get a peek at the 1st three. You can see my color rotation plan here, Hold-ups on Starting Weaving & A Change of Plan. |
As I've become comfortable with the double-bobbin shuttle, I've developed a rhythm and picked up weaving speed.
Weaving notes
- My yarn choices include a mix of mercerized and unmercerized cottons. Most size 10/2 cottons are sold mercerized, which gives a lovely sheen to the thread, but which aren't as absorbent as unmercerized. However, I was focused on color, and this is what I ended up with. The unmercerized cones I have were bought as commercial mill ends.
- Unweaving is particularly a nuisance with those double bobbins, especially re-winding the thread back onto them.
- This is a good place to notate two color swaps I made from my original plan.
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The first is that I'm using a different navy for the tabby weft than I
did for the warp. I have two navies in 10/2, one darker and one lighter.
I like the lighter navy better for this project, but doubt I have enough
to use it for tabby weft too. I used the lighter navy for the warp and
the darker navy for the tabby. The difference isn't noticeable in the fabric.
Tabby navy on the left, warp navy on the right - The second color change I made was the yellow (which I called goldenrod, but it looked like mustard when I started weaving with it). It was too bright so I swapped it out for the mellower golden orange. You can see the effect of the yellow in the shuttle photo, and of the golden orange in the fabric sample photo.
Goldenrod on left, golden orange on right.
8 comments:
I collected four new and used bobbins (no doubles) in preparation for weaving and then discovered they don't work well with my loom; stick shuttles are the way to go for me. Your projects always look so impossibly complex to me! I finally have warp wound for my next rugs; will hopefully get my loom threaded this week.
Michelle, I'm curious. Why are you saying they don't work well with your loom? What happens when you try to weave with them? I can't use all shuttles with my loom either, but after some hunting around, I figured out what works well and am going with those.
I started with the same kinds of projects as you! Success just prods me toward experimentation. There are endless ways to weave, all of them fascinating!
My loom has a pretty small shed, and none of my shuttles (and I bought lower-profile ones) pass through smoothly. Using a stick shuttle at least as long as my warp is wide makes weaving fast and easy, and it holds so much more yarn than a shuttle (remember, I'm using pretty thick yarn at this point.)
Michelle, I agree stick shuttles work best for heavier yarns. Some day you'll likely experiment with finer yarns and use the low profile shuttles. They really work well for fine yarns and looms with small sheds.
When I saw your project it looked like an abstract painting of rows of
attached houses one would find in England often or in large cities such as New York.
Funny about using boat shuttles vs stick shuttles. I have used stick shuttles on both but prefer sticks for my rigid heddle and when weaving bath rugs or anything using very thick cotton yarn on the floor or multiple shaft table looms. However I have used shuttles on my rigid heddle loom with success.
Also of interest was the comment about making the weaving faster. For myself after the long and tedious chore of dressing the loom I am looking to the slow and gentle rhythm of the process.Sometimes that process takes so much time and the actual act of weaving seems to end to soon.
Goatldi, it is very "modernistic" isn't it?! I think that's part of what appealed to me. It's funny, because I'm don't often care for modern art or music, but with weaving, I really like the less traditional looks.
You bring up a good point about project speed. When people used to ask "how long did that take to weave?," I would focus on just the "weave," and the answer was usually in hours. But dressing the loom is truly the lion's share of the time, and later, I began to say, "from start to finish ...," and the answer would be in days. Much more realistic!
Indeed Some good news to be sure. I used to joke with my fellow weavers
in Northern CA I would pay someone to dress the loom for me. Call me when it is done and I will finish up the actual weaving and take all the credit thank you!
Since I've started listening to audiobooks, I find I don't mind the loom threading as much anymore. This project, though, got me because I kept making mistakes and that got frustrating. Maybe I was too absorbed in my book! Part of it was lighting, and I'm guessing my glasses prescription is starting to go a bit off sigh. It's always exciting to start weaving and see how it looks.
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