Tuesday, May 07, 2024

Crackle Sampler in the Italian Manner: Finished


I had a false start (which probably would have been okay if I'd kept going) and trouble at the end when the warp knots (from tying on) began to grab each other. But as an experiment, it was a good learning piece.


I think there's a lot of room for improvement in the consistency of my weaving, but Italian manner crackle is definitely something I want to explore more in the future.




Project Particulars
  • Loom: 4-shaft table loom
  • Pattern in this post: Crackle Sampler in the Italian Manner: Planning 
  • Yarn: cotton 10/2s,
    • single for background wefts
    • doubled for pattern weft
  • Sett: 24 e.p.i.
  • Sley: 2 per dent in a 12-dent reed
  • PPI: I didn't count, I just beat based on how it looked
  • Width in reed: 15.75 inches
  • Width on loom: 14.5 inches
  • Width after wet finishing & pressing: 14 inches
  • Length off loom: 21 inches
  • Length after wet finishing & pressing: 19 inches

Weaving Notes
  • The windows motifs are elongated, which suggest I could have beaten it harder, but I didn't care for the fabric as much when the weft was really packed in. This would be something to experiment with.
  • I questioned the sett, thinking the fabric was too open, but after wet finishing and drying, I like the drape and feel of the fabric, so I think my choice was okay. This would be something else to experiment with.
  • Choosing two background wefts in a similar hue wasn't the best idea. More color contrast would have been better, I think.
  • The colors I chose are atypical for me. So while I can't say I got really excited about them, I'm glad I chose them. Color is something else to experiment with in the future. I'm thinking a chromatic gamp would be  helpful. 
  • I had trouble with the tension at the edges. I think this is because I used mini-blind slats as warp and cloth separators. The slats aren't firm enough to hug the beam and flared out beyond the warp. I'm guessing this was the source of my trouble. 
  • The liftplan plus managing three shuttles was complicated. It got quicker as I progressed, but as I mentioned in my Weaving At Last post, I think it would be more enjoyable on a treadle loom.

Next, I should be getting started on my bathroom rag rug, but there's been a hold-up. More on that next time.

4 comments:

Valerie said...

Very nice! I like the colors a lot.

If they were plastic mini-blind slats, that was your problem. I have experience with that.

On my table loom, I just use paper grocery bags when I wind on the warp. They are heavy and the right width for my loom.

Leigh said...

Valerie, yes plastic. Some things just don't repurpose well! The grocery bags are a great idea. Relatively easy to come by and should work much better.

Meg said...

I can see it used both ways; different values/sheen of the same color, or different hues, possible in similar values. It's endless!

Leigh said...

Meg, that's exactly it! Endlessly fascinating.