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Sunday, July 06, 2025

Big & Little Brother Blankets: Design Ideas

While waiting to get more yarn, my mind began to explore design possibilities. My first idea was using the variegated yarn for stripes, matching the yarn colorways so that by starting with the same color on multiple skeins and pulling them out to wind onto my warping board together, I could have roughly matching stripes. The solid green would separate these. This would work for the warp, but the weft would have to be one skein at a time so that each weft thread would be a different color. Not good or bad, but I'm trying to figure out if I could keep the weft stripe colors together like in the warp to create a more block-like look. I might could do it if I used multiple shuttles, but eek. 

Another idea I'm entertaining is shadow weave, alternating the colorful variegated yarn with the solid green. Interesting patterns can be created, although the color changes would be unpredictable. 

Then I'm thinking about log cabin; similar to shadow weave but creating a specific pattern looking like woven ribbons. What I learned from previous experiments is that the overall effect of using variegated yarn for log cabin depends on the frequency of the color changes. 

I did find the store shelves restocked with the colors I needed, so no problem there. Now I just need to settle on what I'm going to do with them. I probably ought to do some samples! Since time is not on my side (so to speak) in the summer harvest and canning season, I may have to decide these will be Christmas presents, rather than for the late July family birthday bash. No sense rushing myself and then not being happy with the results.
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4 comments:

  1. ValerieJuly 6, 2025 at 7:33 AM

    I like the log cabin idea. With shadow weave you introduce another pattern which could get lost with the variegated color changes. Sample and think about it....a blanket will be a more welcome gift at Christmas time.

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    1. LeighJuly 6, 2025 at 8:05 AM

      Valerie, thanks! I think one key is the effect of contrast. It makes a huge difference in terms of defining the visual effect. I think it will be a lot of fun to make samples.

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  2. Toirdhealbheach BeucailJuly 6, 2025 at 10:19 AM

    It must be nice having modern tools to help visualize this. I am not a great visualizer of the end product in my head; how much the ancients knew of such matters.

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    1. LeighJuly 8, 2025 at 4:48 AM

      TB, predicting what the final product will actually look like is a challenge, to be sure. Weaving software helps quite a bit, but I confess I find it fiddly to use plus it's somewhat "flat" in terms of visuals. One reason is because it can't translate the live effect of the yarn. The character of the yarn and spacing (sett) are often result in a surprise. Washing the finished project can often surprise as well.

      The best tool is making samples! When I have a chunk of time, I'll warp the loom for something scarf or mug rug width and play around to see how it actually turns out. :)

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