inspired at Mera Weavers meeting and rush basketmaking
I had a wonderful day today! I got up when Les arrived, but since he was working upstairs and we had slept downstairs, Willem could get the rest of his sleep.
I went out and made a happy yellow video and took a walk down to the Gypsy Mobile, or Taj Mahal as Willem calls it. The sun was in the camera, so I'm not sure how well it worked.
I came back up and moved the newly dyed blouses and skirts to places where they could hang and hopefully finish drying without heat. I am so pleased with the creamy yellow colour that has come from the dyeing yesterday!
I sat and wove at my big loom for awhile. I tried using the pattern and decided I needed to have a tabby if I really wanted to be able to see it. I took three spools and burned the ends to see which one was wool. I didn't know how to tell, except if it burned into a ball it was a manmade fiber. I had to ask later how to tell the difference. Wool smells like hair or meat burning. The yarn also will smell a bit like sheep.
I went over to Mera to our weavers group. I was a bit early, but it was nice to be there with Lise and find out what she was working on. I enjoyed our meeting immensely today. I learned a lot about using those spacers that attach to the back beam, sectional beam parts.
Ellen brought a tensioner which looked like an amazing tool for warping into the separate spots on the back beam.
We are going to make a rug warp. Ellen and Lise did a lot of the figuring out. We were going to make fourteen rugs, but decided to do seven. We were going to use half a pound of thread for each inch in the sectional beam. However, it looked like we were going to need too many cones, so we are making half as many. I'll need to see what I have as far as cones we can use for the warp. I like my cones so much that I have for my own weaving.
It was a wonderful meeting. AFterwards we went to Fiber Arts where we learned from Ankaret to make baskets of rushes. I love doing that. She taught me to use a three rod upsetting waling. I think that's what it's called. It works so well at the edge of the base when you are upsetting the stakes.
It was not finished when we were done with the meeting, so I took some extra rushes along with me to Institute at the chapel and finished the basket and added a handle.
I had such a wonderful day!
I went out and made a happy yellow video and took a walk down to the Gypsy Mobile, or Taj Mahal as Willem calls it. The sun was in the camera, so I'm not sure how well it worked.
I came back up and moved the newly dyed blouses and skirts to places where they could hang and hopefully finish drying without heat. I am so pleased with the creamy yellow colour that has come from the dyeing yesterday!
I sat and wove at my big loom for awhile. I tried using the pattern and decided I needed to have a tabby if I really wanted to be able to see it. I took three spools and burned the ends to see which one was wool. I didn't know how to tell, except if it burned into a ball it was a manmade fiber. I had to ask later how to tell the difference. Wool smells like hair or meat burning. The yarn also will smell a bit like sheep.
I went over to Mera to our weavers group. I was a bit early, but it was nice to be there with Lise and find out what she was working on. I enjoyed our meeting immensely today. I learned a lot about using those spacers that attach to the back beam, sectional beam parts.
Ellen brought a tensioner which looked like an amazing tool for warping into the separate spots on the back beam.
We are going to make a rug warp. Ellen and Lise did a lot of the figuring out. We were going to make fourteen rugs, but decided to do seven. We were going to use half a pound of thread for each inch in the sectional beam. However, it looked like we were going to need too many cones, so we are making half as many. I'll need to see what I have as far as cones we can use for the warp. I like my cones so much that I have for my own weaving.
It was a wonderful meeting. AFterwards we went to Fiber Arts where we learned from Ankaret to make baskets of rushes. I love doing that. She taught me to use a three rod upsetting waling. I think that's what it's called. It works so well at the edge of the base when you are upsetting the stakes.
It was not finished when we were done with the meeting, so I took some extra rushes along with me to Institute at the chapel and finished the basket and added a handle.
I had such a wonderful day!