The project I'm doing is a color study. As a painter, color has been very important to me. I've spent countless hours mixing colors and learning how to make the ones I need when I need them. Mixing color in fibers is a totally new and different process than in paint. I wove a scarf a few weeks ago out of light green, dark green and dark violet. They affected each other in ways I didn't expect or plan. I needed to get a better understanding of how to get good color combinations in my fiber projects, thus this color study I'm doing now.
Scarf, Rayon Yarn
I chose vibrant colors for the warp, or the yarns wound onto the loom. For the weft, or the fibers that will actually be woven into the piece I am using the same colors as the warp, plus some others that I hope will create interesting contrasts with the warp, such as forest green and a true blue. I'll use some black for design interest. My theory/hope is that as each new color is introduced in the weft (strips of fabric, in this case), it will interact differently with each color of the warp, causing each square of color to be different from every other color.
Winding the yarn to measure it out in 4.5 yard lengths and to count out 120 yarns in each color.
The hanks of yarn, waiting to begin the dressing process.
The front of the loom during the tying on process. The yarns, all 720 of them have been put into the reed, or the part you can see the yarns going through, then into the heddles, or the wires that will separate them and move up and down to make a pattern as the weft is thrown through in the weaving process.
The warp is now all tied on and ready to be used.
The back of the loom, where the long yarn warps are wound on and ready to be pulled through the loom as the weaving progresses. The treadles, or foot pedals are visible under the colors.
View from the back/top. You can see four boards going horizontally across the picture; these are the harnesses. Each one is tied to a treadle under the loom. When each treadle has pressure applied by the weaver's foot, it will lift a different harness, helping to create a pattern in the weaving.
I will post more as this goes along.
11 comments:
Are you using wool yarn, such as needlelpoint type, or what? I love the things I see at craft fairs, etc., that are made of hand woven yarn. How many hours did your scarf take?
The rug I'm currently weaving is of cotton yarn and fabric strips. The scarf is of rayon. The scarf took about 5 hours of work all total. The rug will take 3 or 4 hours to weave, but it took about 14 hours to dress the loom.
The class needs a few more students next semester to make the schedule. It will be Tuesday and Thursday afternoons at WNMU. Come take it! We learn natural dyes and the dying process, spinning and preparing wool, then simple weaving techniques the first semester. After that, you get onto bigger and bigger looms. You'd be good at it.
The colors of your yarn are making my fingers itch for something bright to make. Or maybe more of the kids' Halloween candy. Or maybe both. What do your fabric
strips look like?
3/4 inches wide, they are cotton and 6 of the colors are the same as the six colors in the warp. As the red fabric passed through the shed last week in the studio it affected every color in a great way! I can hardly wait till tomorrow and getting more done on it. The other colors I've chosen so far are forest green, dark blue, a very pale yellow and grape koolaid. Any other ideas?
Sounds like so much fun! I would love to take the class, but time and distance won't allow it! Colors and fibers - now your in my realm!
Hi, Julie! Wish you could come, too. This'd be right up your alley.
I want to come to your weaving class. I took one through UNM continuing ed. years ago. The teacher told us how to do everything. We never did any weaving! Yours looks lots more interesting - and I KNOW it would be lots more fun!.
Here here, Maureen! I would love to get to see you that often, too.
Alice:
When I was in Guatemala I was around a lot of weavers who used similar looms. In one town they used large looms to weave wool blankets. They would card their wool, then spin it into yarn, dye the wool and then weave it. When finished they would take the blankets to the river to wash them. It was a fascinating process. In another town they wove material for skirts to be worn by the native women. For that they would buy their cotton thread. I still have material that I brought home and a blanket.
Good Luck
That comment was by James, not Pat.
James
James, that would be wonderful to be around and watch and learn from. Do you have pictures? We carded, spun- both with a spindle and spinning wheel and dyed wool with natural and synthetic dyes last semester. It is hard to learn. I am not good at it and impressed by people who have mastered the skill. Thanks for stopping by, it's great to hear from you!
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