It Was A Wild and Windy Night!

  NO....don't adjust your computer!  I know you were expecting Tina today, but she needed to switch days with me....she'll blog in the morning!  That gave me the push I needed to get busy with the mop cord and get some dyed so I could show you the results this morning. When we rescued the fleece and fabric from the mice attack in the Annex, two crates of old Rit Dye surfaced.  At first, Carol thought that Kid's Kamp could use it, but I thought I would try some of it to dye the mop cord.
  So, with the wind howling outside and the constant interruption of the Weather Bureau giving us Thunderstorm Warnings, I started pulling the mop cord into hanks to dye.

  The blue cord is what I had dyed a few weeks ago.  The pink (the picture doesn't show the brightness of this pink) and the purple are the hanks I dyed last night.  Since this was old dye (NO idea how old!) I doubled the strength that the package called for.  After it had soaked for about 30 minutes, I added white vinegar to help it set.  Another 30 minute soak followed that.  Then, each batch got rinsed twice.

 This is the box of mop cord that Tina brought me Tuesday afternoon.  There are all different sizes and types of mop cord in the box....thick and thin, too.  I think I have enough to play with for a while, don't you?  But, I love weaving tote bags with fabric weft, and I want to experiment with adding pockets on the inside.  Now I can dye the mop cord to go with my warps! I have found that the mop cord makes excellent handles woven into the warp.  Next up will be some red cords!

  While the cord was in the dye bath last night, I graphed out the threading for the hand towels we saw at R&M on Wednesday. You can go to R&M's website:  http://www.rmyarns.com/
  Linda emailed Phyllis and she graciously shared the huck lace hand towel pattern that we saw at the shop.  And, since that cone of supima cotton is well over five pounds, I figure I can do a few hand towels, and maybe even have them done in time for Christmas!!!!!  
  Now.....I've got some weaving to get done this morning. 

Happy Weaving,
LouAnn