One Thing Leads To Another

Take one loom that is ready to weave.

Add one load of donated blue jeans.

Take the jeans apart.

Join the legs of the jeans, using the straight side seam as the guide.  (I joined 11 legs.)  By the way, I overlap the edges and sew twice.
 Join the ends of the long strip that is offset the width you want your strips.

Clean off the kitchen table and clamp on the rag cutter......and start cutting those strips!

Wind the cut strips into a ball OR wind on your rag shuttle.  This ball weighed 1 1/2 pounds!

You're ready to weave a rug.....

You already know all of this, right?  I have worked on the jeans that Tina donated to me, and decided that John would appreciate a little action since it's raining like crazy.  There is still some denim to cut from the long strips since it doesn't come out even.  But, this will get me started.
  What will be your rainy day activity?
Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

Checked Off The List

"Hey Mom!  Where did these come from???"

  Yesterday was one of those days that just happen--just the way they need to happen.
  I got the call on Tuesday afternoon that my print job was ready, so I thought I might as well go into Knoxville on Wednesday and get that off my list.  (I knew that I would be in town today, but that would be for taxes...and I never know what my mood will be when I leave!!!) 
  After they loaded my car, I headed to Three Rivers Market, which is the local food cooperative.  I don't get to go there very often, but I love all the wonderful offerings at this market.  My goal was to look at all the loose teas that you can buy to make your own blend.  I ended up buying some new boxed tea in lovely blends that they had in stock.  But, while I was looking, my phone rang....it was Tina.  She was going to "swing by" my place....but I wasn't there!!!  We made plans to meet when I got back to Oak Ridge, and I finished my shopping.  Tina loaded me up with blue jeans that she was cleaning out of her studio...and I just added them to the back of the car.  Then we got the chance to catch up.

  I had started working on the Block Weave tutorial, and I'd been thinking about the loom that Tina has been winding the bouts for....and I realized that we were wasting all the extra shafts that the loom had to offer.  Since Cindy is weaving towels on the Baby Wolf, we could upgrade the towels on Betsy 1 to a two block turned twill which would use 8 shafts.

  So, out came the Atwater and the graphing paper and the calculator!

This is the draft written the long way....













And this is how it looks written in profile blocks.

I LOVE this!!!!

I'm like a kid with a new toy!

Tina gave me the facts:  I'll have 530 threads to play with. 

And, boy did I PLAY!!!!

  I worked up most of the two block profiles that Atwater had in her book!

  I even played a little with the three block profiles that would require all 12 shafts!  But, I talked myself down from that when I realized that I would be threading with all the Tuesday Weavers in residence.  It can be a little tricky concentrating sometimes....
  I can always rethread later if we want to change the pattern.
  Now, the final decision will need to be made....which one is your favorite????    (Blocks are just too much fun!)

  Now that the tax drama is over (I don't owe any additional taxes) and I'm ready to get back to my fiber life.  I was working on the blue jeans last night when the Chickadee decided to quit....so I'll keep on with my sharp scissors!!!!  I think I see a rug or two (or three) in my future!!!
  Tina and I are planning on winding on bouts tomorrow at the Center....there are just a few more to go!  The sooner that is threaded, the sooner I can weave towels for the shop!  Just something else to check off the list!
Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

Blue Jeans

Blue jeans are wonderful things. I am usually wearing them, wouldn't be without them.

Since I began weaving rugs however, they have come to mean so much more!

I recently bought 75lbs of old blue jeans from a woman in my area. I was going to pay her $1 lbs. We decided however to make it $50 plus a blue jean rug.

So this week finally, I have been processing some of the blue jeans for her rug. Hilary over at Crazyasaloom has a great tutorial about that so I won't go into it in detail. ( You really should go see her blog, she is a great inspiration for us Tuesday weavers)

I have cut up the blue jeans and then cut the legs into strips. I will then sew the strips together, load them on a shuttle and start weaving.

I have wondered if I could sew the rectangles of the pant legs together first, and then cut a continuos strip. I have got to try that!

After I have cut the big strips, I end up with a couple of smaller strips that I will use in placemats.

Tonight Lou Ann and I will go to the Lenoir City Jamboree. We missed it last time because of the weather. This is the first time for us, so we are going to check it out!

Then it will be back to blue jeans for me! Yep, the tub is full too!

I keep seeing all those saggy baggy jeans some of the kids are still wearing, and I can't wait for them to go out of style and into my rugs!

Happy Weaving, Tina