Is the Loom Half-Empty or Half-Full?

I made great strides in threading Big Bertha in Lee's Surrender yesterday, despite the chaos that churned around us all.  I need 14 center motifs, and threaded 8, so I'm zooming along.  I think if I'd been there alone, I might have gotten it threaded, but wouldn't have had such a good time.
  So, I left Bertha half-threaded, and will try to finish threading next week.  As Carl has cautioned me, I will "not let Lee make (me) surrender!"  My mother asked me yesterday how I'll be able to throw the shuttle that far, and I told her I'd let her know when it happens!  I'm a little worried about that myself.

The aftermath of a good dinner

  Last night, some friends and I met at a new Knoxville restaurant I want you all to try:  Knox Mason.  http://www.knoxmason.com/  Some former co-workers and current friends are owners and running the place, and it is excellent.  It's Southern food with local ingredients.  Please support them and help them survive!  Knoxville needs more good food.
 And speaking of Southern Food, tomorrow night begins the annual Blackberry Farm fund raising for the Southern Foodways Alliance, http://southernfoodways.org/  It's a group begun at Old Miss in Oxford, MS to promote and preserve Southern food culture and traditions.  Some of the South's finest chefs will be joining us to create meals for the attendees, some of whom are the South's best keepers of the flame.  Farmers, distillers, chefs and cookbook authors will join with people who want to help them survive, to keep bringing Southern food to the forefront and carry it into the future.
  I get to make the desserts for all the dinners, something that doesn't happen every year, and I'm excited.  We'll have Meyer Lemon Napoleons for dinner Thursday, Coffee, Almonds and Chocolate for Friday and end with Italian Cream Cake for the finale on Saturday.  I've never understood Italian Cream Cake, but I'm going to give it a new look, deconstructing it and turning it around.  I'm looking forward to it.
  And then, on Sunday, the great After the Holidays Vacation begins!  Gardening, weaving and visiting family will commence almost immediately following the last plate of dessert going to the tables.  I'll tell you about it when it happens!  Until then, Happy Weaving!
Maggie

Whole Lot Goin' On!

  Today was the first session for Carol's Weaving 201 class.  This is a great class to take after you've been weaving awhile, and you're ready to move on beyond your comfort zone.  (This is where I learned to do draw downs!)  Needless to say, this class has been scheduled for awhile.
  Then Carol found out that the local station wanted to come out to the Center to tape a segment on weaving.
  So....in many ways, today was just a typical day.....we roll with the punches!

We had visitors:  Susan and Carol drove to the Center to see the Tuesday Weavers in action.

Sara dropped by to see about the Saturday "Weave a Scarf" class, and came downstairs to see the studio.

Whitey Hitchcock came by to bring a table loom donation from Dale Liles and talk with old friends.

And, Emily Stroud and the camerman from Channel 10 set up action shots, and got information from the weavers.

   Emily interviewed Carol, our fearless leader, and Tina for the piece that will be shown on Friday, 11 January, on the "Live at Five at Four" show on Channel 10.

Even with all that going on, Maggie worked away on her threading for Lee's Surrender.

Pat and Allan just wove away while the camera man set up the different angles for shooting.

Bonnie got back to work on her shawl warp while Carl wove his rugs on the barn loom.

Ann is getting VERY close to cutting off the last rug on her warp.  She kept on saying, "Just a little more on this repeat."

Carl just finished up this silk scarf at home.  Thanks for sharing it with us.

And this was our day at the Center!  We seldom know what's going to happen....but we know we'll have a great day!

Happy Weaving!

LouAnn

 

Carol was having trouble loading pictures today, I told her I would look into it when I got home this evening.  I though I might take the opportunity to show off a picture of the 8 harness loom that the heddles from the last post are going on.  I have been searching the blog archives for the last hour, and I can't find a picture of that loom anywhere.  It is too dark to go take one and besides my phone doesn't take very good pictures!

So instead, I am going to show you a picture of the Hollywood warp, placemat variation.  I believe I am going to put a short warp 10 yds, of this pattern on either the 8 harness or the new Reed Cambridge 4 harness.  I just need to round out the inventory that I already have with these warp colors.  Then I may do it in black and white for a more neutral palette.

I got all the heddles back on the 8 harness this morning, and I am itching to get a warp on it!  The harnesses seem to hang a little better today, with all the retro adjustments.  I would cross my fingers, but then I couldn't thread the heddles!

Well, I think I hijacked Carol's post long enough,  Until next time, Happy Weaving, Tina

Pickled Heddles?!!

I know that sounds crazy, but that is what I am doing.  Several years ago, I bought an 8 harness loom from a friend of a friend.  Like all old looms it has it's quirks.  One of the things, that I thought I could fix about this particular loom, was the noise level.  It was a clangy bangy old loom.  I set about changing the metal bars that raise the harness to Texsolv.  Then I switched out the rusty heddles,( lots of them), to texsolv as well.  The loom was quieter, but since then, I haven't been able to get a decent shed!  Harnesses 1 and 2 hang about 1/4 inch above the others!  I should have left well enough alone!

I struggled along for awhile, until I finally cut off the scarf warp that was on it and walked away in disgust!  That was about a year ago, and the 8 harness has been sitting in time out ever since!  Finally, about a month ago, when I was re-evaluating my Studio practices (due to the lack of sales at the Foothills Guild Craft Show), I decided to see what I could do to get the old girl up and running.  The first thing I did was to put the metal bars that raise the harnesses back in place.  (no change in the harnesses)   The next step is to clean all those rusty heddles, and put them back into place.

I began this task by dividing the heddles into 8 different piles.  I figured I would tackle them one harness at a time.  That turned out to be 140 heddles per harness.  I then immersed the first group into a pan of vinegar, to soak for an hour, while I did something else.  I then wiped off the rustiness til they were dry, and then I lightly oiled them.  I was fairly pleased with the results, though not thrilled.  I put the next batch in to soak while I was drying and oiling the first batch.  I continued on this way through the first 3 batches, then I was done!  I couldn't do any more that day!  I had a batch in the vinegar bath, and I decided to just leave it in there over night!

 This is what I woke up to.  They were positively bubbling!  After chores I tentatively pulled them out, and began to wipe them dry.  I was amazed at how much better they looked!  Sure there were some corroded parts that wouldn't come off, but on the whole they were beautiful!

 I quickly oiled them once I had them all dry, and threaded them onto some long zip ties to keep them nice and neat.  I have 3 more batches to go, and now I need to decide if I am going to redo the first batches I did, sigh, I probably will.



Last night I was spinning for a little while and my back right between my shoulder blades was really painful.  I couldn't figure out why, until I went over to the heddle recovery station in the kitchen to dry some more heddles!  Yep, sure enough I was suffering from heddle wiping-itis!  Who would have thought that was possible!  Such a small movement, though I guess with over 1000 heddles it was bound to happen!

I have come to the realization that even if I can't get harness 1 and 2 to behave, I will still have a 6 harnesses that I can use, no need to throw out the baby with the bath water!

On another note, I am really pleased with what I made for our mothers this year for Christmas and I thought I would show you.  I felted some wool fleece around several bars of Yardley soap.  Each soap fragrance has a different color added to the felt, that way I could keep them straight!

It was a fun, quick project.  I love the felted soaps I had made to try it out, it does take a little getting used to, but it is an excellent way to get rid of those old skin cells. 

The packaging took a little doing.  I had to hunt around a bit to find something suitable.  I finally found these metal racks in the kitchen department at the Walmart!  They are really for holding recipe cards!  A little raffia, and a bow, and I was on my way!

 
Lou Ann tells me that I am doing post number 1000!  That is almost unbelievable!  Who would have thought we could have that much to say!  (I think it helps that we are a group blog and not just an individual.  That way we get a lot of variety in our posts.)

That is all for me today, it is back to the heddles for me!  Until next time, Happy Weaving and Spinning, Tina

#999

  Say Happy Birthday to the Boys!  NO...not their 999th!  (More about that later!) 

  We are so blessed to get to weave with these guys, and they share the same birthday:  month, day and year!

They were wishing each other Happy Birthday on Tuesday when we were at the Center, and I hope they have big plans for today!

So, a big hoo-rah for Lanny and Allan!!!

  And, here we were back in 2009....and we thought it would be fun to start a blog!  My blog today is number 999!  Tina will get the milestone blog #1,000!  We have lots of new faces at the Center, and some of our fellow weavers can't come every Tuesday....but we are a happy bunch!  Thank you, Carol, for keeping us going!

 

  And, thank you to Andy for taking this picture on Tuesday after I left for the day.  Bonnie stayed until she finished the shawl she had been working on at her loom.    I guess we'll be fringe twisting on Tuesday!  (Remind me to put my fringe twister in my tote bag!)
  These are warp painted bamboo shawls that were dyed at the Center.  These bright colors really brighten up this Winter day!

 My energy here on the Ridge has been on getting the samples done for my class on the 12th.  The scarf on the left had an epi of 10, while the scarf on the right used an epi of 8.  I like the feel of the scarf on the right much better! 
  I've taken lots of notes on this project to get ready for the class.  I even timed myself winding the first scarf warp:  6 minutes!  Now, that doesn't mean I think someone who has never wound a warp can do that, but it did give an idea of time to allow for each part of the process.  I have a bin where I have been putting bobbins, sley hooks, scrap yarn for all those bits and pieces we tie on in the beginning of the process.  Sometimes it is the little things that we do without thinking that we forget to tell new weavers. 
  Ah, well.....the first group will be the "lab rats!"  I have been documenting each step just to make sure I don't forget anything (although I'm sure I will!)  And, this has reminded me that I need to keep making notes on the projects that I do.
  Do you keep a weaving notebook?
Thank you for traveling our weaving and fiber adventures (and life adventures) with us!
Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

Not for the Lack of Wanting

It's cold and yucky outside, the house is clean, I don't have to work and I want to weave in the worst way!  But I can't, because it hurts my foot with the stress fracture, and that makes me very, very sad.  Weftie is getting more use out of the beautiful red and black chenille warp than I am.  And I was determined to finish that warp this week!
  I have things I should be doing, like hemming the napkins I wove on Big Bertha, and finishing the curtains I wove for the living room.  In fact, I will go do that next.
  But I'd rather  be weaving.
Cats always find the best places in the house to nap, and here, Leo has found the down pillow covered in fake fur just purr-fect!
  Have a wonderful new year, full of weaving and fiber and pets and everything you like best!
Maggie

First Tuesday!!!

What better way to spend the first day of the new year than with good friends!!!
  It just seemed right, somehow, that we'd end up at the Center getting things done.  And, Linda cut off the FIRST batch of the year...place mats from her warp.  Those table looms don't have a lot of room on the cloth beam for many mats!  She tied her warp back on the rod to finish off the warp later.
  Cindy was busy winding her new warp for 2013...over 400 threads for a dish cloth warp.

We were able to pull out all the small looms and get them on the inventory list, as well as clean up the isles where they are stored.
  Next Tuesday we will have a visit from a local TV station doing a feature on weaving.  The lady that talked with Carol was surprised that people still weave!!!!  Carol assured her that there are plenty of people who still weave....and LOVE to weave at that!

Lanny got the big industrial vacuum cleaner out and got all those stray threads off of the floor.  (I had forgotten how LOUD that puppy is!!!)  Stashes of fabric strips got stored with the loom they are for, and bobbins with thread left on them were emptied and put away.  Maggie was able to get some threading done....even with all that racket!  Ann wove on her rug warp, too. 

Tina directed the clean up effort, and we made stacks of items that could go out to the Annex.  Shirley and Allan carried those out through the rain.
  Sharen was able to sit down and weave on the natural warp for a little bit.

  Bonnie and Andy were able to get to their looms for awhile.  Bonnie reports that she needs to cut off the shawls that are on the cloth beam....it's getting too full!  We might have to have a fringe twisting party when those come off the loom!

  Marie helped with the clean up between the looms and on the back shelf.  We seem to have thread everywhere!!!  I think the Tuesday Weavers are ready for the camera now!

Happy Weaving!
LouAnn