Black and White

I've been weaving whenever I get the chance. The warp's about half done but there are still several pieces I need to weave on here so the plan today is to get a bunch done.

Problem is that when I came down to the studio, I had company. Meg thought it would be great fun to join me.

They generally leave my studio alone. I'm not sure why they followed me this morning but they both came down. Meg jumped right up and made herself at home!

Both cats are such a mess! Meg finally moved on and I'll be weaving for awhile! It's really funny. The cats are scared of the sound of the beater on the loom. When I'm weaving, they hate the noise and will disappear.  Sometimes I hear them running across the floor up above me, heading to the stairs to our bedroom, their favorite spot. Sleeping on the end of our bed is the place to be! Time for that nap!!

I don't have a picture yet of the quilt top that I made last week but I cut out another quilt Saturday afternoon. It's Christmasy!! It's a much easier one to piece and I should have that part done later this week. I've even already started sewing the blocks. But, first weave off this warp!!

Hope you are having a good week. With all the distractions, it's hard to concentrate on what needs to be done, but I hope that you get some work done. That is, if your work is weaving or being creative!

Until next week, keep weaving.

Carol

Finer Weft

Way back in 2001  I received my very first loom, and as it often happens, it came with cone after cone of yarn.  Soon after I bought a spinning wheel, and it too surprisingly came with cones of  weaving yarn as the seller was moving out of the country and was thrilled to load me up with a literal car load of cones.  At the time I had no idea what I was getting, but I was equally thrilled to get that car load!

Fast forward 15 years, and most of that yarn is still on the shelf.  That is because it is cotton flake, a thick and thin yarn, (I would use this only for weft) in some very interesting sherbet like colors, mostly either variegated or flecked.  I have tried a couple of times to use this yarn but with little success.   But, I think I may have finally figured out what to do with it, just maybe.

I have been weaving 8/4 cotton Baby blankets for years, on that original loom by the way, normally  I  used 8/4 cotton as weft, and I have sold or given away many, many blankets with this pleasing balanced combination.  I also  had begun to bring several of those "other" cones of yarn to the center to see if the other weavers were interested in them.  Well last Monday, I was getting ready to grab a few more cones to take to the Center the next day, when it I hit upon an interesting color combo, and I had the brilliant idea (I hope) to try the flake as weft in the next couple of Baby blankets.

8/4 cotton weft

Speckled cotton flake weft

There is an opaqueness about this new blanket that I find interesting.  I am not sure how this is going to wash, but I decided to weave up a "girl" blanket and a "boy" blanket before I cut off to hem and wash.  It is an experiment, and it may go all wrong in the end, but it might not.

I probably should have adjusted the overshot pattern portion to make it a little bit taller since the yarn is finer, but I didn't think about that  at the time.  If this works out, I will play with that next time.  I will be really thrilled to be able to use this yarn, and it may open up all sorts of possibilities to me, just by thinking of things a little differently.  Who knows, I may end up putting on another Baby blanket warp, (I could use it as fabric for my bags, have I posted about them yet?)   I do have some 12/3 white cotton in lots of tubs that would weave up just as nicely, maybe even better, with this weft,  just think of the possibilities!

Until next time Happy Weaving, Tina

Perception

  I have been trying all day to get down to the sewing room to get this cute mug liner done.  I love this fabric!  In fact, I made my son a pair of skater shorts from this way back when!!!  He'll recognize it, believe me!  And, his wife works at the zoo, so she'll enjoy one of these liners, too!
  I had a busy morning with lots of picky stuff to get done and phone calls to make.  I must have sent off a dozen emails and then had to wait for answers....you know....just one of those mornings.
  I did get a load of laundry in the washer before I rushed off to the post office.
  So, when I finally got back downstairs this afternoon, I decided to load the dryer before I started sewing.

  The clothes in the washer were clean....but, they were dripping wet!  Yep....the spin cycle is toast!!!  Thank heavens for the centrifuge!  But, it only holds a piece at a time, so, it took me awhile to get the load spun and in the dryer.  I was upset....this was not how I wanted to spend my time today!  
  Then it hit me.....I have a roof over my head, food in the fridge, and clean clothes to wear.  I do not have the right to be upset.  Toughen up, buttercup!!!!

  Yesterday, Tina and I drove up to Pigeon Forge to the Apple Barn for some lunch and a little shopping.  Since the wildfires, a lot of folks have stayed away, and the area is hurting for business.  We thought we could do our part!!!  Besides, we wanted a peek at those beautiful Smoky Mountains!!!

  Lunch was yummy, as always, and the folks that work in the restaurant and gift shop were as friendly as ever. 
  And, our quick stop at the local JoAnns proved very productive.

  On the local news tonight, they reported that 700 folks have already signed up for the My People Fund underwritten by the Dollywood Foundation.  This will provide some money for the people who lost their homes from the wildfires. 
  The Arrowmont staff is providing lunch (soup and sandwich) for the local community starting next week until the 23rd.  This is such a caring gesture to the people of Gatlinburg as they get it going again.
  It's all about perception......and, my cup is full of blessings.
I'll call about getting the dryer fixed tomorrow.

Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

Oh Happy Day!

Although it was a drizzly, chilly day outside, it was very festive inside at the Center today! 

Happy Birthday, Carl!!!

  Today is his 91st birthday, and we all helped him eat some cake!  That's Tina's pineapple upside down cake in front, and my chocolate cherry cake behind it. 
  After lunch, we jumped in and got his new warp wound on the barn loom, which means that he'll be weaving more rugs next week!!!

Elsewhere in the studio, you can see the pattern that Molly is weaving for her towels.  That's her sample at the bottom...and, yes, she found a boo-boo.  But, that's why you sample, right???













  Marie was kept busy with bookkeeping duties.  We had a great November upstairs in the shop.  The items that sold have to be noted on the inventory sheet.  And, that pesky bank statement has to be balanced, too!!!

  Pat has returned from grandma duties at the beach, and after she worked on a bag of donated blue jeans for Carl, she sat down to weave her special placemats.  She's hemstitching on this one. 













  Karin has started working on the next set of towels.  These are some red butterflies.....wonder what color she'll use for the next towel???






  Lanny is back from Connecticut, and was right back to work on that lovely Jaggerspun scarf.


















  Linda and Betsy got some weaving done today, too.  Betsy was starting her fourth rug on this warp.  She has a little pink that she's adding in on her newest rug.

  Linda finished up the placemat on her loom, and cut off the finished ones.  There were 14 placemats on the cloth beam!

With Shirley out of town, that leaves Bonnie and Ms. Ila to hold down the back row.  Be sure to click on the picture to get a close up of the pattern that Bonnie is weaving on this scarf.  Amazing!!!!












  Yes....that's Ms. Ila under her loom getting those treadles tied up for her newest shawl.

   Joan and Frieda kept the other side of the back row moving along on their projects. 

  Anna was working on her pin loom while Christy wove on her Inkle loom.  Liz was back with us today to continue her sampler on the table loom.

  We all got to see the tuffet that Carol made last weekend, and it is truly a work of art!!!  But, more paperwork for her today!  Sharon got to peruse the new Handwoven...so many colorful projects to tempt you!!!!

You'd never know that it was a gray day here in East Tennessee, would you????    Inside, it was a happy place!!!


Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

Tuffets?

Ok, so what's a tuffet? It's the cutest little footstool you'll ever see! It's like Miss Muffet sat on her tuffet....

In September when I went to Chattanooga for the quilt show, I met Sharon there. She'd come down for the day. She talked me into signing up for the tuffet class up in Jonesborough December 2 - 3. We left Knoxville about 7am and drove up to Jonesborough on Friday. We got there early and drove around town a bit just to get an idea of what the town is like. It's the cutest, quaint downtown I've seen in awhile. I do think DH and I need to take a road trip later this year.

The class was for 2 days. The first day we sewed the cover. It took all day to get the parts ready and sewn. Sharon took this picture and then showed me how to transfer it to my photo page on the iPad. You sew strips, trim the extra, pin on a new strip and then sew it from the wrong side!! But, it worked.

Here's my top all sewn together but with more to do to assemble it.

The form is nice and sturdy, so you pull it on over the base and then draw it up underneath. That part is later covered with fabric.

You also put a fabric covered button on top and pull it tight to make it look perfect. Here's my finished tuffet. The legs on mine are just square, solid, not fancy. I figured there'd be enough going on with the Kaffe Fassett fabric that simple feet worked best.

Sharon made a tuffet that goes from white to black. She mixed up her fabrics whereas I had graded mine and followed the color changes gradually.

Moira, the other one in our class, repeated 8 colors for the tuffet she made for her granddaughter.

So, here we are, all done!! It was a fun class. We worked hard but still had time to chat and enjoy the process.

You know, I think I may make another one. We can get together a few people and she will do the class for us. I could even start sewing strips onto the base at home and finish with her help at Tennesee Quilts.....

The shop was beautiful with lovely fabrics and lots of wonderful ideas. I am sure that we will be back there to shop, if not to make more tuffets. 

We had spent Friday night there because it is a 2 hour drive and by the time we had finished sewing on Friday, we were brain dead! Made for a nice little getaway!

So now, I'd better do a bit of weaving and maybe sew on that quilt top. It's almost together.

Until next week, keep weaving.

Carol

Frosty Morning

We actually thought that winter might never come.  I have lighted the wood stove only twice so far this year, but this morning there was frost everywhere.  I went out to put hay out for the goats and the hay racks were empty, a sure sign that winter is definitely on it's way.

All this is important because this morning LouAnn and I made one of our trips to the Museum of Appalachia.  A couple of school groups were heading that way, and we like to make them feel right at home, or really that they are coming into our home.  We tell them all about spinning and weaving, and we answer a million questions on those subjects, multiple times.









We headed out early and ran by the post office to drop off a couple of things.  Then we went thru the drive thru for a bite, and high tailed it out of town in the early morning light.


Our route takes us by a river, and this time of day the fog was so thick we could barely see the road, but soon enough we left the river and the fog behind.  (LouAnn has these new fangled heated seats that are to die for!)

The museum is open almost every day of the year, and today is a special day because they are having an old time Christmas time celebration tonight.  LouAnn and I can't make it tonight, but we get to enjoy all the festooning that has been going on this week.

A frosty field where last week the goats were still grazing on green grass.

This morning they, like my goats are huddled around the hay racks.  Once the day warms up they will spread out and do some obligatory grazing out in the field.

Frosty grounds on our way to the cabin

Here we are, the Peter's Cabin, greeting the morning sun.

Like I said there has been some festooning going on around here!

On the door......

 On the porch railings....

Even inside our cabin, the greenery was evident.  But I have to tell you it was cold in there!  We could see our breath it was so cold.  (winter time is the only time I am glad I don't actually live in the cabin)

Before we could do anything else I had to get the fire going in the fireplace!!!!  Once that was done we sipped our coffee and ate our breakfast and waited for the school groups to come our way.

As always it was a good time, lots of good questions and interest in the old time crafts.
By 12 noon, the kids were done touring the grounds, and it was time for us to pack up, put the fire to sleep and head to the cafe, where we like to eat whenever we get the chance.

Today, I couldn't resist the ham and bean soup, with my mashed potatoes and fried apples and I was not disappointed!  Christy the wonderful cook at the museum even gave me an idea how it was made.  She said "Everything is to taste you know, I can't hardly write it down."

LouAnn gave the bacon wrapped chicken a try with her mashed potatoes and green beans, we shared the pineapple upside down cake.

By the time we were done with lunch our toes had warmed up nicely and we headed home, each with our list of what we hoped to accomplish with the rest of the day.

One of the things on my list is to start putting up the Christmas decorations, and I have gotten almost all of it in place, I just have to finish the tree.  Next week I will get a couple of pictures to show you what we like to do to our little house to promote that Christmasy feeling.

That is it for now, Until next time stay warm and keep making things, Tina

Even More Thankful

  Yes....I'm thankful.  It could have been so much worse.  The staff is all safe, and there are already plans underway to rebuild the dorms. 
  Some of the staff will be going in tomorrow to inspect the damage and retrieve personal items.  But, they don't expect to allow folks to stay until next week.
  The Artist in Residence are staying here in Knoxville with the Program Director.  I've been busy baking banana bread, cookies and brownies to take over there tomorrow. 
  Artists gotta eat, ya know!!!

 

  Our friends at the Smoky Mountain Spinnery will be checking in on their business tomorrow, too.  I've got my fingers crossed that they will have good news to report.


  As my Mom always said, "It will be what it will be."
  I hated it when she said that!  But, she was right.

Happy Weaving!
LouAnn