A New Voice

My Name is Ann and I am the new Thursday voice on the Tuesday Weavers' blog.

I recently introduced myself at a meeting as a weaver of cloth and conversation. I think that is an appropriate way for me to introduce myself to you as well.

My first loom

Sixteen plus years ago my husband gave me a table loom for my birthday. He knew I was attracted to handwovens as he watched me lovingly touch scarves and shawls and (Carol's) jackets every time I went to a craft show. He gave me this beautiful loom to encourage me to make my own.

Unfortunately, the timing was a bit off - I had a full time job, was starting a masters program and had a 3 month old daughter. I took a few lessons from a local weaver and then the loom went to live in the basement for about 10 years.

Schacht Inkle Loom

Six or seven years ago I pulled it out, dusted it off and found another local weaver to take lessons from. I threw the loom in the back of my car and drove up into the mountains to start learning all over again. I finished the first project.

This new instructor was into Scandinavian patterns and fine cloth. So I warped the loom with itty bitty thread in a Rosepath pattern. This kind of weaving didn't feed my yearning for texture and so my poor loom went back into the basement. This time along with the Inkle loom that I had picked up at a Guild meeting class. (It happens to be naked now but I do love weaving on it)

AACC Rocker Loom

In late 2009, I decided it was time to get my looms back out. I took that fine warp and mixed it with some bold colored wool for a wall hanging and then played with rags for the first time. For New Years I cut off the warp - a symbolic new beginning for my weaving.

In January 2010,  I found my way to the Tuesday Weavers at the Appalachian Arts and Crafts Center. I have been a regular there ever since. The group encourages growth, creativity and adventures in weaving. I have progressed from my table loom to a small floor loom to an antique barn loom. I have been weaving rag rugs on the barn loom for a year. I am in the process of warping it for a special order rug (plus many more since it is an 18 yard warp).

Cambridge Loom at the Center of Family Life

This past January, the Tuesday Weavers decided that we would do bamboo shawls for a challenge project. One requirement is that the shawl be 24 inches wide. Hummmm, my table loom can only weave to a width of 15 inches.

About the same time I found out that my niece was expecting a baby. So of course I would have to weave baby blankets. With those two needs I realized that I just "had to" get a floor loom for my home. Baby blankets and a shawl have been delivered to the new mother and now it is time to do the Tuesday Weavers Challenge.

So now you know a bit about me and the looms in my life. Next time I guess I will talk about adventure in weaving and life. Until then - Be Well, Ann

Room for Looms

 It's been a busy day already, here at Chez Davidson.  On the left you see Nancy's old apron, torn and rusty.  Mom bought a new apron when Nancy was hers.  LouAnn loaned me her staple gun yesterday, and this morning, I replaced the apron.  I'm too thrifty to throw the old one away, so it's in the wash right now.  It might be recycled into a tote bag liner or a pillow backing, minus the rusty, torn parts.
  Nancy was at one time a loom donated to the Center, and she hasn't had an easy life from the looks of her.  Someone replaced her beater bar bumpers with ugly red velvet furniture feet, and they drooped sadly.  I replace them this morning with ugly wool felt pads made for furniture feet.  Eventually, I'll buy her some actual bumpers, but not today.  And someday, I'll sand her down and put a couple of coats of Tung oil on her.  She needs some love, desperately.
   She also had about a dozen handmade heddles, red and orange and blue, that were cut off this morning.  Next, she will get all her joints tightened, and I'll wind a warp for placemats.  She needs a job!



 She got some more elbow room this morning when I moved the Navajo loom into the back room.  The desk came out, went into the living room where I'm now typing, and the sewing table went against the windowless wall.  The Navajo loom now sits in front of the window, waiting for a warp and some inspiration.   But first, the lawn needs mowing!  I'd better head out now before it gets much hotter.  Stay cool, and happy weaving!
Maggie

Lonely Looms ;-(

Isn't this sad?

This poor little loom....no one to weave on it today.

Someone is at the beach.....playing in the surf....building sandcastles with her grandchildren!

Another loom....left all alone.

Someone else is spending time with grandchildren!

Ms. Bonnie's loom has been lonely too long!

Ms. Trudy cut off her first project today!!!
Now this little table loom is empty and waiting for a new project!!!

  There are more looms....but Blogger has decided that I can't load any more pictures today!

  But, I think you get the idea.....we were few....but we were mighty!  A lot of the weavers are off on other adventures, but we DID get some weaving done!

Enjoy your day, and

Happy Weaving!!!!

LouAnn

Just the 2 of us!

This past week was fun. My sister and her daughters left Monday morning and didn't get back til Friday evening, late! So it was just Mom and me!! She did have to go to dialysis the three times but the rest of the time we went for drives and went to Tim Horton's for lunch. Someday, maybe there'll be one in Knoxville, but right now, I have to make do in Canada. I don't drink coffee and they only have pepsi products but the sandwiches are always good and they have muffins and donuts like you wouldn't believe!!

I also sewed a quilt top. I don't remember to take pictures of the process like alot of you do but I did remember to take a picture of the stack of 88 half square triangles I cut in 4 different fabrics before I started assembly line sewing them. They did go pretty quickly.

 It was after I'd gotten those done, already having cut a bunch of the squares needed that I realized the directions were wrong....in 2 places! I even emailed the designer to verify the one error which took a day to clarify so I lost that day for sewing. The directions had called for one to cut 15" strips and then cut them 11 1/4 inches wide. Problem was that was the final size of the block. I had to cut 4" off the 15" section on all 13 squares. The other mistake I didn't bother telling her about and just turned the squares correctly and didn't have any problems with it then. This quilt was a kit I bought a couple of years ago in Pigeon Forge at the quilt show they have in March each year. I do like the way it turned out.

 The fabric is what caught my eye at the show and I do love the way it turned out. The pattern, with the kinks out of it, will be a good one. This is a twin size but you could expand it to a queen or king size quilt...

 Yesterday Mom wanted a picture of us to use for her Christmas card so after church we stood in front of some of my sister's trees and my nieces took pictures.  My sister is the one on the right in the purple top. It was all good until a neighbor decided to spray us, from the back, with his hose. That's all we need, for Mom to  be  startled and fall... I was not impressed. We moved to the back yard to take the rest of the pictures then.

 Last Monday was my birthday. My DH is a wonderful guy and he remembers. This year he called Ellen's on Main to deliver flowers. That florist is incredibly creative and her flowers are wonderful.
 It was hard to get a picture of the arrangement because of the huge leaves on each side and all the interesting flowers in the arrangement. I can't take it over the border so it's going to have to stay here. I'm here this week yet so we can all enjoy it.

This week promises to be interesting with potential company here again and just whatever we can come up with to get into yet. Being together with as a family is something I cherish each year!
Carol

Keeping a Good Balance

 Last week I showed you the four pieces of fabric I had pulled for my next tote.   My smallest piece of fabric was 8 inches wide, so I cut the rest of the pieces to match and  joined them end to end to make my tube for the weft.  I offset the final seam to start my strips.  Then to the "station" to start cutting the strips.

  I keep my rag cutter, bobbin winder and spool winder on this rolling cart so that I don't have to set-up and take down all the time.  Since this was a continuous piece of fabric, I just let it feed off the table, and I kept it going as it cut the strips for the weft.

   I wound the shuttle and started the tote, but I wasn't happy with way it was looking.  In this picture, you can see the header for the Stewart plaid winding off the beam, then the 4 strips of scrap fabric as a spacer.  The blue part is the header for this tote.....and then the new weft.  There's just too much contrast!!! 

  I do like the way the weft plays under the warp, but not with this header!  So...guess what???  Yes, sireee.....I un-wove!  I'll save this weft for a later tote or placemat!

  I grabbed one of the handy plaid bias balls and wound another shuttle.

  Thank heavens for all of those lovely plaid balls...they work up so nicely.  I'm ready to throw the handles, which will be the blue mop cord.

  I also got a new small tote started, and I'm ready to throw the handles on it, also.  I just need to finish basting the handle closed on the last strip.

  Some of you might remember last summer when I found some "Fire on the Mountain" wildflowers at the Farmers' Market.  It's also know as wild poinsettia.  From the one little pot I bought last summer....I now have a forest of plants!!!!  I didn't realize how much it would spread.  And, I have to admit, I LOVE it!  I know I need to thin it out, and maybe move some of the plants to some places that would benefit from this lovely foliage, but I'll work on that next week when the temps are lower.  I have a few other things on my dance card for this weekend.

  I've got to give the house a swish and a promise....the kids are coming over tomorrow for a "Happy Birthday and Back to School" party.  My "baby" turns 30 this week, and my SIL has a birthday, too.  So, I guess I should at least vacuum the rugs and take out the recycling.  Oh, yes, and I need to bake Birthday Brownies for my boys!!!!

Happy Weaving!
LouAnn

A Good Week!

This has been a very productive week!

 I posted last week about the mug rugs that weren't   working after I had switched the warp to a different loom.  I don't know what chart I was following when I threaded, but it wasn't the right one.  The only thing I can figure out is that I was on the back side of the loom when I threaded and may have gotten the harnesses reversed in my little noggin!
I re-threaded and you can now see the correct pattern emerging.

My friend Kathie came over on Wednesday to help me out with my jungle garden.  With all the rain and the higher than normal heat, it had just gotten away from me.  We worked a solid 4 hrs and we were amazed at what we were able to accomplish in such a short time!

After those long hours out in the heat, I spent the afternoon knitting away on a pair of textured socks I had started last spring.  I think these may be for my husband.  I have turned the heels and am plugging away on the foot.  I decided to keep the textured pattern going across the top of the foot, so I still have to pay close attention to not mess it up!

I am trying to get these done because I really want to be knitting with this yarn!

  I have several sock patterns that I think will work really well with this yarn.  It is silky smooth and soft as butter.  It is from Happy Feet, and it has been in my stash for awhile.  I think it will be a nice break from black!

Both of these are lace patterns and both I can work from the toe up.  I like toe up patterns because I can fit my feet perfectly and I don't have to worry about running out of yarn.  I just start both socks at the same time, one from each end, and keep going til I run out of yarn! 

We are off to the beach this next week, I will be bringing the socks to work on as well as my blue shawl that has been in hibernation since last beach trip.  I am working on the knitted border and I have done 30 of the 120 pattern repeats, so it still has many hours of knitting pleasure left! 
I will try to post next week, from the beach.  I was able to post last year, so I don't think there  should be a problem.  I hope your week has been a satisfying as mine has been. 

Until next time, Happy Weaving, Tina

Other Daily Fiber

 Well, how can I follow that last post?  Ann under the loom?  Everyone's busy feet?  Lanny's knees???  And I haven't even woven this week.  After the week I've had, all I can handle is a little light knitting.
  On my birthday vacation last week, I dragged my poor sister into two different yarn stores, on three separate occasions.  She was a good sport about it, and even bought me yarn for my gift.  To the right is the luscious hand dyed tencel yarn I fell in love with at Black Mountain Yarn Shop in Black Mountain, NC.  We spent a lot of time in that store, while Liz sat outside with Bella.  I bought a book on lace knitting, and began a Lily of the Valley stole, but I think I've already made a mistake and must rip out.  I'm letting it mellow for now, while I work on a project I bought myself, some Noro silk-and-wool sock yarn.  I made up the pattern so I could knit and talk, knit and look out the car window and knit and watch t.v.  So far, so good.  I'm about to start turning the heel.

  I still haven't paid much attention to Nancy, since the first thing I have to do is go buy a staple gun to attach her new apron.  With one day off this week, house cleaning and estimates on new air conditioners took precedence over Nancy, but I will try to get to her next weekend.  When I do, you'll read about it here!  Until then, Happy Weaving!

Maggie