Saturday, September 14, 2013

Starry Night




Neither of these photos are quite the right colour.  The top one is about as dark but too grey.  The bottom is the right blue but not dark enough.  But the best I can do with my camera and software.

The point is that I could have titled this post Making Lemonade, or Design Feature or even How the Light Gets In.  But all of those titles would have reflected a negative attitude toward this warp and I would rather focus on the fact that these scarves look quite nice.  I'm thinking that they might be very suitable for a man - or woman - but women (generally) tend to choose the brighter colours, men generally darker value ones.

See, when I dyed the blue skeins, I neglected to remove the factory ties and they acted as a resist so that when the ties were removed there were white 'specks' left in the yarn.

Too embarrassed to show the world my deficiencies as a dyer I stuck them in a bag at the back of the studio and when Doug said he would cone the silk skeins off, I tossed the 'defective' skeins in as well.

Because there was really nothing wrong with the yarn.  They just weren't 'perfect'.  In the end, they are weaving up into a lovely set of scarves that rather remind me of stars shining on a dark night.

When something you make doesn't turn out, I suggest putting it away for a few months and then look at it again.  Instead of seeing the way it doesn't resemble what you'd set out to do, you may find that you quite like what you made, just for it's own self.  Just like the disappointing dye job looks just fine in this warp.

Currently reading How the Light Gets In by Louise Penny.  If you are a fan, Still Life (her first Gamache novel) has been turned into a movie and will air for the first time tomorrow, Sept. 15 on CBC.

7 comments:

Sue Bye said...

Now I am desperately searching to see if it is available anywhere on cable in Minneapolis. But maybe I would rather keep my Three Pines residents as I imagine them.

Laura Fry said...

Yes, it will be a interesting to see if they convey Ruth as she is in the books! :)
cheers,
Laura

Laura said...

Unintentional ikat - fantastic!!

re'New said...

I must not be the typical female. I would love the black scarf :)

Lisa said...

I love your positive attitude! Being a family law attorney, I'm often advising people to "accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative" as the old song goes. And I take my own advice. I'm happier, and have been training myself to stop whining to myself, and find the positive. I enjoyed reading your recent posts.

Judy said...

I love those scarves. And I think what makes them interesting to me, in part, is the little flashes of light. In my eyes, it isn't a dyeing flaw, it's a design feature.

Judy said...

I love those scarves. And I think what makes them interesting to me, in part, is the little flashes of light. In my eyes, it isn't a dyeing flaw, it's a design feature.