Looking at Twills

Since I currently have the guild's 8 shaft Baby Wolf here, I am dressing it with the warp for the Looking at Twills workshop next weekend.

This warp is 2/20 mercerized cotton.  It's been a while since I've worked with anything finer than 2/16 cotton, and I remember now why I've pretty much given up.  It's not that I'm 'afraid' of it, nor that I'm 'worried' about working with such fine yarn.

It's more that my body is complaining.  My hands have lost some of their dexterity over the years and yarn this fine makes my thumbs hurt.  (Yes, arthritis due to working with my hands for so many years has made an appearance, not to mention joint/muscle pain as an adverse effect of not one but two medications I'm taking.)  And then there is my eyesight.  I've been short sighted for nearly all of my life and that is something that just gets...worse...as the years go by.

However, this warp is only about 8 inches wide, 36 epi.  It won't take long to get it done.  And even with my aging body, I'm still probably faster than any of the students in the class.  So they will get the experience of weaving with this yarn and then they can decide if it is something they want to work with.

The warp is the two colours on the far left, the other yarns will be brought as options for weft.  They can either use the colours in the warp, or choose a darker or lighter value in order to see how value will affect the cloth in twill blocks.  (Click on the photo to see the entire range of colours.  Blogspot cuts part of the photo out until you biggify it.)

For more information about colour and weaving, you might find Tien Chiu's on line class interesting.  Also Jane Stafford's on line guild.  This year will be all about colour and design.

Currently reading A Habit of Murder by Susanna Gregory