3D and Weaving

 

Yesterday I finished pressing the towels from the warp I wet finished over the past few days.  

As I pressed, I got to see the cloth from different angles from what I usually view cloth from, and I was reminded - yet again - that cloth can have a 3D effect, especially when weaving an 'unbalanced' cloth - as in weaving more weft on one side with more warp on the other.

The whole subject of 'balance' is difficult for some people to understand, in part because we can refer to a cloth as being 'balanced' or 'unbalanced' for different things.

For example, plain weave.  If we say 'balanced' it *usually* refers to the same number of warp and weft so that neither the warp or the weft takes over from the other.  But you *can* use a plain weave and weave it 'unbalanced', such as for tapestry, where the weft (usually - there's that word again) is all that is seen, or warp faced, where the weft is pretty much invisible, hidden by the warps.

This draft was designed over 8 shafts, but since I would not have enough heddles on 8, I split the threading and used the first 8 for a repeat, then the back 8 for a repeat, etc.

Apparently that was a little bit too much for my brain to process because I made not one, not two, but three threading errors, in spite of working slowly and carefully.  So this entire warp is 'seconds'.  I have not decided if I will sell them as such, or just give them away.

Yesterday I gave my doctor a pair of tea towels (I mean, everyone can use a tea towel, right???)  He said I didn't have to do that, but I know how hard everyone in health care is working right now (especially), and I want to express my gratitude to them and the best way I can do that, I feel, is to give them some of my weaving.  Because my health care 'team' is literally keeping me going right now.

It's too soon to tell how effective the injections in my back are going to work, and my pharmacist and family doctor are working together to get me the 'hail Mary' drug, hopefully by the end of this week, or maybe next.  They were still working out the details yesterday.

At this point I no longer hope for pain 'free', but pain 'less' would be good.  And being able to sleep would be great, too.