Tragedy - CW

 

white rose bushes on my daily walk when I could still walk

We have been dealing with a national tragedy, and I can't stop thinking about it.  And how this tragedy is being dealt with here in Canada.  And how the alt right is using our grief to make political points.

If you don't know, I'm sure you can find references to it, since the nation is in mourning.

I confess I am considered by the alt right to be a 'libtard' (or libturd, take your pick).  My politics are left of centre.  I believe in human rights for all, regardless of colour of skin, religion, whatever.  I have been (mostly) relieved that the majority of the Canadian politicians have chosen to send messages of condolence to the community of Tumbler Ridge.

And yet...

Yesterday I began to see alt right voices, trying to do their 'usual' and fear monger and by so doing, they are diminishing the lives lost.  The grief that we are all feeling.  By using the 'usual' scare tactics, they attempt to divert attention from the victims and lay blame on an entire 'category' of humans - when they never ever do that if the person responsible is a white male.

So I am by parts furious at their callous disregard for the lives lost and/or damaged in order to score political points by roiling up their 'base'.

And what a good word that is, 'base'.  As in 'base' instincts.  The very thing that their lord and savior told them to rise above by loving *everyone*.  As someone raised Christian, my very being recoils at how NOT Christian they are.  

The past few days have also been 'bad' pain days and the two things made things extra difficult for me.

But today is a bit 'better'.  I managed to beam the silk warp (with lots of knots in it), and today I'm going to begin threading.  

I had to adjust the threading draft because I gave up at 10" in width, which is a bit narrow for a scarf, but I would have had to patch together too many threads to make up that planned on 12" width.  It's going to be bad enough to repair the dozen (or more) knots already in the 20 yard long warp.  But I have lots of spools with a few yards left on them to use to hang repair ends to weave past the knots and then remove them.  And ultimately, using up as much of my silk and cashmere stash as I can is my current priority.

When in pain...weave.  When grieving...weave.  When confused...weave.  

Creativity is not pointless or useless.  When so many are attempting to destroy all that is good and kind in the world, creativity is an act of resistance.  

I send love and light to all who needs it.

Remote Teaching

 

Teaser...

Yesterday I finished weaving the samples for the next article for WEFT.  No, I'm not going to explain this photo - it's a teaser.

I don't know if the photos I took are good enough, but I needed to have photos to show what I was going to attempt to explain using words.  But not everyone learns from the written word, so I knew I had to provide visuals.  WEFT staff may choose to set up their own photos if mine aren't good enough.

It's the challenge in trying to teach 'remotely' - being able to provide information in different modes so that as many people as possible can process the information and be able to figure out what is happening.

Today I will press the samples I wove, then tidy them up when they are fully dry and will be rolling the information I want to convey around in the nether regions of my brain.  

The challenge with trying to write (or even think, some days) is that the brain injury opened up sinkholes and sometimes the words I want to use disappear into one or more of those sinkholes.  So it's now imperative that I must think clearly, if I can, about what I want to say - and how I want to say it.  And in the process, try to work out which words are missing from my vocabulary at the time I'm trying to craft the explanation I want to share.

In the meantime the pain I've been trying to 'solve' continues.  Some days and nights are better than others.  And I still see tiny glimmers of 'improvement' - I think.  But it never really goes away.  Not really and truly 'away'.  However, I have accepted that it may never totally and completely resolve, so in the meantime, I try to do the best I can to keep sharing information.  I am getting older every day and that isn't going to change, just get more challenging as time passes...

The local weaver who recently purchased a drawloom continues their journey, and I am joining them as best I can since I have actually woven on a drawloom, even the specific type of drawloom they have purchased.  They found Alice Hindson's book and I'm going to get my own copy and study it when it comes to remind me of my two decades old experience of weaving at Madelyn van der Hoogt's Weaving School.  

It seems I am finally finding my 'retirement' life.  I had written weaving on a drawloom off as something I could ever do, and now, here one is, locally.  And an invitation to come play on it.  My neck won't likely tolerate my doing very much, but I'm quite excited about being able to explore more and see what happens...

We are well into February and spring is 'early' it looks like.  OTOH, we could easily get more storms, and more snow.  But the days are getting 'longer' with every day that passes, and today we have a sunny one.  

Time to get to the studio and press the samples and tidy them up.  And then decide what I can do most effectively.  Maybe trying to write an article is not a job for today - especially when I have a silk warp calling my name...

Rocky Road (CW personal health issues)

 

This meme has never resonated so thoroughly as I begin what appears to be the beginning of recovery from what has been making my life miserable for literally years.

As with any health issue, it appears to be true that however long it took you to get to 'bottom' it takes the same time to climb out of the hell you have been living.

But I am a do-er (even as I complain about it) and I have spent the better part of the last 6 months flailing around trying to find out what the hell has been going on in my body as things kept getting 'worse'.

For those who are interested, on December 24 (Merry Christmas?) I got the lab report back - I have genetic markers for being unable to utilize 'ordinary' B 12 and a couple other of the B family vitamins.  As such my body was unable to heal properly and new research into peripheral neuropathy is showing that what happens is that the protective covering of the nerves in the extremities begins to deteriorate.  And then you experience nerve pain.  A not so silent 'scream' of the body falling apart.  

People who are diabetic, or who have had chemo or other conditions generally have peripheral neuropathy.  I am one of the ones who had chemo with Vincristine, well known to cause PN (I'm going to use the initials rather than type it out all the time), and indeed, I had PN during chemo.  I was told it would resolve when chemo was done, and it did, but it came back.  Most likely because I have genetic markers from both parents which block my body's ability to use the 'usual' B 12 (and two others) even though my blood work showed a nice healthy level of B12 in my blood.

I immediately started taking a different form of vitamin B plus some supplements that were to help boost the body to utilize the vitamin.  I'm about 6 weeks out from beginning that treatment, and I can fairly confidently say that it appears to be working.

But it's not a smooth passage back to 'health'.  It very much looks like the above meme - I *thought* it would be smooth sailing, but of course, it has not been 'smooth'.  At all.

Last night - again - I had a 'bad' night.  Was awake for 3 hours at dark o'clock while the nerves in my feet and legs pinged and frizzled, and my muscles cramped.

But!  It's no longer pain levels of 7.  Just 4-5 when the pain flares.  I still can't sleep when the pain goes over 3, but...it's NOT 7.

For the first few weeks I could not actually tell if anything at all was happening, but I can honestly say...it is better.  It isn't fixed.  It won't be for months and months, apparently.  But I've been living with this pain for about 6 years and it may take 6 years to recover fully.  If I ever do.  Some of my nerves may be permanently damaged, and I won't know until I get there.  

But it means that ultimately, I may get to the point where I will be able to weave on the Leclerc Fanny again.  The Megado has a very 'light' lift and I can use my thick soled shoes to weave on that loom.  But I cannot on the Fanny so I haven't been able to weave on that loom for over 3 years.  But now?  Now I'm thinking...maybe.

I am also getting therapy to deal with the trauma of my birth and the impact that has had on me my whole life.  So far I have no idea if it is 'helping' because I've been alive for 75 years and hiding my trauma as a way to continue to deal with life.  Apparently it is now time to address that trauma.

Last Saturday I did a one hour presentation for the Vancouver Guild.  Since then I've had 3 of the people who attended or watched the recording contact me to thank me for sharing my knowledge.  I have another booked for Feb. 28. If that also seems to go well, I will take a look at the calendar and consider taking more bookings.  I didn't want to last year because I was still in recovery from the brain bleed, plus I never knew what shape I would be in because of the pain.  It's really really hard to think when your body is screaming at you, asking you to DO SOMETHING.

Well, it took several months and multiple changes in what I was doing, then finally genetic testing, but we appear to have found out part of what was happening.  And as spring teases us (too soon, too soon!) my tiny sprig of hope appears to be budding.

In the meantime, the sale at blurb continues.  Use the coupon code of BOOKLOVE15 FEB 8-10 for a 15% discount.  US folk, the books are printed and shipped within the US.  Other countries may prefer to buy the pdf - it's cheaper and you get it immediately.  If you have issues with the website, contact THEM, not me.

Heads Up

 

Book Savings!

From time to time the online publisher I use offers a sale on books where they 'eat' the savings and the author still gets the full amount of the sale.

So, from Feb. 8-10, all books are on sale with a 15% discount if you use the code BOOKLOVE15

If you are in the US, the books are printed in the US and there is no tariff.  To people outside of the US, you can order the print version, or perhaps the PDF download would be 'better'.  Certainly that is cheaper and you get it immediately.  Use the link above and enter the coupon code.  If you have problems with the Blurb website, contact them, not me.  

Interdependent

 

'linen tester' showing .25, .50 and 1 inch dimensions (got it from Jane Stafford)

New weavers don't get the connection between the various factors in the development of a cloth.  

That is not a 'failing', just a lack of knowledge.  It is only after they weave enough cloth, pay attention to the results, that they begin asking the questions they need to ask (if they follow the thread) and begin to understand how the answers in weaving are only ever *conditional*.

What do you want?  What will it take to get you there?  Which fibre?  Spun in which way?  Which weave structure.  Even, what loom are you using?

The question of density is packed with conditions.  

There are the 'ideals' and then there is reality, based on functionality.

I see people saying that true freedom is to ignore the 'rules', do what you want, free your creativity.

Which is all nice and all, if you don't care about the qualities you are building into your cloth.  If you don't care, then, do as you will.

OTOH, if the apocalypse arrives, knowing the 'rules' and understanding the equation of time spent to get the cloth made and how well it serves becomes an issue, it might be a good idea to actually learn the 'rules'.  Just so you have those in your weaver's toolbox.  

I've been known to bend those rules in order to wind up with a particular quality of cloth.  I'm not adverse to bending them until they 'break', just so I know that particular boundary, too.  

So when I talk about 'ideals', I also hold space for bending the boundaries.  So there are times when my twill isn't 45 degrees (after wet finishing), but maybe a bit more, maybe a bit less, sometimes very much not the 'ideal' at all.  It depends.

When we shift the dial back and forth between this quality and that quality, we can fine tune our results.  But knowing certain things - like combining stripes of plain weave *and* some other weave structure, like waffle weave, will produce certain results.

(receipts)

I have been known to do something like this *on purpose* - for an article.  

Understanding the concept of dimensional loss (commonly referred to as 'shrinkage') should be understood.  And if you achieve that dimensional loss, know that you are doing it willingly, not by accident.  For example, the dimensional loss in waffle weave (or Brighton Honeycomb if you are in the UK) can be as much as 50%.  Not a problem if you have woven samples and you know that going in, not just discovering that after you have woven your entire project and do not have enough cloth to do what you wanted to do.

So, do use your creativity.  But maybe make a sample or three before committing to a large project?

Next!

 

Yesterday I finished the warp I put into the loom in January.  It doesn't always happen that I get the knots this close to the heddles, but it is quite satisfying when it happens.

Because I never (usually) make just one thing, but several items per warp, and I tend to allow a little 'extra' in case I need to weave more samples, or if the loom is misbehaving, or...whatever...I sometimes have more than a yard left when I'm 'done' weaving.

I have been struggling (for so long, so so long) that I have not done the things I intended to do at the end of December.

That said, I am beginning to see 'changes' in my pain levels.  It seems like healing is beginning (for one of my pain sources) and that feeds my tiny sprig of hope.  Maybe *this* year will be 'better'.

Otoh, speaking of misbehaving looms, my Megado is not happy about something.  I am getting floats on the back side of the cloth which will be suboptimal when I begin the silk and cashmere scarves.  I may get Doug's help to re-align the dobby.  The sensor is ever so slightly out of alignment.  OTOH it's winter and wood shrinks when the relative humidity drops, so perhaps it will begin to 'fix' itself?

But I really don't want silk and cashmere scarves 'ruined' with treadling errors not of my doing.  

I am going to take the rest of this week and try to get the samples for the next WEFT article woven so I can begin writing the text.  On breaks I might begin beaming the silk warp.  The threading draft is ready, to be tested to see if the structure is going to work.  Again I'm working with two sets of yarn of different grists, so a sample will be absolutely necessary.  

We are having unseasonal weather.  It has been raining (in January!) and the snow is nearly completely melted away.  If it doesn't snow some more to build the snow pack in the bush, this year's 'wildfire season' is going to be...not great.  

Someone asked why it was a problem?  Partly it is because when it melts at this time of year it doesn't get absorbed by the ground, which is still frozen.  It runs straight 'downhill' and down the rivers to the ocean.  Nothing gets stored in the ground for use later in the year.  If the rains don't come in the spring, the ground water doesn't get built up, the ground itself becomes parched and any little spark, be it lightning or campfire, can set up a blaze that devastates the forests and ultimately animals AND human lives.

We desperately need to recognize climate change and DO SOMETHING to mitigate the problems.  There is no Planet B.

More Snowflakes

 

weaving draft for silk/cashmere scarves

I'm about done with the current warp, which was an interesting little tangent to go into.  But I'm about done with that highly twisted single 6 cotton, and am anticipating a very nice jaunt down the silk warp, cashmere weft bylane.

I really liked the weave structure I used with the single 6 but the twist energy pretty much erased the actual motif, and I thought it had some nice features about it, so I essentially reduced it to the number of ends I needed for a scarf warp and will go ahead with the same thing for the scarves.  

Seems like I have a whole lot of very fine (as in gossamer) cashmere in natural white.  After doing a grist comparison yesterday, I decided I am going to have to double the cashmere even to get close to the 2/30 grist of the silk.  Since the cashmere is in skeins, it seemed the best way to deal with what is a fairly 'tender' yarn, is to use it doubled and the best way to do that is to use the double bobbin shuttle.  If that doesn't work very well, I can then double it by winding from two bobbins onto a single bobbin, but before I spend the time to do that, I'm going to try weaving with the double bobbin shuttle.

The other thing I wanted to point out is that this weave structure is the 'same' on both sides - except the warp and weft change places in the motif.  The front side is a mirror image of the back.

 The fabric will have a difference one side to the other since the warp is shiny silk and the weft is mat cashmere, so the effect will be a subtle difference.  The effect when done in contrasting colours is greater, but I like the mat/shiny effect, too.  

And I have rather a lot of the fine cashmere, so I'll be doing a range of scarves using these (and other sizes) of silk.  If I run out of options to use up white, I also have rather a large amount of very fine worsted wool to use on some of the intense coloured silks also in my stash.  So I have my 'work' cut out for me.  

I don't expect to be exploring much in the way of weave structures, but some colour options.

And, in the end, weave down some of my silk and cashmere stash.  Win-win!

New Book

 

Stacey Harvey-Brown's new book Creative Dimensions in Weaving is now available.

If you are curious about creating 3D effects in textiles, Stacey has been doing lots of digging into how to make that happen.  The book can be purchased immediately as a pdf download.  I haven't invested yet as I really prefer print, but getting books from overseas is getting expensive, and a pdf download is (ahem) immediate.  

And let's support actual human knowledge, not LLM/AI.  

And check out her web site for some other books she has written.

Better Questions

 

pretty painted warps for eye candy

I have been thinking about how learning works.  I mean what does a person need to do when confronted with a very large pool of knowledge - more an ocean than a pool.  Where do they start?  How do they manage the info dump that can be presented?  How do they file that info dump away?  How do they access it later?

Perhaps these questions are more important to me since the brain injury, which happened in my speech centre.  And because I was hoping to keep teaching for my twilight years.  And now struggle with words.

And over and over I come back to the same answer.  If you want better answers, you need to ask better questions.

Which is facile, I know, and what the hell is a 'better' question when you don't know anything?

So I've been thinking.  A lot.  About learning.  And teaching.  

I gave the first Zoom presentation in two years on Saturday.  It was, thankfully, a small group, but a diverse one.  At least two of the people were very experienced and the rest seemed to range from beyond beginner on up.

The topic was The Weaver's Toolbox, and I talked about how looms functioned, trying to convey the mechanics of how most of the common looms worked.  Plus some other tools.

At the end, there were questions.  Thoughtful ones.  Questions that let me know that the questioner had been processing the information, thought about it, started to follow the thread I had presented, and wanted to define the information so that they could fit it into their foundation of knowledge.

As we get AI stuffed down our throats from every direction, this is a process that we need to keep active - the absorption of information, processing it to make sure it is making sense within context, and analyze it to make sure it is fully understood.  This is the very opposite of what LLM/AI does - which is essentially make stuff up.  

I see it on chat groups when someone asks a question and someone responds by posting an AI response - inevitably not helpful or even accurate in many cases.  AI does not understand the craft.  How can it?  It is just making up an answer that appears plausible.  

OTOH, dozens of us are out here trying our hardest to help new weavers make sense of the craft.  Sometimes even showing a light on something they may have not quite understood before.

After sitting and thinking about the presentation on Saturday, I am encouraged.  I managed to get through the 60+ minute presentation without losing my words.  It helps that I already have my 'script' created, which reminds me of the path I want to follow.  The thing that helped me the most was realizing that even in the 30 minutes after the presentation I was still able to answer questions, not all of them directly related to the topic.  So I'm feeling a glimmer of optimism that I can take up the reins again, and who knows, keep teaching.

I am also encouraged to see others saying the same things I've been saying for decades.  Even new weavers seem to be aware of wet finishing, and are taking that 'final' step into consideration.

I suppose if nothing else, helping to bring awareness of that step means that I've done my 'job'.  

Over the past couple of years I've seen notices of the original Magic in the Water for sale - weavers downsizing, or in estate sales.  If one comes up it has 20 (or more) samples with actual fabric samples, before and after wet finishing.  I hoped it would become a valued resource for weavers, and so it appears it has.  The text (with photos) version is still available both in print or pdf download.

My other books were an attempt to explain some of the subtle effects that need to be considered in weaving.  (Also available using the above link.)

If you are a new weaver, get some books.  Read as many as you can.  Realize that not all experienced weavers will make the same recommendations - we may differ on details, but most agree on the principles of the craft.

Find the end of a thread and carefully tease it out until you can see it fully - if you can.

Weave 'samples'.  A sample can be a scarf.  Or a tea towel.  A pot holder.  A mug rug.  Study samples woven by others if you can.  If you can't, study photos in magazines.  And read how the weaver created the effect that intrigues you.

Above all - think.  Don't assume.  Ask yourself why something is happening.  Ask questions.  As you learn, your questions will become more informed and you'll get better answers.

Learning is a lifetime activity, if you should desire to make it a part of your creative processes.

The life so short the craft so long to learn...

Twist and Texture

 

I finally got a photo of the texture that developed during wet finishing.  Below is how the cloth looked in the loom...

Now, the cloth in the loom was really pretty.  And no doubt I may do something similar in the future.  I'm planning some white on white silk (warp) and cashmere (weft) scarves, and I think this sort of design will look really lovely.

But the goal was to use up some of that single 6 with high twist 'energy' in it, and on the whole, I'm pleased with the results.  

As tea towels, I think they will work (i.e. they will dry dishes) and they have an interesting texture.  The cloth feels a bit 'rough', so not something one would want to wear against the skin.  But neither will most people want to work with a highly energized yarn, which generally means a yarn with a high degree of twist.

There are other ways to encourage 'tracking' (for that is what this is, ultimately, just an extreme version of it) by using yarn with lycra in it, or the differential between yarn that will full and shrink versus one that will not.  I've done both and they can be quite effective.  And yes, sample before setting up for a big project because the results can vary in ways that might not be intended - or welcomed.

I've included the selvedge in the photo although you'll have to biggify the image to really see it.  It is not a plain weave selvedge and it is not straight.  And it doesn't matter.  The selvedges are secure enough for use.  

Normally I would give tea towels another hard press after hemming, but I don't think I'm going to bother.

I'm down to the last (maybe) 4 towels, and once those are woven, I'm going to move on to the next stash challenge - the silk and cashmere.  

I'm looking forward to working with some co-operative yarn for a while.  And weaving down more of my stash.  

Challenges

 

after wet finishing

loom state

Someone asked about weaving something that resembled ribbing.  I suggested something like the above, which isn't exactly what they wanted but what might be experimented with to get the effect they wanted to achieve.

Then I suggested that if they kept their stripes narrow enough, they might be able to encourage the cloth to 'collapse' and wind up with something even more 'rib' like.

Today was the first time I felt able to agree to doing a zoom presentation.  They had chosen the topic of 'Weaver's Toolbox'.  I spent a lot of that time explaining how the 'main' types of handlooms work, because if something is going on, it's good to know if it is a 'weaver' problem or a 'loom' problem'.  One of the things I missed talking about is tightening the nuts/bolts/wedges of a loom which is primarily wooden.  

Relative humidity has been on my mind a lot lately because we are in the depths of winter, where the relative humidity drops, significantly.  Doug mentioned a while ago that he went round the loom and tightens the bolts.  (He knows how difficult I find such things right now, so I was grateful he took care of that for me.)

Anyway, the presentation this morning seemed to go well, once I'd sorted out the technical issues yesterday (thanks Microsoft - NOT!) and the next one is in 4 weeks time.  Once I'm done that I'll assess how they went and decide if I begin promoting my giving more.  I feel hopeful that if people find things of interest, maybe things they were not consciously aware of being issues and that they needed to pay attention to.  

As usual, I went beyond  the time allotted, but people were asking really good questions.  Usually when that happens, I know I've opened some possibilities for people.  Helped them think beyond the 'usual'.  

And bottom line, that's why I do this.

My website is still giving out 'danger' warnings, largely because my security certificate has expired or something.  But I don't collect your data so hopefully you can just click on through, if you are interested in my zoom topics.  Just scroll down the page a bit and they are listed.  

No Rules!

 

A weaving draft for a twill - or in this case a 1:3 twill

The other day I saw an ad for a weaving class.  NO Rules!  Ok.  You're going to ignore millennia of history regarding the things that make weaving rational and just...wing it?

Which would be fine if people bothered to learn what those rules actually say.  Instead they are 'doing their own (ahem) research' and leaning heavily into their creativity.  Because rules limit one's creativity.  Or something something gazpacho.

If going 'no rules' makes their hearts sing, then ok.  But don't assume that I am crippling *my* creativity because I know the nuts and bolts of how threads work together, understand the mechanics of the craft, understand how colours blend or contrast in a woven textile.

Or assume that any 'answer' you get from AI or LLM (Chat GPT) are going to give any kind of meaningful information.

So I'm going to discuss - briefly - what some of those 'rules' mean, specifically when I talk about a 2:2 twill.  Pop quiz...does the draft above depict a 2:2 twill?  No.  No, it does not.  How do you know?  Because I've labelled it a 1:3 twill.  See?  I know one of the rules and can distinguish the difference.

The ratio refers to how many warp threads are up at any point, and how many are down.  So that 1:3 twill has one warp thread up and 3 are down.  The weft crosses them in a 1:3 ratio.

If that was a 2:2 twill, there would be two warps up and 2 down and the resulting twill would be considered 'balanced' - if the epi/ppi is equal.

You could also weave this as a 3:1 twill, in which case 3 warps would be up and one down.  In that case, the warp is more visible.

If the warp and weft are different colours. a 1:3 twill would place the majority of the weft colour on top; a 2;2 twill would show the warp and weft colours equally; 3:1 would show the warp colours more than the weft.  Again, these aspects depend on the warp and weft being more or less equal.  The three cloths are then labelled 1:3 = weft emphasis, 2:2 = 'balanced' (for certain kind of 'balance) and 3:1 would be warp emphasis.  Weft faced means the weft entirely covers the warp; warp faced means the warp entirely covers the weft.  (There may be some instances where coverage is not complete, but you get the gist, I hope.)

There isn't any particular necessity to *know* that unless you want to design something that looks a particular way.  Or if you want to manipulate the threads to create a particular effect.  All of which are possible.  But it makes it a lot easier to do that if you just understand some of the 'rules' of the craft.

Or if you are following a 'recipe' and there is an error in it.  Or maybe you just don't know the 'rules' and interpreting the instructions is difficult to understand.

Just saying... 

Unpopular Opinions

 

The Prime Minister announced that one of the new budget initiatives would be 'investment in AI training'.

Well, the country will not need to spend any money on me because I won't use it.  Period.  The books pictured above were all written by me, long before AI or LLM were sparkles in anyone's eye.  I will continue to generate content out of my knowledge and skill pertaining to a rather complex craft that has multiple layers of information.  As far as I am concerned, there is NO room for AI in the field of weaving.  At least for the understanding of the principles of the craft, and understanding the marriage of the weaver, their body, their loom and the yarn they choose to work with.  There may be other tasks they could do well enough but I don't need those services, so...

Then this morning I answered a fairly simple/basic question on a chat group and a Reply Guy responded rather rudely.  He demanded to know what had 'informed' that answer.  I told him my 50 years of weaving while paying attention to the results.

As regular readers of this blog are well aware, I have been struggling for years with health issues that are adversely affecting my ability to weave, and every trip to the loom is part therapy as well as an exercise in discovering more about the craft - how threads interact with each other, in the loom, and during wet finishing.

Plus the current events lately, and the scorn in his 'reply' was not going to be ignored.  Not today, Reply Guy.  Not on this day.

I rarely respond to Reply Guys, but today I did.  Do I regret it?  Maybe.  But not at the minute.  I'm tired of Reply Guys telling me I know nothing.  It happens less now as I've limited my participation on public chat groups.  Perhaps I ought to have introduced myself when I joined the group.  But the people who know me, know me, and I thought that my answers (when I made them) would at least introduce me (and my knowledge) to the newer weavers and let them know that I had knowledge that they might consider.

It is no secret to me that I do NOT have 'all the answers'.  But I have a broad base of experience in designing and weaving a large range of qualities of cloth.  I can usually make an informed guess.  If I can't, I won't reply and let someone else respond.  

But weaving is as deep as it is wide.  OTOH, there are quite literally dozens of books that will present information on various facets of the craft.  And now the attitude is to ask the the 'secret', the magic potion to make 'perfect' cloth on their 3rd warp.

There are a lucky few who come to the craft with excellent fine motor skills, and a knowledge of working with textiles so they do have some experience working with thread.  But every new weaver's question(s) are generally found between the covers of multiple books.

Some are 'historical' (as in written in the 19th and 20th century with a few more in this), but the principles remain the same.  The language may seem 'stilted', the photos may be grainy black and white, authors may differ in minor ways.  But essentially the principles remain the same up to even this very day.

One of the founding principles to any 'practice' of weaving is weave the samples you need to find out what is going to happen.  Don't take my word for it.  I can point you in a direction.  And then you have to figure out where it is you actually want to wind up.  And you do *that* by setting up the loom, with the yarn you intend to use, in the colour(s) you want to use, weave the sample and wet finish it.

If it doesn't turn out the way you want, back to the drawing board, figure out what needs to change to bring you closer to your goal.

Seems like today is another day to post the links to my personal set of resources...

Classes

School of Sweet Georgia (four classes)

Long Tthread Media (Handwoven)

Books

All 3 above available at blurb.com with a fourth available in my ko-fi shop - A Thread Runs Through It - pdf download only

Leaping Into the Deep End

 

A local weaver has arranged to purchase a draw loom and since I've woven on one (attended Madelyn van der Hoogt's Weaving School) I have rusty memories about how they work.  I've offered to help, and Amanda has suggested that I can come 'play' on it once it is up and working.  So I'm very excited.

I really enjoyed weaving on a draw loom, but my neck was less than impressed.  So it didn't seem prudent that I spend the money required, try to find the space that would be needed, and the time to really get comfortable with getting to know more.

I loaned Amanda some books, the loom's owner gave her some more, and we've discussed a few others that will help her get ready for the plunge.  In the meantime, I've suggested that she set the loom up as an 'ordinary' shaft loom because she's not woven on a Glimakra previously and it would a good idea to get familiar with the mechanics of the 'standard' loom before attempting to use the draw attachment.

Not all of the books that I recommended to her are commonly available, but I gave her some suggestions of where she might obtain copies - Inter-Library Loan, for one, Handweaving.net for another.  Complex Weavers may have some as I think they have a draw loom study group.  But it's been ages since I have been a member of CW.  They also have a library, but I don't know about shipping books from the US into Canada, given current events.

I know that I'm not the 'best' resource for her, but I'm the only one here who has woven more than once on a draw loom.  And I have some of the books she needs and am willing to loan them.  It is also giving me something new and exciting to think about, and polish off some of the mental rust.  It's been decades since I wove at The Weaving School.  But I still have my samples, and I can dig them out for Amanda to take a gander at.

Coincidentally, I have a Zoom presentation booked for Saturday in which I will talk about The Weaver's Toolbox and one of the things I will discuss are the mechanics of the 3 main types of looms commonly available - rising (jack), sinking/rising (counter balanced) and direct sinking/rising (counter march).

This is the first guild presentation since I had the brain bleed.  I'm very nervous if I can manage it, but if I can, I will be open to add more bookings to my calendar.  (If you belong to the Greater Vancouver Weaver's Guild - it's Saturday morning this weekend.  Just saying.)

My list of online guild presentations is available at https:laurafry.com

Winter. Spring. (CW heath issues)

 

It is winter.  We have been getting a fine 'mist' of fresh snow.  But that isn't exactly a 'pretty' picture at the minute, so I bring you a memory from my picture folder - the white roses that used to brighten my day every day on my walk through the neighbourhood.  Sadly gone now, but I still have the picture - a touchstone of a happier time.

The latter part of 2025 and the opening weeks of 2026 have been tumultuous, if I could use that word.  Not just for me, but everyone I know.

When you feel your life veering off the rails, it is sometimes difficult to wrestle your train back into working order.  I'm not exactly sure how I found the strength/spoons to manage it, but it seems that I have managed to shift things enough that I am on a new path.

Where it will lead, I am not certain.  All I know is that the path I had been on wasn't pleasant and something needed to change.  Since the only thing I can actually change is *me*, whelp, as they say, I needed help to begin examining my life and work out a new way, hopefully a better way, to use to move through what is left of my life.

As I discussed with the therapist this morning, I have lived with trauma since my birth (literally) and after 75 years of living with that trauma hanging over me, coping with it, denying it, and realizing that it isn't helpful OR healthy, I must first of all recognize that the trauma isn't going to go away in a day or two.  After taking the neuroplasticity class last autumn, I also understand that old habits are really bloody hard to break.  Not only that, they don't actually 'break', but must be worn away and a new path constructed.  All of which is going to take time.

During the end of 2025, I also discovered that there is a good chance that I have health issues because of my genetics, mainly that I am one of those people who have difficulty absorbing and then *utilizing* the B vitamins.  I am now taking a form of B vitamin that will allow my body to metabolize and actually use them to help me function, and actually heal damage caused by the lack of bio-available B vitamins.

I have come to a much greater - and deeper - understanding of how the body works, how the mind and body work together, interact on each other, and affect each other.

So I am now addressing the chronic pain, treating the cause of at least one of the triggers, managing the other two as best I can, AND after a lifetime of reflecting on my life, accepting the birth trauma that I experienced and which has been the underlying reality of how I have lived my life - because of, as well as, in spite of that foundation.

I am 75+ years old.  But guess what?  Our brains are not 'static'.  They are 'plastic'.  We can, with intent and effort, re-program them.  Help the trauma to heal.  Or at least not have it been a hidden affect that is silently guiding my emotions and my actions.

Since I am not, in any way, shape or manner a person with patience, one of the biggest challenges is to not criticize myself because the healing and changes are not happening as quickly as I would like.  That's probably the first 'lesson'.  

But after an autumn and early winter of dreading each day, I am beginning to 'right' myself.  

I *can* still weave (carefully).  I *can* still write (with the help of friends and colleagues).  And every day I can learn something.  It might be about weaving.  But most lessons from weaving, I have found, can also be applied to living.  Which may be why so many 'fairy tales' have textiles in them - threads, spinning, weaving, knotting, etc.

As it happens I also found a few more books that seem advisable to read.  I have a copy of Louise Penny's latest book, which I will read 'first', and then I am going to make a greater effort to read more non-fiction.  They say when the student is ready the teacher will appear.  Given how many books I have 'discovered' recently, I am getting the distinct message that my journey of learning is not over.  

Had a visit with a friend who is also dealing with a brain injury and we were able to discuss the process and how that can look from the inside.  They also bemoaned the difficulty they were having with reading, so I was able to realize that this is a result of the brain injury and that, with time and patience (there's that word again) I could get better at focusing and understanding complex written information.  And realize that the same was true at my efforts to *create* complex written work.  And gradually the concepts connect and understanding increases.

Will I ever be able to teach in person again?  I don't know.  But I'm going to stop saying that those days are 'over'.  Just say that I can't right now.  Advice from my therapist this morning.  

Helping me understand that I need to use compassionate language *when I speak to myself* and give myself the grace I try to give to others.

I wasn't sure if I would feel able to do much this afternoon.  But looking at my current 'job' list, I think my body would be ok with weaving for 30 minutes.  I am also trying to rebuild muscle strength in my thighs.  And if nothing else the trip down and up the stairs, will be a bit of 'strength' building.  And every step is a step forward.

To everyone struggling today, I send peace and love. 

Working Out The Code

 

This is a weaving draft for a four shaft loom with six treadles.  This is the way that I prefer to set up a simple twill progression, and my preferred tie up to weave plain weave and/or a typical 2:2 twill.

New weavers can get confused about what they are looking at.  Some discover 'a' draft and assume is it the only way to write that particular thread sequence (both warp *and* weft) when in reality it is just one graphic representation that depicts one way it can be done.

Why do I do it this way?  For me it is more ergonomic to thread from the back shaft to the front, starting at the right hand side and moving to the left.  I am right handed.  If you are not, you may well find it more ergonomic to work from the left to the right.

I have a four shaft counter balanced loom but it doesn't matter.  Whether I am using a rising shed or not, I still set up my tie up as shown above.  If the weave structure is balanced (equal number of shafts rising/falling) it truly does not matter.  

In fact, when I'm weaving on my 'big' loom (16 shaft Megado), I will frequently set up my warps as *unbalanced* (unequal shafts lifting/falling) so that I lift the fewest shafts possible - which means I will be weaving my cloth 'upside down' in some cases.  It doesn't matter (usually), and the savings on my physical effort is much appreciated by my body.

Newer weavers would do well to understand the language of weaving, especially the 'codes'.  The graphics.  The way we can convey information in graphics, or explanations.  Weaving can seem overwhelming, mysterious, the information draped in words that don't make sense, or drawings/graphics that confuse.

But you CAN learn.  There are books.  Lots of books (including my own) that will explain what is going on.  If you have a book with lots of drafts in it, *read the beginning pages*.  The introduction is generally where an author will explain the codes - the 'keys' for reading the graphics.

Since the advent of computers, weaving drafts now look very similar to the one I've given above - the horizontal lines across the top refer to the sequence of the threads.  The little box (4x6) show the tie up being recommended.  The long columns down the right hand side show the sequence of treadles to be used - I've given *one* repeat of plain weave and *one* repeat of a 2:2 twill.  And the rest is the graphic representation of how the cloth will look when it is woven.  The twill line will move in one direction or the other but if you don't see the structure the way you expect, look at the other side of the cloth.

My books are available as usual here

They are available in PDF download or print.  They are printed in the US so there is no tariff for USians.  People in other countries may wish to purchase the PDF (which is also cheaper - just saying).

Essential Information

 

A User's Guide to Yarn - pre-order now

Just in the past few days I have seen multiple 'new' weavers asking very specific questions about yarn - what to use, how to use it, etc.

I'm glad that they are asking, but answers are difficult within the context of a chat group.  The pool of knowledge is huge - an ocean, not a pond.  

There are various approaches available - sett charts, fibre characteristics listed in textile science books, reams and reams of actual projects with specific information.  It is quite literally endless.

Which is daunting!

Where to start?  

The answer is to weave samples.  Examine samples, if you can, samples that document the process, the details.

As one person pointed out, yarn charts can get 'stale' very quickly as manufacturers change things frequently.  

Weaving yarns are more 'stable' than knitting yarns.  But even weaving yarns come and go and tastes change, advice changes, because *change one thing and everything can change*.

I work a lot with 2/8 and 2/16 cotton.  And even within just those two counts, I don't always use the same epi/ppi.  Sometimes I mix and match - 2/16 cotton warp with fine linen weft was a recent one.  Right now it's 2/20 merc cotton warp with singles 6 highly twisted/energized unmerc cotton.

I've used 2/16 at 30, 32, 36 epi - all because the quality of the cloth differs, the weave structure differs, and so on.

So I'm going to remind people of the new book coming in June by Michelle Boyd, who has attempted to qualify how we use yarn and why there may be changes to things like gauge in knitting, or density in weaving, and why sampling matters.

Each of us works with our own preferences, the loom that we have, the goals that we aim to meet.  What *I* do may be different from what some other weaver does.  And we are both 'right' within our stated goals.

I can tell you what *I* would do - but then it is up to the other weaver to decide if that is appropriate for *them*.  And they do that by weaving a sample.  Or three.

No, you don't actually have to, but if you want specific information for your purposes, you need to do the investigation - by weaving the sample and wet finishing it.

There is no short cut.

However, there are resources, and Michelle Boyd has done the community (knitters, crocheters and weavers) the service of trying to explore the possibilities and potentials that they each can use to create their own textiles.  Hopefully by explaining the dynamics baked into the yarn, future textile workers can apply the principles as yarns come and go.  

The information is available.  Sometimes you have to dig for it.  And don't rely on AI for meaningful answers.

Snow Subtle

 

You might want to biggify this - the effect is subtle and not really seen.  One might wonder why I bothered, knowing that the effect of the original loom state (See Jan. 14 post) cloth and the now wet finished state would be...I mean, why?

Well, I wanted to find out, that's why.  (And they WILL dry dishes, so....)

I'm nearing the end of the single 6 yarn with high twist energy, and having messed around weaving twills and watching them distort into a texture that could be guessed at but not entirely known, I wanted to know - what happens when I do this?  Interesting?  Or meh?

I still have to hem the towels, and truth be told, I'm  not sure I'll bother giving them a 'finishing' press when they are, because - in large part - the whole point of making the cloth was to develop a 3D effect.

I did have one more weave structure I thought about, but I've done that one before, so I actually know how it wet finishes.  And frankly, I'm done fiddling with the high twist energy.  For now.

It's annoying to try to wind the bobbins, although steeping them in the humidor for several days (longer is better) helps with weaving with it.  But when I inspected these with an eye to fixing any 'pigtails' I looked at the rest of the texture and thought...donwanna.  

So I've set my determination to 12, and I'll finish the rest of this warp, and then the rest of the single 6 will go away - for now.  I'm tired.  Not just of weaving with a petulant weft, I'm physically tired of struggling to deal with chronic pain.  And I want something else to 'fondle' for a while.  And the silk spools are just sitting there, patiently.  I'd kind of like to start working on something other than my fine cotton stashes seeing how close I am to being out of so many colours, which limits my choices.

I have enough 2/20 merc. cotton that I can do a couple more towel warps, and try to use up more of my miscellaneous stash of linen, but again, not now.  Maybe come summer when the relative humidity is a bit higher.

In the meantime, I need to follow the 'new' regime to manage my pain.  The doctor seemed impressed I had put a number of pieces on the game board over the holiday.  None of them quick fixes, but I keep trying.  We'll review the infusion today in four weeks, see if it is doing very much.  I may need to continue with therapy for a while, figure out the entangled mess of my trauma/anxiety, and how that is fueling the chronic pain.  For anyone who wants to know more, I'm reading the book with Gabor Mate' called When the Body Says No.  I'm beginning to learn way more than I ever expected about how the body systems are so delicately balanced, and when they start going out of whack, how our health can be affected.  The book is about 20 years old so there are probably newer resources, but this one is geared to the layperson, especially if they or someone they care about is dealing with trauma/anxiety.  75 years ago no one recognized birth trauma - for the mother OR the infant.  So I'm doing this at 75.  Better late than never?

Today I keep 'easy' and will continue that for at least two more days.  Maybe more.  I'm told the infusion doesn't always kick in right away, and my body was already 'fighting' it (hence the therapy - in hopes of breaking down the barriers my body had put up).  I have other things I can take to help, but it's a good idea to take a few days to let my body start to figure things out.  

I am trying, for once in my life, to be kind and gentle with my body.  I hope you are doing the same to yours.

Inching Along

 

I have managed to get to the loom and pick away at the current warp.  Today I will finish weaving towel #6 on the warp, cut off, re-tie and begin the 2nd third.  It feels painfully slow, but...on I go.

Because it doesn't seem to matter if I weave or not, the pain I live with daily goes on (and on and on...)

Right now I am doing the difficult work of changing - from within.  If I can.

It is never easy to pause and reflect on oneself.  Things that have been repressed for a lifetime don't want to easily change.  We set up barriers, protection, and it feels dangerous to take those away.

But I have learned that it is even more painful to NOT do the work and attempt to change what needs to be changed, as difficult as it feels in the moment.

It isn't like I've never done that before.  I sought help in my 30s and did the work to heal as best I could.  I got to the point where the immediate issue was addressed, but a half a lifetime later, I realized that I stopped too soon, and just set up different barriers.  Different coping mechanisms.

And my body absorbed it all, protected itself the best it could, and now it is tired.  Worn out.  And *I* am exhausted.  

Of course current events don't help.

The only thing I can do is try to heal myself.  Whatever that means.  I will keep trying, keep working on myself.  

I don't yet know if the treatment for the peripheral neuropathy is 'working'.  All I can say is that the pain appears to be changing.  For the better - or worse - I don't yet know.  But it is a hopeful sign.  

Doug got the rest of the studio re-organization done - at least enough that the table for the table loom is now available, and for my light duties after the infusion on Wednesday, I can weave on that loom.  I'm looking forward to doing that, and then getting the article written.  Hopefully they will be pleased enough with what I do.  

I'm tempted to toss the 6 towels into the washer and dryer, even though they will make a very small load, because I'm interested to see how they transform in the wet finishing.  Also something I could do as 'light duties'.  I may succumb to the curiosity...

I also have a couple of visits from local folk to look forward to.  So I am trying really hard to stay focused on the future, keep encouraging new(er) weavers, and continue the work on myself.  These are things I can control.  I cannot fix the world, but maybe I can make my little corner of it feel a little bit better.

Keeping On, Keeping On

 

I'm in the 'slog' part of weaving.  OTOH, since I *enjoy* the weaving part, it's not actually a 'hardship' for me.  It becomes a working meditation, a dopamine dump, an endorphin rush.  

Mostly what I'm doing right now is preparing for the next treatment (Wednesday, if anyone cares to send positive energy my way), and trying to not get my hopes up for what will happen during the treatment.

I have started counselling.  I am trying to keep a positive outlook, without going overboard and expecting a magic miracle.

We seem to have zeroed in on the major issue for one of my problems, the one actually causing me the most grief at the minute, and begun treatment to encourage healing.  In the meantime, I still have pain, and I'm hoping to get some relief from that while the healing takes place.

There isn't a lot of energy for me to do like I used to do - plough through.  

One of my counsellors recommended a book called When The Body Says No by Gabor Mate.  I have been picking my way through that, trying to engage with my body so that we can work together - to both our comfort level(s).  

I have been working on being 'kind' - as kind to myself as I tend to be towards others.  I'm recognizing my trauma and the anxiety that my trauma sparked, and which was reinforced (because reasons) for my entire life.  I have been the poster child for the meme 'feel the fear and do it anyway'.

Weaving is helping me keep 'sane' and rooted in my reality.  It reminds me of the purpose I chose in this life.  I wanted to production weave for 25 years, then teach for 25 years.  Instead I did both at the same time.  Well, that 50 years is now 'up' and I need to really - and carefully - examine my life and how I want to spend what is left of it.

Again and again, I want to help others.  Answer questions - not just for my own edification, but to share with others.  It seems I have come through the brain bleed with my brains more or less 'intact' and a good friend who keeps me pointed in the right direction word wise.  I still make 'mistakes' and sometimes I will correct them, and sometimes I don't bother.  Just like with weaving.  I've gotten a lot less demanding that I only show 'perfect' work.  Because frankly, my mistake can be subtle enough that no one but me (or someone very experienced like me) can tell they are there.  But they will still do their job (dish towel, scarf, whatever) even if they have a flaw - just like humans can.

Doug has continued to work on the studio re-organization.  He'll deliver about 150 pounds of rayon chenille* to the guild for the stash sale, another friend will get about 30 or 40 pounds more.  I've given a small box of a very fine wool (both in grist and feel) to a friend and will include some fine wool for a guild member to 'buy' at the stash sale.  

I'm nearly 1/3 done the current warp, and once this warp comes off the loom, I will begin working on the silk cashmere.

So I continue to make plans, but leave myself the space (and grace) to change my goals if my body says 'no'.  I'm trying really hard to listen to her now.

*and yes, bagging up that much yarn was a real wrench - I know how much I paid for it and to just give it away was really really hard.  But the guild will benefit (I hope) and once it is out of here, I will be able to cut any leftover emotional ties about the yarn and move on...

Riding the Avalanche

 

Just started weaving this warp yesterday.  So far, so good.

However...

There is an 'easter egg' in this cloth.  The warp is 2/20 merc. cotton at 36 epi; the weft is singles 6 with energy (high level of twist - which if you look closely you can see evidence of in the little 'pigtails' in the weft just above the fell) and it is weaving in at 32 ppi - which was what I had guestimated.

The threading is quite simple, over 16 shafts, and the tie up is: 1:3:1:3:3:1:3:1 and the treadling is as drawn in.

Now I'm not claiming that some weaver somewhere, some day, hasn't done exactly this threading draft.  But I would venture to guess that no one has used this precise yarn combination before.  I could be wrong, but, it's not a common thing to do.

Why am I doing it?  Well, I am *trying* to use up as much of my stash as I can.  I'm down to the last large mill cone, plus the bit of cone that was left over after finishing the previous warp.

Am I tired of coaxing the single 6s to 'behave'?  Yes.  Yes, I am.  Even though there will likely be a rather large amount of yarn left over, pretty sure I'm 'done' with this yarn.

And since I have not done a wet finished sample, it's a mystery what will actually happen.  There will be *something* happening, though.  The degree of twist energy is significant and it has done something 'interesting' every other time I've worked with it.

Will the effect be pleasing?  Dunno.  I have faffed around and will find out...

Stay tuned in a couple weeks to find out when I do.

Reply Guys

 

I'm no stranger to 'reply guys' trying to 'teach' me things.  Mostly I ignore them.  Mostly.

Recently one replied to a short answer I wrote in an online group to 'teach' me because my answer 'wasn't entirely correct'.  Of course it wasn't. It was a very brief response to a specific question  - a question that would require a chapter in a book  (perhaps - ahem - above) to fully address, with all the 'it depends' factors.  He implied that I was ignorant - or purposefully obfuscating.

It was obvious he had little to no idea of my background in educating new weavers, or the leeway I allow for personalized solutions based on the weaver running the experiments, weaving the samples, figuring out what the hard and fast facts are, and which rules can be mangled to create something specific.  So, no, I didn't cover all that in a short paragraph.  No, my answer wasn't 'complete'.  But my goal was not to be complete, because I tried to come close(r) to complete in The Intentional Weaver.  If he had read it, he may have been able to see more of my very targeted message to a new weaver, struggling with a very specific issue.

Because until the weaver has laid down a solid foundation of knowledge, it is hard to begin to understand the underpinning mechanics and physics of the craft, and then tweak what you do, and how you do it.  Until that understanding is solid, the new weaver stands on a shaky foundation.

But I took some time to reflect on my career.  I thought about my approach, how I talk to very new weavers, trying to work out what their current issue is, give them enough information to move forward, to grow their knowledge base, learn for themselves the dynamics at play.  This cannot (imho) be whiffed away because I am not 'completely correct' about the craft as a universe, I am merely trying to bring each individual forward by one more step on their quest to learn.

As for 'breaking' or 'bending' the rules, I am constantly pushing, tweaking, tugging here, there, finding out where those actual boundaries are.  Of *course* my answer was incomplete.  New weavers cannot be confused by all the variables or they (most of them) collapse in confusion.  It is too frustrating.  Too difficult.  You don't talk to a 5 year old (usually) about calculus!  Or if you do, you use appropriate language.

So, I stand by my brief answers on chat groups.  That doesn't make me 'wrong'.  It makes me a thoughtful, considerate teacher, trying to answer the explicit question.  

I told the reply guy that I prefer to teach 'best practices', but he took exception to that, too.  

It was just another reply guy in my 50 year journey of exploring the pathways and boundaries of this craft.  

I will never forget the day when I answered a question on a chat group, from someone who wanted to set up his AVL in a very specific way.  Since I used my AVL* in specifically that way, I decided to answer, because all the replies had - to that point - told him he would 'ruin' his loom abusing it that way.  I probably should have answered privately, but I was on a quick break from the loom and needed to get back to it because I had a deadline - and weaving was how I earned my income.

So I quickly explained what I did, and went back to the loom.

A while later I came back to see if the OP had any further questions, and was met with a dog pile of several 'reply guys' all calling me ignorant, that I was abusing my loom, I was going to destroy it, and I needed, post haste, to hie myself to Chico and take classes so I was using the loom 'properly'.

Since I had been using the loom in precisely that way for literally 20 years, and no sign of damaging it, I closed the desktop and went back - to abuse my AVL some more.

When I went back later, Allen Fannin had responded to the reply guys saying (I paraphrase) that we (Allen and me) had agreed to disagree on a number of things, but when I said something people need to pay attention because I knew what I was talking about.

I was stunned at the public support from someone as knowledgeable as Allen Fannin (who had very firm opinions) and I have never forgotten the vote of confidence from him.  (Yes, we agreed to disagree about a number of things - but I respected where he was coming from and the knowledge his opinions were based upon - but change one thing and everything can change...)

So, while I have never articulated this before, here is where I stand - I have learned a great deal about this craft.  I have learned (generally speaking) how most people learn.  I have learned that you don't do an info dump about all the levels of complexity onto a brand new weaver.  I try to build their foundation of knowledge by adding the complexity in stages and letting them fit that information into their foundation of knowledge when it begins to make sense.

And I am not afraid to bend and mangle the 'rules' when I need to do so to create something specific.  But I will continue to try to teach 'best practices' and *then* remind them that when one thing changes, everything can change, and try.  Weave the samples.  Examine them.  Learn from them.  Do what you need to do.  FAFO, as they say.  But don't just throw out the 'rule book' without considering *why* there is a 'rule book'.  

Learn as much as you can about your materials, and your equipment.  I have made many modifications to my equipment over the years.  When people recoil in horror, I reassure them that I understand the basic principles of the mechanics involved, the physics, and have an in-house woodworker who *also* understands mechanics and physics and has the workshop to do quite extensive modifications if we both agree that is the best thing to do.

So no, my 100 word (at best) answer to a question on a chat group was not meant to cover the entirety of the possibilities that were available, but to give a new weaver having problems an answer.  An answer that they could grow their foundation of knowledge further and more usefully with.  Set down some 'boundaries' - for the now moment.

My knowledge is far greater than I generally share with new weavers.  It is too overwhelming.  Too confusing.  But I'm delighted when I find someone who wants to go forth to discover those complexities and we can talk subtleties.

It depends on which 'hat' I am wearing in the moment.  

For anyone at all who wants to know more, you are welcome to this blog, or my social media.  You are welcome to email me with specific questions.  laura at laurafry dot com

My books are still available at blurb.

My classes are still available at:

School of Sweet Georgia

Long Thread Media (classes and articles in back issues of Handwoven)

And if you *want* more subtlety, more in-depth knowledge:  WEFT Magazine

Now that I'm 'retired' (and dealing with health issues making life...challenging) I am finding solace and, indeed, therapy, by continuing to weave.  Continuing to ask why.  Continuing my personal journey of learning and exploration.  WEFT seems interested in what I look at, and my journey of learning while I do.  And they don't insist I have definitive answers but accept that it is huge, this craft.  And it may take more than just one person poking at it to bring more information forward for all of us to benefit from.

(now descending from the current soapbox...there's a loom that wants setting up...)

*Jon Violette told me just before he left AVL for other pursuits that Doug and I had essentially beta-tested the AVL Production Loom - me by using it *as* a production loom, and Doug by making changes TO the loom to make it work better.

A Tiny Blue Dot (CW warning - current events)

 

yellow line represents the divide between the US and Russia

This morning I read a post that explained that the current president of the US said that he 'didn't want to be neighbours with Russia'.

About that...

The current president has also said - repeatedly - that he wants to destroy my country economically so that he can annex it.

Why, if he doesn't want to be neighbours with Russia?

He is so confusing.  Because taking over Canada would mean that he would be even more 'neighbourly' with Russia than the US currently is.  

I constantly see posts by people who don't believe we live on a globe.  And yet even Google knows that we do.

People don't understand why flights take such stupid flight paths - because they don't ever look at a globe and find out that things in reality are different than what a Mercator projection makes it look like.  Compare Greenland in this photo to what you see in a Mercator projection.  And think about how perceiving things changes depending upon your view.

I grew up in a 'remote' town in the middle of the province of British Columbia.  The nearest big city was 500 plus miles away.  Edmonton could not be reached by road until the 1970s - unless you went south to Kamloops and used Highway 1 through the Rocky Mountains - a journey of around 800 miles (we were still using Imperial measures until the mid-70s - or north to Dawson Creek and then down to Edmonton - another 800+/- mile drive.)

On the other hand, I benefited from some really excellent teachers and they addressed things like the role of that radar base just outside of town, and how the US and the USSR would use Canada as their battleground instead of fighting on their own land.  It was a sobering perspective during a sobering time.  Kind of put international 'relations' in perspective when you realize two other countries are perfectly willing to destroy a 3rd (yours) because it makes a convenient battleground.  (And USians wonder why I'm not a big fan of US international policies.)

On the other hand, I read.  I read voraciously.  I read things that were far beyond what my life looked like, or what it promised me - a child of a blue collar worker who never actually attended school, and a 8th grade drop out from Montreal.

Living in a remote mostly forestry based resource town, far, far away from any large metropolitan centre, there was no higher education to speak of until the 1970s when a college finally opened.  The university was started in the early 1990s, because the community worked to make it happen.  The locals petitioned both provincial and federal governments, who stonewalled and stonewalled, and finally one of the locals asked what it would take to get the government to be open to funding a university of the north.  The government spokesperson whiffed and said "$1,000,000".  The spokesperson flew home from Ottawa, jumped on the local radio talk show and said 'ok, people, we need a million dollars to show Ottawa and Victoria that we are serious.  Send your donations asap."  I forget how long it took to raise the money but it was a matter of weeks, not months.  In 1994 the university opened their brand new campus high on the hill overlooking the valley the town sits in. And now?  We have some professors doing incredible research, pertinent to the north of Canada.  

All because there were enough people in this town who knew how to look at a globe and see the connections to others that we should never forget.

Over the years I have made a specific effort to break down my reality bubble.  Learning how to weave was the first step because I quickly learned that when it comes to weaving, change one thing and everything can change.  When I learned to begin to apply that to life, generally, I began to understand what was going on.  When I then started to apply that to human behaviour, I really began to see how people build barriers to understanding each other.  

We cannot keep going the way we are going with 1/4 of humans more than willing to kill off the rest of us.  We cannot assume that every person has the same motivations as we do, even when they proudly, loudly, proclaim they are followers of this religion or another.  Because most humans have little understanding of the very religions that they profess to follow.  (Sad, but true.)

I have turned into a curmudgeon in my later years.  Because I am old, I'm in my twilight years.  I have no family beyond me and my spouse.  (I do, however, have many many younger friends, who I care deeply about.)  So I have little to lose by speaking out when I see injustice.  

For decades I have stood quiet when I saw things that were wrong, not feeling that my voice would - or could - (or did I even *want* to) change anyone's minds.

But there is a meme going around that finally rattled my cage:  I do not speak out to change the others; I speak out so the others do not change me.

My speaking out has made a number of people uncomfortable.  I know, because they have angrily let me know.

Their anger is displaced.  I am not the one doing these things.  I am merely pointing them out.  If the Nazis came to rule Germany - and attempted to rule the world - built on the shoulders of good people who did not object - well, then I am going to make sure that I let people know that what is going on is wrong.  It is wrong by every metric humanity has attempted to build into human society.

As one single voice, I have zero to no power.  But if I can make just one person think?  Well, I can still write.  I can think.  I can share my conclusions.  I can encourage others to break out of their reality bubble and look at a globe instead of a Mercator projection to begin to really SEE our world.

So, no, I will not be quiet.  Not any more.