Of Lipstick and Pigs

My studio is a working studio.  As such I'm not terribly concerned about how it looks, but what comes out of it.  Being a 'starving artist' I could not afford much in the way of 'decorating' when the studio was built as I was much more concerned with moving in and being able to weave.  When a friend offered me her cast off shag carpets from two bedrooms she had just redecorated, I didn't care what colour they were, just that they were large enough to fit at each end of the studio.  They have been on the floor ever since.

The area in between the two main areas of the studio eventually became covered with an array of miscellaneous scatter mats but they had worn through in places and visually?  I had to admit they looked pretty bad.  Especially with the crew coming May 5 for the Big Project.

Still being a 'starving artist' I can't afford to replace the shag carpet - I don't have the money and I most especially don't have the time to shift everything out of the way to put new 'nice' carpet down.  So instead we compromised and bought a remnant of carpet to replace all the bits of scatter mats.

Of course there were still mounds of stuff to be moved out of the way so once again things have to get worse before they get better!

Doug is cutting out one of the pieces of plywood as a squeak has developed right where I stand to wind warps and he will try to secure the floor at that point.  I don't need to have that sound happening while I am doing the demo of warp winding!

Backlog

Yesterday I mentioned I was feeling overwhelmed.  This is not an unusual feeling for me, I quite often get myself in over my head.  Very familiar with the deep end of the pool I am.

It is one of the hazards of being self-employed.  You wind up pursuing several different options because you never know which one(s) will pan out, which will wither and die.

It seems that for the bulk of this year I have been weaving samples.  Which would be fine, but they are samples with very specific requirements.  They are not the full expression of my creativity, but to satisfy requirements of a very precise nature.  Normally this is not an issue for me - the problem comes from the fact I haven't had time to do anything else.

Even the warp on the AVL is prototype weaving for a designer and I'm not convinced she can sell these items for a price that will make it worthwhile for either of us.  But she is confident, so I have been working away on them, trying to get them woven and off the loom so they can be wet finished and mailed.  She needs them by mid-April so there is no time to waste - deadline looms!

One of the reasons I chose weaving for a career was that I wanted to do the stuff that I wanted to do.  The reality is that I have to do stuff that other people want.  Mostly I'm okay with that but the past few months have been all about everyone else's needs.

I'm looking forward to getting to my needs.

Cluttering Up

 video camera, plastic tub, samples, tripod as well as other stuff on either side - clutter central

I'm feeling just a tad overwhelmed at the minute.  I'm sure the grey day outside isn't helping.

While attempting to deal with some of the paperwork on my desk I suddenly remembered the extension of the experiment for Handwoven.  I'd woven some samples in December, did an experiment with them, wrote it up and forwarded to their offices, well in advance of the deadline.  Then I was asked if I could extend the experiment.  The samples were woven before I left on my trip  in January, but ran out of time to do the experiment and they have been languishing on my work table getting covered by more, um, urgent matters.  Realized that the absolute deadline was coming up rather quickly so I'd better get cracking on that.

On my desk also awaiting my attention are teaching contracts, a show contract and an application to teach at a conference.  Simmering on the back burner are topics for my new 'job'.  The first one is written, simmering for a day or two before I re-read and edit.  It is due on Tuesday - not sure when it will go 'live', but I'll announce here when it does.

Taking on another 'job' right now is a little bit of madness, given my current schedule.  But it was an offer I could not refuse.  It will provide a modicum of income but more importantly, I hope to reach a wider audience with my pithy comments.

Followers of this blog number almost 300 (298 to be exact).   It is lovely that so many of you check in, some of you daily. I know because you've told me so.  The new venue will likely provide a much larger readership.  Is this my ego, wanting a wider distribution of my opinions, knowledge, experience?  Partly.  But mostly it's because I'm hoping I can help someone, somewhere, struggling - help them to feel more confident, lessen their battle with the craft, become a better weaver - whatever that means to them.

Stay tuned...

Neglected No More

Finished the worsted sample for the Big Project this morning and then got back to the sadly neglected AVL.  For the 'last' sample for the BP I want to use the AVL - for a number of reasons.  While I can beam a 2/16 cotton warp on the small loom, it's the case where I want to double dip, so to speak.  In other words, I'd like to use up some of the legacy stash and to do that a really long warp is going to be required.  Much easier and faster to dress the warp sectionally and do at least 30 yards.  That length isn't really practical on the Leclerc Fanny.

Before I can do that, I have to finish off the warp currently on it.  So far I've managed two sessions this afternoon and the plan is to go back again after dinner and do another.  I'm hoping to get this warp done by Monday, but I also have personal stuff to do on Sunday so that day may evaporate in terms of weaving.  Realistically it will likely be Tuesday before this warp will be done.

But hope springs eternal.

On the 'spring' front, I actually went for a walk today!  The sun didn't stay out but it was dry and the wind wasn't howling out of the north.  Unfortunately there is more snow in the forecast so we aren't quite there yet, but at least it looks promising.  

A Matter of Control

click on the photo to biggify it

Started weaving the worsted sample this morning.  Since it is white on white and difficult to see clearly what is going on, I checked my threading/sleying with a contrasting colour.

I keep ends of bobbins for this purpose - in this case it's a royal blue 2/8 cotton.  There was nothing to fix, so I began with the white weft.

For this yarn - a 2/28 worsted (that's not a typo or me being Canadian, that's the size in the butt of the cone and how it was sold to me by the US supplier - I've been told that worsted preparation puts the ply first, then the 'count' number, and since this is a worsted yarn using the numbers in this fashion would be the correct way to express the size of this yarn) I chose to go with 32 epi.

When I started weaving, the weft was beating in more closely than 32 - probably closer to 38.  I briefly thought about re-sleying, then decided that if this cloth was being woven for the purpose of a scarf, I would want something with more drape than a 36 x 36 density would provide.

Instead of re-sleying, I adjusted my beat.  I think you can clearly see the curve as I went from 38 (or whatever it actually was) to something closer to 32 ppi.

The trick now, of course, is to go back to the loom and retain that muscle memory of the lighter touch required for the 32 ppi.  If you can't be perfect, be consistent!

Go Ahead - Leap!

I'm sure you've heard the meme - Leap and the net will appear.

It is scary looking into that chasm.  It seems like a long way down.  What if that net doesn't miraculously appear to at least break the fall if not out right save you from the consequences of that risky decision?

So it was with some trepidation I made the decision to leave off doing fibre festivals selling yarn.  So it was when I decided to not do 'real' books anymore.  (Not that I couldn't do them, the shipping costs were killing sales.)

So, especially, was it when I made the decision to become a professional weaver in the first place, knowing very little about being a weaver or being in business for that matter.  So it has been, over and over again throughout my career.

Each time I made the decision to leap, however, a net did appear.  As a consequence I have had a varied - and very fulfilling - life.

As mentioned previously, I'm no longer in my 30's, but double that.  Over the past 6 years I have had to come to grips with the fact that I am not a young immortal.  The myth of my good health broke with a bang. (It is just about exactly 6 years since I found myself in emerg being assessed for coronary artery disease and 3 years since the lymphoma diagnosis.)

But I still love weaving.  I love teaching it.  I love writing about it.

And that net I mentioned?  Less than 24 hours after posting yesterday, an offer I could not refuse dropped into my inbox.  It came completely out of no where (as far as I'm concerned) and while it doesn't pay a lot, it pays a little, steadily.

The contract is already signed, I'm just waiting on a few more details before I do the reveal - and permission to do so, of course.  The other party may wish to wait until they are ready.

In between taking care of that bit of business I started dressing the loom with one more sample for the Big Project.  It's a worsted wool and it very clearly shows that residual twist has been left in the yarn.  This is common with worsted yarns and makes them a little more, um, challenging to work with.  It took some care to beam the warp, although once everything was straightened out it didn't take too long.  It is also a bit hairy and densely set so that also presented some challenges for beaming.

But worsted cloth is stable by the nature of how densely it is set, not by fulling during wet finishing.  This is going to be a true worsted cloth so it has to be built that way in the loom.  Knowing that it was going to take some care, I didn't hesitate to carry on in spite of the challenges.  The bit of extra attention to the details of dealing with this fine, twisty, somewhat hairy yarn will be worth it for the results.

And sometimes you just have to go ahead and leap into the deep end....

Little by Little

One by one, the samples for the next Big Project are getting done.  This morning I cut this one off the loom.  The green is much more intense in real life - the flash washed the chartreuse out I guess.  But never mind, it's done and the linen behaved beautifully in spite of the arid conditions.  When I started weaving yesterday the relative humidity was less than 50% - sub-optimum conditions for weaving with linen.

One of the reasons I used this yarn was that I recognized it as a very good quality 2 ply line linen.  As such it will transform quite nicely during wet finishing and should be a lovely textile when done.

On a personal note, remission continues with my next check up in 6 months.  So I'm free and clear for a while and can concentrate on what I want to accomplish instead of the niggling worry in the back of my brain box.  With the Big Project coming up in exactly 5 weeks and a 2 week road trip smack in the middle of that, I need my focus!

Off to contemplate a worsted fabric.  Not 'worsted' as in knitting terms, but 'worsted' as in suit fabric.

Currently reading The Likeness by Tana French