Those Pesky Numbers

The above photo is in black and white because it shows the difference between American open end spun 8/2 cotton (below) and ring spun 2/8 cotton (above) more clearly.

Those numbers are used, these days, interchangeably although they do actually have meaning beyond the obvious - 2/8 (and 8/2) cotton is spun to the imperial system of yarn numbering where the value for 1 is 840 yards per pound - for cotton.  Other fibres have different values for 1.

So what does that mean?

If 1 equals one pound of cotton fibre spun so that it produces approximately (the numbers are only ever approximate) 840 yards of yarn, the other sizes can be calculated from that by beginning with 840.

For 2/8 (or 8/2) cotton, that means that the spinner or spinning mill has spun 8 times 840 yards of yarn from one pound, then plyed it dividing that number in half.

840 x 8 = 6720/2 = 3360 yards per pound

a 2/10 (or 10/2) yarn would be:

840 x 10 = 8400/2 = 4200 yards per pound

And so on

However!

A yarn is not just how many yards per pound it has.  It is also the quality of the fibre it has been spun from and the method of spinning used *and* the number of twists applied to the single and then the ply.  No, they won't necessarily be the same.

An open end system is much like woollen spinning - the fibres are disorganized, lots of air is trapped in it, it is loftier and weaker than...

...ring spun yarn which is spun from (generally although not always) longer fibre staple, with fibres aligned, denser with less air trapped in it and stronger than open end spun yarn even when spun from the same quality of fibre as the open end spun yarn.

8/2 is more absorbent than 2/8.  8/2 is dustier than 2/8 (evidenced by the degree of lint left on the loom after weaving a warp using 2/16 for warp and 10/2 and 16/2 for weft).

The only thing the numbers tell is the number of yards per pound or meters per gram (or 100 grams or other metric unit).  Even then, that number is only ever *approximate*.

Unfortunately the numbers have become muddied and are now used interchangeably.  For those who say I'm wrong, I suggest they take a look the Jaggerspun Yarns website to see that they *still* identify their worsted (ring spun) yarns as 2/x, 2/y, 2/z.

The numbers do not tell a weaver everything they need to know about a yarn.  Only by weaving with it, using different densities and weave structures, and then wet finishing it, will a weaver know the potential locked within the yarns that they are using.

I received complimentary copies of the last two issues of the Guild of Canadian Weavers bulletin.  Jane Stafford is doing a column for the bulletin and she addressed this issue of needing to weave, weave, weave samples in order to understand how a cloth is brought to life, to serve its purpose with integrity.

If someone wants to really delve into the craft, Jane is crafting a series of on line classes that I strongly suggest everyone take.  If you sign up now you get access to all of the presentations.  She is taking this entire year to take a deep dive into twills.

Strongly recommended for people who want to understand this craft below the surface.

Respite

autumn quietly arriving in the Cache Creek area (a few years ago)

Summer here has been cool and wet.  Today we have been greeted with morning fog, which when burned off, revealed blue sky.  The forecast is for 'hot' temps (well, hot for us!)

It will be a rare sunny and hot day before we fall into autumn.

Up and down the street the mountain ash trees are laden with berries, ripening.  We even see a few plums have set on Doug's trees.  Whether or not they will ripen remains to be seen.

This year has been strange in so many ways.  I know I said I didn't want to travel the way I used to, but I was looking forward to a couple of teaching trips.  Both now postponed (although I have not had confirmation that my contract for those classes will be valid for 2021 - or even if the pandemic will allow for classes to happen, given that the Olds program always has a large segment of American students.)

Visiting with a friend the other day who lives east of me but about the same latitude, we talked about the change in daylight hours that is becoming ever more apparent.  I have lived in this town all my life and to me it was strange to have sun set in the summer at 8 pm.  Part of the attraction for travelling to the south was to have more sunlight than we usually get here in winter, given the track of the sun.

The other night Dr. Tam talked about the coming second wave.  Here in BC we have seen a worrying upward trend, just as schools are set to open for the fall semester.  She urged people to wear masks, maintain distancing, wash their hands.

But the spread of the virus is not consistent.  There are huge swathes of this country that have seen few cases and people become complacent.  "It's not that bad" they think.  "No one I know is sick" they observe.

But it only takes one person, returning from a hot spot, to set the spark into a population who is complacent.

I worry for my friends because many of them, like me, are immune compromised in some way.  Many of my friends are my age and older folks don't do well fighting off the virus.  Some of my friends are also living with cancer and have compromised immune systems.  Some have other health issues that also compromise the immune system.

So I worry.  It is a constant background 'noise', much like my tinnitus.  At times louder and cannot be ignored, at other times quieter so I can function without taking up too much of my attention.

No one I know has died of Covid-19 - yet.  But friends or family of on line friends have been ill, some of them left with lingering deficits.  No one knows if those will eventually resolve.

Better by far not to gamble - wear the mask, maintain distancing, wash hands.

Today I am going to go weave a towel or two, then the stitch group will meet here in the shade of the carport.  Doug has been leaving the long 'table' up as some friends have been coming over to visit in person.  But the calendar shows that autumn is round the corner and soon it will become impossible to visit outside.

Stay safe everyone.  Keep the virus at bay so that next year will be better and we can meet as usual again.  {{{hugs}}}

August Progress

Before things can get 'better', it seems they have to get worse.

Doug has been sorting through things to take to the charity shops next week.  Now that I'm no longer travelling to or doing local craft fairs, we don't need the packing boxes that we would use to transport finished inventory to the fairs.  Or at least, not the stacks of them.

Doug treated loading up for travel like the van was a kind of tetris - all the boxes were purchased so that they would fit into the van to maximize the space and we could fit as much stuff into the van for transport as possible.

Doug made a cart because frequently it was difficult to get a venue cart and nearly everything fit onto the cart for one load.  I would hand carry in the awkward things - the scarf racks, the tall stool we would perch on and so on.

We got rid of much of that last autumn, keeping a few things that might be useful at the guild sales.

I am staying focused on weaving, as much as possible.  My urge to write is limited, usually to these blog posts.  I didn't have much expectation when I started this blog that very many people would be interested enough to join me on my journey.  Last night the page view count rolled over 1.89M.

Human beings measure progress in various ways.  Sometimes we dream big dreams; other days we are content if we manage to make it through the day.

Right now my expectations for progress are modest - try to get to the loom every day, weave as much as I feel comfortable (one or two towels).  In the evening I have been hemming, working on jigsaw puzzles, or just vegging while we watch tv.

Now that I am feeling better than I was, my intention to continue to use up stash is renewed.  I'm nearly finished making all the puzzles in the house - just a few more to go.  Once the table is cleared off, I'm thinking of what I can do 'next' and suspect it will be time to get back to spinning.  I intend to ply some of the fine silk to make it thick enough to see (what can I say - aging eyes) and then there is my spinning fibre stash.

I have almost used up what I can of the the yarns for knitting shawls and need to find homes for the ones already made.  I'm hoping the guild will be able to have a 'safe' sale later in the autumn, since the craft fair it usually has a booth at is canceled for this year.

Mostly I hope that the predicted tsunami of a second pandemic wave fizzles, although the news on CBC last night wasn't very hopeful - unless people start taking precautions.

Anyway, I have another bin of towels to press, and more ready to hem.

Little by little.  Even small steps are progress.

A Day Off

Yesterday I took a day 'off'.

It was a nice enough day, albeit overcast and chilly, but I just didn't feel like doing anything.  The feeling lasted pretty much all day, although I did get the towels I'd wet finished on Wednesday pressed ready to be hemmed.  At 4 pm I gathered myself together and went down to the loom to tie on the warp again and generally puttered putting the drying rack away, folding the towels and bringing them upstairs.

I cleared the decks so that I could get weaving again today.

I had blamed the massage treatment for my malaise, as sometimes happens, but it looks like I might have gotten another spider bite.  I get one or two bites every summer and while they don't cause me any particular problems, I don't feel 'well' - tired and zero energy. 

And frankly, I have maintained a pretty good routine of working in the studio every day for at least an hour, more often two or more - a day off seemed the proper response.

So I scrolled through the internet, played Scrabble, worked on the puzzle and after dinner hemmed a couple of too-small tea towels, which will be given away to a friend for napkins.  Plus she'll get the one towel from the current warp that had an oopsie.  Always good to have friends willing to 'adopt' my 'orphans'.

To be honest, I didn't even think very much, just had a good wallow.

Today I'm feeling better and the red mark on my leg which I think is the bite location is fading. 

Sometimes it is more efficient to just take a day off rather than keep pushing through.  My massage therapist's words came back to me - it's time to stop pushing.  It's time to listen to my body.

Working on it...

Reading Smoke Bitten by Patricia Briggs

Little by Little

blue yarn all used up (except a bit on a tube)

next colour

With about 6700+ yards per pound, this yarn* gives a lot of playtime for what it costs.

Peg asked if I use it doubled or single.  I use it single at 32 epi (more or less, depending on weft and weave structure) because I find it makes a good tea towel.  I use 2/8 cotton at 20 to 24, again depending on weft and weave structure, but find that makes more of a 'kitchen utility' type of towel, great for wiping hands, not so good for a tea towel as it becomes quite thick and difficult to get into the insides of small items like glasses/cups.

At a conference a while ago, the people at the table I was sitting at kept ooh-ing and ah-ing at the garments made by one of their guild members, who typically wove with fine silks.  It was like no one in the history of civilization had ever woven with such fine, fine yarn (it wasn't all that fine).

In response to repeated observations about how expensive silk was, I commented that you get a lot of play time with finer yarns.  

So it is with this cotton.  It takes me about 55 minutes to weave a towel with this weight of cotton.  It costs the same as the heavier yarns - about $8.50 per tube wholesale.  I get a different quality of cloth from a thicker yarn which would take less time to weave.

Neither one is 'better' or 'worse' than the other.  They serve different purposes.  The thing is, weavers need to choose yarn, density, weave structure, suitable for the purpose they wish their textile to serve.

Right now my mission is to use up as much of my yarn as possible.  I'm still getting satisfaction from seeing the shelves empty of yarn.  I have worked out the technical aspects of making tea towels with this yarn so I'm left with playing with colour and design.  The fun bit.  And the working meditation of sitting down to weave for 45-55 minutes without thinking too much about what I'm doing - just a human, being.

For now, during this time of self-isolating during a pandemic, that is enough.

*Brassard 2/16 cotton, not the US 16/2 cotton, although I would use Brassard for warp and 16/2 for weft.  When I did that on the end of the last warp I found the 16/2 cast off a lot more dust than the Brassard 2/16.  I'm going to have to dust off the loom more regularly as I use up the American yarn, which is open end spun, more loosely twisted, and obviously, dustier.

With Hope and Optimism

Continuing Education <coned@oldscollege.ca>	8:43 AM (15 minutes ago)
to

Olds College is excited to announce that we are now accepting proposals for workshops to be delivered at Fibre Week 2021.  If you know of someone else who may be interested in submitting a proposal, please feel free to share this email with them.  We invite all fibre experts who are interested in sharing their knowledge to fill out a proposal (or proposals) at the following link:

Fibre Week 2021 Workshop Proposal

Thank you

Continuing Education


This morning I received the above email - planning for 2021 has begun.

I am hopeful that all the measures that our country have put into place will contain the pandemic.  

I am hopeful that an effective vaccine will be developed and that the pandemic will be further contained by the development of 'herd immunity' by having vulnerable folk able to have the vaccination.

I am hopeful that everyone will make it through this troubling time and that we will be able to attend conferences and fibre gatherings, take workshops - or teach them.

Right now it appears that the predicted second wave is building.  Any thought of school opening the first week of September has been put on hold while this province grapples with increasing numbers of cases - again.

The way to wrestle this virus to the ground is for everyone to stay home if they can, wear a mask if they can't, maintain physical distance of at least six feet, wash their hands.

When The Well Runs Dry

Rarely have I had the well run dry of ideas for more textiles.  It was one of the things that drew me to weaving - I almost immediately saw the potential for unlimited creativity.  So much so that I became overwhelmed and my biggest challenge then became to choose what to do.

I did that by setting myself creative limitations or boundaries.

First was function.  What textile *thing* did I want to make?  What function did it need to have?  What choices did I need to make to create a textile with the characteristics that it would require?

Only after all those limits were decided upon did I begin to think about colour and design.

Once I had the parameters set out, I didn't need to think about the technical issues any more and I could just play with colour and design.  That was were the fun part was.  The scary part, truth be told, because I never was an intuitive colour user.  I had to work to get good colour combinations.  And sometimes I failed.

But I never let my 'failure' be the end.  It was just one more step in the process.

At times I would say that I was either too stupid or too smart to quit, never really knowing the answer to that.

People would assume that I was making a living at weaving when all I ever did was make an income.  By no metric in our society could the income I brought in be described as a 'living'.  But I stubbornly refused to stop.  To give up.

Because what I got was satisfaction from doing something that yes, challenged me, but that I also loved doing, on many different levels.  And just enough income to keep on, keeping on.

In terms of 'retirement', I could never just stop weaving - and I won't, until it becomes physically impossible for me to continue.  Even so, there are other ways to play with string, not just weaving on a big loom - knitting being one.  My mother carried on knitting until well into her 80s even though it had become painful.  She realized that when she stopped knitting, her hands seized up and she could do even less.  So she continued knitting for the hospital auxiliary gift shop, although her output was reduced considerably.

Right now I am working through some physical issues, trying to regain some function in this body.  My new massage therapist commented that it was time that I stopped pushing through, time I accepted when I was in pain, and let my body rest so it could recover.

I am already seeing progress in reduced pain levels, and am trying really hard to remember to do the exercises because they seem to be helping, as subtle as they seem.  Apparently that is what this body needs right now - subtle, not dramatic.

My goal each day is to spend about two hours in the studio.  Some days I manage a little more because prep work takes time, but not much physical effort.  Some days it is less.

Since the end of last year I have burned through I don't know how many pounds of 2/16 cotton weaving tea towels.  I'm down to the dribs and drabs of tag ends of tubes in most cases and coming up with colour combinations that appeal to me is getting harder and harder.  That particular 'well' is running 'dry'.  Stash busting - it's a thing!

Today I hit the halfway mark of the current warp and have four more warps waiting in the queue, with a fifth percolating on the back burner.  I think I might have enough for one more mostly beige warp.  Yes, I have lots of beige based towels, but I still have yarn, so...

But the well is running dry in terms of ways to use up more of this yarn.  Once I have the four warps in the queue woven, I can recombine those colours and perhaps come up with a few more warps.

I am focused and determined.  And I will keep weaving for as long as I can.

In the next week or so I will be posting photos of the latest towels.  More twill blocks based on a four shaft overshot, originally designed by Janet Dawson, edited by Tien Chiu, then converted to twill blocks and edited to meet my requirements.

No (wo)man is an island - we spark each other, and spur each other on.