Holiday Season

 

I suppose if I want to sell more books/classes I need to keep reminding people of how and where to find them?

As usual, 3 of my books are available in either pdf or print versions at Blurb.  I'm actually quite proud of this one, but it doesn't seem to have gained much traction.  I sent promo copies out and so far as I know none of them were 'reviewed'.  They can be purchased at Blurb.  It is a collection of 'essays' ranging from thoughts about weaving to some actual technical information.  I documented the development of the line of tea towels I wove two years ago in this book.

My 'memoir' is available at ko-fi as pdf download only.  A Thread Runs Through It talks about some of the things I did as a professional production weaver.  And some of the things I learned - about myself and others, not to mention a tonne of stuff about weaving and being in the business of weaving.

My classes are still available at School of Sweet Georgia and Long Thread media.  Might make a nice gift for a new weaver.

As North America (in particular) enters this holiday season, I send light and love to everyone.  

Above all, be kind.  And if you can't be kind, cut annoying people out of your life.  You don't need that kind of negativity.  Not now, not ever.

KISS

 

warping valet - notice the lease sticks position - high up near the ceiling.  Pull the lease sticks through the warp, not the warp through the lease sticks; sticky warp can be assisted by turning the leading lease stick to create a 'shed' to open the threads up and prevent them from sticking to each other; wind 2 ends at a time and the yarn will be better behaved, etc.

Weaving is complex.  There are layers and layers of 'it depends' considerations that make the craft a constant source of puzzlement.  Complexity that asks 'what if' over and over again.  Because change one thing, and everything can change.

The process of weaving consists, in large part, the act of designing, then physically making the warp and getting it mounted into the loom.  Again, a long list of precise actions that need - for the most part - to be done in a particular order.  Not just that, but paying attention to things like centering the warp, controlling the warp (I think about controlling the warp as an entity, not individual threads), then accurately entering it into the heddles and reed with the last preparatory step tying on and then, and only then, can you 'prove' the set up (check for errors) and weave your sample (if you haven't done that already).

There being many slip betwixt cup and lip, there may be issues that need to be addressed.

I've been asked to do The Weaver's Toolbox for a guild in January.  In that presentation I talk about the different between the mechanics of the 3 'common' handlooms, and discuss other tools/processes that weavers may find useful.

There are many many 'hacks' that people have come up with, but generally I find that if I look to the 'traditional' hacks, there is useful information and methods to 'fix' what I need to get fixed.  Yes, you can do all sorts of different things, but I find some of them are labour intensive and do not help me in terms of processing the information I need to complete the task of dressing the loom.

That said - everyone processes information in their own way - everyone has to work out what works best for them.  But I hope that they try the 'traditional' way and see if they work.

I hear criticism from new weavers about using a temple.  Too slow, they say.  I scratch the breast beam, they complain.  I don't want to advance the fell that often.

But here's the thing.  Using a temple can be absolutely necessary.  If it isn't, I don't use it.  But when the time comes that I see it must be used, I drag one out (I have several, of various lengths) and set my mind to the face that working slower will bring me the results I desire more quickly that *not* using the temple.  

But!  It must be used effectively!

The length of the temple needs to bring the fell width to the same width of the warp in the reed.  The temple needs to hold the warp under tension and that means the warp width in the reed, not the warp width once draw-in has happened.  And draw-in will happen quickly, so the temple needs to be advanced every inch or 2.5 cm.  You do *not* need to stop and advance the fell.  But you do need to advance the temple.  The teeth of the temple should never ever come anywhere close to the breast beam.

Why might I use the temple?

When I'm weaving about 30" or wider using a fine yarn.  The selvedges draw in and the selvedge ends get very unco-operative.  The shed does not open cleanly and there are shuttle mishaps leading to skips and floats.

When I'm weaving a denser cloth and want the weft to pack in more tightly.

I do not use a temple to 'fix' my selvedge - it there to make the cloth to the quality I need it to be.  Selvedges - in my loom - tend to take care of themselves.

As for a warping valet, people say they don't have room.  I have had almost zero room to use one and it is *why* I use one.  I can beam a warp in under 10 minutes, all by myself, with no issues with things going badly.  Some people complain because they don't want to 'waste' time rough sleying the reed.  I wind up with better quality of cloth by taking a few minutes to do that task.

Again, going slower to get the actual results you want is not a 'waste of time'.  

I don't use floating selvedges, but I know how to use them in case I ever hit a situation or cloth where one is required.  So that knowledge is absolutely in my toolbox.

I beam with tension - hopefully the same degree of tension as what I will apply during weaving and I use firm warp packing.  Yes, it takes up more space on the beam, but I rarely beam more than 13 meters on the small floor loom and the wooden blinds will allow for that.  Honestly, how many hand weavers routinely beam more than 10 meters, anyway?

So while there are all sorts of 'hacks' being shared in weaving groups on line and elsewhere, I ask myself if using them will save me grief or take more time than doing it the way I've been doing it for decades?  If I can make the case of changing what I need to do, then I will change what I do.  Been there, done that - from how I thread, to figuring out how to use the warping valet, to changing how I sley, all have been changed when I saw the benefit to changing.

My method of dressing the small loom using a warping board to wind the warp etc., has been refined over decades.  

When a new weaver is confronted with an issue or problem, I suggest that they think the process through.  And keep in mind the time honoured acronym KISS - Keep It Simple, Silly.

Weaving should not be a headache.  Most problems can be solved.  And usually each weaver needs to find the 'best' solution for themselves.

Because it depends!  And sometimes it is faster to go slower to get the results you want.  

**check the 'warping valet' tag to get all the posts I've tagged with that label for details on the warping valet...

Beatrix Potter and the Herdwick Sheep

 

Beatrix Potter and the Herdwick Sheep

Last night we watched a program about Beatrix Potter and her deep connection to the Lake District.  I had forgotten about the work she did to help the Herdwick Sheep thrive.

As a child I knew about Beatrix Potter, but she wasn't my favourite author.  And largely I didn't pay much attention to her as a person.  It was only later that I began to learn much about her.  The program was a great re-introduction to Potter as a person beyond the author and artist that she was best known for.

There are a number of spinners who have written books about the different sheep breeds, if you want to know more about them.  The one I'm most familiar with is the one by Robson and Ekarius. The Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook.

But there are others, as well, all of them an enormous labour of love given how much work and effort went into each and every one of them.

And this is why I hate the LLM plagiarism machines.  They scrape the contents of such books and grind them up, spitting them back out with half of the actual technical information mere dust by the time they are done with it.  If you decide to learn via AI, please be aware that the citations may not be real, and the actual information has been twisted into nothing resembling actual facts.

Same with textile science books.  Go to the actual source.  Last I counted I had something like 11 different textile science books.  Some are really deep dives, some more overviews, some have great comparison charts, some look at areas that I haven't found elsewhere.  And sometimes I like to check a few different resources to make sure they are on the same page.  Or maybe the knowledge has grown and there is more up-to-date information than what was available in the late 1900s (yes, some of my books original printing dates are from then - and I love them!)

But watching the program on Potter, I was reminded how lengthy and rich our history is - all of it.  And there are lessons to be learned, people to recognize for their contributions to that history.

Above all, keep learning, keep adding to your foundation of knowledge.  And remembering that we stand on the shoulders of giants, every one of us.

Generosity

 

This is a scarf woven by a friend and gifted to me.  There is no one who appreciates a hand woven gift as much as another weaver, especially if it is something different than they might usually weave.

As usual with such gifts, it went into my teaching box as an example I wanted to share with other weavers.  But now that I'm trying to deal with my studio, I'm having to think carefully what I do with my teaching 'samples'.

And that's the thing.  After the best part of 50 years of weaving, most of them were also devoted to teaching in some way.  So I have a *lot* of samples!  

Lately I've been hearing of younger weavers who are also teaching, accumulating dozens (more!) of samples.  So when new weavers are aghast at the thought of sampling, I think about all the samples I have woven over the years, and how many samples I know that have been woven by other weavers over the years, and yes.  I can say without qualification that I do still sample.

I just pitched an idea to WEFT and qualified what I wanted to do with the caveat that in order to do the project I will have to sample.  I'm sure that comes at no surprise to anyone who knows me.

Today I am hoping to clear out some 'antique' computer stuff.  Since I've owned a computer since 1987 or thereabouts, I have carefully kept boxes, manuals, disks etc.  But I realized most of that clutter is redundant and needs to be dealt with.  The impetus for the clear out is that I needed to replace the printer and since a trip to the electronic recycle place was in order, it seems like a good time to get rid of decades (literally) of computer stuff.  Manuals will go into the paper recycling and the equipment to the electronic recycling depot.

Because it is becoming ever more apparent that the clutter and mess that I've lived with all my life needs to be dealt with and now feels like the time.  We have lived in this house since 1975 and turned a smallish house into our home *and* studio - a studio in which I've done quite a lot of *big* projects.  And if you are to be efficient, you need the space to move and shift things as they, well, progress.  Since I didn't have a lot of space, I had to get creative.  And frankly I never was interested in the Good House keeping Award.  Good thing because no one would ever say that my house is an example of *that*.

At any rate, I am hearing more reports of Big Projects being done by younger weavers, which I find very exciting.  Stay tuned and I'll share info when it is time.

Meanwhile, my books remain available at blurb either print or pdf, and Ko-fi in pdf only and check out WEFT magazine for the latest article

Classes are still there at School of Sweet Georgia with 4 classes and Long Thread Media  with a couple different classes in a couple different formats.

For What It's Worth

 

New weavers don't always realize that there is a name for that space through which the shuttle runs to get the weft from one side to the other.  It's called a 'shed'.

They also don't always realize that for centuries looms did not have a shuttle race, and panic when they get their 'new' loom and it doesn't have one.

But here's the thing - for centuries looms didn't have a shuttle race and people wove very well without.  Because the only reason a shuttle race came about was during the 1700s and the development of the flying shuttle.

On my Leclerc Fanny, which is a counter balanced action loom, it doesn't come with a shuttle race.  It doesn't come with a fly shuttle.  

I've just been asked to do a presentation on The Weaver's Toolbox.  It is during this presentation that I explain the (broad) differences between counter balanced, jack and counter march looms.

Along with other things.  But still, if weavers don't understand the physics/mechanics of their loom, it is difficult to know what is  going wrong, or even IF something is wrong.   

New weavers don't generally understand the mechanics and physics of weaving in the first place, never mind the more subtle effects of things like twist and tension.  There are a variety of things at play in making a cloth and to not understand the basics of how a loom works can lead to misunderstandings and frustrations.

So the other day I suggested to someone online that part of their issues was related to weaving outside of the 'sweet spot' and they would be better off advancing the fell more frequently and keeping it further away from the reed/beater.  As usual someone spoke up and said they hated advancing the fell so they would keep weaving until they were really close to the reed.

When they would get better results if they simply figured out where the loom worked to best mechanical advantage and how big the sweet spot for their loom actually is, and not try to force it to keep going beyond that range.  

Advance the fell too close to the breast beam and you risk not being able to beat the weft in properly so you wind up with inconsistent/streaked cloth.  Push the fell too close to the reed and you risk weft loops developing along the selvedge and difficulty beating the weft in as well as not being able to 'throw' the shuttle but wind up needing to push it through one side to the other, stressing the warp yarns and possibly risking broken warp ends.  The rhythm of catching and throwing the shuttle gets interrupted and it gets harder to 'seat' the weft at the selvedge.

But hey, if you are happy?

Working within the mechanical limits of your tools makes the job go easier and you can get closer to having consistent results.  And if you can't be perfect, be consistent.

Learning how to hold and throw/catch the shuttle ergonomically, how to tension your warp, and staying within the sweet spot, will go a long way towards happier weaving.

But you know what free advice is worth.  

A Little Advice

 

This little book arrived yesterday.  Written by Jamie Hurlburt and Kim McCollum it is not your 'usual' weaving book.  While I haven't finished it yet - quite - I have read enough to know that I want to share it with others.

The authors are upfront about the fact it is not a how-to-weave book.  It is more of a how-to-learn-to-become-a-weaver book.

One of the things I ran into as a new weaver was the attitude that there was only one-right-way to do weaving.  Not everyone, not by a long shot - but in certain circles it was definitely A Thing.

As I have continued to pursue and learn about the craft of weaving, I have come across some very strongly stated 'principles' and firm admonishments from certain people, certain in their knowledge and willing to share their certainties with the rest of the weaving communities.

But one of the biggest lessons I have learned over the years, is that there is no general certainty about anything regarding weaving.  There are only broad generalities, and then very specific and targeted information.

Because it all depends!

The authors introduce some of those general comments that are applied to the entirety of the craft and encourage people to examine them to see if they apply to anything that you, personally, are doing.

Because what one weaver does will not necessarily apply to what another weaver does.

This approach aligns with mine in every way, even if I might phrase it differently.  Because we are different people, and we are allowed to personalize our comments to suit our own personalities.

So while the authors may say something in a way that I wouldn't, I agree with the fact they are saying it.

When they say 'weaving it not hard' and then qualify that by saying '(not that hard)'. I might say 'weaving is complex, not difficult'.

When they say 'don't rely on processes or hacks', I say 'fill your weaving toolbox with as many tools as you can and then use them when necessary'.

Because everyone is different, information is most useful when a receptive (open) mind receives them.  But it also helps to have different voices say the same principles, but use different metaphors!

In the 21st century, weaving is primarily a hobby for most.  As people living in the 21st century, we assume that - as adults - anything we choose to do will come easily to us.  We are mature, our physical skills are refined, we know things.

But the thing is, we don't know weaving.  And as mentioned many times, weaving is complex.  It has developed over millennia, in different environments, with different materials, different cultures.  As such it has a complexity that we can only scrape at the surface of.

This year marks the 50th year that I have been weaving.  For most of that 50 years I was a professional production weaver.  I had certain goals and objectives in mind and I honed my skills, and filled my toolbox.  The reason I use certain tools is because the tools I selected were giving me consistent good results (until they didn't, and then I had to change to meet the changed circumstances).

If someone doesn't want to use a warping valet, for instance, there is no need for them to do so - IF they are happy with their results.

But keeping an open, thoughtful mind will go a long way towards a weaver continuing to learn.  The more they learn, the better able they are to fix something when it is going pear-shaped.  To adapt when something isn't working properly.  To know when a mistake is terminal, or how to fix it without fuss.  To accept that nothing is always 'perfect' and that 'good' can be 'good enough'.

Above all, we can accept that we are constant students, that there is something else to learn, and open ourselves to the possibilities.

Perhaps this little book will break down some barriers.  I may not agree with everything the authors say - as in I won't do that, personally - but I endorse the message - learn.  Explore.  Let your imagination and creativity have free rein.

And it's perfectly ok to make general statements if you allow for specific circumstances to be handled in a different way.

Because that is what lifelong learning looks like.  Above all, it depends.

Bravo for writing this book challenging weavers to question the 'wisdom' of the craft if it is not meeting the requirements of the desired results.  Sometimes people need permission to question 'authority' in order to meet their specific needs.  

All that said, if you are happy, no need to change a thing.  But if you run into a problem?  Maybe it is time to look beyond what you know and look for new answers?  

Dynamic

 

In my desire to use up as much of my stash as possible, I uncovered the singles 6 cotton cones.  I'd worked with it years ago and had fun playing with 'energized' yarn and all the possibilities that could be played with in terms of developing texture.  

Over the summer I started reading Michelle Boyd's book Twist, but had to set it aside as I dealt with some other writing tasks, but when I wet finished the next set of towels with the energized singles 6, I was reminded that I needed to get back to Michelle's book.

Why are the corners of the cloth curled, you might ask.  Well, those corners are curled because of the energetic nature of the yarn itself.  Since just the weft is the singles 6, the corners all curl in the same 'direction', following the push/shove of the energy still in the yarn.

Michelle talks a lot about the physical dynamics of the forces that we build into our cloth - sometimes all unknowing, sometimes on purpose.  Her book is a deep dive into trying to bring knowledge and understanding of the forces that we deal with, mostly unknowingly, and which tend to end in surprises - sometimes nice ones, some, not so much.

And this is part of why experienced weavers will urge newer weavers to sample, sample, sample.

The cloth in the tea towels is woven in twill - a 1:2 twill, to be exact.  I knew that the energy in the yarn would create texture (tracking) and wanted to control that effect.  The goal was a tea towel, hopefully with good drape and absorbency.  So far I'm pleased with them.  They have a nice hand, feel good to touch, and visually have an 'interesting' amount of texture.  Yes, tracking in a twill!  Who'd a thunkit!

Using the singles 6 as weft on a 2/16 cotton warp has resulted in the qualities I was hoping to see.  And yes, I did sample before I set up this warp.  I am just setting up another in the same design (different colour) because I'm pleased with them.  And I'm happy to weave the singles 6 into a cloth that I feel  should provide good service for anyone who is using it.

And yes, those curls resolve once the hems are sewn.  As usual I will hand hem (it's my 'watching tv at night' task) and then give the towels a final finishing press.  

On the topic of books, the new book I ordered arrived this morning.  I'm looking forward to taking a look at it.  

Stay tuned...