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.