Month: November 2019

Making it Work > 2019 > November

Next up: Weaving

Posted on by pioneerintrees

Prologue: So today there was a message in my inbox from Bluehost giving me fair warning of a considerable 2 year fee that will be charged to me in January. I’m impressed that they’re giving me a couple of months to decide if I want to keep this blog going. I love to write and it’s good for my brain, but it’s pretty self focused which is irritating even to me.  

I figure since I still have this blog, I should post something, right? Right. 

It makes sense to tell you about my recent foray into weaving. It’s been something I’ve wanted to do for EVER … all my life (ok that sounds a bit dramatic, but it’s actually true). I’ve always had a bit of a penchant for textiles. Here’s a run down of my textile making creative life to date: (ok, I know that sounds boring. Maybe it is boring. But not for me. Read on if you’re not asleep already.)

Embroidery

I learned to embroider when I was a youngster. I’d paddle over to Rachel’s cabin (the one that I now own), and sit with her while she patiently taught me basic stitches. I made an eyeglasses case that still sits in a drawer in mom’s cottage. It’s really ugly but I can’t throw it out.

Since then I rarely embroider. Sad but true. In fact the only embroidery I can think of that I’ve done are the little people that I carefully added to this tea cozy (made in the 90’s).

Made from sunny scraps and extra quilt batting. It’s had one set of repairs and appears to need another as one of the little dudes has lost a leg. Like the yoga people? Namaste.

And of course, random embroidery on my jeans. But that hardly counts.

Freestyle.

Knitting

I learned to knit at camp Oconto when I was 18. I started with mittens which were hilarious – one big one small – but I loved it and not long after I made this hat. I still wear it. ALL. THE. TIME. If I lost it I’d cry my face off. Here are some pics of me in it over the years. 

I wish I could find the pattern, but alas, I had no knitting journal then.

I’ve knit many many things over the years – recently all small things (socks, hats, mitts, scarves – things you can give indiscriminately). I started my journal in 2006 but had already been knitting for about 20 years. (Just think of all of the lost information and questionable commentary that didn’t get recorded!) Here are some excerpts to give you an idea: 

Journals may feel laborious, but they become great little memoirs. (Note: Liam wore this sweater zero times after the day of this photo. Annie wore the shirt once or twice more. They basically were shit to knit for. All they like are socks and the odd pair of mittens. And so it goes. Kids these days – now 15 & 18 btw.)

These socks are currently on the needles (almost off, actually). A Christmas gift, so I’d better get the second one cast on…

Note: if you make them short like these, you can get 2 pair from a Zauberball. Just sayin’

Smocking

I took a SMOCKING course at a store downtown when I was in high school – WHO DOES THAT? I was weird. 

I made a peach coloured dress for someone’s daughter. No journal, no info. But I kept the patterns. 

Nothing more about smocking. 

Quilting

I made my first quilt in around 1990. I cut the squares by hand (I didn’t know about rotary cutters – or about the importance of leaving a seam allowance, so my squares were TINY) and of course I hand quilted it. Blood sweat and tears, baby! Then it was lost. LOST!! SOBBBBB. But there’s a photo of it in my quilting journal, so that’s something. (Of COURSE I have a quilting journal. Shut up all of you non-journallers.) Here are some highlights… 

Here you can see my first (lost) quilt, me working on the denim quilt for Ben (1994), the baby quilt I made for Karl (hands by his grade 1 class @ Chemong PS). Lots of blue in this collage…

I currently have 3 quilt WIPs (works in progress for you non-makers), two that I’m hand stitching and one that’s in a bin (the quilt top pieces are still being constructed):

  1. the cabin quilt
  2. the one for my mom, and
  3. the star quilt in stripes and polka dots 
1. This quilt for the cabin is also getting a few embroidered people – so far my fav is a dude playing guitar.
2. Made from my dad’s flannel shirts. While I started planning this quilt in 1997, I didn’t start cutting pieces till 2004, and I’m DETERMINED to have it done IMMINENTLY. I’ll leave it at that.

 

3. This one is going to be super funky. Sadly, it is a pain in thy ass to make the stars and I need to be in the right frame of mind for it. Once I’m in that frame of mind, I’ll make the remaining 17 in one go. Shazam!

Weaving

So ya, I have so much time for weaving!! LMAO 

But seriously, I have been looking forward to weaving for a long time. When I mentioned my interest in weaving to Paul a few years back, he sourced me a loom for my birthday. How nice was that?? 

Daunting. Exciting!

“Weaving for Beginners” is the first course I’ve taken since I retired in June. It was 4 days of learning. I loved every minute of it. The confusing terminology: heddles, shafts, shuttles, beater, reed, dents, sley, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH. We made a sample on the first weekend – the idea being that first of all we’d have to learn how to “dress the loom” / set up the loom (ok, that process is FUCKING BRUTAL), then learn how to weave the most basic patterns. 

This is my ‘sampler’. I added beads and fringes to make it interesting. It’s fairly hideous, but a good guide to the basic stitches that I will rely on as I do my first projects.

The second weekend we made a scarf. This gave us the chance to dress the loom again … NO EASIER THE SECOND TIME.

First you have to figure out how much warp thread will go on the loom (the stuff you’ll weave on). You measure it on this warp board, count it, organize it, tie it. Then you lay it on your loom, attach it, and feed it through the heddles one by one. Slow.

I made a scarf! There are lots of errors, but it’s still pretty cool. 

Christmas gift I think …

My first solo project is going to be a denim rag rug. But it’s stupid to dress the loom for one rug RIGHT?…  so I’ve decided that I’ll make 3. I’ve ordered what I need (blue cotton for the warp and a special rag shuttle). In the meantime I need to cut 1/2 inch strips of denim  … so … does anyone have any old denim jeans that they want to get rid of?? 

Until next time, I remain #retiredaf