3 Likes
1 CommentsSo, my first attempt, using Border Leicester and Cormo dyed with yellow onion (for warp) and cochineal (for weft), made the cats laugh. I mean, seriously, they looked and their mouths hung open and they fell over. It was just that bad. I did not take pictures for you - I probably should, as a shared learning experience, but I have some pride.
My second attempt, I decided to play a bit more and instead went with mohair (which I hadn't scoured myself before, so wanted to see how it differed) which I blended with some tussah silk (to lighten it up while still leaving it shiny). I used some teeswater (an excuse to work with that wool, which was new to me) for the braid (which I just learned how to do for Level 2). I decided to use sage (another new thing here for me) for the natural dye, and onion skin with a post-dye iron bath for the braid.
So, structurally, this one works. It is the size I wanted, the luster is still there, and I learned a bit. It is also the most 1970's looking thing I have ever had the dubious fortune to make! I mean, wow, it needs straw flowers or something to complete this look.
The point is to learn something and show your applied knowledge. This covered the goals. And as a totally out-of-my-head design, it could have been worse. Actually, it was worse - that first attempt ... *shudder*. I am not going to try for a third attempt for the homework assignment, mostly because this is a 25 hour project, and I don't want to do this again with the same limitations that resulted from the homework requirements and the tools I had available. I will do it again, however, under my own rules. I'll do it on a rigid heddle loom, which I'll hopefully be acquiring next week, instead of a tapestry loom. I'll be aiming for a tabby weave instead of weft-faced weave. And, I'll not have to worry about ONLY using something I scoured myself. I'll probably do pure-silk for the braid, and maybe try llama for the body. I have to do this at least one more time to see if I can't get it to look like what's in my head.
So, enough of the Master Spinner stuff for a while. I've taken a break from spinning to get some weaving time in before my weaving class with Judith MacKenzie McCuin at the Golden Gate Fiber Institute which is NEXT WEEK!!! WOOHOO! Ahem. Anywho, I've got a painted warp class with her, and a spindle spinning class with Abby Franquemont, and I've been practicing a bit for both. For the weaving, I decided to do some towels. Judith had given me a homework assignment back in March to dive in to lace weaves, so this explored one of the lace weave possibilities as described in Marguerite Porter Davison's A Handweaver's Pattern Book. Three of the towels were directly from that book, and the fourth was something I made up based on what was there. I have to admit being tickled that the fourth one turned out to be my favorite - it's the yellow-on-yellow one below. These are all 8/2 unmercerized cotton, and I kept samples (washed and unwashed) for all 4.
Here's a close up of my favorite one:
And that's been about it. I've been doing a bit more gardening, planted some green beans and have been amazed at my 8' tall Hopi Black Dye sunflower. I wish I had more than one!
Also planted, kitchen sage and pineapple sage, both for dye experiments, and bronze fennel, again for dyeing. The dyer's chamomile is doing ok - I just wish I had more and that I could find the blasted seeds to plant it! The weld I planted is just little green plants, no flowers. I'm thinking they aren't getting as much sun as I'd hoped. I'm not sure where I'll try them next year, but where they are now just isn't going to work. What dye plants will be happy in partial shade?
And to close out the post, thanks for keeping up with my infrequent missives, and I hope you all are having as good a summer as I am!
