little weavings

i've been struggling with my last couple of warps. i get an image in my head, not clear or precise, just go with it, and put planning aside. pretty much just warping first and thinking about the weft later. with this set of weavings it worked out well, as i was able to experiment with a variety of warp threads and techniques.

using a fine paper yarn and a strip of bunny fur created a light, tiny weave with open spaces woven in silk. i need to frame this one, but am still working on that part.

this one was a mixture of kasuri remnants from a previous piece; very speckled.

the curly weft threads all but lost the linen warp, which is cool, as it brought focus to the pile weavings. it was quite fun to try these surface embellishments, hopefully i can use them in future pieces.

linen on linen can be boring, but the pattern really comes through, and the shots of cochineal dyed cotton add interest.

this yellow thread was really fun, so chunky, and made the pattern huge compared to the first one. i played with some pile weaves and a chain stitch like weave in purple yarn.

there was a tiny bit of warp left, so i finished off with some cottolin and bamboo.

i have another linen warp now on the loom, but i'm a little lost as to what weft will be going on it. i had wanted to use a tsumugi silk yarn, but it completely overwhelms the warp, so i need to do some planning. i shall spin some wool, and think some more.

i'm seeing plaid

one of the projects in weaving i completed, (if fulling is the last step in a woven piece, then i completed it yesterday) a german bird's eye twill. this was an interesting piece which i titledworldly camel, as it contains camel down yarn, handspun bamboo, cotton, and baby alpaca.

the warp was an experiment in using different colors and creating stripes. with the weft, i repeated the spacing of each warp color to create an asymmetrical plaid. i wanted to get as much out of the warp as possible, so the overall length of the piece is longer than planned; but that's okay as it makes a wonderfully soft wrap.

i like the strong blue lines, it makes the neutral cream and brown really pop. i had fun weaving this piece; even with the couple of weaving errors i can spot. herringbone, or as it is known in weaving lingo, twill, is one of my favorite patterns. overall, none too shabby for my first wool piece and my fifth weaving piece. i have three towels which were projects from an issue of handwoven still on a friends loom, and two beginner pieces finished, one a rag rug table runner, and the other a scarf, which i gifted to my mother.