My two new favorite websites/blogs, one for information, the other for inspiration:
Handweaving: Digital archives for handweaving history. Just look at the goodies found when the keywords rigid heddle and two harness weaving are used. PDFs and free… It's great!
El Telar de Anita: A blog so full of fantastic woven items, it's hard to know where to start. I'm studying ponchos for inspiration, and this cape has got me thinking…
I used a variety of yarns and colors with a goal of creating a warp-faced scarf this time around. I used the 10 dent heddle on my Glimakra Emilia, warped about 5" wide with Paton's Country (green, red), Blue Heron Rayon (mossy), and a home-dyed, homespun wool (maroon) from a local shop. The weft was Sinofina mercerized cotton (olive).
I used the heddle to lift and lower the threads, but then used the inkle belt shuttle to do the beating. The scarf drew in over an inch. Off the loom, the scarf is 3.75" x 40" with 4" of fringe on either side. If I attempt another warp-faced scarf in order to get that striped look, I'll remember that the warp should be longer than I think, otherwise I'll end up with another short scarf. It's cute, though.
Next project: anything but a scarf!
What's coming in the mail??? A very early Christmas present… for me!
Here it is! A bright, blaze orange scarf meant for keeping a person–in this case my dad–a little bit warmer and a tiny bit safer during the upcoming deer hunting season. I have to admit a few things: 1) It was hard to find a local source of blaze orange yarn. This was the closest I could find (I Love This Yarn in orange); 2) It hurt my eyes just a tiny bit to weave blaze orange.
Luckily, I am very fond of the color orange, so it was a fun, fast project. I've learned that acrylic can be difficult at times, though, and joining yarn is a pain because the ends don't stay put the way they do with wool.
Next year: a better blaze orange hunting scarf with a fancy pattern and a nicer yarn.
I just finished this very red table runner for my mom, using white crochet cotton for the warp (J.P. Coats, size 10) and warped 14" wide. I was hoping for a weft-faced project with the bright red (Sugar 'n Cream) taking center stage. However, the white does have a presence, which I didn't mind so much once it was off the loom. I like leno lace and so wove one row on either end. The ends were simply tied and trimmed.
The table runner started life as 14" wide, went down to 12" wide off the loom, and after washing, measured in at 11.5". The length shrunk from 30" long to, after washing, 27.5". So, let that be a lesson to you! Cotton shrinks, even without water.