Some yarny updates

Just a little collection of things I’ve been fiddling with since December, while running on half my usual steam. Just simple stuff, not very innovative but still making and learning, to help me keep up my spirits. I find this to be the best tactic for me, if I can’t unmuddle my concentration / imagination I can practise technical stuff or get some of the “administrative” tasks done (making a catalogue of my e-books and weaving videos so that I actually use them, for instance). I just don’t do well with staring at the ceiling for weeks, and I refuse to watch tv!

I don’t do xmas either, but for some reason decided I wanted to knit very warm hats for everybody this year. And that evolved into two matching scarves as well because I was dying for an excuse to try weaving with that particular yarn, a really thin, soft merino. (25/2)

I was afraid to be in over my head, but it went really well! My selvedges are improving and although there is much to explore on 4 shafts, I’m already longing for 8. Even looked at a couple of loom ads, but I just don’t know where to put another one except in the cold stable or if I cancel the rest of our living room. One solution would be getting a twin to my folding 4 shaft and simply rebuild it, but I’d like something a bit heavier in case I want to do rugs. We’ll see. It’s not like I expect to be able to double my activity, more a question of always having the right tool handy if I get an idea. The same happens with my knitting, I always need the needle size that’s already tied to another project.

My mum doesn’t wear hats, so she got a purple scarf that I’ve been promising to make for years. We didn’t agree on the warp colour, but she’s happy and I can always make new experiments. šŸ™‚ Weaving with silk was pretty awesome, but I guess you’d have to be there…

I also found a great keyboard loom bench which folds and changes height for different tasks (not on its own šŸ˜‰ ). And soon discovered how cat hair does not look good on black wool, so as I had a list of experiments to do with my plant dyed yarn anyway, I used the first to make a seat cover. Unfortunately I left it soaking too long and to my great surprise the red dye (madder) bled onto the white, unmordanted yarn, losing the colour crispness. Lesson learned! I honestly didn’t think plant dyes would do that. But it felted well as I had intended.

Now that I’m done with the rather conservative projects for the older generation, I’d like to make something more freeform and colourful. Perhaps I’m only dreaming, I think I probably do that better than anything else. šŸ˜‰ But watch this space, just in case!

First I must work, however. One of my old clients called about a tracing, and I thought, why the heck not? Just a quick little Illustrator thing. Which led me to thinking about updating my old website. And that’s ridiculous, since I no longer have a product to sell….

11 thoughts on “Some yarny updates

  1. Dear Pia, Thank you for using words like ‘fiddle’ and ‘unmuddle’ in your blog. They describe so well how often many of us navigate daily life. Love it! Always a pleasure to read your blog and appreciate all that you share. Been fiddling with several projects here as well…….unmuddling? almost daily. Be well, denise

  2. Herligt at se at du langsomt kommer i gang igen. Jeg nyder ogsƄ dine fortƦllinger om garn og dye og livet i al almindelighed. Dit bƦnktƦppe er sjovt, sƄdan nƦrmest lettere hypnotisk.

    1. “Du er en kanin. Du er en kanin” *fingerknips*

      Jeg fƄr nogen gange enormt dƄrlig selvtillid og synes det jeg bidrager med er ligegyldigt, trivielt og ensformigt. SƄ det er altid rart med lidt positiv feedback!

  3. Some lovely work here. I too am merely fiddling with small projects while waiting for motivation to do something more demanding – I think it is a mid-winter thing!

    1. Thanks. I’m glad I can be doing and learning a few things while waiting for the energy and inspiration to do more elaborate work. I’ve still not quite learned to adapt to the fluctuations of health issues, to not be able to get up and go whenever I want, but rather grab the moments as they arise without planning ahead.

      You’d think winter was perfect for creative work, no garden or other outdoors things to swallow you up! But you may be right that biologically it just isn’t so.

  4. Hi Pia, I LOVE all this, the colours are gorgeous. When I was at college I wove on a 24 shaft loom, so 4 shafts would always feel very constricting for me, but that is only because I was spoilt when I was younger šŸ˜‰ I think I would be forced to be more creative if I had a 4 shaft loom now, so its not such a bad thing to have one …

    1. Thanks. And you’re right, I’m very pleased with my little loom, there are endless possibilities. I don’t know what it is about fabric that is so fascinating? Just every once in a while when I play with drafts I exceed the limit and think, if only… Such as using up this warp, I thought I’d make a 3/1 sample on the last bit, as I’ve only done balanced twills until now. But then I wanted to be able to reverse it, for which of course I need 8 treadles if I don’t want to spend the time changing the threading! (or the tieup every 20 picks)

      1. you know, 8 shafts gives you far more options I agree! its def. worth looking into šŸ˜‰ I am at this moment also trawling the ads for a loom, and 8 would suit me fine.

Leave a Reply to UglemorCancel reply