Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Weaving into summer time

It's summertime. The snow is melting.  The sun is bright.  The sky is oh so big and oh so blue.  I did my yoga practice on the porch this weekend, wearing a tank top! and capri! yoga pants.  As I sat in meditation, the sun was pouring down on my face, the warmth of it - directly and reflected off the house in that way that porches have - on my skin, an occasional slightly cool breeze brushed past.  And as I inhaled, I could smell the smells of earth.  After a winter of frozen air, the only scents those of snow and stars, or the warmer air of woodsmoke and indoors, to smell the earth with the sun on my face was like a sneak peek of July.


Sunlight makes birch bark magical.

PussyWillows!
Its Spring! Spring! Spring!
Last weekend, I finished my sister's shawl.  Here she is modeling it next to lovely fake flowers at the Thai place by the University.  She says she'll take me some better photos of its finished state.  I love the way it came out with the mix of the green and the blue.  I twisted the fringe with my fancy-dan fringe twister that Santa brought me, and I'm SO GLAD he decided to invest in it!  It is so much faster than twisting fringe by hand.  I washed it gently in the kitchen sink, and hung it by the woodstove to dry.

Sister Shawl is finished!!!!  
And then my loom sat empty as I debated and deliberated, overwhelmed by the possibilities.  By the freedom of being able to choose what to put on next.  Saturday I spent hours with coffee paging through old Handwoven magazines and weaving books, trying to decide.  I compiled a list pages long of things I want to make. But most of them were substantial endeavors.  A coverlet.  Blanket.  Curtains.  Rugs.  I've had a few years of year long languishing projects.  I wanted something quick and satisfying that would boost my confidence.  And I just couldn't decide what to do.  I mean, I have a coffee dyed tencel warp chain waiting from ages ago for a Swedish lace scarf.  But I wasn't inspired by it.  I wanted to put on a krokbragd warp, but that's one of those substantial type projects.  I thought about taking some of my hand dyed gorgeousness I've collected and making a novelty warp but I just wasn't sure.  Then I decided I was being ridiculous.  So I went up into the studio and played with combinations.  I was on the verge of being once again crippled with indecision when I realized that HEY!  I could just make one.  And then.  I could do different one.
And so....

Voila.  I warped and threaded and sleyed my loom.  All in a couple hours.  Its amazing how much quicker it goes when you're not using tiny and delicate threads in complex patterns!

Warp bundles
And started weaving.  I think it will be for my mother in law for mother's day.
Start of the scarf
You can see here the three types of yarn I used.  The hand dyed wool is from Weaving Southwest, bought when my mother and I did the Fiber Trails in New Mexico.  I didn't use quite all the skein and still have another one.  The hand dyed curly mohair warp is from LaLana Wools in Taos, from the same trip.  And the tweed-y manufactured yarn which adds a little strength and structure is off the remnants of a cone I got from the lady I bought my loom from.
(mostly) handspun warp

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