Zig-Zag Placemat Planning
I'm back from my parents' and have been reunited with Rey. I've been thinking of a real project that's not a sampler and have decided to weave a set of placemats to give to my sister-in-law. Her birthday is in June, so that should give me plenty of time to get this project done before the MAFA Conference where I'm hoping to take a few weaving classes.
I've been thinking about this project for a long time. I figured I'd weave them sideways since I found a zig-zag twill I like. I think my sister-in-law would like zig-zags so I've been a little fixated on them.
I want to hem the edges so they look professional, especially since I"m somewhat new to weaving and worried about how my selvedges will look. The best way to do this wihtout disturbing the pattern of the zig-zag seemed to be to put a border around the placemat so I'd know exactly where the edges that I needed to hem were.
When I start a hobby I tend to start with an incredibly complicated first project that I think I'll like doing and will look great when it's done. I think that's what this turned into a little bit.
I was looking for zig-zag patterns at first. I wanted the zig-zag to be about an inch wide. When I couldn't find any drafts, I started from the other side: How would I go about creating a border? I read the short section on block theory in Learning To Weave, but it didn't give me exactly what I was looking for. I found an article in Handwoven Magazine, but I had a hard time understanding that too. I then found this blog post from a studio called Weaving Space that sent me over to this zig-zag point twill (the bottom of the page knows me better than I know myself!). Then someone suggested that I might get a zig zag I like if I used crackle weave, which brought me to the Thrums: The A,B,C's and 1,2,3s of Classic Crackle blog post.
I've been researcing for 3 months. I have explored so many options that my head is swimming a bit. There seem to be many ways to get something that will look close to what I have in mind. Now I think I just need to do it. So I've settled on the point twill draft from Weaving Space (with 2 colors, not 3!) without borders because, I reminded myself that I'm still a beginner and that learning to weave is a marathon, not a sprint. I'm still going to learn a lot with this project without weaving a crackle draft with block weave borders. So just as soon as the apron strings for the warp beam have been replaced, I'll wind the warp....
MEANWHILE, AT MY PARENTS'...
I've done quite a bit more on the sampler scarf. I love the way these two yarns look togehter and the high contrast is great at showing where the warp and the weft is so i can see the path well. There are a few times that I've accidentally come back to the loom forgetting where in the pattern I am. Some angled patterns have inadvertantly changed direction, but I have learned more about which harnesses are pulled up. This table loom has a direct tie up so it's a little different than Rey, which has treddles that can be manipulated any which way, but it's great to learn on, especially the warping process since that's still relatively similar between the two. So more on that project the next time I visit my parents,and until then, I'd just like to say that "I'm going to take another shot before bed" has completely changed its meaning in a matter of 10 years. :)
I've been thinking about this project for a long time. I figured I'd weave them sideways since I found a zig-zag twill I like. I think my sister-in-law would like zig-zags so I've been a little fixated on them.
I want to hem the edges so they look professional, especially since I"m somewhat new to weaving and worried about how my selvedges will look. The best way to do this wihtout disturbing the pattern of the zig-zag seemed to be to put a border around the placemat so I'd know exactly where the edges that I needed to hem were.
When I start a hobby I tend to start with an incredibly complicated first project that I think I'll like doing and will look great when it's done. I think that's what this turned into a little bit.
I was looking for zig-zag patterns at first. I wanted the zig-zag to be about an inch wide. When I couldn't find any drafts, I started from the other side: How would I go about creating a border? I read the short section on block theory in Learning To Weave, but it didn't give me exactly what I was looking for. I found an article in Handwoven Magazine, but I had a hard time understanding that too. I then found this blog post from a studio called Weaving Space that sent me over to this zig-zag point twill (the bottom of the page knows me better than I know myself!). Then someone suggested that I might get a zig zag I like if I used crackle weave, which brought me to the Thrums: The A,B,C's and 1,2,3s of Classic Crackle blog post.
I've been researcing for 3 months. I have explored so many options that my head is swimming a bit. There seem to be many ways to get something that will look close to what I have in mind. Now I think I just need to do it. So I've settled on the point twill draft from Weaving Space (with 2 colors, not 3!) without borders because, I reminded myself that I'm still a beginner and that learning to weave is a marathon, not a sprint. I'm still going to learn a lot with this project without weaving a crackle draft with block weave borders. So just as soon as the apron strings for the warp beam have been replaced, I'll wind the warp....
MEANWHILE, AT MY PARENTS'...
I've done quite a bit more on the sampler scarf. I love the way these two yarns look togehter and the high contrast is great at showing where the warp and the weft is so i can see the path well. There are a few times that I've accidentally come back to the loom forgetting where in the pattern I am. Some angled patterns have inadvertantly changed direction, but I have learned more about which harnesses are pulled up. This table loom has a direct tie up so it's a little different than Rey, which has treddles that can be manipulated any which way, but it's great to learn on, especially the warping process since that's still relatively similar between the two. So more on that project the next time I visit my parents,and until then, I'd just like to say that "I'm going to take another shot before bed" has completely changed its meaning in a matter of 10 years. :)
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