Hi, its me Abelene.
Jen has brought me out of the closet where I was suffocating in debate with my new pals, the Ashford 48″ rigid heddle loom and Ashford 32″ table loom, very existential ideas, like about whether or not as inanimate objects, we really exist, and I have been by far the most optimistic among us! Anyway, Jen seems to have forgotten about me, but finally she brought me out to see the spring . . . I am wearing a very light weave that seems to be sticking to my skin all by itself, perhaps from static electricity, as it has been three days of drying wind here.
Jen wants me to say that she had some difficulty weaving this fluffy light sheer cloth, but eventually she found her way and the weaving became better balanced, eventually only a light tap of the reed to keep the structure even and open. This is the 15epi experiment in her series of weaving ultra fine cotton where she is experimenting with different threads per inch. She is super pleased that very light cloth can be woven on a simple little rigid heddle loom with one 15 dent reed, and is hoping to do more just like it. But first to finish her series she wants to weave 20 epi with this same thread, whether threading two rigid heddle reeds together on my pal the big rigid heddle loom, or to warp it up on my other pal, the table loom. But on the other hand (um, what other hand???) she thinks she might just weave more single reed 15epi samples on the little rigid heddle loom, like this piece was.
So much fun going on here I tell you!
Ta ta, Abelene
ps. Don’t miss out on the technical weaving notes and slideshow below!
♣ Weaving Notes ♣
- Yarn: 20/2 mercerized perle cotton, 8400yds / 1 lb, Maurice Brassard, in colors; Flax (P-5109), Rose Paudreux (P145), Natural (P100), and Blanchi (white) (P-101).
- Loom: Ashford Knitters Loom 20″.
- Warp: Warp length is approx 110 inches from apron rod to warping peg.
- Number of warp ends: 298
- Reed: 15 dent, warp is 19.5″, full width in reed.
- Sett on loom: Oops, I forgot to measure.
- Sett after finishing: Warp 17 epi, and weft 19 ppi.
- Selvedges: I did not do floating selvedges, but I did warp 3 extra ends per selvedge, which is almost necessary I am finding when using a temple.
- Color Pattern:
- Warp = [18 ends of rose, 18 of blanchi, 18 of flax, 18 of blanchi ] x 2 . 288 ends plus 3 extra selvedge ends at each side = 294.
- Weft = wound on to a 30″ stick shuttle ; [20 wraps of rose, 20 wraps flax] repeat the sequence to end of warp.
- Finished: 1/4 inch turned hem, then washed and dried in machine, then pressed, and weighs 83g. Measuring after finishing 76″ long and 17″ wide (before washing/drying it measured 76″ x 18″).
- Yardage: Total yardage used for finished piece = 1536y, figured from weight of finished piece and not including loom waste.
- General Notes: This weave is open and fairly sheer. I am striving for balanced weave with only a light tap of the reed needed. If I beat too hard with the reed, even just a slight bit of pressure on the reed, or too many taps, the weft easily becomes compressed and creates horizontal stripes of weft dominant color. For this reason, I had to be very careful, hoping that after a wash and dry in the machine everything would become even, with threads locked together in a firm gauze fabric. The ppi is slightly more than the epi, so not perfectly balanced. I am guessing then that 20 epi will be the magic warp spacing for ease of weaving balanced.
Abelene! You scamp…..been hiding yourself away in your intellectual retreat. You look gorgeous in that cloud of soft colors……the perfect colors for this beautiful breezy Spring. I think Jen chose just the right time and the right creation to coax you back out……thank you, Jen!
Oh!! And I love the new blog logo!!!
::Abelene blushes::
Beautiful! I love how sheer it is.
Thank you! It was a lot more sheer before I washed and dried it in the machine, now it is just perfect. xx
I love the colors you choose here! It such a happy and sunny scarf!! Sweet! ::))
Aww, thank you Ro. We’ll get you set up and weave the exact same thread/yarn, on the same loom, when you come to visit, if you like? xx
I also have several small mostly-used cones of the same thread, for you to take back to Mexico to weave on your Ashford rigid heddle, as maybe a better alternative, for the time involved that it takes to weave a piece of cloth like this. Ok!
Thanks so much, Fur! I’m excited to see you! ::))
I really look forward to showing you more about weaving possibilities, giving you some of my weaving bits & bobs that you might be able to use, and just am going to enjoy your visit! xx
This is gorgeous! I am new to weaving and my mom turned me on to your blog. Creating a balanced weave is the challenge I am learning now – all my weaving have come out weft dominate which has been very disappointing to me.
I’ve been using yarn inherited by my grandmother (as well as her Glimakra floor loom) so I finally bit the bullet and bought some yarn that I actually know the size of! Maybe that will help! 🙂
Hello and thank you Sarah! Wow, I bet that loom is gorgeous! I almost got a Glimakra Julia, but ended up buying a 32″ Ashford 8-shaft (folding) table loom, so that I could put it away easily into the closet when needed, as it is a cramped little loft space I weave in. I have two rigid heddle looms too, so I change it up. I’ll never say never, I would get the Glimakra Julia if ever I am at the point when I absolutely have to do counter balance.
I hope you keep sharing your experiences here, because as a beginner myself, I find the lack of camaraderie a bit isolating. So thank you for coming by and commenting and letting yourself be known. 🙂
ps. Oh, I meant to say something about your weft-dominant weave so far, striving (as well as me) for the elusive balanced weave ~~ in my experience not easy, but keep going.
What yarn did you get that you’re going to warp up your Glimakra with?
Thanks so much for the warm welcome, Jen! I ordered some 8/2 cotton for some dish towels and some 5/2 cotton for a scarf and a runner pattern that I’ve been admiring. So far I’ve done a few rag rugs (My grandmother made a lot of those and had a lot of materials left.) and some cotton scarves turned runners because they ended up far stiffer than I expected. 🙂 I’ve also done a couple tapestry projects which were quite fun!
I learn something new with every project and have been enjoying the challenge. I did find it really difficult to find much instruction at all for the counterbalance loom. Thankfully, a local weaver was willing to teach me how to dress the loom or I would still be struggling over that process!
If you wouldn’t mind sharing one tip drawn from your experience in trying to obtain a balanced weave what would it be? 😀
Hi again Sarah, that is a good question and the short answer is; like Goldilocks, you have to try all the porridge 🙂 .
But since apparently we are both analytical beginners and thirsty for information, here is my long answer . . .
I am speaking for plain weave only, but understanding sett, epi, and ppi, is a real hill to get over for us beginners! The 8/2 as example; if the suggested sett for the 8/2 is 18-24epi, I believe that gives a suitable range where 18epi will create an open weave (could easily become weft-dominant if you’re not careful in keeping the spacing with your weft ) and the 24epi creating a denser weave (could easily become warp dominant if you don’t really beat in the weft), so you might try first the middle 20epi or 22 epi. and see how those work with your style of weaving on that loom. Everything varies from loom to loom, and shuttle to shuttle, and mood to mood, but it starts by reading the manufacturer’s sett suggested range. That is just my thinking, and I haven’t yet woven with 8/2, I jumped from fingering weight wool knitting yarn to 16/2 linen, then to ultra fine cotton yarns (10/2 to 20/2) and that is my beginning experience thus far, but each project I’ve woven so far has extensive weaving notes.
In my desire to find balanced weave with the yarn, I find the math in the yarn weights and epi, although it should work, is so affected by the weft, so doing a series of experiments is a great way to go. I am presently experimenting with 20/2 mercerized cotton (the absolute finest yarn I can find that is reasonably priced) ; first I tried 30epi (Scarf No.3 ) by double threading one of my rigid heddle looms through two 15dent reeds to achieve it. the weave was almost balanced but I had to really press in the weft in with the stick shuttle like it was a sword beater, and was forced and seriously close and dense. Then I tried the yarn at 25epi also with double threading the rigid heddle (Scarf No.4) and although my weaving notes show a balanced weave, I really doubt that it was, like maybe too warp dominant, and I had to beat the weft a lot to get the even structure, so it was not optimal. Then I did the 15epi on this post, Scarf No.5, and very open, so much that it was weft dominant and a struggle to keep it balanced. So now I am weaving 20epi on four harnesses on my table loom (straight draw threading, 1-2-3-4, dividing the warp in pairs 1&3 and 2&4) sample preview of Scarf No.6 . I am finding the balance is much easier with a light beat. Ultimate I think for this yarn, but I would not know this unless I kept trying. I think having four lovely scarves from the experiment as samples for the yarn is something that is useful too, not just a swatch that sits in a bin somewhere. So get lots of your favorite yarn/thread, in the colors you love, and just plan on working 2 or 4 experiments in it for sett. Take the notes and enjoy the things you make!
I checked out that you have a blog, and I challenge you to start blogging about your weaving, documenting the process with weaving notes, etc. and can exchange ideas with you there too 🙂 About weaving notes; I got the weaving notes idea from a book I got at the beginning of my weaving less than a year ago, and only recently can I understand it a little better. It is just one of those books that inspire, Plain Weave by Tina Ignell, because it shows how useful weaving notes are in documenting what you’ve done, and that you can get into the little details as much as you like, because then when you want to improve, or try the same set up again, you’ll have all the information available. And if you have it on a blog, that information is available to other weavers, which is generous and attracts weaving buddies too, like me :). At first I thought Plain Weave book was way out of my ability (and it was!), but now I just view it as an excellent book to peruse and see what is possible, with unusual pairings of different yarns, etc. and I am actually experienced enough now, almost one year into weaving, to understand how to replicate from the instructions. Mostly because I am understanding sett just a little better, and how its okay to combine yarns in weaving, because really there is no weaving police! I’m so happy for you that you get to learn on a beautiful loom, so please, enjoy the weaving.
ps. Oh, right, I forgot that I tried the Sakiori rag runner, which is so fun, and will have to do more of that. For now very intrigued with fine weaving, but definitely I want to try so much more… wool tweeds from handspun, fine 100% linen, and so I guess I need more lifetimes!!!
Oh, wow! Thank you SO much for all this rich information!
Just a couple months ago this all would have gone right over my head, but I am grasping a lot more now and this makes a lot of sense. It’s so nice to hear about your experimenting and I will truly consider blogging about my journey as well. ( I got burnt out with the social media/ blogging world and haven’t yet wanted to dip my toes into it again, but you have made great points for it! 🙂
I have Tina Ingell’s book “Favorite Rag Rugs”! I’m going to put “Plain Weave” on my order list.
I did see your post about the Sakiori rag runner and love the look of that. I would like to try that close EPI at some point. I’ve been doing an 8 EPI for my rugs so far.
Thank you again for the time you put into answering my question! I will be back to reference it again for sure! 😀
Sarah, you are very welcome, and I’m so excited for you that things are starting to gel for you. They seem to be just gelling for me as well, so its a great time for us to meet each other; all excited about learning the basics, I for one, am completely in love with just simple plain weave. Although I bought an 8 harness table loom (and stand, so its like a full floor loom) and can do double weave and twill and all, I don’t know, I just love plain weave the most. I love Tina Ignell’s books so much that I also got her books: Favorite Rag Rugs and Simple Weaves which goes into twill, a skill I am looking forward to exploring, but presently really loving plain weave.
I can see why you love plain weave! There’s something so…satisfying… about it. I am still waiting for my yarn to come, but I am excited to work with a finer strand! I will stay in touch! 🙂
Please do!