Category Archives: Philosophy of the Loom

Cloth No.1

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6

This morning early, I was impatient for the light to come, giving the muse a rest, and the loom too. Nothing is distorted or broken in the weave, after-all. It went through wash and dry, and a ritual of steam pressing — it is more than fine, it survived my incessant nervous worry as I wove through the last many days, and my misunderstanding of the warp is now an embarrassment, but essential part of the lesson, because really, in the end there is no sacrifice, it is a perfect piece of cloth.

Warp and weft together leave their home, are cut off the loom as if saying goodbye to their birthplace, for a marriage in a journey together for the life of the cloth. Purifying their bond in the water, for wet finishing is when the fibers bloom, the tension evens out, the blatant flaws heal and become only subtle scars. The loom is silent for a short while, and the cloth is folded and stashed away, along with its own potential, as it was meant to be.

♣   Weaving Notes  ♣

  • Yarn: 20/2 mercerized perle cotton, 8400yds / 1 lb, Maurice Brassard, in colors Beige (P-2), Natural (P-100), Turquoise (P-401), Rose (P-145), and Flax (P-5104).
  • Loom: Ashford Brooklyn 4-shaft Table Loom, straight draw threading for plain weave, lifting pairs of odds & evens (1&3, and 2&4)
  • Warping method:  Tested an easy direct warp method, back to front; double threading from back apron rod through heddles and reed, then to peg. Wound on to back beam and finally tied off on to front for weaving.
  • Number of warp ends: Warped in couplets of 20/2, each couplet counts as 1 end. 380 plus 2 extra at each selvedge = 384 ends
  • Reed: 16 dent reed, 2 ends in each dent and 2 ends in each heddle.
  • Width in reed: forgot to measure.
  • Sett on loom: 20epi
  • Selvedges: 4 extra ends at each selvedge and used a temple to keep width in reed.
  • Sett after finishing: Warp 24 epi, and weft 12 ppi.
  • Color Pattern Warp: { 8 ends beige, [4 ends turquoise, 16 ends beige]x8, 4 ends turquoise, 16 ends rose}, 4 ends Flax, mirror reverse { … }.
  • Pattern Weft: No pattern, just one color, Natural (P-100), used shuttle.
  • Finished: 1/4 inch turned hem, then washed and dried in machine, then steam pressed, measuring 80″ long and 14″ wide, and weighs 128g. 
  • Yardage:  Total yardage used for finished piece = 2370y, figured from weight of finished piece and not including loom waste.

Philosophy of the Loom: Tension, distortion, breakage . . . repair.

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This morning early, photographed in the light of the sunrise of a new day, I am weaving fast and furiously on the Little Brooklyn, ascending to new heights.

I just want to empty the loom, after many days of struggling with the threads’ betrayal, so that I can again find peace and contentment in weaving through the hours of my day.

Considering the warp tension; if there is too little the warp becomes flabby and the shuttle dives beneath the threads, if there is too much, then there other problems arise, at worst . . . breakage . . . or surface distortion. And if there is a threading mistake, even if the sheds clear, it will reveal itself after the weaving begins, like these mysterious gaps between the warp threads.

Repairing becomes a dilemma, as when a problem persists it usually worsens, like anything in life. One has to decide if fixing it is worth the trouble, or better just to cut it off the loom, lessons learned. However, for this problem warp, I will proceed with diligence to the end, letting the flaws relish in their glory of a first project on a new loom, and I will weave with a fury until I can take it off the loom, and start new. Maybe it will even out in the wash as they say.

Meanwhile, I am encouraged by the ideas coming to my mind for the next weave, as if to weave it is beyond my experience or ability . . . as if I am receiving inspiration from some mysterious unseen luminous source, and I am simply following the instructions.