Amazing success

I thought I had taken on more than I could manage and that this was doomed, but it seems to be going fantastically well.

After a lot of trouble - the putting onto the loom has taken at least two weeks (of course that was in the bits of time that were spare when not at work, doing household chores etc) - the weaving is finally underway.

The challenge was that this is 50" wide on the loom at 16 ends per inch (800 ends). The wool warp is about 108" long if I remember correctly, wound alternately blue then green two threads at a time in four batches. It is on eight shafts, but a straight 12345678 threading. It has a purple wool weft which is too thin so I have got a shuttle with space for two pirns and that seems to be working just fine. I have tried to wind two threads together on the same bobbin in the past and it just ended in tears.

The draw in is a bit too much I think, at two inches, but I am not sure how to avoid it. At 50" there is not enough room to make a big enough angle with my weft before beating it.

I am sorry that the photo of the actual weaving is a bit blurry - I will post again when I have woven a bit more and when there is more daylight. I really am mightily proud.

Another reason why I've not blogged much recently -

I wove this at my lesson on weaving summer and winter as a rug weight. I've not woven it at any other weight so it was all new to me.

I believe summer and winter refers to the fact that this weave was used in bed covers, which had one side showing in summer (the lighter coloured side) and then the other side in winter (which you might term reverse video if you are modern).

I think this would make a great rug in two colours - using a multiple weft in one colour and a single weft in another colour.

Just need to finish my current enormous weaving project which I'll tell you about next.

Rug weaving sample

Rugs are where I'm going.

I was pretty pleased with this first attempt. It is a 12" sample. It would have been twice as long but the warp snapped about two inches in from the side, which I think was the fault of a burr in the reed. I am investigating this.

It is a twill on a linen warp with a single weft of two-ply rug wool. Took instructions from Peter Collingwood's book on rug weaving techniques.

Alright then, I relent.

My legs are actually very slim and shapely. Its just the angle it was taken from, honest.

Buscot park

Olympussina discovered this funny little trick you can do with my camera - a split frame I suppose you would call it. She took some amusing ones of people with odd legs. I'm not going to show you them, though, as they are my legs. (Although you probably don't really need a special camera for that - the streets of Reading are full of people with odd legs, and odd everything else too for that matter).

This is the last NT property we shall vist for a while as our membership has lapsed. We've visited all the local ones till we're sick of them and we're trying not to drive too much now to be greener. Also annual membership is pretty expensive these days, especially when you've got a greedy weaving equipment habit.

Great balls of marzipan

Alas, I haven't spoken to you all since before Easter.

This is what you missed - a simnel cake cooked and decorated by Kodakina. It is all very symbolic.

A silent guest

Well, Kodakina's German exchange student has returned home. She took some good-bye photos of us and it was only later that I noticed I had quite an obvious smear of chocolate round my mouth.

She was rather a quiet visitor and I wonder how much her command of English will have been strenghthened by her sojourn with us. The group she travelled with went out partying most evenings, so they no doubt spoke amongst themselves all night in German. In the day they went sight-seeing in an all-German group. I should think they were exhausted. I'm sure she would have been better off playing Canasta with us.

And I never managed to cook a meal she liked.