My second, and final, show of the year happens this weekend at John Burroughs School in LaDue, in the vicinity of St. Louis. It's called the Unique Boutique and is billed as an art show/high end craft show. This being my first time there, I don't really know what to expect. I will be taking rugs, and also quite a few painted warp shawls.
Amazingly, next weekend is Thanksgiving. Time is running, running, running, and so am I. It's been a busy year, and getting busier.
I haven't continued to paint warps ahead as I had planned. I had all I could do to paint warps as I needed them. I'll have to see how the winter goes after the holidays. I may opt to weave some bigger projects for family.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
Thinking time and Gallery update
I finally got around to inventory, of sorts, on my remaining stock and it looks pretty good. I don't feel I need to immediately rush to the loom and make more rugs before the Unique Boutique show the weekend before Thanksgiving. I do have my new Peaceful Oceans warp on and am looking forward to seeing how that turns out in all its different planes of weft.
We have wonderful fall weather - cool, crisp, breezy days and cooler nights. I love it. Autumn always makes me thoughtful and is a good reassessment time for me. Since my personal life duties are gaining ground all the time, the time I have for weaving gets shortened. So, I'm going to section warp the Hammett with 50 or 60 yards of rug warp and work it off as I can this winter. I like having long warps on that loom. I'll be weaving Pendleton rugs (5 doubled ends per inch) and blue jean rugs (10 single ends per inch). I will just re-sley the reed when I want to change rug type. Of course, I will wait until I have a cloth beam full of rugs to cut off. I will lose maybe a foot of warp doing that, but much time-lier than rewarping completely.
I have also updated my rug gallery. These are not all the rugs I have. I will be taking more photos and putting them up as I can.
We have wonderful fall weather - cool, crisp, breezy days and cooler nights. I love it. Autumn always makes me thoughtful and is a good reassessment time for me. Since my personal life duties are gaining ground all the time, the time I have for weaving gets shortened. So, I'm going to section warp the Hammett with 50 or 60 yards of rug warp and work it off as I can this winter. I like having long warps on that loom. I'll be weaving Pendleton rugs (5 doubled ends per inch) and blue jean rugs (10 single ends per inch). I will just re-sley the reed when I want to change rug type. Of course, I will wait until I have a cloth beam full of rugs to cut off. I will lose maybe a foot of warp doing that, but much time-lier than rewarping completely.
I have also updated my rug gallery. These are not all the rugs I have. I will be taking more photos and putting them up as I can.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Back from Best of Missouri Market
Got back Sunday night - unloaded Monday morning. I have to go through my stock, take inventory, and take photos of the rugs I have left to put in my galleries. SO, at this point, the rug gallery is NOT accurate. I'll try to get photos of available rugs up in a week or so.
I did get the rest of my new painted warp beamed today. Things are very slow right now. I'm still tired from the show. It was a good show, though. Hot in the afternoons, but lots of people and everyone was in very good humor. Sold lots of rugs.
On the gardening scene I dug my sweet potatoes this afternoon. Below is a photo of the crop, plus I confess I dug a few hills last week that aren't included in the photo. Not bad for a 5 ft. x 5 ft. 12" deep raised bed. More than a bushel, and that will be plenty for us!
I did get the rest of my new painted warp beamed today. Things are very slow right now. I'm still tired from the show. It was a good show, though. Hot in the afternoons, but lots of people and everyone was in very good humor. Sold lots of rugs.
On the gardening scene I dug my sweet potatoes this afternoon. Below is a photo of the crop, plus I confess I dug a few hills last week that aren't included in the photo. Not bad for a 5 ft. x 5 ft. 12" deep raised bed. More than a bushel, and that will be plenty for us!
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Counting Down
Big show coming up next weekend at Best of Missouri Market, which is held at the Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis, MO. I have looked this computer over in vain for a photo of last year's booth. Can't find it, so I'll try to get one up after the show. Right now, I have a few last things to tag and inventory. I also have a "Master List for Shows" and need to hunt and gather for that. In between, I'm tying on a painted warp, and I have about 300 ends tied. Just 420 left to go! I don't think it's a time saver to tie on a warp when you have this many ends, but it will save a little length and that will be nice.
I'm weaving plain weave napkins - for us! - on the Hammett. Some are plaid and some are striped. Nice color combo, if I say so myself. It's been a while since I wove something for me, and my napkin and tea towel drawer contents are looking boring to me. Besides that, I am finally deciding that some of the 10 and 12 year old tea towels can go to the rag pile. You know, that's not too dang bad - 10-12 years of pretty much constant use for a tea towel. Which is why I always encourage people to USE my tea towels. Some folks still like to just decorate with them, which is fine, but they make such dandy things for dishes and hands! Here's a photo of one. This was warped in stripes: solid red, red and yellow alternated in the heddles, solid yellow. This one is crossed with red. Notice how the color differences in the stripes appear as texture differences. Interesting!
I'm weaving plain weave napkins - for us! - on the Hammett. Some are plaid and some are striped. Nice color combo, if I say so myself. It's been a while since I wove something for me, and my napkin and tea towel drawer contents are looking boring to me. Besides that, I am finally deciding that some of the 10 and 12 year old tea towels can go to the rag pile. You know, that's not too dang bad - 10-12 years of pretty much constant use for a tea towel. Which is why I always encourage people to USE my tea towels. Some folks still like to just decorate with them, which is fine, but they make such dandy things for dishes and hands! Here's a photo of one. This was warped in stripes: solid red, red and yellow alternated in the heddles, solid yellow. This one is crossed with red. Notice how the color differences in the stripes appear as texture differences. Interesting!
Friday, August 31, 2007
Fall shows
I have two shows on schedule this fall. The first is Best of Missouri Market at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis, Missouri, on October 6 and 7. The second one is the Unique Boutique at John Burroughs School in LaDue, Missouri, on November 17 and 18.
I am well on my way to preparedness for both shows. I've really worked hard this year to get stock made. Last summer I was moving, so the fall shows left me with not much left over. A good thing about that is I have LOTS of new colors and designs. And, I'm continuing to make items.
If you're in St. Louis during these weekends, come by and say hi!
I am well on my way to preparedness for both shows. I've really worked hard this year to get stock made. Last summer I was moving, so the fall shows left me with not much left over. A good thing about that is I have LOTS of new colors and designs. And, I'm continuing to make items.
If you're in St. Louis during these weekends, come by and say hi!
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Day lily pinks warp
I just finished my day lily pinks painted warp. I'm now threading on a beige and maroons painted warp. It is surprisingly pretty. Can't wait to get it up and running. I also have a placemat warp on the Hammett, but am concentrating on getting the 720 threads of the painted warp through the reed and heddles and wound on! THEN, I'll let myself work on the placemat warp. Small goals and rules I set for myself seem crazy when I stand back and look at them, but ... they work.
Webs (www.yarn.com) has 10/2 mercerized cotton on sale, and I bought four colors to use for painted warps. I'm most of the way through winding the first color. I'd like to get all 4 wound and painted before winter.
With the heat wave and drought we're in, the yard work is down to watering the tomatoes and hostas a couple times a week, so I'm getting some good quality weaving time in - and, the loom room has an AC. Whoo-ee. I have arrived.
Below is a photo of one of the day lily pinks shawls on the loom.
Webs (www.yarn.com) has 10/2 mercerized cotton on sale, and I bought four colors to use for painted warps. I'm most of the way through winding the first color. I'd like to get all 4 wound and painted before winter.
With the heat wave and drought we're in, the yard work is down to watering the tomatoes and hostas a couple times a week, so I'm getting some good quality weaving time in - and, the loom room has an AC. Whoo-ee. I have arrived.
Below is a photo of one of the day lily pinks shawls on the loom.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Section-ally
So, I wove about 36 yards of placemat warp, and am now ready to section warp for some double binding rugs. I've made these before, but it must have been on the Newcomb, because when I counted heddles needed, the Hammett fell 200 short. So, last night I made a jig and tied 200 heddles. Put them on this morning, set the spool rack up for winding on and am ready to go.
I'm on the last full shawl on the Winter Sunset Warp. I've been doing lots of other weaving related tasks besides finishing that warp off. I dyed a Pinks warp, but am having a hard time finding the right colored Tencel to cross it with. I think I now have 3 colors either on hand or in the mail. This warp is VERY bright and I'm hoping to tone it down a little with the wefts.
I also wound and dyed another warp and this one is a problem child. I was trying for Grand Canyon colors, and wanted to dye the base coat a light sand color. But, no. It came out an ugly brown. Also, I used up the last of my natural 10/2 cottons and some of it was mercerized and some not, so those two took the dye differently. I knew that was going to happen, and was looking forward to yet another variation to show up in the finished product. But, you know, when you have one ugly color, the variation is ugly, too
So, yesterday, I overdyed the warp. I put it in a Forest Green bath of about 1/2 intensity. It did help some. I'm now considering what colors I can paint on that will jump out there and outshine the background. We'll see. As I say, problem child.
I have more 10/2 mercerized ordered, and will continue to wind and paint warps as much as I can this summer. Have to have time to weave, too! And, label all my product. Lots to do!
Here's a a pic of the Pinks warp.
I'm on the last full shawl on the Winter Sunset Warp. I've been doing lots of other weaving related tasks besides finishing that warp off. I dyed a Pinks warp, but am having a hard time finding the right colored Tencel to cross it with. I think I now have 3 colors either on hand or in the mail. This warp is VERY bright and I'm hoping to tone it down a little with the wefts.
I also wound and dyed another warp and this one is a problem child. I was trying for Grand Canyon colors, and wanted to dye the base coat a light sand color. But, no. It came out an ugly brown. Also, I used up the last of my natural 10/2 cottons and some of it was mercerized and some not, so those two took the dye differently. I knew that was going to happen, and was looking forward to yet another variation to show up in the finished product. But, you know, when you have one ugly color, the variation is ugly, too
So, yesterday, I overdyed the warp. I put it in a Forest Green bath of about 1/2 intensity. It did help some. I'm now considering what colors I can paint on that will jump out there and outshine the background. We'll see. As I say, problem child.
I have more 10/2 mercerized ordered, and will continue to wind and paint warps as much as I can this summer. Have to have time to weave, too! And, label all my product. Lots to do!
Here's a a pic of the Pinks warp.
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