Throwback Thursday: fingerless gloves

On By CarynIn Craft

In October 2018 I finished a pair of fingerless gloves. I’m quite pleased with these, I knit a brown glove with wool yarn with stockinette stitch for the base and moss stitch for the edges, then used white wool to crochet a simple picot lace to the wrist and fingers. Using the same white wool I embroidered a mirrored leaf design on each glove. To plan the leaf design I digitally drew on a picture of the gloves then used my drawing as a guide for the stitches.

Photo description: brown and white fingerless gloves made from fingering weight wool yarn using knit, crochet, and embroidery techniques

I really enjoy making things using multiple methods in a single item. One day I’ll figure out how to make something spun, woven, knit, crocheted, nålbound, and embroidered.

Warped

On By CarynIn Craft, Uncategorized

I was able to wait for the finish to dry before warping up my new inkle loom, but I didn’t take pictures until I had woven for a while.

Photo description: inkle loom warped with size 5 pearlized cotton in variegated colors of brown, blue, and teal, set up with a rigid heddle

I made my rigid heddle a little taller than it needed to be, but it fits nicely between the upright supports and the removable side. It spreads the threads out quite a bit, and I’m struggling with keeping the band a consistent width, so I marked my shuttle with quarter inch ticks. On the next shuttle design I’ll engrave a ruler. I’ll also make adjustments to the size; I don’t like how the thread builds up on this design.

Photo description: shuttle wrapped with pearlized cotton and with ruler marks

So hard to wait

On By CarynIn Craft

I applied Howard’s Feed-n-wax to my newly made inkle loom, and to the freshly designed and cut wood rigid heddle and shuttle, both marked with the dragonfly symbol I designed for the loom.

Photo description: inkle loom in pieces so the feed-n-wax can be rubbed onto all the surfaces

It was so hard to wait for the finish to dry, I really wanted to warp it up and get testing!

New inkle loom

On By CarynIn Craft

I made a new inkle loom that can make longer bands. The design is based on a picture from an Estonian band weaving book that I saw on a blog post by Durham Weaver. I used poplar 1×2 boards and 3/4” dowels, predrilled wood pipe, carriage bolt and knob, small screws, 1/8” birch plywood which I laser cut for the side, a 3/4” Forstner bit to drill the holes, gimlet to make a starting hole, coping saw to cut the channel, and sand paper. The toughest part was cutting the channel for the tension rod, my coping saw skills are rusty, and sawing along the grain is difficult.

Photo description: channel cut in a 1×2” board to accommodate a carriage bolt holding a drilled dowel

I laser cut the removable side panel first, then missed my angles during assembly by 1 degree, so had to recut the panel. To get everything to dry in the right position, I glued in the dowels, then wiggled them into place in the side panel.

Photo description: side panel friction fit onto the glued-in dowels to hold them in place while they dried, dragonfly hole shapes added for decoration
Photo description: assembled inkle loom with scrap cotton yarn tracing the warp path

Next step is to apply a finish coat to protect the wood from finger oils.

Twined card: coconut husk

On By CarynIn Craft

I saw coconuts for sale at the grocery store, with the husk and fibers still attached and had to buy some to experiment. I pulled off and processed the husk, separating the coir fiber from the peat, the began to twine. This is unpleasant fiber to work with. It is rough and short, but it is strong.

Photo description: laser cut flat wooden spool with twine make from coconut husk fibers

I see why the coconut coir fiber is used for thick mats to scrape off shoes, and heavy duty brushes. There are actually many interesting uses for coconut husk, the rest of mine will be used as mulch.