Because the cat gets a little perturbed when I rest the loom on her rump, I laid a yard stick across the arms of my chair to prop up my weaving. She is OK having her own shed (that is weaver humor, by the way).
I can neither confirm nor deny that I am doing last minute gift weaving.
Happy Holidays and good luck with last minute projects.
I had to peel an apple for my youngest because she has braces and needs it peeled and sliced. As I applied peeler to skin, I gave a try at getting it all off in one unbroken go. The removed peel makes a nice double spiral with some pleasing shade shifts. Glad all that fine motor practice on other crafts comes in handy.
I’ve been experimenting with dealing with the ends of the yarn when weaving. I tried my standard way that I use for knitting and crochet, which involves running the end through the work and back again, which leaves visible traces. Then I tried splitting the yarn and weaving in sections, which gives a much nicer finish.
Yes, splitting the ends and weaving in the sections triples the times I thread a needle, but I think the end result is worth it.
So I’m learning. I blocked (got it wet, laid it flat to dry) my variegated yarn washcloth, and although the pattern of the yarn was interesting, my edges are definitely wonky. The sides are a little better where I used the meet and separate method described in Rebecca Mezoff’s book, and it also changed the variegation pattern, which is neat. (The three sections where the lines are thicker are done with two bundles of yarn, rather than taking one bundle all the way across.)
What I liked: the way the meet and separate weaving method made thicker lines.
What I learned: adding a twined pass at the bottom helps space the warp threads. I added another twined pass at the top for balance.
I have learned a new skill! Hurray! I have probably been watching too much Forged in Fire; I had a desire to learn to set a pin in wood, which they don’t actually show how on the screen. Turns out, it is not that difficult. Getting the holes set evenly is another matter!
First, I drilled holes the size of my brass wire. My drill bit was the exact size, so I had to ream it out some to get the wire through. When drilling, support the back of the piece with scrap wood. By drilling into the scrap wood, you reduce the chance of blowing out the back of the hole (that is experience talking!)
I cut my wire flush and to about 1/4” longer than the width, so that when fully inserted, the wire sticks 1/8” out each side. The fit of the wire should be snug; I used a hammer to drive it through.
I took the work over to the vice, because it has a small anvil area. I used a ball peen hammer to mushroom over the ends of the wire. By hammering a few times, then flipping it over, I was able to flatten out both ends of the wire. I hammered around the edge of the wire (mostly, still practicing), rather than straight in the middle. This pushes the metal outward to round the end and wedge it into the wood.
To finish, I sanded off the top of the pin so the top was smooth. The resulting brass circle is larger the than the initial hole, and fills the hole completely, so I’m fairly confident it will hold. Fun! Now what else can I pin…
Critters and Craft 