StitchCraft - weaving

Children Weaving

Sat, 28 Aug 2010 11:51:51-0700

My little guy started weaving yesterday. He's making a bag for his beloved "Fluffy Bear". Fluffy bear is special. He's made out of alpaca fur and is the softest toy on the planet. He will show you Fluffy bear if you ask him when you're here. Fluffy bear likes white and light blue, so that was why those colors were picked.

Frost is a perfectionist even though he knows his parents mess up on a regular basis. When I tell him it doesn't have to be perfect, he gets frustrated with me and tells me to "be quiet mommy". I'm so happy he's discovering the serenity of weaving.

Learning Curve

Mon, 23 Aug 2010 06:59:06-0700

Well, my silk and mohair shawl is finished and boy, did I learn A LOT!!! First, never warp your loom with mohair. The fibers stick together when alternating between up shaft and down shaft. Next time, I'm going to use Blue Sky Alpaca Silk for the warp and the fluffy mohair for the weft. Even though it was trying, I went slowly and separated the fibers when I had to, to the tune of a 12 hour shawl.

It took me about 45 minutes to warp the loom, about 10 hours to weave and another hour to finish it with the fringe. It is beautiful and I love how the two colors of mohair blended for an ethereal silver-blue. And, it's really warm due to the silk. Here are all the pictures. It's nice to be a novice again!

Rovaniemi Mittens

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 14:16:21-0700

This last weekend I went to a Madrona Summer Workshop with Susanna Hansson on Rovaniemi Mittens. This continues my study of Baltic and Scandinavian knitting techniques. This Finnish Lapland technique class combines intarsia knitting and weaving. The Sami are mainly weavers, but some knitting is incorporated into their native costuming. Here's a picture of the Sami people of Rovaniemi.

This type of colorwork is like nothing else I've ever done in my 35 years of knitting. First, there are bobbins, just like intarsia, and each color (besides the main color) is held on a long needle above your work. You work in the round in the main color, and add the bobbins as you need them, in a particular order determined by the colors you choose and the color pattern. In the photograph on the left, you see my work in progress and the bobbins being held above the work on a long, straight needle.

This method echoes the back strap weaving of the Sami people. Here is a photograph of a Guatemalan woman weaving backstrap method. I did not find a photo of a Sami weaver.

Here is a picture of Susanna at the workshop. She's a fantastic instructor and very passionate about her work.

We learned how to add braids to our knitting. Here are some examples. On the left, is my sample swatch. Middle and left are swatches Susannah completed.

We learned how to finger weave a cord. It's much more substantial that I-cord and I like the look better.

Here are some examples of finished mittens and wrist cuffs.

The gauge of the mitts we made were 8.5 - 9 sts per inch. Here's an example of gage that was correct and gage too large.

If you're interested in learning about these knitting techniques, I'm going to do a demonstration in October. The demonstration will be on Rovaniemi and Bohus techniques. Susanna gave me permission to hold a demonstration at StitchCraft. More information about the upcoming demonstration will be posted in our October newsletter. Please go here to add yourself to the newsletter email list.

Gossamer Weaving, New Knitscene and Churchmouse Patterns

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 10:08:11-0700

Well, I warped the loom again this weekend and decided to make an ethereal shawl. I'm using Kid Silk Haze in Pearl and Heavenly. I'm so excited to get it finished. Did you know that weaving takes up less yarn than knitting or crochet? It's also rhythmical, and being a dancer, right up my alley. I'll post pictures when it's finished. It's done in plain weave and I'm beating it lightly so as to not crush the mohair halo. The first picture is right after I warped the loom.

There's a new Knitscene in the shop. It's the fall issue. I'm really loving some of the patterns in this one.

Our friends over on Bainbridge Island at Churchmouse Yarns and Teas have their own pattern line. These are great accessories. One of my favorites is the linen stitch scarf below.

We're Warped and Ready!!!

Wed, 02 Jun 2010 10:24:29-0700

Weaving is here!!!! We just started our first scarf project using Rowan Handknit cotton and Paigewood Farms Alyeska. Here's a picture of the work in progress.

We're weaving with a Schacht 20 inch Flip Rigid Heddle Loom. The looms come in 15 inch, 20 inch and 25 inch weaving widths. These looms are perfect for making towels, table runners, pillows, scarves, placemats, belts and more. The Flip is portable - it folds in half and is easy to take on a trip or a class. We have it on a stand in the shop, which can be purchased separately. All the looms we carry in the shop can use yarn right out of your stash. The looms are really simple to warp (the pink and green yarns that run vertically through your weaving).

If you do not want to invest in a larger loom, we carry the Cricket Loom. This has an 8 inch weaving width and is perfect for scarves and other small projects such as coasters and small handbags. The Cricket comes in a kit with everything you need to start weaving, including some yarn. The Cricket's are very small and portable.

Here are a couple of other projects that were woven by our instructor Linda G. If you are interested in taking a rigid heddle loom workshop with Linda, please call us at 360-993-2200. We're hoping to have a workshop date set for late summer. You have to purchase your own loom before the workshop begins. Our looms are set up in the shop so you can try your hand at weaving.

Books and Paigewood Farms Yarns

Mon, 24 May 2010 09:45:39-0700

We are re-stocked on Paigewood Farms Alyeska sock yarn and new in the shop is their Willow Creek Lace weight. It's 100% merino and at 675 yards, you could make a really nice rectangular or triangle shawl.

Here's what the latest shipment of books brought...

Knits men want is by far my favorite pattern book for men. It's written by a man and he's spot on when it comes to getting the point across. Tunisian lace stitches will be a nice compliment to our summer class (the class schedule will be delivered with the newsletter in a few days) on Beginning Tunisian crochet. Weaving made easy is a really great book for the beginner rigid heddle weaver. Our first shipment of Schacht looms are on their way. We will set one up in the shop so you can try one.

I really love Northern Knits. There are traditional, yet modern patterns in this book. Swedish, Norwegian and Icelandic and Shetland knitting is covered.