From the Wall to the Table

This 2/30 cotton warp is from my attempt to weave something to frame, see blog post here.  I had to decide if I wanted to proceed with the project or ditch it for something else.  So, while I was deciding the warp sat on the loom for a couple of days, just looking at me reproachfully!

I decided to ditch the original plan and weave a pretty table runner instead and I was instantly happier!  Looking through the multitude of drafts we have on PCW I found a lovely one that is 12 shafts and that perfectly used my 720 ends.  I still needed to add some extra heddles to some of the shafts, so I made them out of brown orlec, so I could find them later. I like to evenly distribute the extra tied on heddles on the shaft to make sure the tension remains constant.

I prefer to add heddles than to move heddles around because the black shaft holders on the Louet Spring, which I call biting penguins, are quite hard to remove and the top beak bites into your thumb as you push it through the texsolv, nasty.

Is it a coincidence Mom and I are both using the same colour of weft, light blue, for our weaving projects?  Mine is 2/16 bamboo and hers is 2/8 Tencel and both are lovely.

Here is the start of the table runner; I have woven 6 inches for the hem and the first repeat of the main box pattern.  I like this a lot!  Those streaks of white aren’t part of the warp, they are the texsolv on the treadles showing through.  This table runner is really fine.

At the end of the table runner I finished my pirn with only a few inches left.  So I measured out and then hand wound the next pirn so I didn’t have any weft leftover on a pirn.  And yes the picture is blurry, sorry.

This table runner wove up quite quickly so I don’t have a lot of pictures.  I originally put on only 3 yards, after cutting of the piece that I painted, I had an unknown amount left.  In the end I wove about 41 inches plus the hem.  But I used every last inch of the warp, definitely can’t get any closer to the heddles then this!

I finished weaving the runner yesterday, so I still have to wash and hem it but it is off the loom.  Yes, I only took this photo to show off my pretty pink Christmas tree sitting in the front window!

Final Garden Shot is a blue star juniper (Juniperus squamata "Blue Star") we finally had some sunshine yesterday after days of heavy fog.  The water droplets on the juniper twinkled in the sun.