Looming on the field ;)

Yesterday I was able to head out to an event and just hang out weaving and spinning a little on the side of the field.  It was fun.  The warp that the class built a couple months ago is a little wonky (the tension is a little off), but I still managed to weave about a foot while I was out there. It's having a draw-in problem that I suspect is due to inconsistent tension when the warp was card woven. Regardless,  it was nice to just weave and chat with people.  I like to explain how the loom works and I hope there will be more people joining me in the future.
   I was reminded of the old problem of dissatisfaction that people who make things often face.  I carry around various pieces that different classes have woven or I have made for practice.  I don't use them for anything as they are just practice in my book.  One woman really liked them and wanted to know what I planned to do with them. She really wanted to use one as a bag strap.  Since I had no plan for it, I gave it to her. Because they are practice pieces, I considered them inferior. She's not the first person to ask, but most everyone else is a friend and I thought they were just being nice - Lesson learned.

Yes...I'm in the background.  I'm lucky that Gabriel is so adorable so I have a picture :)

It's good to have goals...

Hopefully, at some point in the future, I'll be able to do this:

http://norwegiantextileletter.com/article/diamond-twill-woven-on-a-warp-weighted-loom/

Diamond twill on a warp weighted loom.  I'm confident at tabby and basket weave, so a 2/2 twill is next...

Some additions to the Coronation clothes...

Do you ever start a project and realize you could easily go on for months without stopping, but there's a due date and you have to finish whether you want to or not?  That's what it felt like for Ardien and Lisa's clothes.  So...I took them back and added some more things. 

Mainly finished some stitching on Lisa's dress. Added 14 hand drawn triskeles, embroidered in blue silk using split stitch and satin stitch.  I don't profess to be an expert embroidered - I think I'm soundly in the "she tried real hard" category, but they came out pretty well.

 I also added some additional hand stitching around the neck of Ardien's tunics.  I used a stitch called Cable Chain stitch as it looked like a Knight's chain to me.  I used silver and blue silk.

Given my time frame and the parameters personally and artistically that I had to work in, I'm pretty happy without how they turned out over all.   I could still keep going, but I'm happier with the additions and they wanted to wear their clothes :)

Taught another warp weighted weaving class at an event in August

Today there was a local teaching event put on by the Barony of Marcaster (St. Pete area of Florida).  I taught another warp weighted weaving class. I think it went well.  Those that stayed and hung out with me learned the basic mechanics.  I was happy that when I went to lunch, they were able to finish the warp themselves.  When I came back we were then able to work as a group to finish building the new warp and adding the weights.  The hardest part about teaching a warp weighted loom class is the length of time required.  Warping is not a speedy process and when I teach at a class event, people tend to wander in and out because there are other classes that they want to take.  I find it best to just start in the morning and keeping going to then end of the day.  People wander in and ask questions, learn a bit, and wander back out. 

 What you can see in the picture is my Oseburg tablet weaving loom and my warping board (travel size).  In this picture, the loom has ten cards on it and they are alternating S and Z.  Not only does this make a pretty herringbone pattern, but it creates a strong band for the warp to hand from (trick I learned at Pennsic from Mistress Thora).  I started this warp and was very happy to come back and find they had worked on it so we could pick back up after lunch.

After a weeks of sewing in every free minute I had, I finished Ardien and Lisa's Coronation clothes.  All period materials and period techniques whenever possible.  All visible stitching except the hems and internal seams were done by hand - and I still want to do more so I brought the clothes back home with me.  All trim was hand woven (not by me this time - between kids and work, just wasn't enough time).
Keep watching for updates as I add more to them I'll post more detailed pictures.

Making progress...

Another day, a little more progress.  This is another cuff in progress.  This one is a bit brighter blue silk:

Current Clothing Project

So I'm working on a clothing project at the moment. It's an early Norman outfit for a man and a woman.  As I'm working on pieces I will post them here.
I posted this pic on a Facebook page so I figured I should post it here too.
It's blue silk with Triskele rondels in silver silk.  This was all done with split stitch.

Great picture from the Carolingian Utrecht psalter!

While looking for period tents, a friend came across this picture! I love it :)

It's not every day you see Anglo-saxon women preparing a warp and weaving under a pavilion :)

There is so much to see in this picture.  The women's clothing, the furniture, the pavilion, and the loom. 

It's been a crazy year!

A whole year has passed.  Did I stop making things? No, but I sure didn't post anything.  Between a job change at work, kids, and life it's just been crazy.
I'll try and do a recap.
Due to a super active toddler in the house, setting up my loom has been difficult.  A lovely lady (Thanks Jen!) gifted me with a spinning wheel and I've been working on it to be able to produce warps in the future.  I'm a decent at drop spinning, but time is an issue and I honestly like using the wheel for the same reason I like weaving - it's soothing.
Other than spinning, the majority of my projects have been sewing.
Garb has been seen for family and friends.
I'm almost finished with a men's Elizabethan hat.  While looking at late period things...I got distracted by some drawn thread/pulled thread work.  Made a hanky...started a 2nd :)
I'll hopefully be posting pictures of these various projects soon, as well as pictures from a warp weighted weaving class that I taught last year and one I'll be teaching this weekend. I'm still only working with one heddle bar, but I feel ready to work on harder patterns now that I have a firm grasp on the process and mechanics.
Talk to you all soon!

Well, chalk this piece up to a learning curve.  I was kind of frazzled and in a hurry when I was warping because I just wanted to get something up and weaving on the loom because we were at a demo.  I didn't think very long or very hard about how much warp I truly needed to be sure I had...and I should have.  I also should have known better! Hindsight being 20/20...Oh, well :)
So, I will have to find a use for this piece.  It's roughly 2.5 inches wide by around 52 inches long.  Certainly not long enough for the leg wraps that I originally had in mind.  
That being said, I learned more about how to weave on the loom and I know my next project will be that much better because of it.

I rolled some up...and I can see things I need to work on.

So I've rolled it up some.  It really shows how much draw-in I have at the top which I'm not happy about.  But, since this is only the third time I've warped a wwl, I'm trying not to be to upset about it - just taking note and learning for next time.
My working hypothesis is that I need to weave the header band tighter.  This would cause the warp threads to be closer together and there would be less draw in.  Besides the very first bit, it's still fairly uniform.  I find it harder to stay uniform with the constant stopping and starting, but life makes it necessary.  I'll be done with the current warp by this weekend.  I'll be teaching a class on warp weighted weaving the following weekend - which means the second leg wrap will be started for sure. 

Going to teach a class on warp weighted weaving soon!

I'm starting to get excited about the idea of teaching a class on warp weighted weaving at a local SCA event.  My plan is to hopefully have the Oseburg loom by then so I can have warps in various stages for people to try it out. 

I was thinking of having it set up like this:

One warp on the Oseburg loom so that people can try building the warp and can see the mechanics of it.

One warp sewn onto the Warp Weighted loom so then they can try it out.

We'll start by everyone doing a few passes on the Oseburg loom (hopefully) and then we can move on to the chaining, weaving of heddles, adding weights, and actually weaving.  I guessed that the class part may last about four hours - but I am sure that people will wander in and out as there are many classes happening at the same time.  I think I'll end up doing an overview to start out with and then just keep it going as people have time to pop in and out...and I have to make a handout.

Sometimes reading the stats for this blog are interesting...

I am glad that I started recording things on this blog again as I find that I enjoy looking at the stats and it makes me happy to think that people might be learning more about warp weighted weaving by reading about my meandering path of trial and error.

That being said...

You have to wonder what was happening on May 5, 2014 that 61 people looked at a blog about warp weighted weaving :)

I also find it interesting all of the people from different countries that have viewed the blog.

Here is the breakdown by country so far for the month of May:

United States	144
Sweden	13
Denmark	4
Dominican Republic	4
Australia	3
Czech Republic	3
Germany	3
China	2
Poland	2
Canada	1

I'm ready for my first "roll up"...

 Was able to get some weaving done the beginning of this week.  The weaving is approximately 27" inches long at this point - fairly even (there is one spot I'm not as happy with, but I'm trying to be better about just leaving it and not obsessing about it...) and about 2.5 inches wide...or so (again trying not to obsess..).

I rolled it up some to test and I'm pretty sure I won't have to drop the weights and tie them lower until the next roll up.
 

Wonderful hubby has agreed to make me a new tablet loom...

I'm so excited! It will make warping the loom easier :) 

Hopefully this weekend, since we are home, my plan is to set the loom up and get some weaving done during nap time. 

We shall see...keep your fingers crossed!

...and now I need to start asking my patient husband for an Oseberg tablet weaving loom.

Before I start the next leg wrap, I'd like to have one of these:











 This is the Oseberg find tablet weaving loom.  Up until now I have been doing all my tablet weaving on my inkle loom or back-strap, but after using one of these to help warp the loom at Pensic a few years ago, I now know that this is a much easier way.  Why make it harder than it needs to be?

Here is one that someone else has already built and is using to weave the header band for a warp weighted loom:







Look how pretty their warp is all chained up!

Hopefully I'll be able to set-up my loom in the house soon and finish the band that is currently in progress.

Pictures of me warping the loom at the Ren Faire :)

A big thank you to Mistress Maol for taking some pictures of me and my loom at the Ren Faire Demo.  I never remember to ask someone to take pictures of me doing something - I'll take them of what I'm doing, just not me doing it :)

 These are pictures of me chaining the warp.  This keeps the sheds clear so that threads don't "migrate" and it causes the sheds to move together better.

 


 

 Theses are the new, easier to transport without breakage, weights that my husband made.  They are pieces of travertine tile shaped to look like period weights.  They travel so much better than the unfired clay and they are a lot cheaper. 

 

Amazing videos from the Norsk Folke Museum

While trying searching different combinations of words related to warp weighted weaving, I stumbled upon a treasure trove of documentary videos published by the Norsk Folkemuseum 

The videos are silent documentaries that have screen card explanations of what's happening (the same as the old black and white movies from the 1920's here).  They were all shot in the late 1940s to mid 1950's. I am so excited - I wish I could read Norwegian (I'll have to translate some of it when I get a chance). It's very interesting to see all the different variations as it seems each weaver or weavers has their own method in warping their loom.

Group of  house wives in 1950's Norway warping a loom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a19lGJGOZWY

Woman using a warp weighted loom to weave a strap.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZL7tYOT8KpU

These are my favorite - They show in detail from start to finish the warping and weaving of a rug/bed cover.  The first video doesn't have as much weaving, but it shows the rugs/bed covers in their many uses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XUm2JvsLzx8 Video 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxA1bpj6lB0 Video 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PD-FASC6ZQ Video 3 

You tube videos that show a demonstration done in England in 2011

I found these on You Tube -

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhngvOSaxes

Her loom is warped with three heddle bars with looks to be a diamond twill.  You can also clearly see how she has used packs of cards on either side to add a selvage edge to the fabric.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FDTDIVUmk4

In the second video you can really see how important the pin beater is to scallop the weft up - especially in a wide and more complex pattern like she is weaving...

Parking these here so I can watch them a few more times :)

So starts the research for peiod warp thread materials...

With weaving, especially on a weighted loom using hand spun wool, the kind of roving/wool used is very important.
Why? It's simple - stretch.  Short staple (the length of the fibers) stretch.  It's great for things that are knitted, crocheted, or even Naalbound, but not for weaving.  For weaving stretch is not a good thing and adding weight just makes it stretch more.
So what I'm looking for is a long staple wool, from an unaltered breed.
Unaltered breed - what's that you say?
Well, as you may or may not know, people like to tinker with mixing different breeds of animals together to produce an animal that is better suited to their needs.  This is normally not a bad thing, however, for the purpose of authenticity, using an unaltered breed is the best idea. (i.e.Anglo-Saxons would not have has access to wool from a sheep that didn't exist until 1847 :)
Lucky for me, England is actually into preserving unaltered breeds and ordering my roving is now just a few clicks away...Yay inter-webs!

Here is a website that I found that carries roving from unaltered breeds here in the US:
http://www.spinderellas.com/lwsheepbreeds.html

For my purpose I may use this one:

Cotswold originated in the hills of Gloucestershire, England from indigenous stock and is one of the oldest breeds known to us. It has contributed to the ancestry of other breeds in UK and Europe. It is large with a white face, wool on the legs, with a characteristic lock of wool on the forehead. Cotswold sheep are noted for their long, strong fiber, with lustrous natural wavy curls.

• AVERAGE FIBER DIAMETER
  Micron 33-40
  USDA Wool Grade 36’s-46’s
• GREASE FLEECE WEIGHT Ewe 12-15 lbb - WASHING YIELD 60%
• STAPLE LENGTH 12-15" - though many are sheared twice a year.