silk worms

Image from fb.

Jeanne C. WoodPotters with Period Personas

Pottery for uses other than foods. This young Thai gentleman is spinning silk using traditional methods. The pot below holds a raging fire, the pot above boils the silk cocoons. Both pots were at least 1" thick.

Sprang Tapestry

Designing a sprang-framed tapestry.  Got the idea at the fiber retreat.  What if I started a sprang piece, then when it got to about the middle third, cap it off with skewers and start weaving a tapestry on the remaining "warp" threads.

I would make a sprang piece about 6" wide, so the middle section would be 5" or so high (to allow for tapestry draw in).

I can see how difficult it is to needle weave it on the sprang frame.  If it's too elastic, I can remove it to a more stable card loom or foam core board, depending.  The sprang bits at the top and bottom could be stabilized and left to hang, or be pinned back out of the way.

When it comes to displaying the tapestry, it will hang from a bar at the top of the sprang and one from the bottom.  More if necessary to display the sprang bits.  Have to see how it acts.  Can't have it pulling in the tapestry, but the tapestry might be firm enough to hold the sprang open.

I'll work up a sketch.

And here's a sample cobbled together from a sprang piece and a tapestry:

saber tooth tiger

Sprang Class Prep.

Sprang Class Prep - Fiber Retreat


Loom warped up for sprang bag from a previous class.  Dowels, skewers, string placeholders, warp, bobbin.

Stretcher bars for the new class:

Warping a 2-color sample on the demo loom:

Each band is 10 loops wide.  13 bands so far.  This is for a cap which will be at least 150 loops, possibly more.


I am tying on the new color at each change.  There are ways to wrap and continue, but I didn't find that workable.  I'll cut and tuck all strings eventually.


But this is a piece to work techniques.  The class project will be simpler.

Students may want to try lacy holes, but they don't work well on tiny bags.  ;->


170 loops, 11" span.

 Detail.

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Class loom warped up with 2 colors, alternating, 10 loops each.


I cut the dowels 12", but 11" will fit better within the frame rim.

Following Blue's videos, there are a number of things you can do with 2 colors this way.
http://www.denblauwenswaen.nl/public/sites/dutch/technieken/sprang.htm

Specific 2-color youtube video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlUw9DQbIqw

And I have a couple ideas for myself.  So I'm going to play around with it a bit.


It's easy to tell if the loops are crossed with 2 colors.

Making shapes and changing directions.

More changes on color and direction.

When it gets too tight to work with your fingers, switch to skewers to pick up and hold twists.  Working the center -- leaving in the thread placeholders now to become the bottom and tassels of the bag.

Tapestry needle pulls tassel cords thru the shed.  Move one up and the other one down.

 When done, tie the tassels and pull them tight.

 Add the pull cords to the loops at top and bottom and take the bag off the loom.

Sew up the sides, run the pull cords thru both sets of loops.  Ta-da!  Sprang bag.

I like the 2-color alternating wrap.  Make more 2-color twinings before I go for shapes and directions.


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Another sample bag:

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A shaky and qualified success at plaiting:

I'm pretty sure I've got the hang of the right side (the beginning) but I'm still a little shaky about the left side (the finishing).  Getting there!  8-]

Ok, some notes.  It's all in 1\1.  And you have to shift one thread from the row just finished to the other side before you begin the next row.  There's a need to do that at the other end as well, but I'm still contemplating that move and haven't internalized it yet.

As each pass in only 1 thread to begin (an A), in order to actually cross and not make a big hole you have to move that first thread.  Essentially you're wrapping the first two threads around each other before you begin plaiting.  Clearly you can see that it's working 'cuz the triangles are on the move.

Spinning & Plying at Loscon 38

Here's what I spun up and chain plyed at Loscon this weekend.  It's Joan Contraman's Dolphin Tails.  I love Joan's batts.  We used to be in Designing Weavers together, before she moved to Montana.

Fiber Artist Bio

I had to make a bio page for an art gallery show I'm in, and tho I couldn't upload it here, I was able to more or less recreate it on my facebook page here:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=789000690&sk=notes#!/notes/ellen-shipley/ellen-shipley-woodcuts/10150417474201520

It's weighted toward printmaking because that's what I've got in the show.  ;-j

Double Woven Edges

Brilliant!  Check out Alice Schlein's Weaverly blog post featuring double woven edges:
http://weaverly.typepad.com/weaverly/2011/11/829-finished.html

I detest weaving edges, whether on a shawl or a towel, what-have-you.  Fringe takes forever to twine, and I don't like leaving it loose.  I've never cared for folding over and sewing either.  But this technique shows promise.

Start and end with double weave (and on a later post she shows you how to do that even on 4 harnesses:
http://weaverly.typepad.com/weaverly/2011/11/double-weave-hems.html).  When off the loom tuck the ends into the "tube" and whip closed.  Nice clear finish.  8-]

My SCA Device

This is the mini-tapestry of my device for the Laurel's Cope.  I'm unsure how to deal with the back of the tapestry.  I've only ever mounted mini-tapestries to be framed, never to be work on a garment as a badge, and I'm unsure what is required.

front

back

And here it is on the Laurel's Cope at Coronation.  8-]

Sneaking a try-out of the cope.  ;->