Monday, May 19, 2008

THOSE PESKY SELVEDGE LOOPS AGAIN

The loops at the selvedge were becoming less frequent.  But they were still there.   So I added a new trick.  Before I throw a shot (well, actually, before I  hand a pirn through the shed), I decided to pull that weft yarn a bit to make sure it was tight there.   Two things happened after that.  First, the loops have disappeared.   Second, when I pull on a weft yarn I sometimes see a loop that I am pulling out.

So I am now pretty much using three "tricks" to get the weft thread laid in correctly. 

  1. First, I clear the shed down at the fell.  I have to do this on only two of the six treadles. 
  2. Then I have to pull the weft yarn away from the selvedge before I hand that pirn through the shed from one hand to the other. 
  3. Then I have to loop the weft yarn coming through the shed over a finger of the receiving end with just a bit of tension, and then beat the shed while i let the weft slide over that finger.

None of this is habit right now, so weaving is taking intense concentration, simply from a technical point of view.   I have, I think, five yards of warp on.   Will all this have become a habit by the end?!!!!

© 2008

3 comments:

Dorothy said...

This is what handweaving is about in practice, isn't it? Watching what you are doing, attending to the detail.

However, when I think about it, my neighbour who worked in a weaving mill on industrial production was employed to mind a loom - so the industrial process is also about concentrating on the weaving and watching what is happening in case of anything going wrong, so that you can put it right.

Peg in South Carolina said...

I guess even machines can't be trusted always to get it right!

Leigh said...

I wish I could picture this. Sounds like very good problem solving.