CORRECTED THREADING

Posted by Peg in South Carolina 

Here is the full draft of the version with the corrected threading.

   

 

 

 

In the third threading block, I needed to double the ends of shafts 3 and 7 where one of the points of that crackle twill unit in.  When I am dealing with the following crackle units, I always have trouble figuring out things. 

1. The third crackle unit threading in this draft:  1 4 3 4
2. The fourth crackle unit threading in this draft:  1 2 1 4

In the first threading unit (1 2 3 2 1) and in the second threading unit (2 3 4 3 2) it is visually clear to me where the turning points are.  But visually, it is not so clear to me in the third and fourth units.  Just a funny quirk in the way my mind works, I guess.

And here is the miniaturized version of draft with the corrected threading but with the treadling doubled at the points to reflect the threading.

Correcting the threading did nothing about the slant on the left side of the draft, but it did eliminate the messy business between that slant and the horizontal effect right side of the draft.

 

 

Related Post:  Crackle in Paralle Shadow Weave Drafts Compared

(Yes, I made a mistake in the title of the post. I should correct it…………..)

“Corrected Threading”  was written by Margaret Carpenter for Talking about Weaving and was originally posted on April 16, 2010. ©2010 Margaret Carpenter aka Peg in South Carolina

CRACKLE IN PARALLEL SHADOW WEAVE

Posted by Peg in South Carolina 

I decided to begin with applying the shadow weave concept to crackle. Shadow weave, after all, can be considered a kind of interleaving in the sense that two drafts are interleaved.  In this case of parallel shadow weave the two drafts are the same, not different.

I knew this had already been done, and I knew I had a book with some drafts.  But whenever I looked at those drafts in the past, I had just scratched my head in puzzlement.  So I decided to take one of those drafts and see if I could understand it.

 

This is a long draft, so only the first quarter of the draft is shown.  But here is an image of what the whole thing looks like, reduced.  Here the design resulting from the color and weave effect is apparent.

This draft I found in A Weaver’s Book of 8-Shaft Patterns edited by Carol Strickler (the copyright notice is for the image, not for the actual draft).  It is #502 by Dorothy N. Smith (page 138).  It is defined as crackle in parallel shadow weave.  The reason for the name can be seen in both the threading and the treadling.  A 4 shaft crackle threading is placed on the first four shadows.  Reading right to left:

1,2,3,4,4,3,2,2,3,4,1,2,2,1,4,3,3,4,1,1,4,3,2,2,3,4,4,3,2,1,1,2,3,3,2

Forget for a moment that this is the strangest crackle threading I have ever seen…..

The threading on the first four shafts is done on every other opening.  These openings are filled in on shafts four through eight.  The threading on shafts four through eight is precisely the same as that on the first four shafts.  Each thread on the first four shafts is followed by another thread on what would be the same shaft on the second four shafts.  Thus the threading on the top four shafts parallels (and shadows)the threading on the first four shafts.

And the same thing happens with the treadling.  And I find the treadling also quite strange as a crackle treadling.

One of the things I had trouble figuring out was the tieup.  It took me quite a while to realize what was happening.

The lower left quadrant of the tieup is standard tie-up for 4 shaft crackle. 1,2;  2,3;  3,4;  1,4.   The upper right quadrant is standard tie-up for 4 shaft crackle for threading on shafts 5-8,

The upper left and the lower right ties up the shafts not tied up by the lower left and the upper right respectively.

Now what I need to figure out is the threading.  I simply do not understand it.  I am pretty much clear about the shadowing of the first set of 4 shafts with the second set of 4 shafts.  What I simply do not understand is that threading, isolated on the one set of shafts.  How does that come from a crackle threading?

As I am groggy on prescription analgesics and muscle relaxants, and will be for awhile, understanding this threading may take awhile……….

Related Post:  Shadow Weave Continued

“Crackle in Parallel Shadow Weave”  was written by Margaret Carpenter for Talking about Weaving and was originally posted on April 2, 2010. ©2010 Margaret Carpenter aka Peg in South Carolina

BLOGS TO VISIT

Posted by Peg in South Carolina

My New Cone Winder – Woven’N’Spun

An ingenious way of using a bobbin winder and a foam cone to wind yarn onto a cone.  The only thing she forgets to say is that the yarn must be wound moving rapidly up and down, crisscrossing the cone. This way, layers of yarn don’t dig into earlier layers of yarn and the whole thing will unwind smoothly. 

If you spindle spin, you will recognize this as the way you wind the spun yarn onto the spindle. 

If  you spin on a wheel with a WooLee Winder, it winds the spun yarn on in the same way which is why those bobbins are wound much tighter and firmer that on wheels without WooLee Winders.

Woven Ratios an essay by Barbara Walker on WeaveZine.

This piece really appealed to me because it is about a weaving technique I have been playing with (in my head) and thinking about as a good way to use my hand spun yarn.  The weaving technique is called color-and-weave, but what is different about Walker’s piece is that she analyzes how to use color in terms of intensity or strength and proportion when developing a color and weave drawdown. 

Her discussion of color is applicable to weaving structures in general. 

When she discusses intensity, she is not so interested in the varying intensities a single color can have, but a comparison of the intensities of the different hues.  This is because she is interested in teaching how one can successfully use two different hues which seem quite strident by getting the proportions right in terms of the amount of each hue that is used.

Temples…love ‘em or hate ‘em – Dust Bunnies Under My Loom

I have not been using temples lately.  Lynnette has reminded me how useful they can be.  For those who don’t really know how to use this tool, do check out her post.

Imaging Weaves – Curiousweaver

A very interesting post on fashion drawing.  In her discussion she gives a link to a fascinating download of fashion templates.  I intend on downloading it. 

Meanwhile, I have tried my own experiment by copying and pasting a Vogue pattern image into Paint Shop Pro and playing with it.   It would be hard to draw a scarf on it with a mouse and I don’t have a Wacom tablet. 

 

 

 

 

 

“Blogs to Visit” was written by Margaret Carpenter for Talking about Weaving and was originally posted on March 25, 2009. ©2009 Margaret Carpenter aka Peg in South Carolina

DIGITAL PRINTING ON WOVEN FABRIC

Cally has written a marvelous post about an exhibit she went to where she saw handwoven fabric which was also digitally printed.   She makes it very clear how she thinks it was done and conveys great enthusiasm over the possibilities this method of working hold.

I have always had some difficulty with the notion of surface design on handwovens.  But Cally has revealed possibilities for surface design where the weaving is integral to the surface design itself.

Go here to read the post.

© 2008

COLOR-AND-WEAVE: THREE COLORS

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are two examples of four-shaft straight draw twill, treadled straight.   This time, however, three colors are used. Each of the draft has a different color order.   And each of the drafts follows the color order of the threading in the treadling.

The left draft looks remarkably like the classic hounds tooth check.

LARGE DESIGNS

Notice how with color-and-weave that you can get larger designs than you might think possible, even with a four shaft loom.

TEXTURES

Instead of two or three colors, yarns with two or three different textures can be used.

Related Post:   Color-and-Weave

© 2008

CRACKLE SCARF MORPHS INTO...?

When I began weaving this crackle scarf, I kept looking at it. Looking at it with a question mark. I just didn't see a scarf. I didn't see the beginning of a scarf. I touched it. Frequently. It did not say "scarf." It kept saying---dare I say the words?--art piece.

There, I've said it. Saying it makes it more difficult for me to back away and change my mind. Saying it means commitment.

ART CLOTH VS ART PIECE

Constance Rose recently said it. Go here to read the post where she talks about her decision to commit to the creation of art cloth. Not art pieces; art cloth.

I Googled the phrase. Every site Google brings up links art cloth in some way with yardage and/or wearables. That is just how I viewed art cloth. I am not weaving art cloth.

I call what I am attempting to do an "art piece" because it will never have any connection with either yardage or wearables. (It won't even be a scarf). It will be closer to tapestry than to art cloth. But it will not be tapestry.

SELF-DELUSION IN SOLITUDE?

Am I simply deluding myself? Robert Genn sent out an email to his Painter's Keys subscribers. That email stopped me in my tracks. In it he talks about the dangers of working in solitude. Here is a passage that made my blood run cold::

"We all know of artists who are forever in a state of euphoric bliss about their essentially crummy art. These folks may rationalize that joy itself is enough, but it isn't. Pleasing yourself is loaded with potential self-deceit."

This is the danger of working in solitude. And since moving to South Carolina, I am definitely a solitary weaver.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE

However, while I may be finding myself in a "state of euphoric bliss," there is trouble in paradise. Trouble of a technical nature.

To read Genn's entire piece, called Kalopsia, as well as comments made by his readers, go here.

Related Links

Weaving and Art
Weaving as Fine Art
Fiber Art as Fine Art

© 2008

COLOR-AND-WEAVE

In an early April post, I mentioned that I wanted to use color-and-weave effects for a handspun shawl I plan to design. 

I also plan to use color-and-weave effects for some towels for my daughter.  She has looked longingly on two different visits at some old cotton dish towels I wove and has virtually begged for some. How can I deny her?!  Weaving dish towels would give me a chance to pretty much just throw the shuttle without having to do too much thinking about it.  Maybe I could even listen to music!

WHAT IS COLOR-AND-WEAVE?

Color-and-weave is not a weave structure.  It is a particular way of using color no matter what the weave structure.

More specifically, color-and-weave means combining a particular color sequence in the warp yarns with the same or a different particular color sequence in the weft yarns. The result is a fabric where color creates designs, not stripes. Two colors are most frequently used, but one can design color and-weave-effects with three or more colors.

SOME SAMPLE DRAFTS

This first draft is a straight draw twill on four shafts.  It is threaded in two colors, alternating one by one. The treadling is a straight treadling.  And it too is treadled with two colors, alternating throw by throw.

 

Here is the same straight draw twill twith two colors alternating in the threading.  the treadling is also straight.  But now three shots of light weft alternate with one shot of dark weft.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here is yet another treadling variant.  Now one shot of white weft alternates with two shots of dark weft. 

TREADLED FOR PLAIN WEAVE

And of course this threading could be treadled as plain weave. The result is still another color-and-weave effect.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Here are three good books that I have which are devoted specifically to color-and-weave.

Ann Sutton, Color-and-Weave Design.   Go here for some interesting information on Ann Sutton.
Margaret B. Windeknecht, Color-and-Weave II
Margaret B. Windeknecht, The Pinwheel: An Exploration in Color-and-Weave Design

WEAVING PROJECT WITH PAPER

Also, Handwoven has a weaving project available on the internet about how to weave paper coasters using color-and-weave.  Go here to download it as a pdf file.

SPINNING FOR WEAVING

GREEN WOOL FIBER

The green wool fiber made by Crosspatch Creations arrived two weeks ago from The Bellwether. I finished up the orange fiber I was spinning and started spinning this.

I love this fiber It is made up of Corriedale crossbreds, tussah silk, and silk noils. Some of those silk noils are even orange.

WEAVING A SHAWL

I am beginning to think about weaving. Not the current crackle project but something quite different. I'm thinking about a shawl.

I want to combine this yarn I am currently spinning with the orange yarn I have just finished spinning (but have yet to ply).

COLOR-AND-WEAVE

I want to do some kind of color-and-weave with a twill warp. At first I had thought about shadow weave. I dearly love shadow weaver and would like to explore six- and eight-shaft shadow weave.

The problem with shadow weave is that it based on plain weave. Plain weave fabrics do not drape very well. Their drape can be improved by sett and beat as well as by yarn selection. But in essence, plain weave creates a relatively firm fabric. Twill drapes.

TWILL VERSUS PLAIN WEAVE

I could open up the plain weave sett to improve its drape. But then the resulting fabric becomes schlocky and threads will want to move around.

Since I want to weave a shawl (preferably) or a scarf, I really want a weave structure that will drape nicely but at the same time is not schlocky.

And there are all kinds of color-and-weave possibilities within a twill structure.

FAROESE KNITTED SHAWL

A couple of years ago I knit a Faroese shawl. The structure of the shawl creates a garment which is really all-bias and drapes beautifully around the shoulders. A woven twill shawl which is simply a rectangle will not drape this well. But it hopefully will drape more nicely than a shawl woven in plain weave.

So twill it will be.

.