Pohutukawa Knit blanket

 What do you do with your thrums?

For the uninitiated thrums are the waste yarn left at the end of every project warp, the 10 to 15 inches of yarn left from cut off point to back rod.

When I weave blankets the warps are all a double knit or 8 ply thickness and I keep tying one warp to the next until I can't get a full 8 metre length on the back beam.  I then take all the waste off the loom and start again.

But what to do with the waste; all lovely had dyed yarn in about 3 metre lengths.  So I keep them in reasonable order and start winding it into a ball tying the next length as I go.  I've probably said before I live about 50 minutes from the nearest city so if Pete is driving that's a lot of knitting time each way to say nothing of sitting outside the "Men" shops, Bunnings, Mitre 10 etc.  I'm not a great traveler but can manage garter stitch without having to look at it.

Aren't the patterns in the lighter strips wonderful - pure fluke.  Each of those strips had 40 stitches, the dark reds had 20 stitches and I think the centre panel had 60 stitches but that wasn't so good for travel especially getting to the end of the 400 rows.  It got heavy and awkward to work.

This organic side with all the knots reminds me of a cloak or korowai.
Now available at Pauanesia shop.

Using up Thrums

Well that was a surprise, I went looking for the post on this blue thrums blanket and found it was still a draft from . August . last . year.  I remember I loaded the picture so I could post while on holiday in Italy.  Guess the trip was so special I never gave you all a thought.

Those who have followed my blog for a while know I weave a lot of blankets from hand dyed yarn.  I tie one warp on to the next and end up with a lot of short pieces of thread knotted together.  I don't like to throw them away.  I live 20 minutes from the nearest village, 50 minutes from the nearest city so thats a lot of knitting time when I'm a passenger.  Garter stitch is the choice so I can watch the road and inform the driver if his skills need attention.  Its also a good pick up job late at night in front of the box.

This one is based on a pattern by Frankie Brown and not only are the blue bands and the border thrums, the white areas are all different yarns left over from projects so a win win.

I tried various ways of joining the squares and ended up crocheting them together on the thrums side.  Have to say that wasn't easy and took forever.

 This blanket would be big enough to use on a single bed.  Very snuggly.

 And there has been weaving happening.  A glorious sunny but breezy day, perfect for drying the sixth series of Anawhata blankets soon to be on display at the best New Zealand gift store, Pauanesia. 

And, of course, there are thrums left!

ArtWaikino Exhibition

 Hand dyed warp threads.

Lovely fine NZ merino.

One thread from each chain on to the loom

 First scarf woven turned taquete.

Beautiful drape.

Second scarf off that warp woven advancing point twill.

"Coral Habitat"

Twill close up.

"Chromatic Interlude"

(You saw this in a previous post

but read to the end.) 

"Kakabeak Cloak Throw"

Hand knitted from thrums.  

The strips are crocheted together as it would have been too heavy

to join as it was knitted.

Coral, Chromatic and Kakabeak will be part of the ArtWaikino exhibition this Labour Weekend.

20 kilos

 This morning's sun rise and another rainbow from earlier in the week.

Ever wondered what 20 kilos of wool  looks like?  

Yep, it took three boxes to get it delivered.

 Its the base for these luscious blankets.

What do you do with your thrums? 

 I've been knitting some of mine into a blanket.

Start at the centre with 12 stitches and knit garter stitch rows

and work mitres at the corners. 

 I started it as a project to work on while travelling but it got too big

and its joined as you knit so I had to keep looking down.  Not good!

Its been keeping my legs warm these autumn evenings as I knitted the last few rounds.

Public side

Compost side

I had a very enjoyable day at the Creative Fibre Festival "Twist in Thames" on Saturday which was open day.
Met up with lots of friends and spent money I shouldn't have on stash enhancement.  While there a friend suggested I should post on the blog more often so I'll try but I do like to know someone is out there reading it!

First off I should have mentioned that the hat shown here knitted from thrums sold at the Whangamata market.  Of course the buyers husband said, why do you want to buy that, you can knit yourself, and the lady rightly replied yes, but I could never get the colours.  It was hand dyed many shades and tints of a wedgewood blue with bits of quarry grey and dashes of white where the warps had been tied all adding up to a great combination.

I've got myself into a bit of a corner this week in that three looms have to be threaded.  Hopefully Tuesday or Wednesday the computer box for my dobby will be delivered and installed which meant I had to have a 16 shaft threading on the loom to test it.

 This is half way in dreadful light as a "almost" cyclone was heading our way.  Every second thread is a variegated merino in berry shades and quite rich and the alternate threads are a bordeaux shade.  I'm threading a network twill and going to sample turned taquete as this is a technique I've wanted to explore for some time but having trouble finding much information.  I'm gradually piecing together how to arrive at the tie-up, treadling, etc.

 Loom number two is always threaded for blankets and I tie on the new warp.  Again dreadful light but you can see the white cross threads I use to keep everything in order.  This gold will be crossed with one blanket, gold to cream and the other in purple.  What would I do without the stairway railing to dry skeins on.

 The berry skeins are the weft of yet another project, summer and winter scarves, that I really should have been working on before the immanent arrival of the "box".  Its next, I promise.

One of these wraps was a commission.  When I started winding the warp I thought it was so pretty I wound enough for two.  I started weaving the top version and remembered the lass had said she didn't like spots so wove the second in chevron which she chose.  She didn't suit grey next to her face so I arranged the colours so the soft winter white could be uppermost but still keep neutral grey.  Lots of different threads in the warp and the weft a soft angora at about a 4 ply in kiwi terms.