Woven textile exhibition

A friend has asked me to direct you to a facebook page about their upcoming exhibition.
www.facebook.com/natureinthemaking
Nature in the Making - Geology interpreted through woven textiles - A joint exhibition by weavers Stacey Harvey-Brown and Agnes Hauptli

The exhibition will be shown in a couple of places in New Zealand before heading to the United States where it will show in Tacoma before heading elsewhere and then Europe.

I'm a dinosaur when it comes to social media but this is well worth following and can't wait to see the exhibition.  Thank you for taking a look and clicking "like".

Merino spinning

When I'm on duty at the Cargo Shed I have to have something to do so am taking the opportunity to break into some of my sliver stash.  This is

merino sliver from Treetops of  Perth, Western Australia.  

I split the sliver lengthwise then loosened the fibres by pulling lengthwise.  They were too sticky to start with to use a diz. Spinning was a joy.  I was hoping I could get matching areas of colour.  It isn't too bad, just small areas of bean poling.

The yarn is not the best spinning by a long shot but oh so squishy and soft.  (Click to enlarge.)

I got home from the Shed in time to see a cruise ship passing Tuhua.  I couldn't help yelling out to the passengers - water choppy is it, breeze a bit chilly is it, feeling the chill are you, should have bought a shawl when you had the chance.  (I know, I'm mad.)

Shibori play

Its been a while and I'm not going to look back to see how long ago I last posted.

I have been weaving; two more runners to match the summer and winter grey/white ones and another red narrow one to match the placemats I gave my daughter at Christmas time and a wee square with the leftover warp.

 None of these have been wet finished or hemmed for which I need to set up the sewing machine on the dining room table - hence the hesitation.

Before I take the summer and winter off the loom (forever) I wanted to try some shibori using the S & W threading.

 This is a small sample showing both sides but the interesting thing is it uses a regular S & W threading of 1323, 1424 etc.  Most of the books (and my workshop notes) state that you need to extend the number of threads between the tie down threads i.e. 13432343, 15652565 to get texture.

The reason I wanted to try the shibori was to try some beautiful fine merino thread which a group I belong to, Professional Weavers Network, had made specially for us.  It has a little bit of overtwist and I wondered how this would react in holding the texture.  The above samples have been soaked and rinsed in warm water after the resist threads were removed - success.  More later when the scarves are finished.

I'm working hard to get these off the loom so I can thread for blankets.  I convinced a friend she really didn't need wool/mohair blankets in the middle of January but her patience may be wearing thin.

Summer and Winter mats

First the boring stuff - trying to make head or tail of Professional Weavers accounts.  In the end daughter got me on the right road.  I owe you!

 Production of plum sauce and muslei -  I actually make 6 times the Alison Holst recipe for muslei as couldn't cope with making it every week.  Rinda, I will plant the hibiscus cuttings soon, they are just starting to show roots.

 Pete makes a great Thai green curry but won't do it without lemon grass so I found a plant and planted it in the same pot as lemon balm.  Went out to water it two days later and it was gone, roots and all.  We've decided a sea gull wanted lemon with its fish!

I've been dyeing hanks for a run of blankets.  Of course I did it the day "downgraded cyclone June" arrived.  (which means it was a low with lots of rain and wind)  What would I do without the stairway rail to dry things on.

 There has been weaving in the form of summer and winter mats.

 The reverse side (taken as the evening light faded).

 

 Personally, I don't like dealing with lots of mats but enjoy this runner arrangement and its even better if one has a long one through the centre of the table.  Should I make another for the centre?

 Close up

Looking back at production in 2013

Recently Martha at Thistle Rose Weaving posted a list of the highlights of her weaving year as has Susan at Thrums.  It was a really interesting exercise to look back as I had forgotten a lot of what I made earlier in the year.  Here is a selection.

Carolyn's blanket

A whole series of Starburst Snowflake articles including place mats and Zoe's blankets

Wedding party wraps

Wild raspberry wrap

A large number of blankets

Many articles in 4 colour double weave

Shadow weave wrap

Paua

Pounamu

Selectors display at Creative Fibre Experience

and then I went on holiday for five weeks and I wondered why I was completely exhausted!

Pam's wrap

Taniko blankets for Pauanesia

and the latest play with Summer and Winter.

I think I wove 45 pieces altogether but we haven't mentioned the knitting, spinning and sewing.

Change of colour

The latest set of blankets for Pauanesia, Kowhia.  

 I didn't have time to participate this year but for quite a few years now Meg has instigated a play of "What's on the looms" on New Years Day.  As I was expecting visitors on Jan 2 I was too busy cleaning and putting things away out of the reach of a 3 year old and 7 month old who just learnt to crawl.  I new my home was in a state but even I didn't know how bad; and guess where it all ended up.  Three looms, 4 knitting machines (including colour changers, knit leaders, intarsia carriages etc), warping reel, dummy, spinning wheel, vacuum cleaner, heater, ironing board (and the ironing), product for sale in suitcases, display props, stash and library.  

My first job this year is to find homes for some things, take others (2 knitting machines in particular) to the scrap metal merchant.  Just get rid of it! 

The only loom warped was the 8 shaft Nitschke with a third version of table mats.  I am enjoying the simplicity of these summer and winter diamonds.  We had Christmas dinner on version one.

Red version 2 were welcomed by recipient and look great on her black table.

For version 3, lime, I've rethreaded the outside warps to eliminate the triangles and make them all diamonds.  Having started weaving and had time to study them I would like a bar on each outside selvedge but adding more warp threads would make them too wide.  If I make a 4th version I might fiddle with the selvedges.

Bunny for Zoe

It's been hard keeping quiet about cute Bunnykins.

This is a commercial pattern from 30 odd years ago.  

But a good stash bust.  

The only thing I bought was the 20c pink nose.

I have to say Zoe was far more interested in the cellophane paper stitched into fabric.