Saturday, November 7, 2009

Weaving Day 2, Part II

The goal was accomplished on Day 2 of Weaving 101 at The Old Oaks Ranch Fiber Arts Center.


The scarves still need to be washed and the fringe trimmed. The third piece on the right was was the left over wool on the loom after completing the scarves. I've folded it over and will probably make a small purse and, of course, trim the fringe, etc. Nothing is wasted.

To give you an idea of how the looms work, I took a photo of the 18" loom on which I wove the scarves. This loom has 4 pedals; bigger looms have 6.


I used 1 and 3 pedals to lift the threads when I went from left to right.

The pedals lift the two "thingies" in the back higher than the other two. The "thing" in the very front comes forward to beat the weaving thread down onto the piece being woven. I had a tendency to beat it pretty hard when Sandra, my instructor, told me to kiss it. Made sense to me and used a more gentle touch in the beat down. BTW, I don't have the lingo down yet, so "thingies" it is. lol Actually, while it is important to know the names of various pieces of equipment, I'm perfectly happy as long as I know what to do with whatever until I learn the language.

This is what it looks like from the side when the pedals are pushed down. A wooden boat holds the bobbin thread which passes between the lifted threads.


Pedals 2 and 4 are used to lift the threads to go from right to left. It is good to wear socks when working the loom.

The Old Oak Ranch Fiber Arts Center is so unique that I'm doing two more parts in this series. Stay tuned and check out the website.

Until next time, God bless.

5 comments:

DJan said...

This really does look like a wonderful meditation. Does it make you feel all relaxed and accomplished? It looks like it should, anyway. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful and ancient craft with me!

Al said...

Oh Lynn, I know you're having a good time weaving. That's is what I was telling you...the pedals which has to coordinate with the hands and the mind and that's part which makes weaving enjoyable. Hmm can't wait for the finish product!

AL

SquirrelQueen said...

I like the views of the peddles, I was wondering about how those worked when I read your first post. It does make more sense after seeing your photos of the different steps.

Judy

Lynn said...

DJan, it was a nice meditation environment, particularly when I had the CD going softly in the background.

Daisy Soap Girl said...

What a cool hobby and great way to relax and let the world pass you by.