Guild project

I received a call from one of the guild members who had finished her part of the current weaving project (the one I wound the warp for) - she was number 3 on the list and I had said I'd be next.  She only took 6 days to finish her section (20 inches of woven cloth, plus 2 x 1.5 inch for the hems and 3 inches for 'practice').

The first three people on the list all tackled different designs (from the project sheet) so far be it from me to change that - and very conveniently the pattern I really liked hadn't yet been done, so it was not really a problem picking what I wanted to do.  I didn't even bother using my 3 inch practice warp to try anything different - I just got stuck straight in.  Actually I did use those inches to spread the warp out a little bit as it had pulled in quite a bit over the previous weaving.  To achieve that I made my own temple - based on the method I had used in the US (until I bought a couple of temples that is) of hooks either side of the warp, with weights hanging over the side of the loom, and something to ensure the hooks didn't 'stretch' the cloth too far.

Unpacking the guild loom

The loom is a 8 harness Mecchia table loom (made in Hamilton, NZ) that is owned by the guild and used for projects.  It packs up fairly conveniently - and it easy to set up.

My part of the project

I was lucky enough to find some perfect weft cotton - exactly the same wraps per inch as the warp, but a fairly solid orange/brown colour.  It makes the pattern really stand out (both sides - one being the negative of the other).

The first 12 inches.

I'm getting the hang of the loom now - and as you can see in the picture above, I have a fairly simple graphic to keep track of the 'treadling' - set up for each weft shot.  It would be so much faster with a) my foot treadled jack loom, and b) a boat shuttle (for speed), although the stick shuttle helps keep the odd wayward warp thread (slub cotton sticking together) in check.

I should be able to finish this in another few more nights work, and then work out how to get it to the next person.

The final work this weekend has been more plying of the guild woolen singles.  We have now done nearly 1.5 kilometers!!