It takes a lot of stuff to weave.
You also need lots of help. It's a two man job.
Until you get to the fiddly part, that is. I happen to like the fiddly part. Good thing too-because there is lots of it.
There is a lot of knot tying and untying.
It's all worth it in the end when it works the way it should.
I don't have a bobbin winder so I had to do it by hand. I wind singles all the time when I spin with spindles so this was no different-only easier.
The first two rows of plain weave looked a little wibbly wobbly.
The biggest problem was the feet. I kept forgetting to use them.
This was a familiar problem from rigid heddle weaving. I didn't panic. I know how to unweave.
Following my instructor, I did some plain weave and some twill. There was a lot of unweaving to get it right but there is still lots of room for improvement. That uneven 1/3 twill is making me crazy. Learning to see the mistakes before you get to far from them is important I am discovering.
Throwing that shuttle was harder than it looks. It either got stuck halfway or it hit the floor.
The instructor told us not to worry about or fiddle with the selvages as they will be hidden. They still drove me nuts.
We even did some hemstitching when we started the actual project. I think this is right. I followed the instructor closely but it looks a little weird.
All things considered, this first attempt was too much fun. It was hard to walk away and go to bed. Little loom-I love you.
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Wow! It looks very complicated but it's really turning out nice! I can see where you might need extra helping hands and feet too. :-)
ReplyDeleteWow! My non-maths head is in awe! It looks amazing! x
ReplyDeleteYou might need a flatter, lower profile boat shuttle. That particular shuttle needs a very wide shed, and it's possible that your loom doesn't have that. you should be able to throw the shuttle from one side & catch it on the other. You shouldn't have to push the shuttle thru. Part of your selvage problems will disappear when you switch to weaving yarn from knitting yarn. Knitting yarn is soft & squishy and therefore difficult even for an experienced weaver to get nice selvages with.
ReplyDeleteKeep it up! You've got a great start.
This is supposedly the shuttle recommended for this loom so I am afraid it is my lack of coordination that is the problem. In theory it should go through just fine but I can't seem to get the right amount of push on it. One problem is that I keep forgetting to push the beater all the way back to form the shed. I leave it halfway back which not only minimizes the shed but lets me pick up the wrong threads from the bottom quite often.
DeleteI am so happy to hear that a change in yarn may help those terrible selvages. They are making me crazy.
OH I m so glad it was fun even if there is a learning curve!
ReplyDeleteOh I'm so impressed by how beautiful it looks! It does look Ike fun.
ReplyDeletewow this is very interesting. my brain is going whaaaaaaaat? I do admire how you learn these things... I would never get through the fiddle part.
ReplyDeleteThat looks so cool! So is it big enough to do blankets, or do you still have to seam them?
ReplyDeleteThis is actually a very small loom-only 18" wide. I gave up on the big stuff because weaving yarn is costly and you use a lot of it. From now on it's tea towels, placemats and table runners for me.
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