HOMEFREE: The Joy of Weaving

Sun	Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri	Sat
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30	31

I said I would like to make a boat shuttle in this post and I came across this pen holder which had potential ....

Removing the back part was the first step, then using a sanding block and then a rasp and then more sanding. The design evolved and was to involve hook eyes at either end to hold a metal rod on which the bobbin would be suspended and then another hook eye to the side as guide.

The project derailed today when I put on the backstrap loom to weave and took a good look at the size of the shed and the present size of the shuttle-to-be without the hook eyes adding height and realized - it would not work: the bobbin had to be recessed.

So - 'back to the drawing board' - or, maybe not. It is not that I really need or want another boat shuttle; no, it is more that I wanted the experience of making one, of finding something to re-purpose into one, of encountering the challenges, of playing with options. And I have had that. It was fun. It was, likely, enough.

Besides, I wanted to get weaving and the boat shuttle I have is just dandy.

I had planned to only do a bit of weaving at the end of an active day ..... but .... the open window, late afternoon sun, winsome breeze, scent of spring, sounds of bouts of cars passing on a major street a block away in what passes for rush hour traffic - and the sheer pleasure of weaving kept me - weaving and weaving ....

Plus - I could see the end of the warp quickly approaching.

And then, there it was - the end of the warp and the shuttle could no longer sail through the shed.

I wasn't sure if there was a right way, a tried and true way, to finish a piece of weaving so I did it logically, cut the warp threads starting from the centre and working outward, tying them off, in pairs, with a simple over and then under, snug, knot .

The warp at one end all tied. A lovely bulk of weaving waiting to be unrolled.

A wealth ..... a treasure ..... an abundance of weaving.

I am more than pleased with my means of securing the warp at the beginning end - the velcro, luggage strap, binder rings.

Without the tension and the suspended rigid heddle holding the warp at the ending end, these warp threads were simply cut bit by bit away from the velcro bars and tied, again, in pairs with a simple over and under knot.

The finished piece. Fifty-four inches. Yes, enough to make the bag I had intended. And it likely will become that. Unless ..... the bodice of the vest (already woven) is found to complement this new piece. Unless .... something else occurs.

I want to warp the loom again, soonest, with a light- coloured warp and then weave summer weight, possibly with the linen I got at a garage sale several years ago and which has been waiting on a fitting use.