Rocky Top Weaver

Towels again....These towels caught my eye as a good "straight draw" project.  They are traditional blue and white done on 8 shafts.  Straight draw on the threading and ties ups.  Very simple but has beautiful results. This is the back.  Close up of back.  (not true color) Front side view. Looking at the front going onto the beam.

The Fiesta towels are finally done.  Each towel is a different pattern design which added to the fun of weaving them.  There is enough yarn left over to make another group of them, so after a couple more projects I will go back and make some more.  Overall, these towels are worth all the hard work that was put into them.

My latest project reminds me of summer.  The colors are bright and cheerful.  These will become kitchen towels and are actually called "Fiesta Towels".  8/2 cotton and lots of it.  This pattern is from Handwoven, Jan/Feb 2006. This is the first time I have used my new Schacht - end delivery shuttle and it is wonderful!  What a difference it makes when it comes to VERY even selvedges.  Well, better get back at it.  There are 6 towels to do with a different pattern on each towel. Below are some of the patterns, which actually were very fun to do!   Dizzy Yet ?

Since we are well into winter, I thought some scarves would be nice to try to weave up.  Alpaca is my choice for fiber.  The name of the Alpaca yarn is Peruvian Tweed from Village Spin & Weave in California.  This is the softest Alpaca I have ever felt. ~ 3 scarves, Brown & Tan tweed and Black & White tweed ~ Alot of fringe, fluffy and soft! Plain weave, simple but elegant results.   

This is my best yet.  This is made of Alpaca rug yarn that I picked up at local fiber festival this fall.  I fell in love with the rugs that were on display, but wanted to make my own.  They sold just the Alpaca yarn for those of us who wanted to make our own.  This was worth it !! The size is 24" x 48".   It is super soft and very thick.  Perfect to warm the toes in the winter.

This exercise in rugs has been nothing but fun !!!   I started with wool selveldges on a couple of small rugs on one of my previous posts.  Then decided I had so much fun, I would make a "big rug".  It is more like a runner but is perfect for the living room.   Then a smaller piece, which will be for my loom bench at the studio.   Now on to the next rug !!!   

My latest weaving adventure has not been very successful.  I was trying some waffle weave towels (love the waffle weave results) but the colors just are not grabbing me like other projects.  But determined to continue on and not waste the warp, they are almost done.  I am not a fan of pastel and trying to liven it up a bit with yellow and white stripes with the variegated pastels is not working for me.  Maybe they will look better off the loom.  Let's hope so. The towels are finally done, but not what I expected.  The colors really changed when I washed them and they got really soft.  Still the overall look does not impress me.  But they are still good dish towels.

Another distraction, but a good one.  I was all set to do some Doubleweave and these selvages just jumped onto my loom.  They are Pendleton Wool selvages and they make wonderful rugs. This was my first project ever doing rugs and I had fun.  It was nice to not have to concentrate to hard on the treadling and on top of that it went quick. The southwestern colors make for a beautiful rug.    Here is the hem, plain weave turned under. This view gives it some dimension. On to the next bunch,  this is fun !!!

My lesson in color taught me another lesson...mistakes can sometimes be a good thing.  The yellow that I chose to make the second set of star towels at first didn't look like it was going to be the right color for this project.  As it turns out the yellow was perfect !  The towels together make for a cheerful display in the kitchen. Summer is a time for county fairs and to support our local textile display I was convinced by a wonderful, very experienced young (92 years) weaver to enter a couple weaving projects.  So I did.  Little did I know that it would garner me my first blue ribbon ever!     Needless to say I was shocked and it took a little convincing that it really happened.  I have only been at this about a year and a couple months, so there is a lot I have to learn.  This lesson in color that I thought was a failure turned out to be a wonderful success not only in my kitchen but the judge thought so too!  Yippee ! My list...

OK, so the learning curve is starting to show.  I have a lot to learn about color.  Earlier I had made some blue "star towels".  They turned out very nice and I thought that some yellow towels would be fun to go with them.  I am not as impressed but will keep them going.  The yellow and white bleed into each other so the stars are not as prominent.  Still they must be finished and a color lesson learned.

One more interruption, but a good one.  The kitchen has a new floor with some furry yellow decorations.  It used to be a linoleum that was a dark green tile look and was looking dated.  This new dark distressed walnut look is a lot better. Flowers from my dear friends Margaret & Tom, complete the fresh look for the dining area. The new doggie treat jar fits in just perfectly.  This was a "covert" gift from my artist friends who planned, sneaked and made the treat jar to match the kitchen.  Good job girls !! The yellow furry decorations are already testing out the new floor -  Now back to the loom !!!

Just thought some flower postings would be pretty.  This is a walkway that goes up to our new Pergola on the deck.  It smells wonderful!

Since my construction endeavor, I have gotten back to weaving.  One of the first handwoven towels I had seen was a Star Towel.  I was in love with the pattern the moment I saw it.  It was just a matter of time before I would try it. I did and I have ordered more yarn to make more.  They are made of cottolin (50/50 cotton-linen) and worked up very well.  They are soft and absorbent.  Five towels in all were made in this round, can't wait for the next color!

One more view, just for fun ! Adding shade cloth over the top will keep things cool. Now that it is stained and sealed....ready for some mornings with my coffee. Weekend project - not weaving for once ! Season for the next couple of weeks, then can stain and seal. The Wisteria will have a new home to climb !!