Weaving Handspun on my Cricket

I spent a good part of the summer weaving up some handspun singles that have been lying around for a couple of years. It was lovely wool, spun from layered rovings purchased from SnokistFarmGirl
in 2009. Since I had only a few ounces of each color combination, I decided to warp my rigid heddle and weave some scarves. 

I used the 8 dent heddle that came with the loom, which gave me a nice, open cloth that fulled very well. 

 

The scarves are light and airy, soft and warm. 

I played with stripes  in the warp,

 

and stripes in the weft.

But mostly I just played with color,

 

and enjoyed the calming rhythm of plain weave.

It was delightful to not worry about structure and pattern for a while,

and just play.

ZiggyZag Scarf

bottom to top: versions 1a, 1b, 2, 3

Yikes! I didn't realize it had been so long since I was last here. All I can say is that things have been happening, a lot. I've had plenty of knitting time, though. In fact, I recently published another pattern, the ZiggyZag Scarf.

I've knitted it in 4 different Noro yarns, but they would look simply smashing in a handspun or hand dyed yarn. It is knitted in one continuous piece so there are just a few ends to weave in at the end.  You can get the pattern in my Ravelry shop as an instant download. It's also available by email in my etsy shop, and hard copies can be found in Mew Mews Yarn Shop in Lafayette, CO.

Cricket Fever

Last May, I won a Cricket rigid heddle loom (donated by Schacht, thanks!) as a door prize at Colorado Weavers Day. I tried the scarf pattern with the yarn it came with and really struggled. Took a lot of getting used to since the heddle isn't attached to anything. I had a hard time getting an even beat, and a hard time keeping the fell line parallel to the cloth beam. Took a while to get a feel for what amount of tension gave a good shed and still allowed me to lift or lower the heddle. Finished the scarf and the loom sat empty for a couple of months while I glared at it.

A few weeks ago Jeanne Marie brought 2 scarves she wove on her rigid heddle to evening weavers group. They were lovely! She warped it with a solid color of wool, then alternated the wool and recycled sari silk in the weft. I thought maybe I should try again.

Wendy gave me some lovely yarn several years ago that I couldn't figure out what to knit out of it. I warped the cricket and started to weave, keeping in mind that it's not a shaft loom and just going with it. The next day it was finished and I was one happy camper!

Then I thought about this alpaca boucle yarn I've had for way too long and never did anything with. I also have a good-sized stash of sport weight alpaca in lots of natural colors. Random stripes of boucle in the warp this time, and a similarly colored sport weight to fill in the gaps. I chose a sport weight weft that was a little darker and browner and wove it all while my bathroom was being de-leaked. Even got it hemmed before the handyman left. ;)

This one shrank up quite a bit in the wash, but it feels just yummy. I put on another warp with sport weight alpaca for a color and weave scarf that I'll be starting today.

And that, my friends, is why I always try something new at least twice before I decide I don't like it.

Blocking a Rectangular Lace Scarf

I took a few pics when I blocked Dance of the Butterflies. You can do it with pins only, but you'd need hundreds of them to get a smooth, straight edge. It's much easier (and faster) with blocking wires.

First, soak your scarf. I usually put a dab of wool wash in a bowl of lukewarm water and let it soak for at least 30 minutes. You want the water to penetrate the yarn thoroughly. Squeeze it gently when you take it out of the bowl, then roll it up in a towel and squeeze out as much moisture as you can.

You'll need a large, flat surface to pin it to. I used our bed, but you could also use a carpeted floor or those interlocking foam squares. Starting from one end, take one of the longer wires and thread it though the stitches along one long edge.  Make sure there are at least a few inches of wire left at each end. It will probably take more than one wire to do each long edge (this scarf took 3 for each side). Do the same for the other long edge.

 

Now take one of the short wires and thread it through the points of a short end. Do the same for the other side. If the short ends are straight too, thread it through the stitches like you did for the long edges.

Now get your pins out. Splurge for some heavy-duty T-pins. They are long enough that you can pin into the bed through a blanket, and strong enough they won't bend. Spread one end of the scarf out to the width you want and pin that end wire to the bed. Do the same for the other end, then pin the side wires every so often. There needs to be enough pins to keep the sides parallel, but you don't need to go crazy. I wound up doing every 8-12 inches or so.

 If it's a nice day, open the windows so it will dry faster. If you have pets, you may want to close the door to that room for a few hours. Otherwise, just wait until it is completely dry. This one took about 4 hours on a 45 degree day with the windows closed. Once it's dry, remove the pins, then remove the wires. Voila!

Dance of the Butterflies

A few weeks ago, someone bought a Butterfly Pi shawl pattern and asked me if I could convert it into a scarf pattern. I said I'd give it a go, so that's what I've been working on for the past few weeks. I had to do a lot more recharting than I thought, but I really like the design and have started knitting a couple to see what it looks like. I bought a skein of Dream in Color Baby in the color Some Summer Sky for one of them, and a cone of lilac South West Trading Company Infinity for the other.

The Dream in Color is a bit on the heavy side for laceweight, but it knits up really nicely. I'm using size 5 needles and knitting this scarf from the handwritten charts. So far I've knitted through chart 2. It'll be a nice warm scarf when it's done.


The Infinity soysilk is much thinner, so I'm knitting it on size 2 needles. It'll be better suited to a warm climate or indoor wear, and I can tell already that it'll drape beautifully. I'm proofing the spreadsheet chart with this one, to make sure everything got entered correctly. I finished the edging chart a few days ago.

Japanese Mystery Scarf

I cast on another Japanese Mystery Scarf this weekend. This fulfills 2 goals: I need to knit more things for the HGB Sale, and I needed something I could knit and not pay much attention to. I bought a couple more skeins of Mini Mochi and cast on Saturday. I love the autumn colors!

When it's done, it should look something like this:

If you'd like a copy of the pattern to make your own scarf, use the PayPal button at right and I'll email you a copy.

Handspun Handwoven Alpaca Scarves

I started spinning this luscious alpaca roving into yarn about a year ago, I think. I had bought it from someone on the Spinners and Weavers Housecleaning Pages a few years ago and finally got around to it. I originally thought I would knit it, but after an experience I had last year at TACtile Textile Arts Center, I decided to weave it into scarves.



I was working my volunteer shift for a the Holiday Gift Show when a lovely older gentleman came in looking for a scarf. For himself. There were any number of gorgeous hand knitted, hand dyed and handwoven scarves, but not one was suitable for a man (besides, perhaps, Eddie Izzard). The man had the means and desire to purchase a handwoven scarf for himself, and he understood all the work and skill that went into making one. But we had nothing to offer him. I felt awful.


So, my 15 ounces of dark chocolate handspun alpaca became 7.5 yards of warp, and the 12 ounces of fawn handspun pictured above became the weft. I used a 4 shaft Swedish Rosepath threading from Davidson's book and chose a different treadling for each of 3 scarves. A little rustic, but not bad and definitely something a man would feel comfortable wearing.

Have you woven something manly lately? Guild show season is coming up, and there are educated, fashion-forward men of all ages , shapes and sizes with ready cash shopping for themselves and their loved ones of both genders. Don't send them home empty-handed.