Summer!

Hello! The last couple months have been full of events, ranging from volunteering at the library and writing a blog for my school's science project, to taking my first college class!
  Because of being out and about so much, I have not gotten much weaving done, as the big looms have remained firmly planted in the studio while I flit from one place to another. Due to this, I thought that I had not done many "crafty" things that were worth writing about, but it turns out that I have amassed quite a little collection. "Little" being the keyword.

Firstly, I have been working on these little cross-stitch necklaces:

These were extremely convenient       "to-go" crafts because I could just throw them into my backpack on my way out of the door.

Another project I got to work on was a knit pair of fingerless gloves with cables!

I have been knitting for over ten years now, but I had never knit with cables before! It turns out that they are a lot less difficult to make than I had imagined, and this beautiful pattern from my mom convinced me that I should give them a try.

Finally, I did manage to get a few inches of weaving done on the sewing thread warp, and I started weaving the placemats!

I am hoping to finish the sewing thread warp by the end of this month, but I still have about twelve hours worth of weaving left on it. We shall see!

Loom-ing Deadlines

A bit more progress on the shawl from yesterday.

I will be dreaming about weaving tri-shawls tonight, probably because that was what I was doing every spare moment I had today! As I said earlier, I was making the blue shawl for a friend, and I planed to give it to her in a week or two. The keyword in that sentence is planned. As it so turns out, I got to spend some time with her this evening on a school field trip to the opera. What does that have to do with the shawl you ask? Well, being the crazy weaver I am, I thought "Hey, this is a chance for me to give her the (at that time unfinished) shawl even earlier!".

And so, the weaveathon began!

To satisfy my ever present curiosity I decided to take progress photos after every hour of work. Yes, there was a timer next to the loom, and yes I recorded every bit of time I got to weave today.

Hour one: I was a bit slow starting out, (mainly due to the early hour)

but near the end I gained momentum.

Hour two: I AM A LIGHTNING FAST WEAVER!

(or at least I like to think I am)

Hour three: All done weaving!

Hour four: The edges have been crocheted, the ends have been sewn in,

and the shawl is DONE!

Ten minutes later saw the shawl all wrapped up, and twenty minutes after that It was time to go! Am I great at cutting it close or what? :-)
I am exhausted.

Why do I spend so much time on crafts? Part of it is genetic, some of it crazy, but in the end...

...I do it because that is simply what I love to do.

Birds, Birthdays, and Triangles

Yesterday was my birthday!

I asked for my own camera, :-)

...finished this shawl,

...and got the perfect fortune from a fortune cookie.

(If only I knew which project they were talking about!)

Today, I started this shawl,

...and while I was walking the dog,

...I decided to try taking some sunset pictures.

I think they turned out well!

More fun with the Tri-loom

I know, I know, I really should finish the other half-dozen projects I have going before I start another, but...

A picture from last night.

I blame the yarn. The colors just "wanted" to be turned into a shawl!
I have been slowly working away at the sewing thread warp, and the warp for the Wolf loom is ready for pre-sleying, but I think I need to put those on hold for a few days. The reason is that a friend of mine is having a birthday in about a week, and I have decided to make her a tri-loom shawl in blue. This means that I need to get the current shawl off the loom, and get the blue one woven!
I see lots of time at the tri-loom in my near future...

A picture from this morning. "Oh look, I wonder how that happened."

Rugs

I have decided to make the silk poncho in the style of my second sample, with one row of sari silk, and then a row of cotton yarn.
 However, I did find a use for the first sample. The plain sari silk fabric is thick enough to make a rug, and the idea is certainly cat approved!

I also got a little more work done on the Pleache't rug. I am thinking of adding in some beige to truly make it an ocean rug, but I can't find any fabric that would work in my stash. Perhaps a visit to the Crafter in Chief is in order!

The Little Loom Wall

Ever since I got my first 30" triangle loom I had been dreaming "making" a wall for my small looms. Several years and new-to-me looms later, I finally decided to do it! I classify a "little loom" as something I can easily bring with me to a workshop or class, and although the 7' tri-loom is pushing it a bit, it does fold up, so it still counts!

I also did get a bit more weaving done on the Leclerc.

I believe I am starting to understand the meaning of "weaving slow cloth". It doesn't just mean that it takes me 45 minutes to weave an inch. It also means that I have to slow down and just focus on weaving for a while. I really enjoy that.
Unfortunately I cannot bring the big loom with me everywhere! I was on the road a lot today, so to fill the time I started plotting.

I am thinking of making a poncho with sari silk, but I am not sure if the fabric would be to thick. As my weaving mentor always says, "When in doubt, make samples!". Being the star pupil I most certainly am (not), I followed her advice and wove some samples on the 30" and 15" tri-looms. It is hard to say which one I like best...

I can't find the words

I finished threading,

lashed on, spaced the warp,

and then...

I started weaving

                   I don't know exactly what I was expecting, but this is 1000 times better.

On the Fringe

Yesterdays craft time was spent at the triangle loom. I finished the last few inches of weaving, and started on the fringe. I use a book to make fringes by wrapping yarn around it ,

 and then cutting the yarn using the space formed by the pages  between the front and back cover.

I might like fringes a little too much...

Perhaps this is not the fanciest way to make fringes, but it gets the job done! And the best thing is that once you are done using the book for every imaginable purpose it wasn't designed for, you can open it up, and read!

...or you can use it to press flowers.

A Sleepy Day and Pleache't

Today was one of those days where the clouds get darker and darker but it never rains. One of my grandmothers referred to these as "Sleepy days", because "the sun never woke up".  She also taught me that the best thing to do on sleepy days is crafting! I continued work on my full scale Pleache't rug. The baby blue is just not my color, so I decided to tone it down with some grey wool fabric. Not only did the wool add a nice springiness to the rug, but the blend of blue and grey reminds me of sea foam. Just what I wanted! 

   After working on the rug for a while I decided to look for that missing red yarn for my tri-loom blanket.

I found it!

I knew I had bought enough yarn for the blanket! The offending half-ball of yarn was hidden with the yarn for another project. Since I hadn't worked on the blanket in a while I decided to put away my Pleache't  project so I could weave for a little bit.

A "little bit" turned into the rest of the evening, and I added another foot and a half to the blanket. Not too shabby! If I keep this up it should be off the loom by the weekend!

Cutting it close

An Easter addition to the studio.

The M's and W's scarf is off the loom! I made it through all 70 inches of fabric, and 6 inches of fringe. But, that left me with literally less than an inch of working room!

 That was cutting it very close, but it made me very happy. Why? Because I had only 6 inches of loom waste! I love it when I can save as much yarn as possible, and managing to get only 6 inches of waste on a loom that usually requires 10"...  makes me feel like a superstar :-)
  I also hemstitched all of the fringes this afternoon, so I can wash the scarf tomorrow. After that, it will be completely done! I have three ideas for my next project: raffia placemats, sewing thread bookmarks, or a cotton scarf. They all sound fun to me!
Until I have decided which one I want to make I will be working on a blanket I have on the triangle loom.

I am 3/4 of the way through the blanket, and I ran out of the red yarn! I only need about 150 more yards, so I am going to look to see if I have any remnants of the same yarn from another project.
But that will have to wait till tomorrow.
Good Night!

Spring... break?

Tony has been at the loom more than me!

Whew I have been busy! This week I had spring break, so I thought that I would had much more time to weave than usual. That was not the case! My brothers and I started the week off with building a garden shed, and... that... took... FOREVER. Who knew you could put literally thousands of screws into such a tiny building? But the little shed is very cute, and we did need a place for our gardening tools, so... I guess I can add "proficiency with a power drill" to my skills list! Also, I got to go up north for a long overdue visit with my weaving mentor. While I was there she helped me learn this really neat rug making technique called Pleache't (it rhymes with crochet). It is a lot like crocheting a doily, except you use strips of fabric along with your cotton thread.

My first project, a mini rug.

Also, I actually did manage to get some weaving done! I am now halfway through the M's and W's scarf, and it is so pleasant to weave, I might have to make a second one.

And I'm weaving again!

I LOVE this pattern! It is simple enough for me to do while listening to an audiobook, but complicated enough to not get boring.
 Boredom is the enemy, and it is the fear of being bored that keeps me up at night... ahem... trying out some ideas... ahem. My Zodiac sign is an owl.

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present the Midnight Meanderings Expo!

The bead loom was very busy.

First, I made this cute wrap-around bracelet to showcase some special red beads.

then I got funky with some fringes...

...to make this!

It is definitely safe to say that I had WAY too much fun!

Howdy!

Hi! I know it has been a long time, and I have plenty of reasons (ahem... excuses) for not writing. The main two being lack of time, and Blogger and my tablet not seeing eye to eye.... but anyway! I have not been too fond of the idea of just writing a post when I finish a project, so I am not sure if I will keep doing that or write about what I am currently working on. I think it will mostly depend on when I have time.
And with that being said, here is what I am currently working on!  :-)

I am currently finishing up the chenille and mohair shawl in the pictures above. I forgot to get a good picture of it before I took it off the loom, (sorry!) so this one will have to do for now. Because of all the color changes there are a lot of threads to be sewn in, but I think it will be worth it because it is sooo soft! I am really looking forward to when it is finished!