All weaving posts

A crisp cool linen skirt. What could be nicer on a hot day?

This will definitely need a slip or underskirt, since it's a bit sheer, but that seems fine to me. I think I'll pair them with my black Doc Martin mary janes.

All in all, a fun little project that was a good mindless knit. I love how the linen softens and tightens up when washed and dried. Except for the bit of ironing it will require, it should be a sturdy and low maintenance piece. On that note, does anyone have a visceral response to putting their knits in the dryer? I'm so used to hand washing and drying. Even knowing that linen loves to be washed and dried, didn't keep me from feeling a little dread when I put her in the dragon's maw.

The weaving/knitting combo is coming together and I like it. The woven part has been washed and dried and I washed and dried a knitting swatch to determine my final gauge, so don't be alarmed by how open and baggy the knitted portion looks right now. That should firm up and better match the woven portion.

Also, the plaid needs a good pressing.

Tomorrow, I head off to Maine for the Fiber Frolic where I plan to treat myself to a bit of gorgeous fiber and maybe even another spindle. Oh and, of course, I'll get to see my parents too, which is always a treat.

I won't be taking my laptop along, which is a first for me. It seems like it'll increase my chances of relaxation. Hopefully, I'll come back with a bunch of pretty pictures to share.

Thanks to all of you who voted on my plaids. The winner was B by a small margin, but I wanted just a wee bit more pink so I went with C.

See?

I plan on combining this with some knitting and I hope it ends up working out. I'm used to combining knit and crochet gauges or different knit stitches together, but weaving and knitting is a whole nother ball of wax.

I'm also working on a possible self publish knitting project. I frogged Freudian stitch. I couldn't get past it's crotchiness. I went with something a little less reproductive. It's now something that doesn't make me laugh like a 6 year old telling potty jokes, every time I see it. Always a plus.

I want to use some black white and either pink or orange linen yarn that I have and weave up a bit of lovely plaid, but I can't decide what permutation I like.

I asked around on twitter/facebook and got a different answer from everyone who replied. Ha! The only thing left to try is a poll. Help me be decisive, my loom is calling to me.

The Leo scarf is done. I cut it off the loom yesterday after work, and sneaked in all the finishing when Leo wasn't looking. A quick wash and cycle through the drier and it went from firm and crisp to soft and light.

1. Folded, 2. Around the neck, 3. Extra warm like this, 4. Rippled
Created with fd's Flickr Toys.

I am really happy with the results though the selvages are still a little rough in places. It's getting easier and easier to keep them even which makes the process more fun.

I love this yarn, by the way. It's very easy to weave, comes in oodles of colors and is clearly very colorfast. The red didn't smudge at all even though I soaked it in the hottest water my tap could produce, before I sent it through the dryer. It's quite firm off the spool but it really softens up after washing. Leo's pretty picky about softness and it completely passed inspection.

I lost some size in the drying process (which I expected, it's cotton, after all) but it also made the fabric much more cohesive looking, filling in all the gaps between threads and evening out a lot of little inconsistencies. All in all, I think this is a very practical piece and since it requires less than one spool of each color, it's also a very affordable piece.

Project Specs

• Yarn: Maysville 8/4 Cotton Warp in (percentage of total scarf in each color listed):
  • Linen: 44%
  • 8dk Brown: 32%
  • Ecru: 15%
  • Cardinal: 11%
• Weight: 6.5 oz / 184 g
• Design: My own
• Width: 13" / 33 cm (after washing)
• Fringe: 7.5" / 19 cm (after washing)
• Length: 65" / 165 cm (after fringe)
• Loom: Ashford 32" rigid heddle loom
• DPI: 10