Warping Day 1

Not much blogging recently...probably because I have been involved in finishing. I don't much care for that last 5% of a project and I have a number of projects in that stage.

On a more inspiring note, I began preparing my loom for the piece I am creating for the yardage exhibit at convergence. I want to put on a warp - about 5-6 yards of sewing thread...actually Maxi-lock serger thread made of polyester. I am using a 12 dent reed sleyed 4 threads per dent for a sett of 48 epi. I am going for 900 ends...just a tad over 18 inches.

I remember the last time I put on a long warp with this type of thread. Quite a nightmare due to the threads clinging to each other, twisting around and making knots. If I recall, I spent four or five days last time slowly...inch by inch...moving the thread through the reed and heddles. There was not an inch without at least one or two knots. Fortunately, I had lots of patience. I am planning on a better result this time.

This will be the first time I have warped up the 16 harness table loom with a long warp. It is not the best loom for front to back warping but that's the way it goes. I need the width...it goes out to 24 inches and I definitely need the 16 heddles. My design uses all 16 although it does look like it is woven on a loom with 27 harnesses.

This time warping I am going to use the theory that the less you touch the warp and the more under tension the better the result. I am going to try using a trapeze which I think Charlene discussed perhaps a year or two ago. I need the trapeze set up real high since the warp is 5-6 yards long and I want it to hang under tension. I set up the trapeze in the dining room/family room. It was stung across the weight bearing rafter which required a huge ladder to reach. The loom rested on the dining room table. Do notice how I have taken over this entire two room space. My DH is very understanding.

I also took over the den where I hung my warping board on the door with wreath hangers. I also put out the spool rack...since I had three cones of each of the two colors I wanted to use. I am using a mint green and a turquoise and all gradations of those two colors in the warp. I want to subtly show a color shift from the mint to the turquoise as your eye goes across the finished piece. Both these two will blend nicely with the various weft colors I have selected. So each spot in the piece will have a slightly different hue and along with a few metallic colors it should resemble the ocean.

[ Notice the little copper candle holders - I bought these for five bucks at a recent garage sale. I attached them to the end of the warp as a weight to maintain tension. I decided these would be easier than water jugs. ]

I have learned from previous projects in taquete that you should do everything in sets of four. Hence, four threads per dent... four threads per block... knot every four threads... color combinations in sets of four...you get the idea. Now how does having three cones of each warp color fit into the theory of four? Square peg into the round hole... more later.

To be continued...