11th Hour

As I zip up my suitcase and put on my traveling clothes, I am once again amazed at the effort it takes to present a workshop on the road. If you have ever done it, you know exactly what I mean.

I am pleased to report the warp chains for the baby blanket are complete and will patiently await my return in 2 weeks. The yarn I was waiting for arrived yesterday, so in lieu of packing....


And I finished the Bambu 7 Horoscope Weaving! It is quite yummy. I wrote down the before washing dimensions although I am not sure where. Oh, here it is 24 1/2" x 111". As for the after, I will have to post it when I return as I have packed the shawl. Curiosity just got the better of me, and I just fished it out. 23" x 96".


Of course, I had to take a nice close-up. Bamboo is very drapey, especially the Bambu 7.


I won't be near a computer for many days, but I am bringing my camera and hope to have some wonderful pictures and stories when I return.

Small Steps

Public Notice: If you leave a comment and I do not reply to you it is because the email came with "noreply" that means that you told blogger not to reveal your email. When this happens I go to the blog, but some of you don't have a profile either! So I am stuck without being able to reply!

Color Horoscope Weaving, what's it all about?
It's a long story that began in 1979 when I discovered the point intersection between weaving and astrology. It is a story I have yet to write, but I love to tell and teach it in seminars, workshops, and through my kits. Color Horoscope Weaving is an experiential color exercise. I never get tired of weaving my own horoscope because I continue to learn something new with every warp.


INSPIRED BY KAREN! When I taught Color Horoscope Weaving in Sacramento back in February, one of my students wondered what would happen if one put an ikat stripe on either side of the planet. What a great idea!! I couldn't wait to try it. Since Karen signed up for my upcoming workshop at the Golden Gate Fiber Institute, I thought it would be great to weave up this idea.


Instead of dyeing some real ikat, I got some variegated Bambu 7 from Cotton Clouds and created an ikat effect using the same winding technique I use in Turned Weft Ikat. I can't wait to see this piece off the loom.

Back to the Blessing Blanket color wrappings.... ALL of the wrappings have arranged themselves into a Spirit Doll. This is still very much a work in progress, but I am amazed to discover it has turned into an art piece which will continue to evolve as the blanket progresses. One of my friends saw this picture and thought it looked like a totem. Dimensions: 6" x 26"


I am still waiting for some yarn, but I started to wind the blanket as much as I could. I don't expect to really get started on it until I get back from teaching, but it is good to make a start.

Monday I begin putting my workshop together for real!

Trifocals

Ah! It is off the loom! Now to solve the next little quandary. I wove enough for 2 scarves (one for the client and one to sell). The client wants 5" twisted fringe, but in order to get 2 scarves from the warp, only one of the scarves will be able to have twisted fringe. I am awaiting her decision, the right or the left. I like the motifs on the right a bit better, so if I don't hear back from her in the next 24 hours, I will assume she will like the one I like.

ACTUAL: TWO SCARVES
VIRTUAL: ONE SHAWL (grin)
My Color Horoscope Weaving is all threaded and ready to weave. Once I have gotten the weaving underway, I will point out the new idea.


WHAT TO DO WHILE WAITING FOR "aruba" TO ARRIVE. I can't seem to stop playing with the blessing words for the blanket. Here I have joined the 3 different colorways of each blessing word to create a colorful parade. They remind me of tiny little quilts.

Focus Pocus

I find it extremely difficult to focus on the matters at hand. Perhaps it is because I am farsighted or because I am a Pisces or a child of the 60's, but I seem to cast my gaze on some distant otherworldly point. In day to day life, I move from project to project leaving piles of disorganized papers, dirty dishes and unmade beds in my wake.


I will be shipping off this bamboo/cashmere Woven Words scarf today. (forgot to do it yesterday and is my main goal for today).

There was enough warp for (almost) another scarf (a shawl for a small person). I wove this one in the soft blue I used as accents in the scarf above.

Have I mentioned how in love I am with the recycled cashmere?

Meanwhile I'm weaving off this wonderful black and white piece. I can't wait to feel how the cashmere combines with the merino wool (although I will have to take greater care with the laundering---no popping into the dryer like I can do with the bamboo/cashmere combo)


And I am having a blast playing with the color wrappings for the Blessing Blanket! I am waiting for the arrival of some additional yarn before I begin winding the warp, plus I have to weave off the black and white since the blanket will be woven on Gary. (wrappings to left of center are the colors I will be using) I am still working out the dimensions of the blanket, so playing around with the wrappings gives me the opportunity to contemplate.

So I thought I would wind yet another incarnation of my own Color Horoscope Weaving. I always like to weave a piece dedicated to an upcoming workshop. I leave for the Bay Area on the 25th. I hope to bring this with me to inspire my students.


Perhaps writing this post will help me focus.

Blessing Baby Blanket

Let's begin at the beginning.

Part Gift/Part Commission----A Baby Blanket

Instead of a Color Horoscope Weaving Baby Blanket, I thought it would be delightful to create a baby blanket of blessings in Woven Words, one from each of the new baby's close relatives.

Ten blessing words were gathered and preliminary colors selected in Bambu 7. Actually the prospective mom selected only 13 of the 20 colors needed, so I filled in the other 7 colors with various shades of blue. (since aqua is her favorite color and I needed a place to begin) I also thought blue would help prevent the weaving from looking like a circus. Then I arranged the colors in what I believed to be a pleasing array.


Then I created a series of wrappings spelling out each of the blessings. I knew this would not be the final decision, but I had to have a place to start.

Color is so subjective, and you just have to see it.


Mom's decision---too blue! So I shuffled the colors and started at the warm end. Oh yes, an 11th word was added as well: CREATIVE. (I'll give you the whole rundown of the list of words in the next post)


Mom's decision---too red! So with just a little more tweaking, we have the final colors below.


I have never approached a project quite like this before and thought it would be nice to document from the inception.

Getting Back in the Groove

It's taken me several days to sink back into a schedule. I like to take advantage of holidays to get work done because it is so quiet with very few distractions. I stopped weaving for a bit and went up on the roof to try out the fireworks setting on my camera. It is a lot trickier than I thought it would be, plus the outline of a huge pine in the lower right corner....

Then today I finished the second scarf on this Woven Words warp. I will wash them both tomorrow and take appropriate pictures.

At last, I got this merino wool ikat piece on the loom. It is most interesting working with wool in the summer. I was not trying to actually match the sample draped over the harnesses, but rather re-create the same feeling. It remains to be woven if I have succeeded.
And I am in the planning stages for a Blessing Baby Blanket. I'll be talking about this lots in the weeks to come.


AND I leave again on the 27th! Focus!