Fiber Arts Friday - Let's Do the Time Warp

Welcome to Fiber Arts Friday!  Each week Fiber Artists from around the world meet here to share their adventures in Fiber Arts.  So...what are you waiting for?  Link your Fiber Arts Blog in and share in the fun.  If you visit, please leave a comment and join the Fiber Arts Fun!

My new obsession with weaving is growing faster than I can create time (really, I've been working the time warp --get it?) to weave.  Between spinning, carding, sorting and knitting, I somehow try to squeeze in the art of felting and weaving.  Argh!  Something must suffer and I decided house cleaning would be it so...let me share with you what I've been doing this month with my Cricket Loom.

The Weaver's Guild of Kalamazoo, which I joined last year, has some amazing study groups focusing on various aspects of weaving, spinning and felting.  I recently joined a Towel Study Group where we are learning all the techniques needed to make all the beautiful towels that you see in kitchens and dining rooms.  When we had our first meeting earlier this month, I was overwhelmed with the items people brought for show and tell.  Some of these women have been weaving longer than I've been alive (I know...that's really not that long, is it?) and have amazing skills, stories and techniques they are willing to share with our group.


We are supposed to create a towel for our May meeting using whatever colors and pattern we want for display.  The group really wants a variety of colors, patterns and techniques for our display.  The goal is to show the art form of making hand woven towels and the range of skill using various types of looms and the variety of skill levels.  Obviously I will be representing the beginner weaver.  The first thing I needed was the proper sized tools for my loom.  The Cricket comes with an 8 dent-reed which is nice for worsted weight yarn but for my towels, which I will be using delicious Mercerized Perle Cotton, I needed a 10 dent-reed so a shopping I went.  There are also all different types of cotton to use for towels and the cotton I chose will be for display towels more than for every day use...why?  Because the absorbency of the Mercerized Perle Cotton is not very high.  It allows for a very pretty look but washing dishes or drying your hands would take much longer but...I wanted to work with this cotton and LOVED the colors I found so display towels it will be.  At our meeting I learned so much about what fibers work best for towels and the difference between display towels and everyday use towels.  I finally got my weaving yarn package in the mail this week so...once I finish knitting my Winter's Rhythm Caplet this weekend, my reward will be to warp my loom with my pretty cotton.  Now to decide which color(s) to weave my first towel with and...what pattern.  I am going to keep the first one simple because...it is going to be a challenge working with a finer yarn.

Before I begin my towel, I am also experimenting with weaving raw Suri Alpaca locks into fabric.  The most recent issue the Alpacas Magazine showed rugs being made using raw locks out of Angora and Suri so I decided to try a smaller project since that's all my Cricket will allow.  What a perfect use for the beautiful raw locks that are too tight to be spun into yarn.  Hopefully next week you will see my loom warped with beautiful cotton.  In the meantime, which color(s) would you suggest I use for my first towel?  Now...share your adventures in Fiber Arts!

Fiber Arts Friday Blog Carnival! 

To participate:

1. Submit your blog article using your current blog address NOT your complete blog  i.e. you would submit 

http://wonderwhyalpacafarm.blogspot.com/2010/02/e-i-e-i-doh.html  

NOT 

http://wonderwhyalpacafarm.blogspot.com

1. Link back to Fiber Arts Friday from your post so that your readers can come and see everyone else’s projects! Text link to  WISDOM BEGINS IN WONDER!   
2. Visit as many of the other participants as possible and leave comments! That’s what helps us all connect!

Check out these wonderful blogs: