Monday, May 13, 2013

SCA White Scarf project: Warping the loom pt. 2

In between doing Mother's Day things today, I managed to finish getting the loom all warped up. The first step in today's tasks was to tie the warp onto the back apron rod, and then crank the warp round and around the back beam. This stores the yarn until I can get around to weaving it a bit at a time. I love the way the mass of threads looks there, all sleek and clean and organized.


Then I went around to the front, and tied the other end of the yarn onto the front apron rod. Now the threads go from the front apron rod, through the reed, through the heddles, over and around onto the warp beam. (This picture is taken from the back again, but you can see how the threads look now that they're finally under tension.)


Back around at the front, I used some yarn left over on the shuttle from the previous project, and wove an inch or so. This header had the effect of spreading out the warp from where it was bunched up in the knots.


There was one last task to do. I had to crawl underneath the loom for this one. Remember that the threads go through heddles that control when they rise up in the weaving process? Each of those heddles is grouped on one of four harnesses. I can connect those harnesses to foot treadles, by way of chains. When I step on the treadle, the connected harnesses will rise up, lifting their associated threads. Each treadle can connect to one, two, three, or all four harnesses. Which harnesses the treadles are connected to, and which order I step on the treadles, that will define what pattern I will get on the scarves. With only changing the tie up of the treadles and the order that I step on them, I should be able to get several different patterns. My goal is to have each scarf have a unique pattern, without having to do more than changing those two variables.

All set to go! Tomorrow I wind some bobbins, and get to weaving. It should be fun to play with the different patterns, and see what I get. On your marks...get set.....

No comments:

Post a Comment