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Counselor in Training Backpacking Trip from Camp Judy Layne
Making Jellyfish Bracelets – Kumihimo

Making Jellyfish Bracelets – Kumihimo

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This summer I am volunteering at Camp Judy Layne in Kentucky for a week. I grew up in Kentucky and went to CJL Girl Scout camp every summer for years. Girl Scouts and this camp made me who I am and I have many fond memories and friends from more than 45 years ago. I will be helping with arts and crafts and also teaching wet felting to the campers. In preparation, I decided I needed to make some friendship bracelets to give away. Here is the tutorial that I found on Instagram for “Jellyfish” bracelets (Kumihimo).

Kumihimo means gathered threads and was historically used for samurai armor ties. The round ones that are made with this technique are kakugumi. The seven color bracelets are considered lucky and ward off misfortune. Mainly, I wanted something simple and easy to make.

Variety of #3 perle cotton threads in different colors.

I started with some wool yarn that I had in my stash and made a few bracelets. But I thought they were a bit too “hairy” and might be itchy for some people to wear. Suddenly, I remembered the embroidery threads that I got from my mom. There were a bunch of #3 perle cotton threads that I rarely use in my stitching/embroidery. She had already cut most of them into lengths and I found that I could make two bracelets from the cut lengths.

Cardboard circle used to create "jellyfish" Kumihimo bracelets.

The nice thing about the Instagram tutorial was that the disc used was made from cardboard and was simple to create. There are Kumihimo discs that you can purchase with more slits and you can create more intricate patterns, but this was something that can be reproduced to teach the girls at camp.

Cardboard circle with #3 perle cotton threads separated into slots on edge of circle.

Here’s the top of the circle once the threads are “loaded”. If you put similar colors together as shown above when you start, the pattern is different than if you randomly place the colors.

And here’s why it’s called a jellyfish bracelet. It definitely looks like a jellyfish when you’re making it. The directions are quite easy and it is a simple pattern. The bracelet slowly developing is quite satisfying to see.

Finished jellyfish/kumihimo friendship bracelets

Here are my finished bracelets so far. You can see the “fatter” ones on the right are the wool yarn bracelets. I think I will use small rubber bands to connect them although I will also look into a sliding square knot closure. But I was supposed to leave long ends for that type of closure which I didn’t do.

Closeup of different patterns of bracelets

Here’s the difference in the patterns using this method. The bracelet on the left is loaded with the orange threads together and the blue threads together. The one on the right is random blue and orange mixed when loading.  I have been making these at night while watching television. Not sure how many I will get finished but it’s been a relaxing activity.

Here’s the square knot closure for the bracelets. The bracelet needs to be long enough to easily slide over the hand for this to work correctly. The video I viewed used long lengths of extra thread for the closure but I had already cut off those ends. I will use this type of sliding closure for the longer bracelets and use a small rubber band for the shorter ones.

Paddling our way into the “Deeply Felt” birthing pool

Paddling our way into the “Deeply Felt” birthing pool

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Sitting here, collapsed in an exhausted heap in front of my computer I find myself wondering if organising a group exhibition is a bit like giving birth? All the weeks of late nights, stress and anxiety are quickly forgotten the day the exhibition opens and 6 months later you’re thinking… “Shall we have another one?”

The Auckland Felters 2026 exhibition is now in the final stages of labour, and this time we have a midwife (curator) helping us with the delivery. Working with a curator (Matthew) and his installation team has been a new experience for me. In some ways it’s a relief, not worrying about which pieces look good together or figuring out how to hang some of the less conventional creations but the flip side is that we have little control over which pieces get selected and how they are presented. For a control freak, this is very unnerving! 🙂

A new piece for the exhibition

I have been working on a new piece for the exhibition and inviting the readers of my monthly emails to guess what it might be. There were some interesting responses but none were correct. Can you do any better? This is the first image I shared:

Thank you so much for all the poppies!

We have been blown away by the wonderful response to our call for help with making felted poppies. Clare Hocking had the wonderful idea of creating an ANZAC day commemorative installation to fundraise for the Returned Soldiers Association in New Zealand. We all thought her idea was especially touching given that our exhibition open day will be on 25th April (ANZAC Day). The response from felt-makers all around the world and the lovely stories and letters that accompanied many of the poppies has been heart-warming. Sarah and Clare have been hard at work, assembling the 285 poppies into an installation with some felted “barbed wire” made by Jaq Spirrett.

Sorting the poppies by size and colour – the purple ones are in remembrance of the animals who have served in our defence forces. Can you see your poppy(ies)?
Sarah and Clare starting hang the poppies on invisible threads.
Clare planning how the felted barbed wire will be entwined through the poppies.

What did you guess my exhibition piece might be?

This is the second photo from my newsletters, it’s not too late to change your guess… 😉

Unexpected Benefits from the Poppy Appeal

One of the groups who sent a batch of poppies was Les Hookeuses du Bor’de’lo, from Canada and one of their members, Janice Goguen, reached out to say she was planning to visit Auckland and could we recommend any fibre-related events / activities?

She was in luck (and as it turned out so were we 🙂 )! Auckland Fun Felters were meeting the weekend she would be visiting our fair city and she was warmly welcomed to spend the day with us. We had a wonderful time hosting Janice and she very generously shared her knowledge of Canadian rug hooking. A few of us are already germinating ideas of how to combine rug-hooking with felting… 🙂

Janice demonstrating the rug-hooking technique

The Big Reveal

I confess this piece still isn’t quite finished and I need to get a move on because we start hanging the exhibition a week on Tuesday but this is the last photo in the series….

I hope you can tell what it is now? 🙂 Were your earlier guesses correct?

This piece was made from LOTS of felt ropes and strips of commercial felt that I dyed in several batches because they wouldn’t all fit in my 30L tea urn. This was my first attempt to work in this way and I really was making it up as I went along, trying to create the form of the fish over the more structured woven background. This is definitely one of those pieces that I am enjoying more now that it is finished! 🙂

My next post will be about the exhibition and contain more information about the “In Remembrance” installation, stay tuned!  

Two Coats Colder

Two Coats Colder

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Back in April 2002, before I became infected by felt and  was still interested in woven tapestry, I plucked up courage and attended a Tapestry Weaving Course run by professional tapestry weaver Bobbie Cox.  If you live in or near Rochester in Kent you may have seen some of her work as there are four of her tapestries adorning the Lady Chapel in Rochester Cathedral.  My report of the workshop was published in the March 2003 edition of The Journal for Weavers Spinners & Dyers.  I have reproduced it here.  I’m afraid that there weren’t any photographs for me to show you as I didn’t own a camera at that time.  I have tried to produce the sketches that I made and you will see why I say that I can’t draw, except with a felting needle!

inside a cathedral showing stained glass windows with tapestries below and a tapestry on the front of an alter with 2 candles on it
Lady Chapel, Rochester Cathedral – Bobbie Cox Tapestries

“Peter Tavy, Two Coats Colder than Tavistock”

“And I wish I had known before I went!  Still this only related to the weather and was in contrast to the warmth of the welcome from the inhabitants of Peter Tavy when I joined 16 others on an ‘overflow’ course on Design & Tapestry Weaving given by Bobbie Cox at Peter Tavy Village Hall (formerly the school) in the second week in April 2002 (the original course had had such a long waiting list that Bobbie had arranged an additional one).

“Our first task was to explore the village taking in textures, colours and atmosphere, making notes, taking wax rubbings and collecting samples.

“On returning to the hall we discussed what we had found and then Bobbie told us that our theme for the course would be ‘windows’.  She showed us slides of photographs she had taken from the inside looking out, outside looking in, of misted window glass, and raindrops, of reflections and shadows.  She reminded us that windows are the eyes of a building and can be looking at us whilst we are looking at them.  (I’ll never regard a window in the same way again!)  Then she sent us out around the village again to ‘collect’ windows.  The villagers were (with one unpleasant exception) very tolerant of the students gazing at their properties in a very odd way, even the overwintering inhabitants of the sole remaining farm’s cowshed.

“The students were of mixed ability, from complete beginners (three of us – one of whom was our ‘token man’ Peter) to the quite advanced.  Bobbie showed us three ways of warping our frames, how to decide on the set of the warp and how to spread the warps appropriately.  She gave us advice and encouragement and showed us some of her many sample pieces to illustrate her points and her tips.

“After a picnic lunch beside the River Tavy, it was back to work – perfecting our designs with paint and pencil.  (I stayed up till 11.30 getting mine done.)

“Next day Bobbie set up an Indigo vat – in the back of her car!  (Well it was very cold out and much warmer inside the car which was standing in the sun, indigo vats need to be kept warm.)

“We all took turns to dip various yarns and fibres, re-dipping and over dyeing some coloured yarns for various periods during that day and also leaving some in the vat over-night.  In between times we started the actual weaving of our tapestries, all the time receiving tips and advice from Bobbie.

“She advised us to watch out for shrinkage or ‘waisting’ – the tapestry pulling in at the sides as the weaving progresses.  It is unlikely that this will be the result of poor selvedges, but more likely to be because the use of several different yarns in one pic, or ending one or more kelim slits in a single pic.  Bobbie’s suggestion was that we should insert a number of ‘guy ropes’ by sewing one end of a spare piece of warp thread near the edge of the tapestry (but not too close to it) and tying the ends to the sides of the frame.  If this is done on both sides of the tapestry, the tension will help to prevent the waisting. (I wondered what the purists would think of this, but if it’s good enough for Bobbie Cox it’s good enough for me.)

“Day 3; and after removing the yarns which had rested in the dye vat over-night, some of us tried some more in what was thought just to be the exhaust of the indigo.  In fact there was still quite a bit of life there and we dipped several skeins each.

“As the sun was still shining, we decided that we would lay out on the playground the yarns which had been dried over-night so that Bobbie and those students with cameras could photograph them.  It was then that we received some exuberant visitors.  They were some of the inhabitants of the cowshed on their way through the village to alternative accommodation.  They were moving at high speed in all directions, frantically followed by the farmer.  Bobbie saw off the ones which had decided to see what the activity was at the Village Hall.  I understand that they were eventually rounded up and led of to their new abode, having left liberal donations for the rose garden in the streets.

“Before lunch, delivered to the Village Hall by Jill, the Peter Tavy Sandwich Lady, some of the students accompanied Bobbie on a walk up to Dartmoor.  Some of us, not having sufficient warm clothing, decided to stay and work on.

“During the day Bobbie showed us some more slides of windows and also some of her own work.  However the highlight of the day was a visit to Bobbie’s own studio.  She was not working on anything at the moment, being very much involved in the administration of her touring exhibition ‘Woven Water’.  She did have two of the larger pieces from this Exhibition, ‘Spring’ and ‘Autumn’, which she  hung along with some other pieces for us to see, including a recently completed commission – a large tapestry inspired by the beach at Blakeney Point in Norfolk entitled ‘Tidelines, a Woven Memory of Blakeney’.  Also on display were picture boards showing the inspiration and development of that design and some of the Woven Water tapestries as well as some smaller samples and bundles of wefts tied and dyed.  Bobbie explained the mechanics of her large high warp loom and how she works on it.

“The next day – our last – was Sunday.  Now we were all working hard trying to get as much weaving done as possible before our visitors arrived.  At Bobbie’s suggestion we had all asked our bed and breakfast hosts to morning coffee and to see what we had been doing during our stay.  This is apparently a feature of Bobbie’s courses and many villagers visit regularly.  The noise level rose dramatically as the visitors wandered around and chatted.

“Bobbie did manage to fit in a few more tips for us though:

“1        Don’t be in too much of a hurry to cut the work off the loom, live with it for a while in case you subsequently decide that you want to add to it or make some changes.  It won’t be possible after it’s off the loom.

“2        Ends of yarns are usually left hanging at the back of the work, unless it is to be viewed from both sides.  Don’t cut them too close to the weaving or they will start to work through to the right side.

“3        Darn in yarn ends which are near the selvedge or kelim slits.

“4        When you darn in, slide the needle up or down the warp thread, not across the warps – it might show.

“5        Consider the mechanics you will use to hang the finished tapestry (although this should have been thought out at the design stage).  You may need to weave further pics in the heading, for instance if you will be incorporating a metal (preferably stainless) rod or a wooden slat.

“6        Weighting the bottom of the weaving will help it to hang better.

“7        Steam press the work on the reverse side – using a cloth and pressing lightly.

“At three o’clock we started to pack up and then display our work and our design drawings so that they could all be looked at and photographed.  It was amazing what diverse designs had been achieved.  We had all learned something, particularly we three beginners.  Bobbie  had encouraged us to try our own ideas and allowed us to make our own mistakes, lessons being better learned by trial and error than by example.

“By the time that we finished at about four, we were all very tired by very happy.  One usually finds on a course like this that there is one person who spoils things for the others, but it had been noted that our group was particularly lucky in that we were not “blessed” with the student who wanted to grab all the tutor’s time, or the one who wanted to be the centre of everyone’s attention (boring or noisy or both), or the hypochondriac.  We all had a great time – thank you Bobbie.

“PS If you attend another of Bobbie’s courses in Peter Tavy, better diet before you go – the food in the local pubs is marvellous – so’s the beer!”

partly completed tapestry of the four paned window on a wooden frame loom
Window Tapestry – still on the loom I’m afraid and I don’t think it ever progressed any further.

A couple of weeks later I attended another tapestry workshop run by another professional but I’ll save my report of that one for another day.

 

Electric fringe twister
Electric Fringe Twister

Electric Fringe Twister

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I have a confession to make… I seem to be falling behind on my fringe twisting duties.  It is a bit of a tedious job and requires sitting at the table and focusing on the task.  In the winter I find our kitchen quite cold, and so I have been putting off working on fringes.

Three woven pieces with untwisted fringe
Three pieces of weaving needing fringe twisting

Recently another weaver was talking about how much they loved their electric fringe twister.  I had a look on Amazon and ended up ordering a Lacis fringe twisting tool.  It was about $45 Canadian.

Electric fringe twister
Electric fringe twister out of the box

The tool uses two AA batteries.  There are two modes and you select them by pushing the button to the 1 or 2 position.  The 1 position rotates each black spindle and twists each cord separately. The 2 position rotates the entire head and twists all the strands together.  I found a short video showing these two actions online here.

Before I could get started, I needed to prepare the piece of weaving.  I selected one of the pieces of weaving and folded it in half, lining up both ends. I add a heavy book to the weaving to help keep the pieces aligned.  Next I use an open toothed comb (I think it is from the pet shop in the cat/dog tools) to untangle the warp strands.  Once the strands are combed out you can see that the length of warp left on each side is not the same.  I trim the warp threads so that both ends will have fringes of the same length.

Once the warp threads are trimmed, I move the book and reposition the weaving so there is only a single end of the weaving on the table. The book is re-positioned to weight things down and I am ready to try out the electric fringe twister.

Depressing the bottom of the black spindles opens a hook at the end and I am easily able to position a bundle of threads on the spindle. I repeat this for each of the four spindles. Then I move the button to position 1 and add twist to the strands.  Once there is enough twist, I remove two adjacent bundles from the fringe twister, tie a knot on the end, and then let them twist together. This is then repeated for the other two bundles attached to the fringe twister.  Yeah!  The first two pieces of twisted fringe are done.

Next I repeated this across the width of the weaving. When that was complete, I went back and gently trimmed the ends of each piece of fringe to tidy them up.  (Before trimming they look a bit ratty because the warp threads are different lengths.)  I rotated the weaving and repeated all these steps on the other end of the weaving.

It took me 30 minutes to complete the fringe twisting and trimming on the second end of the piece of weaving.  I do think the electric fringe twister is slightly faster than manual fringe twisting.  And it is easier on your hands as you are doing fewer repetitive movements.  So those are both very positive things.  (I did get faster and my last piece of weaving it was about 35 minutes to twist both edges and do the trimming.)

On the cons side of things… I found the fringe twister motor noise to be a bit annoying as it seems very loud. I also found that because the unit is round, that it rocks on the table.  This makes it more challenging to attach the warp bundles to the black spindles. More importantly, a few times when I hit the switch nothing happened.  I had to shake the unit to get the power to come on.  (I guess the batteries are loose, so the power connection is flaky.) It is very disappointing that a brand new unit does not function well.

After trying the electric fringe twister for the first time I give it an 8/10 rating overall.  The first night I twisted the fringe on one first piece of weaving and started work on a second piece before calling it a night.  On the next day I finished up the fringe on pieces two and three.  And I sewed a tag on the one piece that is shawl length.  The other two pieces are longer and should eventually get turned into a sewn garment of some kind.  Here they are all laid out together.  Next up for all of them is wet finishing.

Three pieces of weaving with twisted fringes
Three pieces of weaving with twisted fringe completed.

 

double faced tablet weaving Workshop, January 2025

double faced tablet weaving Workshop, January 2025

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In the very early part of the 1980’s I was able to take a short workshop on tablet weaving. my original goal was to figure out how to make a starting border for a warp-weighted loom. after a bit more research I  realized I could make an Icelandic variant of the loom and skip the tablet woven starting border.

In the meantime, I had figured out the basics well enough to teach some of my friends how to set up and weave a band. One of those friends got very inspired by the technique and ran with it, quickly surpassed my level of skill!

Tablet weaving creates a strong band or strap by using cards to manipulate the warp threads. most often the cards have 4 holes one in each corner. Although other shapes and number of holes are available to weave with too.

When I learned to use them, each card was threaded one at a time to create the pattern you wanted to weave. there is a second way to set them up for a particular type of pickup that is much faster.

Today I was lucky to get a spot in the first running of a workshop on double-faced tablet weaving.  The description: Learn the basics of double-faced tablet weaving which allows you complete freedom to weave letters or icons on your handwoven bands for leashes, bag handles, bookmarks, luggage tags, etc. In this course you will learn:

(1) how to make a circular warp with your tablets to get you started weaving super fast

(2) how to manipulate tablets to make your designs, and

(3) how to create your own designs on paper or using tablet weaving computer software.

 

I had watched YouTube and read instructions on speed warping all your tablets at the same time (this does not work for all tablet woven patterns, but when it does it is worth it). Instead of the slow process of threading each card separately, in this case, we used an inkle loom to crate the warping pathway.  This particular pick-up pattern requires  2 colours in adjacent holes. Holding the entire pack of cards in one hand and keeping the tension consistent, the warp is wound, dropping one (and only one) card each time you pass the front peg. It would be a bit easier if you had just one more hand but, with a little practice, you can do this on your own. In the workshop, we worked in pairs to wind the warp. It took about 15 minutes to wind 24 cards.

Speed warping. with tablets droped once each time around1.1) Holding the tablets in one hand while keeping the tension and winding the warp.

dropping a card and continuing to wined the warp1.2) Dropping a card and continuing to wind the warp

this type of weaving requires 4 cones of  yarn,  2 of each of the 2 colours. the warp is wound directly from the cones, through the tablets then onto the loom1.3) This type of weaving requires 4 cones of yarn,  2 of each of the 2 colours. the warp is wound directly from the cones, through the tablets then onto the loom

Threading requires one bobbin or spool per hole, so in this picture 2 white spools and 2 black spools,  since all are being wound at the same time.

the threads from the first tablet are tied to the threads from the last tablet2.1 the threads from the first tablet are tied to the threads from the last tablet

Just like an inkle loom the warp from the first card is tied to the warp from the last card, making a fixed-length warp.  The tension bar will allow the tension to be adjusted as the weaving proceeds and the warp shortens.

Once we had the cards and warp wound, it was time to adjust the cards. There are two options or card orientation called S and Z  depending on whether the threads are going through the holes front to back or back to front. Looking down on the card one looks like an S shape the other looks like a Z. This is not the easiest for me since the dyslexia makes both look very similar.  We were to alternate S/Z/S/Z… once that was accomplished we rotated the cards so one colour was in the 2 holes closest to us and the other colour was in the two holes farther from us.

organizing the thread direction and colour positions3.1 organizing the thread direction and colour positions

Now was the tricky part. Tablets can turn in 2 directions to get the colour you want to turn up on the top, either forward  (away from you) or backwards (towards you). Depending on the pattern you may be turning some in one direction and some in another.  Oh and if you are not yet confused enough, the border cards always turn forward (away from you!!!)

Just to add a bit more confusion, each line of the diagram requires 2 quarter turns with a weft thread at each quarter turn. Now I’m sure that’s is as clear as mud!

We practised having one colour on top and then switched to having the other colour on the top surface.

Practice weaving, changing which colour is on top. 4) Practice weaving, changing which colour is on top.

Ok, this is very brain-taxing and not quite the same as what I vaguely remember from the mid-1980s. Good thing it’s time for lunch!

We had Haggis in filo pastry, very Yummy! (it was Robbie Burns Day!) and there were 2 birthdays so we also had black forest cake for dessert!

the Birthday Girls!5) the Birthday Girls!

After Lunch she had us try to make a stripe in the background colour, well that didn’t quite go as I expected.

the vertical stipe did not quite go as planned. But it was interesting.6)the vertical stipe did not quite go as planned. But it was interesting.

I restarted the weaving and prepared to try to weave my first letter.  It seemed to have started ok…. but quickly went downhill in a couple of blocks! The lower part of my J did not meet the vertical part….. ok I miss counted the boxes!!! I think my brain is done for the day.  I have left my inkle loom at the studio, and hope to work on it again Monday.  I actually have a few floor inkle looms, this is just the latest one I have acquired (it’s missing a few pegs but worked well for tablet weaving).

I won’t show you the mess I made of the J but here is a helpful tip, the giant pin holds my tablets from shifting and getting out of order. It lets you stop weaving or move the loom around.

the giant pin holds the tables so they won’t turn or get out of order7) The giant pin holds the tables so they won’t turn or get out of order

Each student had a chart with the letters of their name.

So why would a felter possibly like to try this? How about straps for a bag, or purse with your name, or maybe what the bag should be holding?

Joslyn’s name graphed out, she is marking off the line she has done Joslyn’s band went very well! (her J looks like a letter!!!)8.1-8.2) Joslyn’s band went very well! (her J looks like a letter!!!)

This was a fun workshop but I think I need a nap before I try to conquer the letter J a second time. Joslyn did a fabulous job, I will try to emulate her band.

Some Past Holiday Exchange Cards

Some Past Holiday Exchange Cards

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Hi All It seems I forgot I had to post today so I am late. I am reposting a post showing some of the past Holiday Exchange Cards that we have done. I did remove the links to sign up for this exchange.

Hi all,  for those who may not know we also run an interactive forum for felting and fiber folks. It’s a great place to share your work, ask questions and help each other out. http://feltandfiberstudio.proboards.com/

Each year we have a holiday exchange. You make a small felted postcard or similar size card with some felt on it.

Here’s the timeline:

October 4-Nov 9: people sign up

November 10 partners are announced.

November: Make your card, contact your partner for an address

December 1: Mail your card

Here are some of the cards from our past exchange, there has been lots of variety.

 

   

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Final patch detail view
Mending a bag

Mending a bag

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I have a few reusable shopping bags made from a light polyester fabric.  I love these bags since they fold into nice integrated pockets, fit nicely into my purse, and when unfolded they hold a lot of stuff.  I have 5 or 6 of these bags that I use all the time.

One of my bags got a hole.  Since I love the bags so much I wanted to repair it.  My first attempt at a repair was functional, but not very attractive.  I mended the bag with black thread and managed to stabilize the hole.  But it looked terrible.  I

I got the idea that one of those patch looms would be helpful.  So I ordered one.  My loom has 14 hooks and this is the contents of the kit.  The loom, some elastics, a very long and sharp needle, and a long hook.

Darning loom kit
Darning loom kit

Next I watched some videos so I could understand how to use the loom.  There are 2 methods for warping.

  • Individual warps – This method uses individual threads for each pair of warp threads.  This allows you to create stripes in the warp.  But it also leaves you with lots of tails to sew in.  This video provides an overview.
  • Continuous warp – This method uses a single thread to warp the loom.  It is tacked into the base fabric as you go and there are only 2 tails to deal with when the weaving is completed.  This video provides an overview.

I opted to use the continuous warp method because I didn’t want to have to deal with sewing in so many ends when I was done.  I stretched my fabric over the wooden disk and then setup the loom.  Then I started warping using some white embroidery floss.  You will noticed that I did not use all the hooks on the loom.  I used enough hooks to ensure that my patch was larger than my previous repair.

With the warping completed, it was time to start weaving.  I selected an orange embroidery thread and started.  As you rotate the hooks on the loom the warp threads change so that you are going over/under different threads.  After weaving a row I used a comb to push down the weft.  (If you don’t have a small comb I suggest a dinner fork could be pressed into service for this job.)

To start the next row, you then flip the hooks from left to right (or right to left) to change the shed.  You also need to tack the weft thread into the fabric you are patching before threading the needle though the shed to create your next row.

I found sewing down the thread before starting the row to be difficult, especially as my weft rows got closer to the loom because the working surface was so small.  When threading the needle through the shed the videos also suggest that you push the needle through the loom eye end first.  I tried using the needle both ways and agreed that the eye first direction was easier because the pointed end of the needle would sometimes get stuck on a warp thread.

I continued weaving until my patch was completed and there was no more room for weft rows.  I then removed the hook portion of the loom and set it aside.  But I left the fabric stretched over the wooden disc.  At this point my patch is really a small pocket on my fabric.  Next I carefully sewed down each of the loops at the top of the warp threads and secured the top of the patch to the base fabric.

It was now time to turn my attention to the inside of the project.  I sewed in the tails and then trimmed them.  (No photos.  My work is passable but not really photogenic.)  And here is my completed patch.  It blends in nicely with the bag and I’m sure that it will help to strengthen my earlier repair.

Because I had my sewing stuff out, I also did a bit of mending on the attached pouch of another one of my bags.  The pouch fabric had shredded 🙁  These photos show the pouch before I attempted to mend it.

Again, I used some white embroidery thread and mended across the ripped area.  It was challenging to create a repair that would not lead to further shredding of the fabric.  I also wanted to avoid bunching the fabric so that the pocket would continue to function properly.  My final repair is not the prettiest.  But I think it will work.

I am happy with my new patch.  The patch looks cute, it is not too bulky and I think it is stronger than my previous repair.

The mending loom worked OK.  Flipping the hooks from side to side was harder than I expected.  (I am not sure if that is my fault or because I have a cheap knock off loom.)  I also feel that the working surface was a bit small.  As a result I went ahead and ordered a larger loom.  I will be ready for next time I need to apply a patch.

Do you have some mending that needs to be done?  If so I encourage you to tackle it.  There is a great sense of accomplishment when something goes from the mending pile to being back into service.

 

 

75th Anniversary Events

75th Anniversary Events

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As some of you know this year has been the 75th Anniversary of the OVWSG.  One of the events has been a monthly destash for guild members.  This is beneficial for members on so many levels.  Those with too much can clear out, while those who want to experiment can have the opportunity to try new products.  I’m in the later group.  One of our most talented weavers was clearing out a huge quantity of singles from a very reputable firm, in colours that I loved.  I pounced on them.

The intention is make a rouana or serape.  I’m starting with a piece that is 45″ wide by 90″ long and will work on finishing edges after it is woven and fulled.  The piece will get thicker and narrower, I hope.

The pattern is a basic twill in one inch stripes, very simple and hopefully showing the great colours.

The loom I’m using is not my own.  We are very fortunate to have access to rental equipment at our Guild and for a very reasonable cost we can use the equipment there.  So I opted to rent one of the Guild’s looms for three months.  This will force me to leave the house to finish this project.  Setting some goals and discipline is a good thing in the winter, right?

Warping the loom is slow going because I lost the cross on one section.  This is very disappointing and will be problematic as the threads are wound onto the back of the loom.  It’s not insurmountable, just annoying.

I am going to have to be very careful here, but I think I fixed the problem on the next few sections with some small innovations.

The bamboo skewers are wrapped on either side of the cross and I can pick the threads from alternate sides to stop them from getting tangled.  This was a real time and sanity saver.  Dressing a loom is a series of steps.  Each one needs to be done with an element of care and thought. From the initial calculations and colour selection, to fiber choices and use of end product, then threading the pattern, tie-up, treadling, and finally weaving. It all takes a bit of thought some more than others.  So for now I have left the colour selection and fiber choice to a very talented member of the Guild,  the pattern is mine, the end product will be a rouana or serape in a twill.  It has been measured and threaded through the reed, next it must be threaded through all the heddles, tied onto the back beam, wound on, tied onto the front beam and I’ll be ready to go.

But I’m getting ahead of myself, next step, will be threading through heddles, all 450 or so.  Heddles are those silver wires on the right.  Wish me luck. I have three months to finish this, so I’m good.

A rare view inside Ashford Wheels and Looms, New Zealand

A rare view inside Ashford Wheels and Looms, New Zealand

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As textile folk, many of you are familiar with the New Zealand company Ashford Wheels and Looms. In fact some may own an Ashford product as they also sell hand carders, drum carders and many other tools and accessories.

They sell all around the world.

Me, I am the proud owner of a set of their hand carders and a drum carder, they are invaluable tools when it comes to my felt making.

Here’s a question:  what have Lego and Ashford Wheels and Looms got in common?  I will tell you at the end of the post.

Back to my story.  You probably have experienced one of those rare moments in life where the planets aligned – a real ‘right place right time’ moment.  This happened to me earlier this year.  Last February, we did a once in a lifetime trip to New Zealand.  At this stage I can’t tell you how many time zones we traversed but, travelling from Ireland, but were a long time in the air and we covered over 18,000km.  I loved every minute of the trip and we factored in time to spend at the Ashford store in Ashburton on the South Island.  So for anyone who has or is thinking about purchasing anything from the store, here’s some photos and a story that might fill in the blanks on your lovely pieces.

I was so excited when our hire car pulled into the car park.  I jumped out and started talking to the first person I met.  By sheer stroke of luck I was talking to the company’s owner Richard Ashford.  My second bit of luck was that he and his lovely wife Elizabeth were about to lead a factory tour for an American group.  He introduced me to the group (which I thought was very courteous of him) and off we all headed into the factory.  The couple’s charisma and energy shone through during the tour.  They were both about to retire from the family business making way for a new generation of Ashford’s to take over the business which has been on the go for over 90 years.  I wish them both a happy and healthy retirement and I want to thank them both for making the morning I spent in their company so warm and memorable.

So if you are the proud owner of one of the 900,000 Ashford products which have been made so far in Ashburton, give us a shout and let us know what treasured item you own.  If you are thinking of buying, the slide shows may well whet your appetite.  Enjoy this rare view inside the factory.

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Stockists are all over the globe.

My next stop was a wander around the store.  Think kid in a sweet shop in this regard.  The only issues that held me back were the fact that there’s only so much that would fit into the suitcase and the realisation that I can buy from one of many stockists in Europe – happy days! Here’s a sneak peak of the interior of the shop:

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I hope you enjoyed these special holiday photos. Please feel free to reach out and tell us what Ashford pieces you own (or what is on your wish list)

Answer:  both are highly successful companies who started out making wooden toys.

curved wall of mettle and glass, of Ottawa city hall gallery. the class panels are horizontal bands of clare and frosted glass, the clear giving hints of the exhibit inside.
Egils Rozenbergs Tapestry Exhibition (Ottawa, 2024)

Egils Rozenbergs Tapestry Exhibition (Ottawa, 2024)

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As I write this, I am just back from the private tour of the EGILS ROZENBERGS’ (Latvia) – Signs of the Time exhibition, arranged for the Ottawa Valley Weavers and Spinners guild. His work is monumental, and striking.  it is well worth the trip down to the New City Hall on Elgin St. (there is a parking Garage underneath the building. Use the Elgin Street entrance. As with much of Ottawa at the moment, there is construction and road work near the other entrance.) for those who find it a bit of a drive, let’s take a peek at the exhibit while it’s here! (Although you may want to come back for a second viewing when you have more time!)

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1.1-1.3) City Hall Art Gallery – peeking through the windows and looking at the tapestries

The exhibit’s public Opening and artist tour is on Thursday, August 29, 5:30 to 7:30 pm the Tour begins at 6 pm. The exhibition runs from August 29 to November 24, 2024, at the City Hall Art Gallery (110 Laurier Avenue West, Ottawa, ON, Canada, Ontario)

The new City hall is actually an old building, the old teacher’s college (Normal School), built in 1875 and the expansion of a new wing in 1990. Besides city offices, there is civic space, including multiple gallery spaces.  We are heading to the gallery behind the grand piano in the atrium.

I arrived about half an hour early so have time to check out some of the architecture of Ottawa city hall.

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2.1-2.5) Looking around the atrium of City Hall before the gallery opened.

I wandered back to find 2 people waiting for the talk but didn’t recognize them. They were the Tapestry Artist himself and his Canadian weaver friend, who would help him as a translator. Moments later, the Latvian Ambassador and his assistant arrived!

The artist is on the Left and the Ambassador of Latvia is on the right. both are standing in front of the City Hall Art Gallery3.1) weighting for the Gallery to open for the talk. The artist is on the Left and the Ambassador of Latvia is on the right.

The rest of the tour group arrived, as well as the gallery manager and we all went into the gallery.

We had a good turnout for a mid-day, mid-week time. Besides the local guild members, there are a few people you might not recognize; The Latvian Ambassador and his assistant, the Gallery manager, the Artist and his friend, and a fellow weaver who was also his translator (he did a fabulous talk in English). You might also spot Michel, Director of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum!

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Exhibition Egils Rozenbergs' tapestrie book and 4.1-4.2) Stepping into the gallery you are greeted by the monumental tapestries, which were striking, even more so in person. / The show catalogue, the book on Egils Rozenbergs ($40.00) and the visitor book.

Egils Rozenbergs is an internationally known weaver. He gave an overview of his education and then a bit about the focus of his work. He told us how he started as a painter, then he switched from painting to the new department of Textiles, with a focus on large tapestries for exhibitions. Since his scholastic training,  he has worked as a Textile artist. He was selected to weave a tapestry for Queen Margrethe II of Denmark as a present from Latvia. He has also had 2 of his designs picked by the French Goblin Tapestry Studio.

He had selected tapestries representing some of his older series of work as well as his latest series. This new selection marks a shift in his source material (the type of “yarn” fibres he uses). His early work used Wool/ Linen and Copper, moving to Wool/Linen and Polyester, and now shifting to Polyester, Polypropylene, Nylon, and Acrylic.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries with the tour listening to the artist Egils Rozenbergs in front of one of his new tapestries5.1-5.2)He said his opening remarks and overview of the exhibition in front of his newest tapestries (his Transfiguration series), then answered some of our questions. / his translator friend, on the far left, is also a weaver.

We asked him quite a few technical questions; details about his loom, his warps and even weaving techniques.

He had a large horizontal loom similar to our 100-inch loom but only uses 2 shafts. (I was able to find the full picture that was used in the show promotional material, showing the loom he uses here: https://th.bing.com/th/id/OIP.hk0UBNJtxNtcQhIuT3o3vwHaE8?w=302&h=202&c=7&r=0&o=5&dpr=1.3&pid=1.7 )

There were questions next about if he was using a flying shuttle to compensate for the wide weaving width (that needed a bit of translation). No, he is using a manual shuttle and a tapestry technique for the pattern weft. Occasionally he had a friend weave with him, like we do for the 100-inch loom. I was wondering about what EPI he had set the warp. He could tell us how many warps in 20 centimeters which Ann S. quickly did the math and told us that it converted to 5EPI. That led to a follow-up about the visual difference between the wool ground and the new work with VHS and cassette tape (he had an ingenious way of adding twist as he wound balls for his weft! But I should not give away his secret, you will have to ask him when the exhibit travels closer to you.)  the PPI was greater in the newer weaving one of which was woven in plain weave where you can see both the warp and weft. The other tapestries were all weft-faced. One of the tapestries had a gradient in the ground, we found out he is using multiple strands of yarn, in different colours. He is switching out and in colours, as he weaves.  There was a question if he used a cartoon under his warp. He said he makes detailed drawings about 12×15 inches of his designs then graphs the design directly to the warp, making marks (drawing) on it.  He mentioned he sometimes frames and sells his preliminary drawings, as well as the tapestries.

He took us around the exhibit telling us about pieces he had selected.  These are made mainly of wool, Linen and Copper. He had been able to find coated copper (so it would not tarnish, he pointed at a tapestry from 2004 which was still shiny copper). I tried to remember everything he was saying and take shots to show you and the guild members who could not attend today.

In the area to the Left of the entrance, there were representatives of 3 of his series themes. The first represented the signs found in the Latvian beach sands near his home. This series was called Signs in the Sand which he has returned to over many years. The work on the Left was Morning Light 2004 Wool Linen and Copper, and on the Right, Sparkling Sea, 2016  Wool Linen and Copper.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries close up6.1 -6.3) Close-up of sparkling sea (R) from the Signs in the Sand series the copper seemed to move and shimmer like light on sand in clear ripples of water.

I was very impressed with both pieces (even if they are invoking water).

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries close up Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries clsoe up6.4 -6.5) Close up of  the left

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries7.1) this tapestry was from a series called Scars.  I don’t seem to have the proper title.  It had a lovely graphic rhythm. I think some of the symbols or marks were from ancient graves.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries close up7.2)   this was a close up. you can see the multi strands of the pattern weft, and how he is changing strands within the group as he weaves. The background is a solid blue.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries7.3) The other tapestry from this series was at the entrance to the exhibit. Signs of the Time, from the Series Scars, 2020. Wool, Linen and Polyester.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries8.1)  This tapestry represented the series of Mexican masks it was very striking too. The copper grabbed the light and reflected it back, making it hard to get a truly representational shot. This also gives you a good idea of the size of the tapestry and a suggestion of the size of the loom.

There were two tapestries from the Paris series, one was Rhythms of Paris 2012,  Wool, Linen and Copper. On a blue background, suggestions of the Eiffel Tower.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries9.2)  The second piece was based on shadows on the ground in a park in Paris. (the top of a metal gate)

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries10.1) This one is from a series of frames that support haystacks. I found it particularly mesmerizing.

Egils Rozenbergs is showing his book in front of one of his tapestries10.2)  At this point the Gallery manager reminded us that there was a book available of his work (it will go very nicely in the Biography section of the Guild library, once the guild pays for it.)

We wound up back in the main section with his newest series. It is based on the changing technology and Transfiguration. Are you seeing circuit boards?

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries close up11.1-11.2) This one had a plain woven background so you can see the warp showing through. Two Suns, from the series Transfiguration 2016 Wool Linen and Polyester.

Egils Rozenbergs' New tapestries12) these 3 are also part of the Transfiguration series. Notice the background on these 3,  old tapes that were joined together and twisted to create the ground weft.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries13.1-13.3 ) This is a close up of the tapestry on the far Left in the last photo it was called the Old Lady who walked along the sea from Transfiguration 2017 Polyester, polypropylene and Nylon.

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries14.1-14.2) Nothing is like it was Before from the series Transfiguration 2017,  Polyester, Poly polypropylene, Nylon  and Acrylic

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries14.3  (on the left) This piece was hung further away from the wall so you could look behind it

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries14.4) behind the back of the tapestry

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries 15.1-15.2 Transformation Series the end of the tour

Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries exhibition Egils Rozenbergs' tapestries electronic sign outside city hall gallery15.3-15.4)  A couple of last shots of the gallery space

Egils Rozxenbergs’ presentation and explanation of his work were inspiring. I want to go out and felt a landscape a really big one! His repurposing of tape to weft was very effective and the coated copper got me wondering where I put my bobbin of fine cotton….  I hope if this exhibit travels somewhere near you (or you are visiting Ottawa before it closes) that you will grasp the opportunity and go see it.