The spring semester is long gone and since three weeks I am attending a four week weavingclass at my school - HV Skola in Stockholm. Thus far I am very pleased, and I´ve learned heeps.. The problem is that I have not got a proper swedish/english craftlvocabulary. This makes it somewhat frustrating trying to describe my endevours... Anyhow:
We all started out planning a striped weave - towels, fabric for a bag or a tablecloth. Since I´ve always had somewhat of a problem with making things not-symetrical, I decided to practise this and made it an asymmetrical striped cottonwarp (8/2) with linenweft (16/2).
Trying out - plain weave and twills.
Greys and greens and the occasional fuschia.
The knitting-bag-to-be
So, I decided on the cross-twill (korskypert på svenska, vad katten heter det på engelska?) and after weaving the one meter piece for the bag I also wove a 12 cm piece and made a small bag for my weaving notions as soon as I got home the day I was finished. I washed it and used our lovely mangle. Linen loves mangles... And then I took my poor sewingmachine out of the cupboard, lined with a vintage marimekkofabric - Voila! (Yes I will add a photograph. I would right away If I had´nt forgotten it at school. Pure Happiness. Pure satisfaction. Warping, weaving, sewing, using.
And then, time for the second weave. Earlier the second week our wonderful teacher showed us twenty or so swatches to gives us some ideas. There was loozengetwills, houndstooth and other coloureffectweaves (det heter färgeffekt på svenska, vadfasen heter det på engelska) and techniques. I instantly fell in love with this strangely checked but not checked fabric. So, come weekend and I took this piece of fabric and started to count threads and analyse it. I ANALYSED IT! I did. (gasp) It´s like making gold. I Understood The Fabric.
Couting threads
So. I wove it. But I wanted to have a warming shawl in colour, so of I went to Marias garn and bought some Shetland wool in purple and orange. The magic of this fabric is that the squares only appear as long as every other thread in warp aswell as weft is orange and every other is purple (light/dark). If I was to use a solid colour, the pattern has a kind om a diamond look.
I know it is a large picture, but it isn´t a good one - so if you should se anything.
So, before I leave for the sofa and some knitting time;
a picture of Valdar reading and eating cupcakes. Take care, knit and for God´s sake make some cupcakes!
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