Twisp of Fate

I got home yesterday afternoon after a week in Bellingham at the NW Weavers’ Conference.  What a week!  Western Washington University was the venue, and the grounds and staff were wonderful.  We were in dorm rooms (I opted for a single) so the accommodations were rather spartan, but the bed was comfortable and my dorm was quiet.

Tuesday through Thursday I took a 3-day pre-conference workshop with Kay Faulkner from Australia.  The title was “East Meets West:  Warp Faced Weaves”.  She had an article in the March/April 2013 issue of Handwoven magazine on Textiles of West Timor, including a project with sotis cloth, which was one of the types of patterns we were going to do.  Here is the workshop description:

“Most weavers look towards European and American weave structures for inspiration. Some real gems can be found in Eastern textiles. Warp faced textiles in SE Asia are usually woven on back strap looms but they often can be modified to suit multishaft looms. Analysis of ethnic textiles will provide some interesting additions of technique for the hand weaver. They include warp manipulation, warp wrapping, weft patterning on warp faced cloth. These techniques can then be combined with Western structures to achieve interesting cloth. Consideration will also be given to maximizing the potential of your loom while combining structures.”

It turned out the main effort in the class was designing your warp and getting it on the loom.  I decided to make an 8-inch wide piece, 4 yards long, so I could sample the techniques to be shown in class, and have enough left for 1-2 scarves.  Well, it took me almost 2-1/2 days to get the warp on the loom.  It is sett very closely so only the warp will show.  I was using 8/2 cotton, which means something to a weaver, and my sett was 60 epi (ends per inch).   8″ x 60 = 480 ends right?  Wrong.  It wasn’t until I started actually sleying and threading that I realized my fundamental error, in not taking into account the fact that you thread in pairs of 4 into 2 heddles – 2/2 for stripes in plain weave, 1/3 for the “Sotis” patterns.  So my 480 ends that I had labored over, keeping color order and all, was making a 16″ wide piece, not an 8″ wide piece!  No wonder it took me so long.  By the middle of the last day I was only this far:

sleyed, threaded and tied on – finally!

This was despite the fact I had spent 12 hours in the workshop room the first 2 days.  I was very tired and getting a little frustrated!  It also turned out it would have been much easier to warp the loom from back to front, but by the time she explained that, it was too late for the way I had wound the warp in my usual way for front to back.

On the third day of the workshop, she was demonstrating various techniques, so I tried to take notes and some pictures while she was doing it.  The workshop handout was brief and somewhat cryptic.  Fortunately, there were some women from Seattle Weavers Guild in the class, who were farther along than I was, so I also have some folks to go to with questions.  I did get started on the first set of patterns before we had to pack up on the last day.  And I am excited about my warp, I really like the colors and if I can work my way through the techniques, I should be able to make the rest of it into placemats.  So stay tuned for progress and pictures in the coming month.

Here are some pictures of workshop projects under way:

Meanwhile, it was fun hanging out with my friends who had also come over for workshops, and meeting new people.  A number of people from the Methow Valley guild came over on Thursday for the actual conference, which includes 3 half-day seminars as part of the registration.  The fashion show on Thursday was fabulous, many wonderful garments, and beautifully presented with music.  These garments were moved to the Western Gallery in the Fine Arts building on campus, where the Instructor Show, Open Show, and Juried Show exhibits were also to be found.

So speaking of the Juried Show, I had two of my polychrome summer & winter scarves accepted for that show.  I had been pleased that the juror, Bhakti Ziek, had written some very nice comments on my entry forms when they came back to me.  Well, as it turns out, she also gave me an award!  Juror’s Choice 1st Place!

and here is a picture my friend Deb took with her iPhone:

I took all three half-day seminars from Kay Faulkner as well, as they had sounded the most interesting when I registered back in January.  There were no handouts and lots of information, but I think I got enough of it to feed my brain and creative side for the next year or two.  Tied weaves, double weave (way beyond the basics) and loom-controlled shibori.

There was also a market with vendors big and small.  I behaved myself pretty well, but did come home with a few tools (including a used LeClerc electric bobbin winder) and some lovely alpaca from Vancouver Island, for future spinning projects.  Morrison Creek Alpacas, highly recommended.