Weaving - Convergence

After a week of moving things from my studio to Container #3 I finally got to my big loom. I took another day to give her a bath and an oil job. I have been warping for 2 days; I had a slow start as I had to relearn how to use my AVL Warping Wheel but it's going nicely now.  Pictures tomorrow, I left my camera in the studio and I don't want to walk back out there in the rain.

Regaining my Studio

I didn't have too much time today to work as Sunday is my normal shopping day at the Farmer's market. 

Two looms, some benches and other equipment moved to Container #3.

Almost a clear shot to my Tools of the Trade Loom, if I would have moved the dress form it could be seen.  I have had this loom for many years and I love it. It's harnesses have springs at the bottom so it is very quite. I work with very fine threads so I had a 1/2 section beam build by my friend Bob Shepherd. The sections are made from thin wires, not pegs, so they take up very little room. I purchased a rolling temple from Fireside Looms but haven't had time to attach it. The next major improvement will be a worm gear. In the mean time I will weave awhile.

The next two looms that will remain in my studio are a Schacht 8 Harness, 36 inch floor loom and an old Norwood I bought new 25 or so years ago. 

Regaining my Studio

Container #3 is ready for "stuff" and do I have "stuff", I have a studio full of "stuff". This picture makes the space look small but this half of the container is 8 x 22. Hopefully all the OutPost's used looms, wheels and other equipment will fit because I am tired of my studio looking like this.

Hidden under the white cover in front of the window is my loom.   I'd really like to take the cover off tomorrow and hug it.  My luck, I'll be so tired from moving stuff I won't be able to move, let alone weave.                                                    
                                                                                
                                                                                

Weavers OutPost

Things are moving right along. Half of the floor is in and the other half is ready to go in. I am going down the hill tomorrow to bring my trencher home. It's not everyone who's husband buys them a trencher for Christmas.  I have lots of water lines to go in for the new gardens.   I'm starting with 9 holes for trees in Barbara's memorial bird garden.  I have them all started, with all the rain it's pretty easy digging.

Hopefully, we will be moving looms out of the house and studio into the #3 container Friday. Next week with any luck at all I will be weaving.

Weavers OutPost

The door is done! It stopped raining long enough to finish the outside part. The trim will be added to the inside after things dry out. The floor has not arrived which is probably a good thing as the rain is supposed to be gone for awhile.

As soon as the floor arrives we will roll it out and start moving looms in. I might be weaving by Winter Solstice.  What a great present that would be.

Weavers OutPost

The door is done, except for trim! It opens and closes very smoothly. It's raining again and the floor is supposed to be delivered tomorrow, don't know what is going to happen.  It's rubber so it can't be hurt by the rain.  I suppose I'll just have it shoved into the end of the container and wait until the rain stops.

I also started digging some holes for the tree garden.  I wanted to get them started so when the rain came there would be holes to catch the water and soak in. I will take some before pictures tomorrow.

It's been a long day.

Weavers OutPost

Work continued on the door today, it's turning into the door from hell. We finally got it in and squared when we noticed that the top had moved out about 1/2 inch.  When I was coming down the ladder, I thought I was on the last step only to find out too late I was up one.  Pushing off the ladder and landing on both feet was a good trick but couldn't back peddle fast enough to keep my balance. Down I went, I did a roll but cracked my head good.  That was the end of my manual labor work day, if I can move, we will start again in the morning. Rain is coming tomorrow night. At least I've figured out why I'm a weaver and not a carpenter.

Weavers OutPost

Well, the door is at a standstill. It has rained all day, with wind. I stayed in all day working on color cards for RedFish and watching old movies. Normally I would be weaving on days like this.
This door thing is taking a lot longer than I had planned on.   I have never put a door in, so I got a book and read up on it, didn't look like it would be hard, that was my first mistake. If it doesn't rain tomorrow, it will be done.

Weavers OutPost

The Weavers OutPost, formerly know as the Weavers' Cottage belongs to me.  I closed the Cottage because the building that housed the Cottage was falling down around us and the rent kept rising. I decided to move it home and try running it as an internet business.  I purchased a 9 foot by 40 foot container thinking this would be large enough to hold the inventory.  Big misjudgment on my part. The yarn fit in the container but that was it. The looms, wheels and most of the equipment didn't. Since I had no place else to put the "left overs", they went into my home and my studio.  Ten months later, my home is still paths through weaving equipment, my studio is still unusable.

Today, is the third day we have worked on putting a door in #3. Container #2 is a 9 foot by 15 foot container I got for a very good price so it will be my office. Container #3 is 9 foot by 48 foot and will house the equipment and a repair shop. When the door is finished and the flooring is put down, the looms can be moved in. The time frame for this is a week.

The little building I took pictures of coming up the drive will be a show room to show samples. The Weavers OutPost is getting very close, getting my home and studio back is very close.

Why I'm not weaving 8(

Wow! Lots happening this week to keep me from weaving. We cut a hole in the #3 container for a door that will be easier to open. This process took a couple days, now that it's finally done, it's supposed to rain. The flooring has been ordered and should be here next Friday, it will probably be pouring rain by that time. It's getting so close to being done I can almost see it.  I will be able to get to my looms again. I'll be able to weave.

The Little Dog has been adopted by weaver Joyce Hinton. Her name has been changed from Little Dog to Heddle.  She moved to her new home and has a Pug to play with.  My dogs are settling down, I thought Sunshine would be neurotic before Little Dog left. I don't think neurotic is the work I was looking for, she has always been neurotic, maybe she was heading for a complete breakdown.  Bunker kinda liked her but didn't want to admit it. They ran and played together but Bunker would keep growling to keep up appearances. I caught her licking the Little Dog from head to toe. Little Dog seemed to enjoy it.

We also said, "screw it", and went to a movie, then to the new Shusi joint in Palmdale. Saw "A Christmas Carol" in 3D. I don't know why I enjoy going to the movies so much. I can't hear a word that is being said, one day they will have close captions. Sherlock Holmes will be next.  I do like movies that have really great sets.

I also mastered a fabulous Gluten Free English Muffin. I was buying a fairly good one at Whole Foods, then they stopped carrying them.  I actually think mine are better.

We also had to say goodbye to weaver friend Barbara Gawronski, who passed away last Monday. Barbara was Polish and had a very thick accent, she also laughed a lot when she talked. A conversation between us would take hours as I couldn't understand most of what she was talking about. Never stopped us from having a good time though.

Braiding & Goldwork

Some of the members of THAT Guild have started a Study Group on Goldwork. Since I love to embroider I figured I needed a new hobby, so I jumped right in. While doing research  on Goldwork, I can never truly just jump right in, I came across photographs of Chinese Emperor robes that had both Chinese Braid Embroidery and Goldwork.  Now I have 2 new hobbies.
I purchased the book "Chinese Braid Embroidery" by Jacqui Carey and promptly got started with a make-shift stand made from a old rag shuttle, a piece of pvc, a wooden dowel, a small board and an old stool. I'm using pirns for bobbins and tami for weights. The first braid was too tight, the second too loose, tomorrow I will find some weights a little lighter and hopefully get a braid that is just right.
Most of the people in the Study Group are almost finished with their first project - I'm still working on my materials. Oh well, tomorrow is another day.

Why I'm not weaving 8(

My Sister-in-Law, Annie, died today.

why I'm not weaving 8(

When we arrived home from visiting Anne and Jim in Mesa, last Wednesday, we found this little rat dog in the orchard. She was hungry, thirsty, matted and of course, just to make the season bright, in season.  She's driving our dogs nuts. I have figured out a diaper system for her and have hung pictures of her on the town bulletin board . To see if anyone recognizes her, I have taken her by the local vets, feed stores and groomers. No one knows her! She is pure bred, adorable, and doesn't yip. She wasn't house broke but is now, sleeps in a create, certainly wasn't used to running with the big dogs but seems to have taken over and can herd our Australian Shepherds into a corner in no time flat. We are hoping that her owners are away for Thanksgiving and will claim her on their return. We call her Little Dog as we don't want to get too close (we've had a cat for a couple years we call Yellow Cat for the same reason). If no one claims her, I will take her to the vet to be spayed and then take her to my dear, dear, dear friend Susan's. Her dog Sunny needs a friend and she seems be more of a city dog than country.

why I'm not weaving 8(

Gary's sister, Anna, is very ill and I'm glad we got to visit with her for a few days. Mesa was warm and we could go outside and sit in the sun. She stood up with me at our wedding and has been a constant bright spot in my life for 32 years. I will miss her terribly.

THAT Guild Meeting

THAT Guild met today at the clubhouse at Barbara Eisenman's.  We had a workshop on the Hazel Rose Looms - the new Weavette.  Fourteen came and we wove little squares and had a great pot luck.

Heading out to Mesa in the morning for 4 days.

why I'm not weaving 8(

The dogs started barking, I grabbed my camera and ran outside just in time to see the Weavers OutPost come up the drive. We have been waiting 3 weeks for it to get here and now it's here.
We have had 3 steel containers delivered and watching them being rolled off trucks and crashing to the ground turned by excitement to fear, this is a wooden building, it can't crash to the ground. Hopefully the delivery man knows his stuff.





Well, he knew how to drive anyway, he backed right into the spot on the first try.  The spot I had marked was larger than the little house so when the driver asked me which line I wanted the house on it was the line furtherest away. This amazing little trailer had no problem with that request, it just dropped another set of wheels going in the opposite direction and the trailer bed moved back 4 foot.

OK, at this point I haven't taken a breath in 5 minutes!

Here it is, safe and sound on the ground.  Our neighbor, John, is doing the electricity for us and he just happened to drive by and stopped to check it out.  When he left, we headed off to town for insulation.

Looks a little bare. After installing the insulation, I will start digging holes for trees, bushes and flowers. I love to dig, it's right up there with weaving.

Why I'm not weaving 8(

Every day I think to myself, "I'm going to weave today" and every day slips by without a loom being touched. It would be easier for me to weave if I could actually get to a loom. Since I closed the Weavers' Cottage in Canyon Country and moved it to Acton, my home, weaving studio and several sheds are stuffed with equipment, yarns, computers and office equipment. My life as a weaver came to a screeching halt, let's face it, everything came to a screeching halt. You read about people who are found dead because a pile of crap fell over on them in their home, this could be me!

The first thing that happened, was a 40 foot container. We insulated it, had electricity installed and a fabulous shelving system. One wall is covered with slat board to hold all the cones. There was only one problem - no room for an office and where can I put the looms and equipment? The second container arrived, a 15 footer - the office problem is solved. Once again we insulated and installed electricity.

My home is small - 1700 square feet. My weaving studio is small 700 square feet. My looms are large - a 52" Tools of the Trade (my baby) a 36" Schacht floor loom and a Baby Wolf 26", 2 48"Gilmores, a 48" Fireside, 2 48" Norwoods and a 30" Baby Norwood, these puppies take up a lot of room! Ah, we need another container - this one is 48 feet long! It has been electrified and insulated. Over Thanksgiving, we will install a double door in the side. Those big end doors are really hard to open. All the looms except for 4 will be moved to the #3 container. I will have my weaving studio back!!!

Tomorrow another building will be delivered! It will be our little show room! The Weavers' Cottage is gone but the Weavers OutPost will be born, after insulating and electricity, of course. I'm getting excited, we have the garden planned and will work on it this winter. Nine months have passed and I have received tons of email inquiries about our re-opening date. All I have to say is it would have been sooner but for the insulating and electricity - and then there is always the lack of time and money.

Soon, it will be soon.

weaving - Towel Exchange

I feel my dishtowels are a complete failure at this stage and as I don't have time to reweave them (I do have time to reweave but I do not want to!!) I will start the process of trying to save them.

I personally like a nice thin, loose weave dishtowel, I think they take up water better; these might be too loose. I also wanted to try a diversified plain weave, perhaps not the best pattern for hemp. I really can't say as I've never done this pattern before and I also have never wove with hemp. Now I have made dishtowels that have to be ironed. Good job! I will now get my iron and board out and give them a good press. Hopefully, I can find my iron and board in under an hour.

Things I have learned on this project:

Stick to patterns and yarns were you know the outcome when joining an exchange.

Start early incase you have to start over.

Don't join any more exchanges.

Weaving - Towel Exchange

This week, I have made great progress on my towels. I beamed my warp and have started to weave. It's easier to find time to weave, so hopefully, they will be finished on time.

Weaving - Towel Exchange

Finally I'm back to warping my loom. This week, I have gotten through the reed and have a good start on the heddles.

Weaving - Towel Exchange

I'm trying to work at least an hour everyday. I'm still measuring.

Weaving - Towel Exchange

I have started measuring warp for the T.H.A.T. Guild dish towel exchange. I had thought to wait until my studio is put back in order but decided that I had better charge on.  I am doing a diversified plan weave with an 18/2 natural hemp, thus doing 2 of my 2009 goals in one project.

Trails - Camping

It was a long trip home, we camped some but it rained a lot so we slept in motels too. Cell phone and internet coverage was very slim or not at all. Very beautiful but great to be home.

We drove mile after mile looking at fields of wild iris the most beautiful periwinkle color.

  No telephone or power lines here, a lot of people used this tree for their shoes when they left town.

A park where we camped one night.

Trails - Selling

There were several garments in the competition that were woven with RedFish Yarn. This Scarf won the Complex Weaver Award. Some of the classes for this Conference started Friday, the main Conference started today and some are next week. Very strange. There were a lot of shoppers out today. The banquet and Keynote Speaker were tonight from 6 to 9, so all the vendors decided to leave at 7.  We walked the Riverwalk to Downtown to have dinner. Spokane is a very beautiful city with parks and lots of art along the river. I especially like this Metal Sculpture.

The Spokane River goes right through the middle of downtown Spokane and there are 2 waterfalls. One is natural and one is man made, it's a serious river. At this time of the year it is very swollen with melt off and moving very fast. The amount of water is unbelievable.  

Trails - Selling

Things you don't notice when you pull into your motel dead tired and just want to sleep.

The Hell's Angel's Spokane Headquarters are across the street.

Next to them is the Crisis Center for Women and Children.

On the other side is a small park for children.

Our Motel has an Espresso Shop called Busty's Bikini Espresso where the girls running it wear bikinis. 

Evidently the bikers help keep the husbands away from the Crisis Center and keep the park safe for the kids.

The bikini girls are very friendly and cute. They are making a mint from the guys in trucks. 

The area is very quite and the beds are good. A fun neighborhood.

We set up today and started selling tonight. Nine to nine are the hours we are working at this Conference. Forgot to take the camera, no pictures tonight.

Trails - Camping

Left Butte and stopped at the Grant-Kohrs National Monument for a stamp. This is one of the oldest cattle ranches in the west. Kohrs ran cattle over 10 million acres of land. We thought the ranch would be about cattle but the monument was about the cowboys who worked the ranch and how they lived. 

This is the Cook at his Chuck Wagon, he explained how the cowboys were fed when they were away from the ranch and gave us Cowboy Coffee. It was good! He also had a hat band that was hitched horse hair. He told us where the Montana State Prison shop was so we had to go look at the hitchings. 

Spent too much time here and had to hustle to get to Spokane before dark.

Made it with plenty of time, start work tomorrow, again.

Trails - Camping

May 26

Wyoming - Just because it's sunny doesn't mean it's warm! Yesterday we woke to ice on everything, at least it wasn't raining. No internet, no phones, lots of wildlife.

Montana - Stopped at Fort Phil Kearny, home of the Fetterman massacre. Custer should have taken note of Fetterman's actions and learned. 

Then on to Custer's last stand. There is an Indian Monument there that I don't remember from the last time I was here. On to Butte for the night.

Trails - Camping

We had a wonderful visit at Kelly's. Went to dinner at the Sunflower in Boulder for a steamer full of fresh vegetables and brown rice, with some spicy sauce. We stayed up way too late and by the time we had breakfast it was 10:00 before we got on the road. It stayed clear for about an hour, then started raining again. The rain wasn't hard and the mountains and plains of Wyoming are unbelievably beautiful. 

We have seen hundreds of Proghorn Antelope today. Half of the world's population of Proghorn live in Wyoming. They are spectacular, too bad the Wyomingians think they are only good to eat.

 

The camp ground in Buffalo is very nice. It stopped raining about an hour out and the ground was dry in the campground. Got the tarp set up and it started raining but only for a few minutes, now the sun is out.

Heading out for Butte Montana tomorrow morning - bright and early!

Trails - Camping

This is the storm we were in and out of all day today. It was raining when we left Albuquerque and rained all the way to Denver, stopping shortly after we arrived at Kelly's. We saw a lot of bikers stopped under overpasses, waiting for the rain to let up, then they would fly up the highway until it started raining again and we would pass them waiting under an overpass again.

The 2 darker areas on the horizon are where it is raining. 

We would drive in and out of these rain pockets. It would go from no rain to sprinkles to down pours all within 15/20 minutes. 

Saw several herds of Prong Horn Antelope, in the fields.

We arrived at Kelly's about 5:30. We gave her the Superhero goggles and told her we wanted a picture for our web site. She of course had a cape, she is after all "Super Cat". I told her she had to put tights on, so she redressed and brought out some back-drops she had painted for another project. It's always fun having Kelly around. 

 We were going to leave early in the morning but have stayed up too long tonight, but I had planned a short driving day tomorrow.

Trails - Selling

Last day at Albuquerque was great. The good thing about selling a bunch is you don't have to pack as much.

 The photo is a shawl made from RedFish 20/2 silk, taking the blue in the Knitting Division, Lace Knitting.

We had fish and chips at the Pelican Restaurant for dinner. This restaurant was recommended by a lady who moved to Albuquerque from London. We figured we couldn't go wrong. They were excellent served with sweet potato chips instead of potatoes.

We leave in the morning for Spokane, first stop Denver for an overnight visit with Kelly.

Trails - Selling

The whistle blew at 10:am and the shoppers came and came. This is the biggest textile event in New Mexico and draws people from Colorado, Texas, Utah, Nevada and Arizona. The show started out mainly as a quilt show but has expanded to every type of textile art. Each genre has it's own section with demonstrations, events to enter and hands on make and takes. It's a great event and everyone is so excited and happy to be here.

Trails - Camping

Staying at Arches National Park in Moab, Utah was a really big mistake, I wanted to stay awhile and hike. I only had time to snap a couple of pictures before it got dark, sleep and leave at 4:am to get to Albuquerque before noon today. I didn't quite make it, only an hour late but got the booth set up in time. Fiber Fiesta starts at 10:am tomorrow.

Trails - Camping

Today we drove 150 miles along the Columbia River before heading South into Idaho. The river is so large it's hard to fathom.  We entered Idaho about half way down the state and I was surprised at how semi-arid it is. It seems strange as there is a river around every bend. Temperature is in the upper 90s. Picture on the left is the Village of the Trees, where we are camping tonight. Camp site has changed slightly as it started raining and we put the tarp up.

Trails - Selling

Another day of selling finished!

We walked to Powell's Book Store when the show closed. It was about a mile from our motel so it didn't take long. On the way back, all the "clubs" were open and long lines were on the sidewalk waiting to get in. What a treat! We saw the Zombie Prom where the people had on zombie make-up and prom clothes. Lots of street people here but everyone is friendly.

We sell for a half day tomorrow, break down and head out for Pendleton, our first stop on the trip to Albuquerque.

Trails - Selling

The knitters are out in Portland and love our 2 and 4 ply 50/50 silk/merino. There are not many spinners at the show and they have no spinning classes. Things might change today as the Saturday crowd arrives.

We went to Stanfords last night with Morgaine from Carolina Homespun and Takako from Habu for dinner. It's a steakhouse but every one had fish. It was excellent!

The weather is holding. Sun's out, probably in the 60s. 

Trails - Camping

Oregon is very beautiful, the lupine and dogwood are blooming but it's wet, I'm a desert rat at heart.

We are off this morning to set up our booth, selling starts tonight.

Trails - Camping

The road to Oregon was long, uneventful and wet. We left late, per usual, got to our first camp site in Redding after dark. We did get an early start from Redding but the speed limit in Oregon is 65 and it was raining so driving was slow.

It cleared in time for me to take a bad picture of Mt Shasta. It was covered in clouds and snow. Very beautiful in real life.

Trails - Packing

All packed and ready to get an early start in the morning. Next stop Redlands, CA.

Trails - Packing

Today's the dread day! Packing enough yarn and stuff into the truck for 3 Conferences plus the camping gear, clothes and food. We will be on the road until June 4 or 5, first stop Portland for the Knit and Crochet Show.

Trails - Tarp Sewing

The tarp if finished! I pitched it in the back 40 to see how fast it would go up. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was even though I had to tie the guys on it as I went. I'm going to take it down and put it up again in a little while. I had to try it out with my Kindle to see how comfy it is. I think I will try it out tonight.

Trails - Tarp Sewing

Setting up an area to sew was easier said than done. My weaving studio and sewing area are both piled high with Weavers' Cottage's looms and other big items that have no other home for the time being. I decided to clear off my kitchen island and pile things on the counter. Half my cutting board fits, kinda, but I'm sewing away. The tarp is about half done.

Weaving - Cranbrook

This week an old Cranbrook loom came home with me. When it was all together, sitting in a garage, I was too busy thinking about getting it into my truck to look for the name of the maker. I know it's not a Schacht but I don't know if it was made by Bexel or Norwood, when we get it back together, I will figure it out.  I do know it's big, 72" weaving width makes for a big Cranbrook. More on this adventure later when a spot is found for it.

Trails - Camping

Camping on the trail to and from the Contemporary Handweavers of Texas' Conference was fun and we have decided to camp all this summer when we are traveling. One problem I had was the tent and sleeping bag. The sleeping bag is too confining and the tent is too hot. Last night I set up the sewing area and today I am going to start on the "Ray-Way of Camping" tarp and quilt set-up. 

Packed up, ready to go!

We are packed up and ready to head out to San Antonio for the Contemporary Handweavers of Texas' Conference.  It will take 3 days for us to get there and we decided that this year we would camp on our long drives. We will see how this goes!

Taquete

Here is Lillian working away on my "simple, I thought" design. She ended up taking it home with her.  

Taquete

Lillian has come and gone. The class was great and lots of people learned lots of things but not me! Once again I was a failure. I wove 2 little hearts in 2 days.

Taquete

Lillian Whipple is coming on the 7th to teach the Taquete Class.