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April 29, 2010 by Tien Chiu

Up and running with tapestry

Yesterday (before reading Amelia’s comment/suggestion) I decided to give tapestry weaving another shot. So I cut off my first sample, and re-sleyed at 6 epi. (I have a 10 epi reed and a 6 epi reed, so 6 epi was a natural choice.) This worked a lot better, so I sat down and wove this:

The weave is a little looser than I’d like, and according to Amelia’s method I should really be weaving at 8 dents per inch, so I’m contemplating ordering an 8-dent reed. (I don’t think an uneven sleying will “wash out”, since as far as I know tapestry isn’t wet-finished.) I sort of hate to order one for a single use (normally I weave much finer than that), but it would be nice to be able to try a denser sett. I may see if one of the loom manufacturers has scraps lying about; all I need is a 9″ length.

At any rate, I have now gone through about half the lessons in Kirsten Glasbrook’s book, and am eagerly looking forward to finishing them! Once I complete that I may do one or two of her “practice projects” (which come complete with detailed instructions) before doing my samples for the COE. (I definitely need more practice; my selvedges are not nearly as clean as I’d like, and some of my horizontal lines/rows are a bit wonky.)

I did a preliminary test using my new dyeing setup, with blotchy results, primarily due to my trying some shortcuts. I’m going to do another test today, this time actually stirring the dyebath along the way, and see if that works.

April 12, 2010 by Tien Chiu

New directions

CNCH was wonderful! I had a great time looking through the vendor booths, and I met so many people I’d been corresponding with for years! And, of course, it was great getting so many compliments on the dress, after all that work!

I’m pleased to say that one of the people I met up with was Pat Stewart, who lives in Berkeley and is an expert on computer-aided drafting (especially Photoshop techniques) and doubleweave. Pat graciously agreed to help me figure out doubleweave, so I’ll be going up and visiting her sometime soon. I hope that will help me wrap my head around doubleweave!

I am now considering what to tackle next, and am at a bit of a loss. There are so many things to try! There are 40 samples in the COE handbook, some using techniques I’ve never even heard of. I must confess, from here completing the COE looks pretty daunting. But I think it’s important for me to get “a broad liberal arts education” in weaving, so I’m going to start in on it anyway. If I finish all the samples, great; if not, it will because I found a topic to fall in love with, and that’s fine too.

Since I have both a table loom and a computer-assisted loom, I’m thinking I may break my usual path and weave two samples at once, doing the weaver-controlled samples on the table loom and the loom-controlled techniques on the AVL. The advantage of the table loom is that, once all the levers are flipped, the shed stays open – so I can do the weaver-controlled techniques without having to hold down one foot on the treadle. But for loom-controlled, of course, the AVL wins hands down.

First on the sample list is tapestry. I had never thought I’d be interested in tapestry – I tried it once briefly in my very early weaving career – but reading through the book and seeing some of the design possibilities is piquing my interest. The only problem is that tapestry is traditionally done in wool, and in considerably heavier yarns than I typically use. So I would probably have to order a whole new set of yarns to tackle it, and I can’t afford that until after the wedding. It also involves a lot of colors of yarn, and again, that’s not something I have. So I’d either have to buy lots of small skeins (expensive) or dye them myself (time-consuming). Nothing insurmountable, but I want to meditate on it a bit longer.

So it seems likely that my first samples will be doubleweave, since that’s what currently interests me. I have some vague design ideas that I want to work up (mostly involving doubleweave on gradated color warps) – hoping to be able to weave some shawls on the same warp as the COE samples. Probably not the fastest way to approach the COE, but I’m more interested in enjoyment and beauty than time. If it takes me four years to finish the COE instead of two, that’s just fine.

One more distraction (O, the world is rife with possibilities!) – a dyer I was chatting with at the conference suggested that, as I was planning to dye a lot of samples and was interested in mastering dyeing anyway, I might consider looking into the COE in dyeing at the same time as the COE in handweaving. I think that would be interesting as well, so I’ve ordered the COE-in-dyeing booklet. I’m hoping to get the same experience in dyeing that I have in weaving. Tools and techniques are important if one wants to achieve mastery, and my over-arching goal is still to become a master, so these courses are important, I think. I don’t need the certificate, but I do need the education.

April 10, 2010 by Tien Chiu

Certificate of Excellence

Apparently I got at least two Certificates of Excellence already 🙂 , as I’m told I won two ribbons at CNCH for the shawls I brought. I didn’t make it down to the galleries yesterday, but I’m assuming that means “Ocean Sunset” and “Black Jewel” won awards – there was a major flaw in “Lava Flow” that I didn’t bother correcting before the show (had bigger fish to fry). The dress is being judged this morning, and I can hardly wait to get the results!

However, that’s not the Certificate of Excellence I was thinking of. I’m thinking quite seriously about going for HGA’s Certificate of Excellence in Handweaving, 2012 judging. That would give me two years to study a wide array of techniques and weave 40 samples. I think I could probably do it in a year, if I worked at it the way I did on the dress, but two years will let me finish in a reasonably leisurely fashion. (I think.) At any rate, the judging is only in even numbered years, so like it or not, I’ve got two years. 🙂

The point of going for the COE is not to get the certification; I mean, it would be nice, but I’m not planning on making a living teaching weaving, and outside of that the credential doesn’t matter a whole lot. But, weaving 40 samples in such a wide variety of weaving techniques will give me a rough idea of what can be done with weaving, which I think will be helpful to my development as a serious fiber artist. Must know what arrows are in the quiver!

The COE also contains some basic sections on design, so it overlaps with my needs there as well. So I think I will at least work through the samples, and if I pass the examination in two years, great! and if not, I’ll still have achieved my primary goal, which is to get a broad overview of weaving.

There are alternates to the COE – there’s a Canadian certification that also sounds good, but as the certification requires that you work on a conventional treadle loom for the first few sections, I wouldn’t be able to get the certificate at the end of my study. That’s not a deal-breaker, but it is a major consideration, as the piece of paper is nice to have.

I’m still considering doing in-depth study on a particular topic instead (most likely doubleweave), and will explore that as well, but as I think about it more and talk to more and more people, the COE is looking like the strongest possibility.

Oh, CNCH? Yes, it’s been going very well. The class I’m taking, “Software, Structure, and Design”, is moving more slowly than I’d like – primarily because I already spent a week or so investigating designing double two-tie unit weaves using weaving software – but today should cover some topics I haven’t already studied, so I’m looking forward to it! And the Fashion Show went well! I heard a collective gasp from the audience when I stepped out on stage, and collected many accolades afterwards. People said it looked fantastic. I must confess, though, that I was so nervous I can’t remember much about it. But at least I didn’t trip, and it was a fun experience despite the nervousness.

But the real fun at CNCH is all the people I got to meet! I had dinner with Daryl Lancaster on Thursday night – I’ve been reading her blog for months now so it was nice to meet her in person- and met Robyn Spady, Kati Meek, Joanne and Ed Hall of Glimakra, and oh! lots and lots of other weavers whose names I’ve seen constantly on mailing lists and in weaving literature. It was wonderful getting to put faces to names and meet people with whom I’ve been corresponding for months now. So I was and am very excited about that.

Today I expect to make it down to the galleries at lunchtime, so I’ll be able to get photos of the dress and coat in situ. They’ve got a nice display – a small area cordoned off to prevent people from touching it, and a table for my flyers and photo book. The dress and coat are displayed on those mannequins I spent so much time making. Should look fabulous. I’ll also post photos of some of the phenomenal work on display there – photography, fortunately, is allowed in the galleries. While I haven’t seen the galleries yet, I saw a fantastic piece of yardage by Lillian Whipple during gallery setup on Thursday, and I’m eager to go back for a closer look. Lillian, of course, is the mistress of fine-thread weaving, and she wove up a piece in sunset colors from 120/2 silk. It’s like gossamer. Must check it out, and the other pieces too!!!

Off to CNCH!