Hi Everybody
Hi everybody. I’m back. I haven’t even been that busy — I’m still unemployed.
The big news is that I made a large, stupid purchase: a used Leclerc Artisat loom.
It’s a 36″ four-harness jack loom, and it’s about 25 years old. I bought it from a nice woman who advertised the loom on my local Craigslist. (Side note: if you’re in the market for a loom or a spinning wheel, your local Craigslist might be a better resource than eBay — it’ll probably be cheaper, since you’re buying from somebody who doesn’t know that they could get more money on eBay, and it’ll be local, so you won’t have to pay for shipping. Win win!)
So far, I’ve been weaving samplers.
The one on the left is the first sampler in Deborah Chandler’s Learning to Weave, woven in Halcyon Yarns Victorian Wool. The one on the right was supposed to be a pair of placemats, but when the twill I’d chosen didn’t turn out right, I decided to make it into a twill sampler. It’s a variety of twills from A Handweaver’s Book woven in 5/2 perle cotton.
The weaving on the loom is the second sampler from Learning to Weave, woven in Brown Sheep Company Naturespun Fingering, and it’s giving me nothing but grief. Maybe I’ll complain about it later. (In short: 10 epi is way, way too loose for Naturespun Fingering. Also, goddamn broken selvedge threads.)
In the weeks before I bought this monster, I was also playing with the old Kromski Harp, a little inkle loom, and even card weaving. (That’s just what you want to do when you’re unemployed, by the way — start buying lots of stuff for a new hobby. At least I have a lot of time to learn …) Pictures to come.
To catch up on spinning: I finished the Targhee I’d been talking about.
Before washing, the yarn was fine and tight. After washing, it bloomed and became uneven and unpleasant. I have exactly 1,000 yards of about fingering-weight yarn that will still become a shawl, just not an elegant-looking one.
Right now, the Lendrum is spinning Merino singles at about 40 wpi with plans to ply with silk. First, I have to learn how to spin silk. We’ll see how that goes. I’ve also been spinning bulky novelty yarns since — oh yeah! — I bought a Woolee Winder for my Ashford Traditional. (Yes, the severence check is good and spent.)
That leads me to knitting. Neither the FLAK nor the Maidenhair Shawl are done. I started the famous Icarus Shawl. And I knit a bunch of little projects to keep me sane. Follow the links for pictures and information.
- Handspun Hat (Ann Budd)
- Marietta Rib Socks (Lucy Neatby)
- Shapely Secrets Socks 3 (Dawn Adcock)
- The Skinny on Lace (Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer)
- Feather and Fan Socks (Judith Sumner)
- Tam (Ann Budd)
- Hat (Ann Budd)
I’m particularly proud of that handpun hat, as it’s the first thing I’ve ever knit with my handspun. I’ve only been spinning for, oh, two years. As a rule, I don’t like to knit with novelty yarn, but I think it turned out really well. Too bad I’m going to mail it to my mom for her birthday.
That’s about it for the months of June and July. And I really think I’ll update more frequently in the future.
