tapestry weaving

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Woven doodles and finishing work

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Woven doodles and finishing work

Sometimes a little doodle on the loom is all you need to find your weaving momentum again. I had completely forgotten about this little tapestry until last night. I have a very large pile of small and large tapestries that need finishing work. I hate to say it, but that pile has been growing since 2020. I know because virtually all the tapestries I wove on Change the Shed over the last three years are on that pile.

Last night when I was feeling weary and just wanted to relax on the couch and watch TV, I decided it was the day to tackle that pile. Instead of knitting while watching, I would finish those tapestries. And indeed I did the finishing on two small ones in an hour. One of the ones on the top of the pile was this little guy.

What makes a good tapestry yarn?

What makes a good tapestry yarn?

For many years when I first started weaving tapestry I used the yarn that my teacher used. After all, it was a great yarn, dyed well, and I was able to get most of the effects I wanted in my work using it.

When I started teaching tapestry, I began experimenting with other tapestry yarns and then with some yarns that are not specifically designed for tapestry weaving. It became a bit of an obsession and over the years of teaching tapestry weaving, I’ve collected and used something like 30 different yarns. Some were difficult and not suited to tapestry and I’ll never use them again for weaving. Others were yarns I loved because they suited the effects I wanted to achieve in my work.

I have a small set of favorites that I use myself, but there are many yarns made in the world that can be used for tapestry weaving. The question is, how do you know which ones those are?

If you’ve taken any of my online classes, you probably have some version of my Yarn Sources handout. As my list of yarns got longer and longer, I realized I might have a problem. I like to collect things and yarn is one of those things. In the name of research I have more tapestry yarns than I can possibly ever use. But the upside of that is that my students get to benefit from my hoarding collecting nature.

Relying on ritual: The Year of Rosie

Relying on ritual: The Year of Rosie

I definitely notice how much I rely on familiar rituals when things change in my life. Emily and I have been taking care of a little dog named Rosie for the last year. Her family went overseas on a research fellowship and they couldn’t take her along. We haven’t had a dog since Cassy died in 2013 and after taking care of her for a few days and being completely charmed by her adorableness, we agreed to take her for the year. She needed a house without other pets or kids and we definitely qualified.

Rosie’s family came home last weekend and she went home to them this week. It was so hard to let her go, but seeing her absolute overwhelming joy at seeing them again made it worth it. She was beside herself when she realized who was in front of her. I do wonder what dogs think when their lives change. She took a few months to really blossom with us but I hope she goes right back to her old life now that she is home again.

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Weaving a black sand beach and a visit to the Gilhagi mini mill

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Weaving a black sand beach and a visit to the Gilhagi mini mill

I am still at my Icelandic Textile Center residency in Blonduos. I’ve had a lot of fun researching and working with Icelandic fleece. Please see THIS earlier post for more details about Icelandic fleece and my project.

Spinning Icelandic fleece

After the sod house tapestry and the woven sample I showed in that post, I kept spinning and finished another small tapestry. The more I spun, the more I could recognize what I needed in the yarn and I’ve gotten closer to singles that I like. When starting out, I was putting very little twist in the single because that is what you’re “supposed” to do when spinning singles that are to stay singles. But for tapestry, I didn’t like it. It was far too bumpy and uneven and more twist allows me to smooth it out to make a more even single.

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Shed Stick UPDATE! More options for your small-loom tapestry weaving

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Shed Stick UPDATE! More options for your small-loom tapestry weaving

I wrote a post a couple months ago about using shed sticks which included the few options that I could find readily available. Since then I’ve had several updates to the shed stick situation and I now have a healthy list of great options. I am quite sure there are more great tools out there. Here I was focusing on makers who have their work in stock all the time or at least with good consistency.* These are all US makers, but there are woodworkers all over the world and I am sure there are small tool makers in your neighborhood also if you do not live in the US.

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Messing around with looms and yarn, Part 2

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Messing around with looms and yarn, Part 2

Who else is a loom geek? I really enjoy trying out different pieces of equipment and though I’d love to try every large tapestry loom, mostly I’m testing small looms that I have the space for (or not!). Last week I talked about this new-to-me loom I’m playing with from weaversbazaar in the UK. I’ve had a wonderful time picking the shed and trying out the WB heavy 5/2 wool. You can read about that HERE. I wanted to share a bit more about the clamps that are holding the loom and try them with a couple other looms I like.*

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Messing around with looms and yarn: playing with wool and wood

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Messing around with looms and yarn: playing with wool and wood

I’m constantly experimenting with tools and yarn and techniques in tapestry weaving. It gives me a lot of joy and though the outcomes of these experiments is sometimes unpleasing, the process is always educational and more ideas surprise me with their success than not. Lately I’ve been working on a loom that weaversbazaar in the UK sells. It is a simple tensioned frame made by Andrew Dickinson.*

The beauty of a tensioned frame loom.

Tension is the friend of a tapestry weaver. At least it is for me. I do know some tapestry weavers who love a floppy warp and who weave very large things on wooden non-tensioned frames that have nails on the edges. I admire their ability to manage the weave with non-tensioned equipment at such a large size! But for me, a loom with some tensioning ability is the best.