Hello! I finally watched my drawloom video all the way through and the first bit have hopefully started to click! I want to check my understanding. 1) the number of pattern threads should equal the number of ground shafts, ie if the ground is a 5 end satin then you should have 5 pattern threads 2) the number of pattern shafts should equal the number of columns in your graphed design, if your pattern is 10 squares across you need 10 pattern shafts Thanks, Erica

Comments

Mon, 03/04/2013 - 01:30

Sara von Tresckow

What resource are you using?

It is difficult to explain quickly and supper is cooking, but what you write doesn't exactly make sense.

Also, taquete can be woven on either a multi-shaft loom or a drawloom. On a drawloom it is terribly tedious because you need to change the pattern pulls so often.

You want to start with a simple damask to get used to a drawloom and then proceed to more complex structures - weaving is an incremental learning curve.

Mon, 03/04/2013 - 08:37

Erica

Sara,

I watched Becky's Dress your Swedish Drawloom video. I think I still need to do some reading on Damask and drawloom weaving in order to succesfully do some sampling. which will really solidify everything.

Suggested readings are always appreciated!

Cheers,

Erica

Mon, 03/04/2013 - 15:32

SallyE (not verified)

Erika,

Do you have this book:

Damask And Opphamta With Weaving Sword Or Drawloom by Lillemor Johansson

Damask is a very good place to start, but remember that it is a block weave.   You wrote "the number of pattern threads should equal the number of ground shafts."  Did you mean to say "the number of pattern threads in a block should equal the number of ground shafts?"  

Actually, I'm not sure that is really true.   I don't see why the number of threads in a pattern block would have anything to do with the number of ground shafts.  Of course, you have to think about the math and the number of total threads needs to be divisible by the number of threads in a pattern block.  I don't see any relationship to the number of ground shafts.  (See my example below)

You also wrote "the number of pattern shafts should equal the number of columns in your graphed design, if your pattern is 10 squares across you need 10 pattern shafts."   I don't understand that either.   This depends on how you will be weaving - shaft draw or single unit draw and if you are setting up for any borders.  

I currently have a 163 block damask set up with an 8 shaft satin ground.  Each pattern block has 4 threads.  On the shaft draw system I'm using 21 shafts.   The first 8 blocks on each side are on the first shaft and used for the border.  The other 147 blocks are set up on 20 shafts threaded in a "V" pattern.   So this is contrary to both of your two points!  Note that this means 4 x 163 = total number of threads = 652.   652 divided by 8 ground shafts = 81.5.   All this means is that the block on the left edge only uses ground shafts 1 - 4.  But since I have 4 threads in my pattern block, each block only uses half of the ground shafts anyway.

You are probably more confused now. . . . .

 

 

Mon, 03/04/2013 - 20:39

Yvonne K

As a beginner at using a drawloom, I found easy drafts and projects in Vav magazine. Issue one, 2011 has a sampler to weave, using 10 pattern shafts and one extra for borders and spaces between the design elements. I wove my sampler in 10/2 pearl cotton, set at 30 epi - not too fine - and achieved an attractive result.
Tue, 03/05/2013 - 10:42

Erica

Yes Sally, I was a bit confused when I read your comment. I think I need to read up on Damask and review my block weave materials before I can fully respond to your wonderful post!

Yvonne, I was thinking about taking out a subscription to VAV. I know it's wonderful and have been meaning to subscribe.

Thanks for all the great information so far! Keep it coming.

Cheers,

Erica

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 12:57

Erica

I've been reading through some more materials. I have to read during then week, then I get a bit of time to work on getting the loom back together during my son's naps on the weekends. SallyE, your response make a bit more sense now. 

Damask is a block weave, got it. I understand block weaves on a single harness loom you need a complete set of shafts to form a block on a single harness loom. With the drawloom, double harness, the two harnesses work together to control the threads.

So I'm still confused about how you create a block using the drawloom. I have a shaft drawloom. Is the block just a set of threads on the same pattern shaft?

For example if I thread 5 threads on pattern shaft 1, then thread those threads through 1-5 on my ground shafts, that makes one block (Block A)? Then if I do 5 threads on pattern shaft 2 and thread through 1-5 on my ground shafts it's another block (Block B). Then if I do another 5 threads on pattern shaft 1 and thread 1-5 on my ground shafts is that another block (block C) or is that the same as Block A?

Thanks I really think I've almost got this, fingers crossed.

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 14:42

SallyE (not verified)

Erika,

You are understanding it now - just one thing:

Re   "Then if I do another 5 threads on pattern shaft 1 and thread 1-5 on my ground shafts is that another block (block C) or is that the same as Block A?"   Since that block is on the same pattern shaft as block 1, it also gets pulled when you pull that shaft, however, it's in a different place on the warp. 

So, for a simple example, suppose you thread the blocks (numbered here by the pattern shaft that they are on) like this:

1234321234321234321    (This is a "V" shaped threading)

When ever you pull shaft 1, you get the following blocks across the warp:   1, 7, 13, 19.

When you pull shaft 2, you get blocks 2, 6, 8, 12, 14, 18.

When you pull shaft 3 you get blocks 3, 5, 9, 11, 15, 17.

And finally, when you pull shaft 4 you get blocks 4, 10, 16.

Now, you might be wondering, how on earth do I ever figure out what patter I will get, or design the pattern I want?   That is easy.   You graph it on a piece of graph paper using a section that is only 4 blocks wide - since you have 4 pattern shafts.   You put a little mirror mid way through the 4th column to see the pattern.   This threading will give you 3 repeats of the design you see looking at the grid paper and it's reflection in the mirror.   The 3 repeats are because the threading goes from 1 to 4 and back, 3 times.   Make sense?

Now, this "V" threading on the pattern shafts isn't the only thing you can do of course.   I'll leave it to you to figure out other ways to set up the pattern shafts.  

If you get confused, just use graph paper with one block for EACH block you are threading, and you will soon see the patterns.

Note - I'm talking about a shaft draw system.  On a single unit draw, each pattern block across the shaft is pulled independently and that is graphed on a grid with as many paper blocks as pattern blocks.

Questions?

 

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 15:08

Erica

I think I have it now! Thank you so much for SallyE, I believe all my building blocks are in order. Sorry I'm tired and couldn't resist the awful pun! :)

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 18:27

Sara von Tresckow

I'm kind of busy today, but just to funk in here - in designing for the drawloom, you have two things going on - one is the draft for the ground structures - involving the ground shafts and the structure(s) involved.

Then you have the pattern - which consists of "units" of varying size and number of picks. These units are NOT analogous with blocks, but PIXELS. When drafting for pattern, you graph the design and then arrange for the individual pixels to be arranged either straight across in the case of the single unit draw harness, or on pattern shafts.

This is definitely different from the thought process and design procedures used in "drall damask" which is a block weave.

Tue, 03/12/2013 - 20:29

Erica J

Sara, I think that makes sense. I had wondered today if Damask truly is a block weave. Cheers, Erica