I'm not sure if the piece shown here is woven or knitted. It's hard to tell from the photo. If woven, I'd sure like to find out how the curly effect is achieved. Anybody know the answer?

Comments

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 08:17

Yvonne K

This looks like a large trangle of fabric, probably knitted by the way the edges have curled. The triangle has been rolled to form a tube. Perhaps the apex of the triangle has been cut away, because I cannot see where it is on the rolled cloth.
Thu, 06/13/2013 - 11:38

Badfaerie (not verified)

I think it is probably knitted. Simple stockingette stitch will roll like that and if you use a high twist single yarn it will bias as well and give you the spiral ends.

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 15:39

Weavin Steven

I think you're both right. I had briefly entertained learning how to knit so I could make these but then thought better of it. In this case it's probably just easier and less expensive to buy the finished piece.

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 20:57

sally orgren

You'd have to experiment with your structure and use stretchy yarns or yarns that would shrink dramatically with wet finishing. Collapse weaves and HABU yarns might be a place to start.

I think if I really wanted to do it, I might consider taking up knitting. ;-)

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 22:30

ReedGuy

Crepe is a stretchy weave, but it will not give like a knit fabric. You can weave a tube for sure, but as others have stated that was not woven as a tube, it's rolled.

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 23:42

sally orgren

Then let the stretchy yarn used in the weft direction pull it in. You may also add something stretchy in half the length, to pull one side up shorter than the other. 

Or, don't weave a rectangle at all (by finishing off the web in a straight line at each end). Use weft packing and angle the beginning edge and ending edge by increasing/reducing the warp width with each pass of the shuttle. (Ultimately ending up with a very long narrow trapezoid shape.)

If one side of the trapeziod was dramatically longer than the other, the long part could hang down in the center of the rolled scarf like in the photo. 

In my experience "crepe" does not necessarily produce a stretchy structure (referring to 8 shaft crepe weaves in the Strickler book, for instance.) When I wove them they made nice patterns, but they were not particulary stretchy using regular materials.

Yarns that shrink combined with a structure that has floats (so there is room for the yarns to shift around) can give you stretch. If you use an elastic thread periodically, you CAN get A LOT of bounce in your fabric! (One of my guild mates did this, and it was a WOW.) You can also use heat-reactive yarns with float structures for a woven shibbori effect (Look up Diane Totten). 

Yes, knitting is a looping technique, so it automatically gives you lots of "floats" and it is certainly more stretchy than most weaving by its very nature. 

I agree with you! In thinking about trying this on a loom, it would just be much easier to go out and buy one. ;-)

Thu, 06/13/2013 - 23:57

sally orgren

This is a project I completed in 2010, using stretchy sock yarn and not- stretchy-at-all bamboo. The structure was Danish Medallion. The finished fabric reacts a lot like a "smocked" fabric (a type of pleating). I varied the cell size of the medallions, so the areas where they are closer together had more stretchiness. Where the sock yarn "floats", that is where the fabric pulled in the most. I think the sock yarn had 15-20% elastic. 

The disadvantage of woven stretch is that the fabric in between the stretchy yarns has to "go" someplace. On a knit garment, the bulk just seems to evaoprate!

Here's the link to the original Weavo post. (I wish you could give a tug to the corner and see how far this swatch can expand!)

http://www.weavolution.com/node/14204

P.S. It was woven taunt to maximize the stretch when taken off the loom.