Tue, 06/09/2009 - 20:07

Lodi_Weaver (not verified)

Personally, I'm beating the shed in as I'm closing it - probably just hitting the fell as it's closed.  It seems to work fine for the weaving I've been doing and it's significantly faster for me to do it this way.

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 20:26

Sue Pierce (not verified)

Hi i have been weaving for about 12 years I love learning about my craft and of course hints are wonderful the hint I use the most is when I am tieng onto the front beamjwhen doing the final tighting of the knots I will start in the middle of the warp tighten about 3-4 on either side of the center knot thenuse the front brake and tighten it by 1-2 notches.

continue tieing the knots tighting the front brake

doing this keeps the tension the same across the warp without the retieing of knowts

sue

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 20:44

Alaire Rieffel (not verified)

Get a tie-up kit from Vavstuga--the kind that uses texsolv and knitting needles.  It makes tying up a breeze!  Now my biggest tie up problem is getting back up off the floor (arthritis and all...).  Hopefully I can train my grandchildren to do it for me someday.

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 20:55

Martha-Weaves (not verified)

That is my beloved sister Sarah sitting in the back row (pink shirt) watching a waulking demonstration!  My lovely sister has been very fortunate to spin and weave with Norman.

Norman has been known to tell my sister she has made a bloody mess of things when she was learning how to spin using Scottish methods - he told her this comment with a smile and then proceeded to help her with the finer points of Scottish spinnning.  

My father who was visiting the weaving shop was invited by Norman to sit at his loom and throw the shuttle - with a bit of hesitation my father threw the shuttle a few times - Norman watched this process and then promptly old my father "Laddie, you are doing it all wrong, let me show you a better way".  Mind you my father is in his 70's and thought the Laddie comment was hilarous!  Norman demonstrated the proper way to throw the shuttle - a method my Father has not forgotten since.

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 21:53

weaverjane (not verified)

Hello,  I'm Jane, a weaver - living in Sheffield UK.  I am currently in the middle of the HNC at Bradford - taking a break from the long process of warping up my Double Weave project.  I have been weaving about 3 years,  Great to have a group like this - my local guild also is dominated by spinning (and knitting).  I follow your blog, Cally - great use of colour.   I've just started a blog -  Designed2Weave  wordpress blog - in case anyone wants a look.  3 posts and growing !

Jane

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 22:09

deb turner (not verified)

Glad to be part of this group - Hi, Laura. We're always learning - I change methods of warping all the time and am always getting better. After 22 years I should hope so. Now I always warp with tension - I hang full large water bootles from S hooks in an overhand knot. 2 for wide warps and 1 for narrow. Periodic "tugging" in 2" groups helps. I also agree that Peggy Osterkamp is a great source for info.

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 22:16

rosethorn (not verified)

During a recent workshop with Jane Stafford, she recommended that you start your beat with the shed still open, then as beater is all the way forward, change sheds. Jane says this will help to ensure even selvedges.

The reason for this is that as the last weft thread is beaten in, it has to pack in around the warp thread, and it's path will become longer as it goes over and under the warp. IWeavers compensate for this somewhat by throwing the shuttle in such a way that the weft either "bubbles" or lies at an angle to the fell, but there is not usually enough extra weft here for all of the take-up required, especially on wider pieces. The extra has to come from somewhere, and there is only two possibilities:

  1. it can come from the shuttle, drawing off a bit of extra weft from the bobbin as the pick is beaten in.  But this can only happen if the shed is still open during beating

  2. it can come from the other selvedge, and cause draw-in as the weft is pulled tight. This is what happens if the shed is already closed during beating.

During the workshop, she had everyone try beating on the open shed and then changing sheds when the beater was all the way forward. Immediately, most people's seveldges became more even and had less draw-in. An added benefit was that for sticky warps (wool, and very closely set warps) changing the shed and then moving the beater clears the shed nicely.

 

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 22:16

rosethorn (not verified)

During a recent workshop with Jane Stafford, she recommended that you start your beat with the shed still open, then as beater is all the way forward, change sheds. Jane says this will help to ensure even selvedges.

The reason for this is that as the last weft thread is beaten in, it has to pack in around the warp thread, and it's path will become longer as it goes over and under the warp. IWeavers compensate for this somewhat by throwing the shuttle in such a way that the weft either "bubbles" or lies at an angle to the fell, but there is not usually enough extra weft here for all of the take-up required, especially on wider pieces. The extra has to come from somewhere, and there is only two possibilities:

  1. it can come from the shuttle, drawing off a bit of extra weft from the bobbin as the pick is beaten in.  But this can only happen if the shed is still open during beating

  2. it can come from the other selvedge, and cause draw-in as the weft is pulled tight. This is what happens if the shed is already closed during beating.

During the workshop, she had everyone try beating on the open shed and then changing sheds when the beater was all the way forward. Immediately, most people's seveldges became more even and had less draw-in. An added benefit was that for sticky warps (wool, and very closely set warps) changing the shed and then moving the beater clears the shed nicely.

 

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 22:47

agilmour (not verified)

Thanks for sharing that Martha, sounds like typical Norman humour! I guess you know that the waulking in the picture took place at the Summit County (Utah) Fairgrounds pavillion in 1998, as part of the BOW Fiber Festival. We were thrilled to have Norman there, although it was only the 2nd year of the fesitval & most of the attendees had no idea who he was (or how lucky they were!)

 I met Norman when I was 9 (or 10? I can't believe it was over 40 years ago!) when he was just starting as the Master Weaver at Colonial Williamsburg, Va. He instilled in me a passion for all things fiber-related, set me on my path in life & has been a very valued friend & Mentor to me ever since.

Tue, 06/09/2009 - 22:50

ziggyonthecouch (not verified)

Hello!  My loom is an Oxaback from Kinna, Sweden.  I bought it 20 years ago, and wove rag rugs and tablecloths on it.

Right now it is in the crawl space in pieces but I am hoping to set it up soon, and then I will have to re-learn how to tie it up!

I might need this group to help me because I remember that it seemed counter-intuitive.