Comments

Thu, 01/02/2014 - 11:14

ReedGuy

They look great :)

I have made dish towels from heavier 10/3 crochet cotton. Not a problem with absorbancy at all. And they hold a lot more water than non merc towels that I have that were factory made. They are just a bit heavy for towels. But I wouldn't hesitate with merc for warp and weft like you have used. Some things you read are more opinion than fact. ;) There is a difference in the feel of the cloth, depends on your taste. Some folks like lighter towels than most of us weave, again taste.

Atwater also has free miniatures if you look in

On-Line Digital Archive of Documents on Weaving and Related Topics

Thu, 01/02/2014 - 23:13

RepWeaver (not verified)

Your comments are reassuring. Generally I am on the side of mercerized being the more absorbent but sometimes I second guess my own opinion. I'll check out the Atwater drafts. Do you happen to know if they are from a particular book? RepWeaver
Fri, 01/03/2014 - 00:06

ReedGuy

I was mistaken, it is Josephine Estes 'Miniature Patterns For Hand Weaving'. But Atwater has literature on overshot as well. These are only in archives I think and can be downloaded.

'Weaving Overshot' by Donna Sullivan also shows ways of changing scale of old patterns. It may be a hard book to get, I think it is out of print. I'm not sure if 'Overshot is Hot' is a replacement by Interweave press.

Fri, 01/03/2014 - 16:30

RepWeaver (not verified)

The Joesphine Estes monographs are both nice. I managed to pick up early copies of both at weavers' estate sales. Thanks for the tips, Reed Guy.

Finished Length Unit
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Finished Width Unit
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Length Off Loom Unit
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Length on Loom Unit
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Notes

Inspired by Sally Orgren's "Tiny Bubbles" Towels, I wove these as 2013 Christmas gifts. The draft is #55-Trellis from "Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes: Miniature Overshot Patterns", a book full of lovely designs. Asymmetry makes Trellis particularly appealing to me. I added random variegated ends to the solid brown warp.

Using mercerized cotton for both warp and weft makes me a little bit nervous. The mercerized vs. unmercerized argument rages on. And on. In the end I think it depends upon individual mill processes. If nothing else, these towels looked great. Except for the gold one, my favorite but sadly sporting two (Two!) treadling errors. Guess I'll have to keep that one so it isn't the worst tragedy. That way, at least, I will be able to test it for absorbency.

Number of Shafts
4
Number of Treadles
6
Project Status
Finished
Sett Unit
epi
Warp Yarn
Welcome
Width off Loom Unit
inches
Width on Loom Unit
inches