Friday, March 14, 2014

A Denser Warping Overview

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Part One
 
Winter Sampler
 
 
*If a picture is all you need click on the image above for a Slide Show
 
The funny thing is, I never even intended to do this weaving.  I mean, all I meant to do was a quick warp up.  I simply wanted to double up on the warp threads for a finer weave. Something more akin to Tapestry.








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But once I tied off the Center Knot, and went about weaving the first rounds that help to even out the Warp Threads, I was hooked. It also helped in seeing how I would need to transition between needing to weave around doubled-up warp threads [which is a must at first], and then where and how to split off into the desired single warp thread weave.



I found this to be a good opportunity to try a Teneriffe Lace technique and chose to practice a Bullion Stitch.  An excellent stitch to incorporate for interest and a change in texture.  While it IS a bit slow and tedious, it's a perfect stitch to incorporate into your circular weavings. 


It was after the Bullion Round that I decided to make the switch over to a single warp thread weave.  And therein lies the overall issue that I found with this warping.
 
As I've indicated in the earlier tutorials, i.e. Warping a Knifty Knitter Loom for weaving in the Round, you WANT an UNEVEN warp thread count to maintain a continuous weave.  Once I split off into the single thread weave, I was left with an EVEN numbering of threads.  This meant from here on out, I had to finagle every new round. I no longer had a smooth over and under start and stop point.  While it doesn't effect single warp stitches like the Bullion Stitch, it does make a difference to the Plain Weave.
Since this could be VERY frustrating to anyone newer to weaving in general, I did NOT want to rush into providing warp instructions.  I have another warping option that I want to try first, and then I will offer the best instructions.  Look for this in Part Two.


When I saw how Bullion Stitch looked on the reverse side, I progressed with an experimental round of reversing the stitch.  Again, for interest and texture. Though I staggered or elongated the stitch. As I did a few rounds earlier, working to create little knots.

 

Below is a nice cross section of the stitch in reverse.  Plus I was trying to capture the texture the variations of the usage can create in your weaving.


The following close ups help to show the dilemma of warping with this heavier gauge cotton. And had I initially intended to weave this far at all, I would have put a tad more effort in getting the proper twist in tie off.
 

It just makes for too thick a center knot.  But then, as I stated up front, I had pulled out this yarn with the intention of doing only a quick test to see how it might work up.  And since there is just as much of a rise on the back side, it is impossible to use laying flat.  SO, the only other real option left to me has it slated as a wall hanging.  And that's OK.  

 
Knowing all of this early on, I continued onward.

 
I took a break at this point to stop and ponder the next round, and eventually decided to work my true Bullion Round.  I LOVE the end result; but--- it took FOREVER to achieve. It is time-consuming. I wanted to stop when I was just about done with the fourth round; but-- I KNEW if I stopped there I would so regret not going a fifth time around.     
 
 
Working with the silk ribbon presented it own little problems and I ended up distressing it, and then it did exactly what I wanted it to do.  More of that in Part Two.
 
 
And all that work, for not even half an inch.  But I wouldn't change it for the world.
 
 
 
I wanted to play with adding in beads again, but not quite in the same way as shown in previous tutorials; i.e. Adding A Round of Beads

And knowing which beads I wanted to use, I had to weave my way out to where they would best fit in.  The following photos show the point where I stopped to audition their placement. 



And yes.  All this changing out of thread and yarn makes for a lot of wisps and tails on the back side. I just kept adding them into the hair clips.
I pulled out and played with a number of combinations of crystal and fire polished and cut glass beads before I ended up with what I called my Stained Glass Bead Round.


And while the premise remains basically the same, I secured them in a slightly different manner. And I address this in: Playing with Beads.


Then it was a simple matter of weaving around the beadwork.

 
Filling in as much as needed; which ends up being more than you think. There's a LOT more loopy mohair woven in there then how it might look.


I decided to steam set the weaving before removing it from the loom; in hopes of keeping the center knot from twisting and to stay as flattened as possible.   


While I still had all the bead boxes out, I played with a pending ornamental feature.



And I could only stare as the final piece for so long.  It really was time to remove it from the security of the pegs.

 
Time to remove all the clips from the back.


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Moment of Truth Time!
 


Fresh off the pegs.


Off the loom front and back.

 
Before I could crochet the outer rim, though, I needed to secure the decorative braid along with the Tie On/Tie Off threads.
 

While this particular warping had it's issue, I actually love how this version provides the best option for finishing off the outer rim. It's just perfect!

 
As you can see toward the bottom of the photo below, the decorative braiding was starting to shift.  Getting the outer rim crocheted helped to remedy that situation.



I was a while cleaning up all of those tails on the back side.  But I'll talk more about that in Part Two.
 
Here's a quick shot of the reverse side of the Bullion Rounds. They actually make for nice ridge work on the front side.
 
 
While working with an EVEN number of warp threads is not an issue as you work with something like the Bullion Stitch, having to finagle stopping off, as well as the beginning a new round makes for a bit of thickness in a Plain Weave Rounds and what I termed The Finagled Zone. 
 

 
 
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What to look for in Part Two?
 
I'll be warping up and presenting one or two different warping options.  And I'll focus a little more on some weaving tips and finishing techniques.
 
http://heartsongstudio2.blogspot.com/2016/02/services-rendered-wish-list.html
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In the meantime,
 
Leave any questions you may have in the Comments. 
Or Facebook Friends can Private Message me.
 
Bye for now, and Blessings~
 
And Happy Weaving!


9 comments:

  1. I keep coming back to this. I just bought a round loom and recently fell in love with weaving. I so want to learn and I think maybe I will try this. Thank you for the inspiration. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Moriyah! Welcome to the World of Circular Weaving. (~: I look forward to seeing with you do. Happy Weaving and many Blessings~

      Delete
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  2. Love this. Thank you for posting.

    ReplyDelete
  3. how do you get it to stay flat after removing it from the loom? my weavings keep turning into bowls as soon as i take them off the looms and it's really frustrating me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you used wool yarn you can soak it for 20-30 minutes in cold water and then block your piece. You also have to make sure your tension is loose enough when you do the weaving so you're not stretching then yarn.

      Delete
  4. Thank you for showing me another way to use my circular knitting looms. I now see lots of coasters, placemats and center pieces in my future.

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