The Blessings Shield

I apologize for having been so terribly remiss. While I shared several photos on my Facebook Community Page, I have yet to share this finished project here!

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*If a picture is all you need, click on the image above for a Slide Show

 

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Yeppers!  This one is my baby. The start of it all. And it hit me recently, that to date, I had yet to update any photos of the finished piece.  So, without further ado---

My Blessings Shield has been hanging in the kitchen for some time now; but-- I brought it back upstairs to the studio, last week or so, during my SpringClean 2015.  I wanted something to be hanging up here, and until I get something else, large enough, it will stay up here for the time being.






While the next two photos show the shield basically completed, it was merely to the point where I felt could share that I finally got it lashed to the wreath. And--- My apologies for not shooting any photos of the lashing on. I was simply in a Get-It-Done Mode, and totally focused on the task at hand.

I was supposed to be working on that Warp Speed entry back in August [Remember?  My Rag-Woven Tote Bag?], but--- as I kept walking past the finished weaving, at some point it starting yelling out, "Finish ME!" And, I could no longer ignore its pleas.

 

And while for all intents and purposes, my shield is complete, what decorates the wreath now, I know will change with time. I will add things accordingly, as they find their way.  But, once I had all the feathers wrapped and/or attached, and the beaded dangles created and secured [we should all know by now, how I likes me dangly things. (~: ], along with some of the Sunflowers from my garden added in, I knew it was finally at the point of completion.








One of my favorite features is the sculptural feathers, where I was able to work in a little bit more of my handspun art yarn.

And I knew from the start, that Sunflowers would be featured.  I'll be adding more later in the Summer and Fall.









After that--- anything else that gets added [even as seen below] , it will have its own special and particular meaning; as with any shield. 

This weaving has been my Blessing.  Hence its being so named. 

 

 

And it all began here.
Life is a Journey








You can find more about of the process of this weaving, in the following blog posts:
Leading the Way
Warping a Knifty Knitter Loom for Weaving in the Round
Needle Weaving on a Circular Loom
Adding a Round of Beads
A Little of This-N-That
Finishing Touches
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What's Up Next?

My Weaving Spool Rack.

I'm going to share a little project I pulled together last year, what involved power tools, sanding blocks, eye screws, wood finishing--- and barbecue skewers.  Yeah, that's right!  Skewers. (~: 




Plus, I've got My Little Rag Bag Tote queued up to add the lining.  NO. It doesn't really need one. But--- As many artisans have learned over the years [and many the hard way], when selling purses or handbags or even totes, etc., most customers prefer their bags with a lining.  So. I'm going to work up a quick and easy lining for this little tote.

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Leave any questions you may have in the Comments.
Or Facebook Friends can Private Message me.
 

Follow me to, HeartSong Studio

Bye for now, and Blessings~

And Happy Weaving!

A Garden Pouch -- A PlaceHolder

This is a place holder for an upcoming blog post.

I used the large round yellow, adult hat knitting loom to freeform weave the two--front and back--pieces for this project.

I am currently editing and uploading photos.  Until then----

_________________________________________________
Leave any questions you may have in the Comments. 

Or Facebook Friends can Private Message me.
 

Follow me to, HeartSong Studio

Bye for now, and Blessings~

And Happy Weaving! 

The Dreaded Curled Edge!





Photo Courtesy the Internet 

What's Bean's got to do, got to do with it?

Well, not so much beans as the cheesecloth lids pictured to the left. 'What's cheesecloth lids got to do, got to do with' just didn't have the same rhythm....  That said [and the cheesy Tina Turner homage aside], it's an analogy I used in
To Curl or Not to Curl [where I released Inner Sheldon], in the hope of it being useful in addressing one of Circular Weaving's single most ever-unpopular and problematic--- curling edges.

 

For the purpose of this blog post, I henceforth dub said analogy:

The Rubber Band Cheesecloth Factor

It's a reference to how the fabric would look--all puckered up--while still surrounded by the rubber band in a relaxed state; once off of the jar. While I admit it's a bit of a stretch [Pun intended, and maybe a tad extreme], I thought it might provide a good visual for my Fibery Take on Newtonian Mechanics regarding:

What stretches out, has the potential to ease back to its former state. ~Laura Abbott, HeartSong Studio

Many weavers have experienced the outer edges of their Circular Weavings curling up to the point looking sculptural and/or bowl-shaped. And mind you, this has plagued both beginner and seasoned weavers alike! Hence my wanting to take a little more time to help hinder any further frustration. I especially don't want someone who is new to this form of weaving, to stop before they truly begin to enjoy the possibilities.

Because someone recently asked me:

'... is there a trick to keeping it flat?'

I set about readdressing the issue on my HeartSong Studio Facebook page.

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Here was my response to her question:

"I know this is a frustrating point for so many circle weavers. ...I can share my To Curl or Not To Curl blog post here, which helps to address this very question, but--- I believe the best thing that I can say to answer your concern is to not pull your Weft thread, or yarn, too snug as you pull it through the Warp threads.

Creating an Arch

I believe it is way too easy to want to do that in Circular Weaving. Here's a shot [from a pending tutorial] showing the arch that I create. -((Photo to the right--is what was posted in Facebook Comments))- I don't just pull the yarn straight through. I create the arch and then ease it--starting at the top of the arch--into place, using the tip of my tapestry needle. This becomes evermore important as you weave further out. It is too tempting to pull your threads or yarns taut --like a running or quilting stitch through fabric-- and that makes for not enough yarn to create the proper circumference at the outer edge."

From the center of Arch outwards

I decided to write this post because I wanted to expound on that answer; just a little further. With the exception of the first two, maybe three rounds [as you are tying off and centering the Warp Threads] let's not look at pulling your Needle and Weft through the Warp Threads like you're basting or sewing a Running Stitch. And with that reinforced, let's keep two things in mind.

Firstly: [and this is regardless the loom upon which one choses to weave] If your Weft yarn [handspun or commercial] is in any way spongy, squishy, or stretchy [however you define its character], if you pull it too snug or taut as you finish pulling your yarn through the Warp Threads, once your weaving is removed from the loom--once the fabric goes into a more relaxed state--you may not have left enough yarn to fully extent around the outer circumference; resulting in a Dreaded Curled Edge.

Secondly: If your Warp yarn [handspun or commercial] has any spring, squish, or stretch--depending on the tension with which to warped your loom--you need to give thought to how it will also relax back into its natural state, once your finished piece is off the loom.

Easing the Weft into place

Thirdly? As you weave, when you turn your loom for an angled view of the Warp and Weft, you very much want to see a pronounced rise and fall of the Weft around the Warp threads. And, it will appear more so around the Inner Rounds, and seem somewhat less defined throughout the Outer Rounds. Hence it being easier to want to pull your yarns straight through the increased warp thread spacing; being more open as you weave further out. Especially if you chose to warp around two loom pegs [a good option for bulky novelty or handspun art  yarns], as opposed to a Denser Warping.

 

Defined rise and fall of Weft yarn around Warp threads

It is my sincerest hope that this newly-dubbed Rubber Band Cheesecloth Factor helps in defining, and alleviating, the potential causes of the scourge of the dreaded curled edge. Well. Unless--- 

 

See? The funny thing is [albeit inadvertently], we have to some degree discovered [albeit frustratingly] the perfect way to weave an artsy shallow bowl!  Right? Or maybe there's the possibility of a sculptural cap to a woven hat. Or how about a HomeDec Pillow Top.  Or--- just--- Insert Your Imagination Here

A circle need not always remain flat. It can be dimensional. We just prefer to do some things on purpose.  But sometimes, our mistakes make for wonderful adventures in creativity.
 

That's it for now. And remember, you are more than welcome to stop by and visit the Circle Weaving Facebook Group.  It's a great place for Info-Sharing, Qs and As, and/or all for all manner of Inspiration.

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Leave any questions you may have in the Comments. 

Or Facebook Friends can Private Message me.
 

Follow me to, HeartSong Studio

Bye for now, and Blessings~

And Happy Weaving! 

 

Be My Valentine -- In the Round

 

Be My Valentine
A Weaving in the Round
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*If a picture is all you need, click on the image above for a Slide Show

 

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This is going to be more of a quick Pictorial Overview, than a tutorial, of the quick little Circular Weaving I did to celebrate Valentine's Day. Unfortunately, I did not get a photo of every individual step, because I simply gave no thought to uploading the process here.  I was sharing photos as I went along, on Facebook; but--- there is a nice little feature to this piece that any given weaver might find helpful and/or useful in their own circular endeavors.  So, here we are.  I hope it sparks your imagination. 

 

For all intents and purposes, I hadn't even planned to do this piece.  My work table wasn't even set up for weaving in the round.  But, it was a FiberyGoodness Circle Weaving post on Facebook, by Arlene Thayer [Spin Artiste], that sparked my imagination. It also just happened to be on the same morning I was scrolling through a Pinterest board I had created for a FiberyGoodness blog post on the topic of: Love. 

The day was February 13th. I knew I couldn't finish this kind of project in a day; or even two. But--- the die was cast. And, I couldn't shake the burst of Creativity she had inspired.


This right here, being what all the Inspiration was about!
Fiber Artistry by Arlene Thayer ~of Spin Artiste

The one advantage I had going for this spur-of-the-moment project was the fact that this particular loom [the Green 9" Round Hat Knitting Loom (36 pegs)] was long ago warped, with the center already woven in place.  

Unfortunately, what I do not have is the best photo of the initial outline of the heart. And, as much of what I do dictates, I needed to work with what I already had on hand. The only bold red available was a skein of Lion Brand Homespun Yarn: Candy Apple Red. It was perfect, since it also added a fair amount of texture. I simply roughed out the primary shape, and then filled it in; weaving inward from the outer edge.

I would very much like, one day, for a project to be created entirely of my own handspun yarns.  But, I am not a production spinner.  Health issues tend to keep things on rather a small scale.  That said, this project gave me the opportunity to include a recently spun yarn [from a beautiful Norwegian Top], and my first-time use of a Top Whorl Spindle; both from Tina's Angoras. 

An absolute must, color-wise, was to include a yarn I had spun quite some time back, using a beautifully hand dyed and hand pulled roving from Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Arts Studio. 

This yarn resulted from my first-time-ever using a Russian Support Spindle. I love this spindle! And, while that skein is rather large [average and normal for so many others spinners], that single ounce of fiber took a few months for me to spin into a Lace Weight single.  The eventual plying, was a whole other nine yards. (~:

And, as I am want to do, I embellished this project with a little bit of wire and bead work.  Actually, before I even started to weave, I pulled out a the silver-plate wire, along with my wire jig, and fashioned a treble clef. And, yes. You got it! (~: I needed this piece to be representative of HeartSong Studio.

I also meant for there to be a heart-shaped bead inside the body of the musical symbol; but--- I got all caught up in making sure I had the proper shape, and the wire strands over and under itself in the right places, that--- I forgot to slide on a bead. I simply did not want to undo or bend anything already secure, so--- That just means I'll be making another one of these stylized clefs in the near future.

 

I should say that what I did give thought to, prior to weaving, is spinning a yarn specifically designed for this project.  That's actually how the strand of carved Mother-of-Pearl Hearts and Czech Fire-Polished Glass beads came about---- think pre-strung plying.  I soon scraped that idea, though. Had I committed to the hand spinning, I would NOT have finished when I did. Which, thankfully, was just before the end of February.


I thought this would be a good project to play around with--for a little added interest--the Clasped Weft Weaving Technique. Something of which I became familiar with in Saori Weaving, and intend to do a good deal more of in the near future. I believe this technique lends itself well to weaving in the round.  

After I added in a textured round of an Eyelash Yarn I had on hand, I finished off with another Lion Brand Homespun Yarn: Pearls.

 

 

As I indicated earlier, about not giving prior thought to this post, I do not have a photo, of any kind--fair or bad, of one important step. The Encased Wire. Including the wire in your finished edging helps a wall hanging to retain its shape.  There will be no drooping or odd curling from prolonged hanging.

Prior to crocheting the first round of Single Crochet [See On Loom Edging, from the Finishing Touches post.], I did two things:

First, I measured out and cut a strand of the same cotton warp thread, tying on and off using the bottom-most pegs; on either side--at the point of the heart. [See Off Loom Edging--Prepping an Edging Thread, from the Finishing Touches post.]

And Second, I measured and cut a single piece of medium gauge floral wire, and then wrapped it around the outer edge of the loom, similar to Prepping an Edging Thread.

SPECIAL NOTE: If anyone has questions regarding this step,

a Comment to this post, and I'll  be happy to answer them. 

Below is the best zoom I could upload here, that shows just the littlest bit of wire peaking through where I temporarily attached it to the bottom-most pegs; at the point of the heart. 

Once I removed the weaving from the loom, I closed the ends with one twist of the wire; folding the ends back onto themselves, and then buried the ends inside the first round of Single Crochet.

Click on the photo for an enlarged view.

Once I finished the first round of Single Crochet, I gingerly removed my little valentine from the safety of the loom. And, once I secured the ends of both the floral wire and edging threads, I closed the first round of Single Crochet with a Slip Stitch, and then crocheted a second round of Single Crochet. 

And no. I did not increase the number of stitches in the second round. I did not need to, and it lays perfectly flat.

With the weaving finally off the loom, and all of the little wisps and tails of yarns and threads were snipped and/or tucked away, I went about placing and adding my decorative wire and beadwork. 




Though the handspun yarn idea had been scraped, I hadn't gotten around to unstringing the beads.  With one audition of placement, I went about hand stitching them into place.

 

Something that is specifically unique to this project [and this will look somewhat out of order because, again, I do not have a separate photo], is my decision to back this weaving with a piece of unbleached muslin. It is by no means a necessary step.  But, it gives the piece a neatly finished appearance.  Nice too, if what you actually want is to give it away. 

One thing that made this step easier to accomplish was using a Temporary Spray Adhesive.  It's the same premise, or trick if you will, that Quilters use to hold the layers of a quilt in place while they hand baste together the quilt back, batting, and quilt top. 

For a pattern, I simply traced around the outer edge of the loom, on top of a piece of muslin and then cut.  All I had to do next was needle-turn the edges, and whip stitch into place. Using the backside of the SC stitches, made for evenly-spaced stitching.

NOW--- Let's talk about how that lace ruffle got attached!
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Running a gathering thread through the finished edge of a length of 5/8" lace, and then hand-stitching the lightly-gathered ruffle into place was a bit time-consuming, yes; but--- this was the part of the project that fulfilled my desire for a Victorianesque Valentine.

The second thing I had in the back of my mind, creatively-speaking, was the memory of a shoe boxes---with delivery slots cut in their lids. You remember? Those elementary mail boxes covered with tissue and/or construction papers, and decorated with all manner of valentines, flowers, cupids, and/or cartoon characters, crafted for an old-school Valentine Exchange?  Remember those?

That said---

Knowing from the start this would be a wall hanging, I went looking through my Findings Boxes for something that would work as hardware.

 

Again, not a necessary step.  You could just as easily pull some handspun or specialty yarn through the crochet work. Making sure, at very least, to snag the Encased Wire for stability.

I had a Satin and Pearl Braided Cording that I pulled into the initial project stash, but ended up not using it in the weaving itself.  For me it then became a must to use it for the hanger.

I had also pulled a length of Beaded Satin Ribbon [again, thinking I'd weave with it--and ended up not doing so], and that made for the perfect way to hide the cut ends of the hanger cord.  A bit of handiwork whip-stitching it all in place.  But, I really like the overall look.
 

 

After that, it was time for the true finishing touch. 

 

While it is not at all what I initially envisioned, I really wanted to include the rest of the Beaded Ribbon. So--- I fashioned a bow and stitched it into place. And, as with all things--one thing leading to another---  Voilà!

 

The carved Cinnabar Focal Bead was the final design element.  The Swan is a significant Totem. One that goes well with a day professed to honor Love.

 

I hope you have enjoyed this overview. I loved everything about this project, and want to say a special, "Thank You!" to Arlene Thayer, for inspiring me thusly. 

 

May you come away from this post equally inspired, and ready for next year's exchange of valentines.

 

For more Circular Weaving inspiration, come visit us in the Circle Weaving Group, on Facebook.  It is still a Public Group, so you are most welcome to Join. So, stop by and say, "Hello!"

   

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What's Next? 

My Weaving Spool Rack.

I'm going to share a little project I pulled together last year, what involved power tools, sanding blocks, eye screws, wood finishing--- and barbecue skewers.  Yeah, that's right!  Skewers. (~:

And--- Remember the Warp Speed Challenge? 
Well, I'm pulling together the photos for a series of posts for my 
Rag Bag Tote Project. So far I've designated eight distinct parts:
 Part One: Overview, Draft, and Flap
 Part Two: The Sides and Bottom Strap
 Part Three: Warping Two Looms
 Part Four: Securing the Handles
 Part Five: Weaving Semi-Round
 Part Six: Construction Zone
 Part Seven: To Line or Not to Line
 Part Eight: Finishing Touches

While this project was a lot of work, it can be as busy or as simple as you want it to be. There is some Dimensional Weaving involved, and I'm really looking forward to sharing this with everyone.  And, I admit.  It's rather important to me, since I want to show that you CAN weave dimensionally using circular knitting looms.

Until then, I've other weavings in the works.  More on those later.
 

 

What's the Wish List all About?

__________________________________________

Leave any questions you may have in the Comments. 

Or Facebook Friends can Private Message me.
 

Follow me to, HeartSong Studio

Bye for now, and Blessings~

And Happy Weaving!