Twilling Around, Part 2

Here I am frantically twining the last row to cut off my rug. 

My friend Gail kindly lent me her Schacht Wolf Pup floor loom. She would have let me keep it until I could finish all the samples available but I knew that I would be under tremendous pressure to do more after the workshop was over. I decided to take the pressure off and be content with the 14 samples I had completed. I could always do another sampler when my life was not so packed with other obligations.

My favorite weaving technique was the window. On the right is Jason’s full size sample of a 3-D window block in the rug. On the left is my TINY sample of a single layer of window using parallel motion on opposites technique. Only 3 of us in the workshop tried this technique. I had a lot of fun with it.

My favorite pattern visually was the undulating twill. It looked so pretty to me.

And my finished rug. The list of samples below goes from right to left. At each end there is a row of braided twining with braided tassels on both sides and a row of plain twining with the warp thread.

Day 1 Samples - Straight Twill:

1. diagonals

2. diamonds

3. triangles

4. rhomboids

5. large triangles

6. lighting

Day 2 Samples - Broken Twill:

7. diamonds

8. zig zag with 3 colors

9. woven on opposites (treadles)

10. undulating 

11. contrary motion on opposites

Day 3 Samples - Crossed Wefts

12. parallel motion on opposites

13. clasped weft

14. changing direction in a block

Don’t tell my husband, but I’m working hard now to find a spare corner in my already packed-to-the-ceiling home to set the loom up...

Twilling Around, Part 1

Jason Collingwood’s twill rug workshop was AWESOME!

Three whole days of weaving. Lecture twice a day, more than 30 samples to explore, good food and snacks, hours and hours of weaving, and fun fellow weavers. The workshop fee included the warp and weft, a notebook, together with food and drink for the long weekend.

Look at the beautiful selection of custom-dyed weft yarns we got to choose from.

26 looms were all threaded in straight twill with identical warp. We more than filled that room. I show the looms without people in these pictures because it would have been incomprehensible otherwise.

We hit the ground running as soon as Jason started his lecture. He is an expert at his craft and also quite charming. He conveyed the information in an organized and logical progression. Although I must admit that after hearing different combinations of “ABABABBBABABAB” for three days straight, my brain nearly refused to function.

Jason said that if we students had woven a placemat and table runner then we had more weaving experience than he did. Because he has only ever woven rugs. I have woven other things. But I could never in a million years put myself anywhere near his class of experience in weaving. His skill and knowledge is amazing.

Jason is the first person in my experience to talk about weaving as a job. He never mentioned a love of weaving. The lecture and workshop circuit, combined with his custom weaving work, is his job and living. This was the first time I thought about weaving not as a hobby, but as someone’s profession. It was eye-opening. Textiles are an enjoyable hobby for me. I dream of making a living working in textiles. It never occurred to me that my love of textiles might wane when/if it becomes a full-time job.