Weaving Workshop, part 2: In which I twist fringe and weave on a really old loom

On Saturday we had part 2 of the Beginning Weaving workshop at the Charleston Museum, taught by the talented Judy and, as near as I could tell, enjoyed by one and all.  For the most part our weaving was finished when we got to class, so we learned what happens next: how to take them off the loom, deal with The Fringe Question and account for any loose ends.

We also got to go into the store room at the Museum (a magical and wonderful place) and see some woven textiles in the Museum's collection, then out into the exhibits to see the enormous 4-harness loom and even more woven textiles.  Plus we got to watch as Judy pinpointed the patterns using her grandmother's weaving pattern book.  History in the making, folks!

AND THEN! We got to weave on a different 4-harness loom (from the 1850's, I think).  It was more complicated than our rigid heddle looms, but made sense now that we are bonafide weavers. 

All that was left after that was to compare our finished scarves. We decided they were ALL quite lovely!

Examples of fringe on Judy's scarves, woven from yarn she dyed in my Indigo workshop (shameless plug alert).

Demonstrating fringe twisting on my scarf.

Judy explains the finer points of removing a project from the loom.

Some woven coverlets in the Museum's collection.  So much variety!

The large 4-harness on exhibit.  My kids have woven on it during Homeschool History Class, because our museum is awesome like that.

Jacquard weaving on exhibit.

See how it looks like I know what I am doing? See how close an eye Jan Hiester, Curator of Textiles, is keeping on me while I touch the valuable antique?

The awesome Claudia, showing the smaller 4-harness loom who's boss.

Sweet Lynn, who can do EVERYthing, weaving while Judy looks on.

Angela used her own LYDIA Yarn to weave her scarf. It's SO soft!!

These were both woven with similar yarns, but with different techniques.

The beautiful Jessica with her beautiful scarf.

I love how Emma Lee's turned out with silvery-blue and white!

Kristy got creative with fringe knotting!

My finished scarf! Plaid tidings!

Weaving, Part 1: In which I branch out into alternative textiles.

First of all, let me reassure you that I will not be giving up knitting in favor of weaving.  It just ain't gonna happen.  If, however, the universe brings me a rigid heddle loom, I will now know what to do with both it and a whole lot of bits of yarn I have yet to knit...


Secondly, let me introduce you to our instructor Judy...

I love this pic of her because she looks so happy.  And you know what?  I'm happy that we crossed paths at one of my indigo dyeing workshops, because that led to this beginning weaving workshop at The Charleston Museum.  Plus it meant I got to hang out and learn from someone who has been weaving since she was a wee slip of a girl, in addition to studying Navajo weaving in Colorado for several years.  I told y'all that interesting people show up at my workshops--now do you believe me??

 These are only a few of the things she has woven--not all on a rigid heddle, but all gorgeous.

Once we put together our Ashford looms, we had to learn how to put the warp on.  There is probably another term for this, but I didn't retain it.  There were strings going EVERYwhere up in there!

Somehow I ended up doing mulitple warp colors and then weaving with more than one color, too.  It might be because I took 5 different colors with me since I couldn't make up my mind before the class started....

Before tying them down.

After tying them down. But before re-tying, since I didn't do it right the first time....

Me shuttle's been wrapped, arghhh, I'm ready to weave!

Say, "Weeeeave!!!!"

 

And presto! Weaving!  It's uneven and might be really really wonky when it comes off the loom, but it's been a fun project to play with.  My friends and I have been texting each other pics of our weaving and egging each other on, and thank goodness for that because the first time I turned that one wheel thing to give myself more weaving space, it darn near went ALL to pieces!  (As you can see, I could have paid better attention to the vocabulary. Sorry, Judy!)

The workshop concludes this Saturday and I will find out how well I did on my very first project.  If it's terrible, you can plan on seeing how all my friends' projects turned out instead....

More inspiration--N.Charleston Arts Festival

I recently went with my daughter to the annual North Charleston Arts Festival, something I've dragged my kids to for years in hopes that they will embrace art in multiple forms. The Festival itself takes place over many days in many venues around town, but on the weekend they have a whole mess of arty stuff in one place with free admission and free parking and really, it's hard to beat for an afternoon's cultural enrichment.

There seemed to be fewer vendors this year, or maybe it was just set up differently--I think there were more vendors in the exhibit hall BEHIND the rock and mineral show, which frankly made no sense to me and seemed like poor planning on the part of the Festival.  If you're reading this, North Charleston Arts Dept, please put folks back out in the open so we don't miss anything!  Love you!

(I had hoped to run into Bean and Bug Babyknits or Thrifty Sister again, but if ya'll were there, I didn't see you!)

The first thing we saw when we walked in was this:

If you guessed Bangladeshi folk dancers, you were right.  In the 14 years I've lived in this area, this was my first Bangladeshi dancer sighting.  Very cool. And about time, don't you think?

And then there were "lamps" made from empty (liquor) bottles.  I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions.

There was a lot of gorgeous artwork and photography. Plus this painting of knitting--nice!

And antiques!  I love browsing through antiques.  These, however, were definitely "man"tiques. 

 Proof that art is subjective.

At first I was like, "Cement sheep!  We NEED one of these!" But as I have had occasion to look at this photo, I am reminded a bit too much of the Weeping Angels on Dr. Who and no, I shan't be acquiring a cement sheep now.  Nor will I be blinking...

I saved the best for last.  Talk about inspiration! I absolutely love the work of this year's Arts Fest Design Competition winner, Amiri Gueka Farris. This is "Lowcountry Soiree." These mixed media beauties are still on display at the Performing Arts Center, so if you're local, go! If you have any other chance to see his work, do it!  

There was much more--dance, music, puppets, magicians and a large dollop of people watching.  Plus, I had the satisfaction of knowing that I was immersing a kid in culture again, and that always makes me feel like a good mom.

More Indigo Dyeing

Noticed today that Wendy over at Spinsjal has been messing around with Indigo.  Very cool!  I love seeing other folks using Indigo. It looks like she had some great results and I'm very intrigued by the silk yarn she dyed!

Also, Leigh at Magar Hatworks has been dyeing some fabric for fall--yep, using Indigo. Beautiful stuff!

And finally, here is a recent post from The Charleston Museum's Tumblr page featuring, what else? Indigo. 

I used to notice when people were knitting; now I see them dyeing with Indigo...

Want to have your own expereince with the magic of Indigo?  Don't forget, my next Indigo Dyeing Workshop at the Charleston Museum is Saturday, October 19. Space is limited and you must pre-register.

Let's go, Indigo!

Back in the old days (really old, we're talking 1740's here) a clever woman named Eliza Lucas Pinckney found success and riches when she developed a way to grow and process indigo in South Carolina.  Back then, it was used to dye cloth and yarn.  (Coincidentally, it is still used to dye cloth and yarn today.)

In our age of instant everything and fast free shipping and shopping malls, acquiring clothing or yarn that has been dyed is, frankly, no big deal.

So why bother? Why risk getting permanent dye on your good shoes when you don't have to?  If you're asking that question, you have never experienced the joy of dyeing.  To go from a bland natural color wool to a multitude of shades of blue is nothing short of addictive.

Dyeing with indigo is a wonderful introduction to the world of color.  Let's face it--blue goes with everything, and if you own a pair of denim jeans, you already have something that was probably dyed with indigo.

Using dyes requires chemicals (even the natural dyes need mordants) and mess and know-how.  Indigo requires no mordant and if you're lucky enough to use pre-reduced indigo, you can skip the chemical equations, too.  And if you find someone fun to show you the ropes, it's sure to be a great experience!

How to tell if you've always been curious about dyeing your own yarn or cloth:

1) You've asked yourself, Why bother?

2) You've noticed yarns for sale with amazing hues and thought, 

Hmm, yet another "hand dyed" yarn??

3) You have shopped for a certain color of cloth or yarn and 

not been able to find the exact shade you'd envisioned.

If any of this sounds familiar, you should call or email The Charleston Museum and reserve your spot in their upcoming Indigo Dyeing Workshop, taught by me.  Come see, no, come experience what all the fuss is about.

But do plan to wear old shoes :)

Arts Festival 2012

A mostly free arts festival is an amazing thing.  It's like a goodwill ambassador for creativity, introducing the community to a whole new world.

I've been coming to the North Charleston Arts Festival for a few years now, and every year it offers a lot of the same things: dance, painting, photography, textiles, jewelry, music, and elephant ears.  Every year is different, though, as individual as the artists and performers who come together to make it a creative mecca.

Music!

It's so exciting to me to be able to submerse myself in this melange of creativity for a day.  My short attention span thrives in such an atmosphere.  Outside while munching on super greasy fair food, we caught a few numbers by local favorites the Shrimp City Slim Band.



Then we went inside and Presto! an Art Gallery, with both professional and amateur artists represented. Then we turned a corner and there was more music, and drums waiting to be played.

 Gallery: works by Elena Barna on the wall.

Ready for the next act.

And then we found textiles...

"Handed Down" by Susan Lenz

The gloves all have names embroidered on them...so pretty, so touching. Love it.

"I've often wondered if I was the one who left the door open when Binky flew away."

There were several things by this artist, Ellen Byrd. I love the combination of whimsy, wistfulness, and fiber.  She totally gets it.

Hand knitted by elderly Brits, so help me.

Bell Gauge :)

Teddy bear trousers, in a sea of lovely linens.

I bought a vintage bell gauge, useful for sizing your knitting "pins." This one was made in England and a quick internet search dates it circa 1935.  That's pre-war, people!

There was so much more, including a jaw-dropping selection of vintage clothing for sale, none of which I photographed.  The dealer has an online shop, though, at Ruby Lane.

I'll leave you with a charming collection of buttons and lace, none of which I purchased...this time.

Vintage lace and buttons

...and now for something completely different!

One of my favorite things about knitting is meeting new people, finding out what they like to knit, how they learned and what else they do when they aren't knitting. Take Becca for example...I first met her at the World Wide Knit in Public Day at the Charleston Museum in June (she was knitting an adorable giraffe) and since then our paths have crossed several times, much to my satisfaction.

The last time I saw her, at the Big Yarn Sale, I noticed the cool spider pin she was wearing and she told me that this was part of what she does when she's not knitting...and there just happened to be a class on October 28th where one could learn to make a spider brooch of his or her own! I admit that glass working is one of those things that I've never done but have always been fascinated by, so I checked out the Blue Heron Glass website. Seriously, ya gotta love a list of classes that insists that you wear close-toed shoes! This may even cure my craving to learn to weld!

Go to the Schedule of Classes and scroll down to Spiders on the Loose to find out more about the pin workshop, plus there are other things you could learn like stained glass or glass bead making and even slumping. I don't know what that is but it sounds like fun! They also have a Ladies Night Out party--a refreshingly different choice!!