Happy Hallowe'en!

Trixie and Flame are taking Skelly and Bonehead Trick or Treating.



I hope you are saving some of the best treats for them.



They will be knocking on your door soon.

Skelly Lends a Hand

I've been so busy lately that my new friend "Skelly" offered to lend a hand. 

This warp, which I've named "Arabian Nights", has a considerable amount of dark brown alpaca in both the warp and the weft and Skelly was happy to help spin it.

The weaving he left to me.

65" later, (not including the fringe lengths), it's time to unhitch the front of the warp and turn it -- 

-- so that the beginning warp ends can then be woven as weft. 

Once they are woven into the end of the cloth the whole thing is cut free, the ends secured with overhand knots, and then the fringe twisted.

Once the cowl was taken care of I moved onto creating the hats from the remaining warp. 36" lengths of weaving (with fringe at both ends) is woven and then the warp ends are tied together to create the tube shape of the hat and those ends are twisted. The outermost warp threads are pulled to gather the crown end into a tight closure, and the "face edge" loosely to a slightly larger than head size circumference. 

Skelly helped with the next step. 

By this point though he was complaining that I was working him to the bone. And I have to agree, knitting the ribbed bands for the hats seems more tedious and less fun than the weaving.

But it gives such a nice finish to the hats that it's a step that I endure.

  

Hats of Grey

Here are the two hats made from the "< 50 Shades of Grey" warp.

The one on the left is made by tying the warp ends together and twisting them, while the one on the right has a french seam that is almost undetectable, hidden amongst all the texture at the back, and then a pompom as decoration 

Both hats will be available for sale at the Chilliwack Christmas Craft Fair.

< 50 Shades of Grey

I was definitely remiss in blogging about this one! I finished it a few days ago.



It was such fun to weave that I barely stopped to take photos.



A very neutral colour scheme, but lots of interesting texture and additions.



There are bits of ribbon, blobs of roving, and hairy novelty yarns,



boucle yarns, sparkly threads, and a sprinkling of beads,



metallic ribbon, handspun, and a few dangling jersey knit tubes.



It all adds up to a lot more visual interest than you might expect from a monochromatic weaving.



It made for a rather fascinating fringe.



I was kind of sorry to see the end of that warp. It did not end with the cowl though. In future posts I'll be displaying a couple of hats woven from the same warp. They are having their hand knit ribbing added now. Unfortunately that process takes much longer than weaving off the warp!

Riot of Colour and Texture

A quiet blog always means a busy blogger -- at least around here anyway. I've been anything but idle lately and yet haven't taken the time to update.



The "Riot of Colour and Texture" warp has long since been woven, removed from the loom, and made into a cowl and one hat (a second from the same warp is awaiting a knitted brim).



The Saori "No Sew Hat" is how this begins, but I think I'll be adding a knitted brim to the ones I make. It helps them to fit a greater range of head sizes.



It also gives them a slightly different look. More slouchy beanie or beret style, depending on how it is worn.

Ooo, I SEE!

Only an hour or so after the surgery. No glasses needed but tears pour down my cheeks whenever I briefly open my eyes. Plastic eye shields are taped in place for 24 hours and then used only while sleeping for one week.



About 6 hours post-op eyes are still watering and sore and are very sensitive to light. Spending most of the first 24 hours sleeping.



24 hours after surgery, eyes are blood shot and feeling like I've been out in a wind storm, but are otherwise pain free.

My MID-range sight is perfect, which is so much better than I had expected! Working at the computer is not a problem at all. The dashboard of the car is perfectly clear. Having a conversation at the dinner table or standing talking to someone, excellent -- very clear.

Close-up vision is also much better than I had anticipated. I think I will only be needing reading glasses for the tiniest of print, very fine detailed work, or reading for long periods of time. I can see my iPhone and read a magazine just fine. Tiny writing on a medication bottle or the "fine print" of a contract? Well, perhaps not. I'll likely be whipping out a magnifier or reading glasses for that.

My distance vision is still hazy and not quite perfect. It's still plenty good enough to drive. I have a bit of inflammation in both eyes so the distance vision may improve as the inflammation is treated.