Kids Can Weave Too!

I love working with children. And I love sharing ideas and teaching skills. In the past, I have done most of this through teaching piano and sewing, but last fall I decided to broaden my horizons to include weaving. I purchased a very small rigid heddle loom from our local yarn store, The Little Red Mitten littleredmitten.ca and got to work. Actually, my husband got to work first because the loom had to be sanded, oiled, and then put together. (The SampleIt loom is made by  Ashford, a spinning and weaving company from New Zealand.)  After the loom was ready to go, I got the instruction book out and figured out how to warp this fun little loom. I used the direct warping method shown in the booklet and was very surprised at how fast it went. Weaving the first scarf was very fun indeed. I could't wait to show it to some of my students.

Daniella and Pauline were more than eager to get to work!

Daniella is holding the warp threads around the end pin, while Pauline is helping me put the threads through the slots in the loom. The beater in this type of loom has slots and holes; each warp thread must go through a slot and a hole. We first measure the warp by pulling 2 threads through each slot. After the warp has been beamed on, we cut the ends and pull one of the threads out of a slot and put it through a hole.

  Pauline is assisting me making sure there is a thread in each slot and hole. There is a lot that goes on in weaving--- hand/eye coordination being  prominent. 

 Daniella is busy with her weaving. The heddle/beater has been placed in the 'down' position and Daniella is feeding the shuttle with the weft thread through the shed (the opening).

 The warp thread must be placed in the shed at an angle so that the sides don't pull in too much, and then Daniella can bring the rigid heddle/beater foward to put the weft thread in place.

 Now the rigid heddle can be put in the up position and the weft thread can be put through the opposite shed.

 Pauline's turn. 

 The same sequence is repeated over and over until the entire warp has been filled with weft threads. Heddle up, place weft and beat into place; heddle down, place weft and beat into place. When the cloth fills up the space in front of the weaver, the the warp must be advanced. The ratchets at the front and back are released and turned toward the front of the loom. Eventually there is not enough warp to weave with, but the front beam is filled with cloth.

Two scarves completed! Daniella and Pauline help each other on both of their scarves. 

There is nothing like turning balls of yarns into cloth and then wearing it. These pictures were taken at the end of last summer, but the scarves serve their purpose in the cold winter ahead.

The Great White North

Last fall Environment Canada predicted a very cold winter but with less precipitation. As per normal they did not quite get it right. We have a lot of snow here in St Thomas, which is  known to be located at the tip of what is sometimes called the Banana Belt of Canada.

Derk and I are familiar with this kind of cold (windchill factors down to -30 Celsius and more) having lived in Manitoba for nine winters. However my younger brother is experiencing these temperatures for the first time. Last summer he and his wife and their youngest son moved to Manitouwadge. Manito what? you ask. This town is where you can experience the Great White North of Canada. According to wikipedia: Manitouwadge is a township in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is located in the Thunder Bay District, at the north end of Highway 614, 331 kilometres east of Thunder Bay and 378 kilometres north-west of Sault Ste. Marie.

When you here the words 'winter' and 'Manitouwadge' you should automatically follow it with BRRRRRR!

So....last December, when I heard that they were coming down south for Christmas, I decided that they would greatly benefit from and homespun, handwoven blanket. The yarn was just begging to come off the shelves and jump onto the loom. And here's the thing ---  once certain skeins have been selected to go into a blanket, others start clamouring for a turn as well. The result? Instead of one blanket you actually end up weaving two.

My older brother also lives further north. It is true that Barrie is not as far north as 'the Wadge', but it does rate in terms of snowfall and cold weather. So, in order to stay in the good graces of both these siblings, I wove two blankets in three weeks and was able to gift both brothers and their wives at our Christmas get-together.

This is the Manitouwadge blanket.

This blanket is the first blanket that I have brushed. I usually full my homespun blankets in a toploading washing machine. This makes the blanket softer and less stiff. But I had recently watched a video by Laura Fry on wetfinishing  handwoven items. So I did something new and also brushed this blanket while it was still damp. Doing this raised the nap and created what is called a halo. And presto: the blanket was softer yet!


The Barrie Blanket

These balls of yarn are feeling pretty please with themselves, having made it from skeins, into balls and on the front beam of the loom.

The warp on the back beam ready to be wound on.

Weaving in progress....

Finished product!

The recipients and their blankets. (Unfortunately my older brother didn't make it onto the picture).

Here's to you, Walter and Marsha, and Martyn and Mary: may you enjoy your blankets in the Great White North!