May

01.05.25

 

A simple pocket with an inserted piece of card to emphasise the red highlight. 

 

• The paper offers a much more regular weave than the linen, especially when I am not beating the linen down hard, but wanting the contrast to be greater.

• I like the emphasis that is provided by the card. It separates the top layer of the weave from the bottom even further.

02.05.25

 

I like this one. The pockets have worked out reasonably well - although it highlights the unevenness of my weaving.

 

• Maintaining the tension of the paper yarn is not easy. When I hand manipulate into the weave the warp yarn stretches and as can be seen in these weaves I found it hard to keep the red linen weft straight. Again my haste got in the way!

• Equally the paper yarn is so stiff that the selvedges become very hard to manage, although I think that the unevenness of these just demonstrates the quality of the paper. It has a mind of its own!

03.05.25

 

Quick and simple tonight. Staying with the red theme. Working on my small frame loom, with a paper warp and a white cotton and red linen weft. All scraps and leftover bits from my stash.

 

• I am finding that working with all the scraps feels quite satisfying. Not so much wastage, and forces me to think quite creatively.

• However I am becoming so much more aware of how loosely I beat my weaves. At the moment my arm is still quite sore after all the work in the studio, but I suspect that this is my normal beat pattern. Maybe I need to tighten it up a bit to get more even weaves.

04.05.25

 

A very fiddly weave hand manipulating the red yarn through the ground weave.

 

• I think the red yarn is too fine on this weave. It doesn’t stand out as much as I wanted it to.

• The meandering path is pleasing. I definitely want to find a way of incorporating this path into final weaves that I do for the PhD.

• Working like this is a mixture of the tapestry weaving and loom weaving. My desire for speed is thwarted by this work which can be ok - and at other times I just want to get it finished.

05.05.25

 

A quick weave using the raffia yarn. 

 

• With such a dense warp the red raffia has become so pink. 

• The warp threading through the reed is more obvious. I am enjoying the pattern that it makes in it’s own way. Although it is just a plain weave the groupings of the thread offer a different appearance.

06.05.25

 

Threaded up my small loom with a paper warp with a double block down the centre. I am wanting to explore pockets and inserting extra weft options.

 

• This uses raffia, unfolded in groups. I like how with this threading the centre weave doesn’t look any thicker than the side weaves. There is a uniformity to it that works for me. 

• The simple contrast of the red and white on the black background works well for me. I think that the black background has made most of my weaves pop out well both in reality and in the photographs.

07.05.25

 

Trying to create a solid black weave with the paper yarn.  There is something that I find  particularly appealing about the threads that are cut - they are so fine in the actual piece, that they are hard to see, but they are there. 

 

• Currently threaded at 12 epc - 3 ends per dent with my standard paper yarn. Weft is using a much finer paper yarn. 

• The dent makes a clear gap in the weave at this density - however when I do a small square of twill in the centre block it becomes more dense.

• Experiment with a less dense sett and also using the finer yarn as the warp.

• Try with a finer reed to balance out the gaps.

08.05.25

 

I found this thick cord - just enough to finish this small weave. 

 

• It’s hard to maintaining the structure and shape when it is off the loom, the thread moves when it is so loosely woven. 

• I like the contrast of the gaps and the woven pieces. Implies that there is more to the story than just the weave. Or that there is potential in the loose bits for something more to be woven in.

09.05.25

 

Using a couple of different structures in this weave - a simple tabby and then a double tabby.

 

• It’s hard to see the difference with the thickness and multiple yarns in the weft. 

• Not an exciting weave - and I don’t really like it. 

• So could I do something with it? Be creative, change it? 

• If I cut into it then I think it will all fall to pieces. 

• Been researching other weaves - paper, paint, and others doing or who have done a 365 challenge. Lots of variations, and it is making me feel a bit better about what I am doing. 

• This challenge is a long time - lots of 100 day challenges out there.

10.05.25

 

So this is what happens when I don’t have a warp on the loom - three days of not really not knowing what I am doing. Just weaving using yarns and colours that I like, or want to see what they do.

 

• I feel as if I need a focus - to give myself a project for a week or a month - which is what a warp does for me I guess. Gives me a focus on what I can do with a particular threading/yarn/idea. I don’t get that same feeling on the frame loom, where each weave seems to become more of a finished piece. 

• However - a new warp going on the loom over the next couple of days so I will see what that brings me.

11.05.25

 

Experimenting today with getting as solid a black background as I can. Using a very fine black paper yarn warp, with the fine yarn as a weft at the top, and a thicker paper yarn in the bottom. 

Yarn sett at 20 epc in the first and third sections, at 10 epc in the middle of each section. 

The first two weaves of each section are plain weave, the top weave of each section are a broken twill. 

 

• The twills are much more dense. I thought that using a wider sett warp might allow the paper weft to be beaten down more, but it doesn’t seem to have that effect - the extra warp threads in the first weaves make the weave more dense.

12.05.25

 

Starting a play with double cloth for a poster. Warp is the very fine black paper yarn, weft on the bottom layer is the thicker black yarn, and paper and the thin yarn used on the top layer. 

• The amount of stretch in the fine yarn is considerable, and the take up of the bottom yarn changed the tension too much to be really workable. 

• Thinking about doing a multiple large area of this - definitely I will need two beams, possibly the option for many more! Depending on how many layers/blocks I choose to do.

• I love the shadow effect of the gaps in the top weave as the light shines through it. 

13.05.25

 

4 simple comparable pieces of weave. Fine yarn warp 10epc.

 

• Top sample uses a much thicker paper yarn, which surprised me by offering the most coverage. The piece second from the top is woven with this yarn - which may mean that I choose to make the background with this yarn.

• However - the very fine yarn is not a great yarn for the warp - it rips really easily if I catch it with a shuttle, and I am nervous of using it with extra back beams. 

• The top section using some old yarn dyed with rust is really effective - the fine black yarn over it gives a bit of a pattern - to try it tomorrow with a plain white yarn - it could be interesting to see this with a more complex pattern such as the rust weave that I did a couple of years ago.

14.05.25

 

A repeat of yesterday, with the slightly thicker warp. Standard paper yarn woven at 8epc. Small honeysuckle overshot threading, and weave, without the tabby (Anne Dixon p104) but the pattern doesn’t show.

 

• Thinking about what I am going to use for a background for a project that I am going to do - wanting to get a solid weave, with a design that  offers a fairly random variation in pattern - not an obvious pattern. 

• None of these really work with the sett that I have. Next warp to be sett at 12, or 16 epc.

15.05.25

 

Wondering whether to put some colour into the weave.

 

• This paper comes from packing from a delivery - it’s more burgundy than it appears in the photo.

• The loose ends work well and give an interesting texture - good as a sample weave, but not really relevant for my project.

16.05.25

 

And another one using a dyed paper yarn. Woven with a plain twill using the overshot threading. The pattern with this becomes too regular. This amount of colour is definitely not what I am looking for. 

 

• Maybe try a different threading with an odd warp thread in colour? Or just a few weft threads.

• Why am I wanting to get some colour in? What will it offer to the weave? And the story that I am trying to tell?

17.05.25

 

Starting to put my big loom together and looking at a different tie up using these beads. Might mean less crawling around the loom at the bottom. Facebook reviews are good, and we all know that we can trust facebook implicitly!

 

• Using a smooth flax thread for this - it weaves really nicely. I might try dyeing some of this black - it weaves quickly and gives a lot of strength and stability to the weave.

• The black beads are in a similar format to how they will appear when they are tied to the treadles - the neat orderliness of this is as appealing as some of my really messy weaves!

18.05.25

 

Using a couple of my specialist yarns from the Handweavers studio.

 

• The plain black is a tatami yarn - it is similar to my raffia yarn, and expands into a paper that is about 1cm wide.

• However when I unwrap it it quickly beats down into the same size as when it is wrapped - so not much point for this.

• Although the tatami yarn seems quite soft it makes a very stiff weave. I might explore this with a design and see what effect this has. 

• The white yarn is a paper chenille - the contrast is too great, so I need to dye the yarn if I am going to use it - could dip it into the coffee/tea?

19.05.25

 

Enjoying the colour shifts that occurred in the dyeing of this yarn which are emphasised by the irregularities of the weave, with the small floats. Not sure how this might be used at the moment - it reminds me a bit of the cover of my covid book.

20.05.25

 

I am enjoying the contrast of the rustic nature of the hessian warp and the lovely texture of the tussar silk weft. It feels enormously luxurious and abundant.

 

• Playing with the beads that I bought - adding them in for more texture and contrast.

• These loose pieces of weave so quickly become unwoven - not sure if this matters. It would be nice if they finished evenly but I think on the frame loom that I am using this isn’t possible. Pulling the weft through to tighten the edges distorts the weave. And I don’t want to use glue or tape to seal them. 

• They take long enough to weave and think about without adding anything extra!

21.05.25

 

Staying with the simplicity with just a pop of a contrasting bead.

 

• It looks like a jewel on the black background. My eye is drawn to it, but there is enough of the black to balance it. 

• I am surprised that I like the red plastic - given my desire to weave using natural fabrics.

• Peter Ward and Claire Benn coming up a lot on instagram - using clay to paint with. Where is my energy to be trying these new things - using clays to colour my yarn - I want to work like that and with natural dyes, but I just don’t seem to have the energy at the moment - maybe I just have too many projects on the go.

22.05.25

 

More beads - This retains the natural feel of the weaves, but they ‘should’ be natural - wood or stone. Somehow the plastic of these beads isn’t working in the way that the red bead did.

23.05.25

 

Adding more texture to this weave - the loose loops of the hessian are fun to do. 

 

• They are not very stable. The warp is too loose to hold the loops in place even with a plain weave above and below the looped weft. 

• Still loving these neutral colours - looking at Jessie Mordine’s work. She has also done a ‘Woven Year’ - and has a whole wall of indigo weaves. I am curious as to whether she worked for a period of time on any particular colour or whether she dotted around as I am doing, and has just grouped them together for the show she has put on. Some are framed, others not. All for sale - but would I want to sell these? Or would I just replicate any that were interesting for sale? As in ‘prints’ of an original.

24.05.25

 

And another textured weave - still with the neutral natural colours.

 

• I went to Falmouth Grad show last night - some beautiful weaves using lots of colour - it reminded me of the days that I was there, and I am wondering if I am getting bored with the ‘black, white, beige’ colour pallette that I am using?

• But I don’t really want to get into too much chemical dyeing - do I need to explore natural dyes a bit more again?

• I need to talk to Alice about how well these will set. 

• And maybe it would be fun to do a natural dye course this year rather than a weaving course!

25.05.25

 

This is woven with a warp of 16 epc - twice the previous density.  I am hoping to get a solid weave with the medium thickness paper yarn, but on a plain weave even at this density I still get a lot of gaps. 

 

• So - the fine yarn gives me a greater density but it is too fine for a warp - it keeps snapping. This is a much stronger yarn, but it is far less flexible - I think the twist is quite high, so there isn’t so much movement available. 

• Three samples here - woven with medium, thicker and finer yarns - none of them giving me the look that I want.

• Next sample will be with a broken twill weave. The twill will cover some of the gaps.

26.05.25

 

Same warp in a 2x2 twill. 

 

• As I am weaving this I realise that I want to be able to see the effect of the weave. I don’t want to create a completely matt smooth surface. The thicker yarn and the medium yarn make this possible. 

• In the photo it is possible to see the twill effect - and it has also emphasised a mistake in the threading which hasn’t been obvious in the plain weave. 

• Does that matter? Just one of those things. In a sample it is obviously not important, but could I live with that in a finished piece - I think not.

27.05.25

 

This is a 3/1 twill - the difference in the colours of the yarns is very obvious in the photo yet in real life it is hard to determine the difference - the thicker yarn is a chocolate brown, whereas the thinner yarn is either a really dark brown, or black. 

 

• I’m not sure whether what I am doing with these weaves is giving me any real information as to what I want to do with the finished piece. I want to start writing, and see if that clears my thoughts any further.

28.05.25

 

 I think that I am getting bored with all these black samples - and wondering what I am going to do as a finished piece.

 

• The red is the thread of life. If I am going to do a bigger piece of this type of work, what am I trying to say? There is certainly something about my PhD and the path that I am taking with it - but that path is not a single line - it has many turns and rabbit holes that may all come back to the single thread - but somehow that thread at the moment is not clear - maybe there needs to just be a thicker thread in the same colour as the back ground? 

• I want to get onto a bigger piece of this work. Somehow join everything that I am doing together so that it doesn’t feel so disparate.

29.05.25

 

Just been generously donated a whole bunch of new yarns - some beautiful wools, so having a play with them. And also with some clay buttons that I was given -so kind of people. 

 

Sampling to see how they weave and also how they will finish. At the moment I find the yarns very scratchy - I wouldn’t want to wear them on my skin, but maybe I need to ask other people how they find them. Will a good wash sort that out?

 

Purple is not a colour I am drawn to, but here it is softened by the teal blue, which dulls it down and makes it much more appealing to me.

30.05.25

 

And another weave with two shades of blue - with a toning button! The wool is weaving beautifully - I would love to make something with it, but it is really thick - at the moment I think I might use it more for tapestry weaving rather than loom weaving. 

 

Harrisville Highland yarn.

31.05.25

 

Playing with the Fibonacci sequence - an interesting way to graduate the colours to move from one to another. 

 

• Is this more satisfying than doing a random change? I suspect so.

• I am interested to see how this works out with different ranges of colour - contrasting, tonal, black/white etc.

 

The last weave of May - my files of weaves are accumulating. Nearly half way through the year, it feels good to have come this far!