Ploshkin - Weaving Along

[Ploshkin]

Another diary that has been in the doldrums.  Apart from a bit of band weaving I haven't had anything on a loom for ages.  I have decided to have a tea towel marathon.  Firstly I have the most manky collection of tea towels in the universe, secondly I have, as yet, woven very little and thought it would be a good opportunity to get some weaving hours under my belt and thirdly it should result in having a bit of a stash of weaving yarn.  Having nothing currently available is one of the reasons I haven't done much weaving.
So, I got 3 cones of a nice, slubby cotton to kick off (navy, denim blue and grey) and have put a warp on my 20" loom which should be enough for 2 tea towels.  There is quite a bit of waste yarn at the start and finish of weaving so I thought it would be more economical to do 2.
I put on a 90" warp yesterday with 196 ends - that's the widest warp I have done. 
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@Celia as you will know it's not that easy solo warp winding especially with a wider warp.  I went a bit off piste but it worked (I think).  Because the loom is on a stand and on a laminate floor I left the loops round the warping posts and wound it on to the back beam letting the stand slide along the floor which kept the threads nicely under tension.

This morning I have threaded the heddle and tied the warp on to the front beam so I'm ready to roll once I have wound some shuttles.  So far so good!
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[Celia]

Looking good @Ploshkin, I sometimes use a warping board but it does take longer than direct warping.

[Ploshkin]

Tea towel #1 is coming along, I've done about 18".  I think it took me the first 6 inches to work out which way to cross the colours to carry them up the sides.  It's not pretty but it's all part of the learning curve.

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[Ploshkin]

My first two tea towels are off the loom.  48" of weaving in 2 different weft patterns.
Lesson learnt is to always add a few extra inches on the warp.  By the time I got near the end of the weaving it was getting very tight and hard to get the shuttle through the correct threads.
I used a pick up stick to slide through and open up the shed for the last couple of inches.  @Celia will know what I mean.
I have wet finished the length, cut them apart and trimmed the bits off the ends ready to hem.
As I was weaving I was struggling a bit to stop it drawing in (it  annoyed me as a child when my weaving always ended up skinny in the middle but I didn't know how to prevent it then). I hoped that when it was taken off the loom and able to relax that it wouldn't be too bad.  It did indeed relax and I am pleased to find that my weaving width is actually consistent all the way.

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[Lowena]

That's great, you are clever

[Silver Rose]

They look great.

[Celia]

Looking good @Ploshkin  I am interested to see how much they shrink, it is a problem I have had.

[SewRuthieSews]

wow! super impressed at you weaving your own tea towels!

[Ploshkin]

@SewRuthieSews I decided to have a tea towel marathon because I've only done a minimal amount of weaving and really need to get in some ' flying hours' before I do anything significant.  I want to weave fabric for garments.
@Celia do you mean shrink when taken off the loom and wet finished or shrink with repeated washing?  If they shrink with each wash I could end up with a drawer full of mug rugs 

[Celia]

With mine it is the repeated washing.  I am not quite at mug rugs but maybe nearer to a guest hand towel, heading towards a flannel …… probably the cotton I used

[Cazlyn]

They look great, how long did they take to make?

[Celia]

This book looks interesting https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/216426303/get-weaving-clothing-from-your-rigid @Ploshkin

[Ploshkin]

I have that book @Celia   i wouldn't make most of the garments but the information on weaving the fabrics is useful as I have no real idea of appropriate yarns and setts.  I have got a couple of her patterns too.
I hope when I've completed my tea towel marathon I will feel confident to have a try.

[Celia]

Yes that is what I was thinking, I don’t feel confident with the types of yarn and set for wearables, I am fine with scarves etc. I agree the patterns don’t look that interesting, unfortunately a lot of the hand woven garments you see are a bit too home made for my liking.

Looking forward to seeing you progress to garments it might inspire me again.

[Ploshkin]

@Cazlyn it's hard to say how long they took because  the loom is set up in my sewing room so isn't in the way of anything and I just sit down and do a bit at a time when I'm up there.  I can see that i started on 1st May.  The biggest job was putting the warp on because each thread has to be threaded individually and cut off and tied when colours change.  There were 196 warp threads.  I think that bit took me a whole afternoon and part of the next morning.