New Weaving Explorations/Evolutions

About a year or so ago, I attempted to weave a baby blanket on my floor loom. I used a pattern by Tom Knisely and was really excited to try using rug warp for a baby blanket. Tom's pattern and write up said this worked really well, so there I went. I tried several times to begin weaving, but the warp was obviously too wide for my loom. I hated to lose the thread and was determined to keep as much as I could.
The middle was fine and could be used to weave some sturdy kitchen towels, which we could definitely use at home. Still, I didn't want to lose the threads on the ends that needed to be removed.
I decided to use a couple of empty paper towel rolls to wind off the excess threads. This was a little time consuming as I went, but did work pretty well.
I have just re-warped this thread onto the loom. I could have checked the pattern again to get a more even pattern with these threads, but I went with the more haphazard way the threads were coming off the paper towel rolls.

I checked the sheds, which looked good and began weaving. After a few inches, there was the mistake, actually, a few. Hmmm... Why did I have three threads together in a plain weave? Luckily, the mistake was only about eight threads in, so I finished up the short piece and pulled out the end threads up to the mistake. I had two threads in the four shaft instead of the 4-3-2-1 pattern. No number three. Okay, so re-threaded and here we go again.

I had thought I would make some dishcloths to go with the dish towels, now off the loom and waiting to be hemmed and pre-washed. The new warp is only ten inches wide, so after pre-washing, probably won't be large enough. Again, hmmmm..... Well, I have a few yards to weave while I rethink this project again. I had found an old skein of Fibranatura Cobblestone, 100% superwash merino wool. I'm going to play with this and see how this evolves. I love the many colors and they go well with the blue/purple warp. I'll post the results when the loom stands empty again.

Free Pattern Friday, June 2, 2017

It was Free Pattern Friday at Universal Yarn yesterday. This is the Zephyr Tank Pattern. I'm sharing the pattern/blog info for you here. This looks like a fun, easy pattern for a lightweight summer top. Flax yarn and flax lace yarn are 100% linen in DK and laceweight. Materials called for are:

Fibra Natura Flax Lace (100% linen; 547 yds/100g) 
• 109 Pewter (A) – 1 hank 
Fibra Natura Flax (100% linen; 137 yds/50 g) 
• 17 Silver (B) – 4 (5, 6, 6, 7) hanks 
Needles: US Size 4 (3.5 mm) 24” circular or size needed to obtain gauge 
Notions: Tapestry needle, stitch holder, 5-⅝” buttons 

The body is knitted with Flax and the bottom trim is knitted with Flax lace. Flax is a wonderful, natural yarn that is cool for these hot summer days ahead. 

I'm always glad to special order any Universal yarns that you may not see on my Etsy page.