Weaving Wonders

Peter, John and Marina all keep their looms busy and Christine will fire up her weaving skills with a great sense of purpose when she wants to. This week John and Peter were both doing interesting things. With several weavers in the group they help to encourage and inspire each other. Even those who no longer weave or who are having a break from weaving enjoy participating in discussions and process.

John’s woven mat is very fine and in subtle colours but if you look closely you can see a clever zigzag pattern which is emerging. This is a piece which requires thought and skill because the weaving is quite fine and the colours are similar so it means you have to keep thinking. Peter has broken out into a riot of colour and the the vibrancy of his colour piece can be seen. It is cheerful, neat and looks good.

Twisted cord maker gadget

John is clever. He has the skills to make things he wants or we want. As a weaver you often need to make tassles for the ends of scarves or shawls. It is laborious to make all the twisted cords by hand. John invented a gadget from his bits and bobs. You attach the strands of yarn to the alligator clips and you wind with the metal winder bottom left.  Anyone in our group who has used this gadget thinks it it simple and easy. It is not very big so it doesn’t require storage space.

You can also make twisted cords with a pencil, pen or dowel. It is just nice having a gadget 🙂

Woven bowls

Deb’s woven bowls are very colourful. They are made carefully and with a lot of patience. Woven bowls are used in a number of cultures. They are good for using up oddments, for the environment and sustainability and you can make them in various sizes. These bowls of Debs have colour and texture so visually they are appealing. Sheila also makes woven fibre baskets to use up her oddments. These are always good projects to watch. You can see the bowl develop a life and character as it is made.

This video is without sound but it shows you how you can make a woven bowl:

DIY electric carder

Peter and Marina had a Ron Doley carder which they had purchased a while back. They have been thinking of turning it into an electric carder. John, one of our top weavers, liked the idea of this challenge and so he and Peter have been working together for a number of weeks now to try and turn the carder into an electric one. It has required thought, testing, more thought and more testing. It has been a good brain challenge. It is great when you look at people around you setting themselves a puzzle to solve and then using skills and expertise to arrive at a good solution.

This week the carder was finally finished. John (left) and Peter (right) are justifiably proud of this achievement. Sandy, one of the Adelaide Hills spinners and weavers , was more than happy to test the carder and give it a trial run. By the way, doesn’t John look good in the Fair Isle vest Christine knitted? Suits him so well.

Challenges like the carder can be frustrating , at times, along the way but such a thrill when you achieve your goal. Peter and Marina now have an electric carder which runs beautifully off a sewing machine motor.

Below is another example of creative thinking. Katharine Jolda is demonstrating her Cyclocarder. Great way to card and keep fit and a bonus if there is a blackout!