November Show and Tell

 Chris is our crackle expert. Here she is showing the two different sides of her latest double-faced rug.

And a close-up. Unusually for Chris, this rug incorporates her handspun yarn, brightened up with flecks of cheerful colours.

Also by Chris, this scarf is enriched with silk brought back from Nepal by husband Ross on a trip some time ago. It looks as though Chris is doing some serious stash-busting. Keep it up Chris.

Rose had produced two red alpaca/silk scarves in different designs of 3-end huck lace which she considers more suitable for this dainty yarn than the 5-end version.

That's it for now. Happy holidays everyone. Don't forget to keep weaving.

The End (of the year) is Nigh!

We're definitely not ready for Christmas - so no Christmas tree - but a little end of year frivolity and a toast to a very good year.  We met for the last time this year on 17 November and had fun exchanging pincushions over a glass of bubbles.

 Tricia was delighted to receive this one made by Judy and covered with fine handwoven fabric. It has a complementary colour on the other side.

 Joan was all smiles when she received this felted model made by Jan. It looks like a flower opening.

 Win had to take the lid of her tatting trimmed one to find the pincushion inside. Made by Rose.

 And in a tit-for-tat situation Rose received Win's model. It is nuno felted on to handwoven fabric and has a nifty handle.

 Jan was delighted to get Joan's pincushion handwoven with silk fabric strips, originally woven for wedding waistcoats.

 Chris has a 'multi-sample' model made by Tricia using many offcuts of handwoven fabrics, beautifully sewn and decoratively stitched.

 Anne is holding another model with a handle (to hang by the loom). This is made by Chris and will go to Judy who was not able to be present.

A close-up of the above showing the lovely plump shape arrived at by clever cutting. Scaled up considerably, wouldn't it make a comfortable floor cushion!


A few show and tell photos to come in another post shortly.

Coming and Going in October

It was a meeting of two halves in October. On Thursday 16th Chris, Win and Rose travelled to Richmond for our annual gathering with our colleagues over there. A great time was had by all and quite a few pennies were heard to drop as show and tell items were discussed and explained. We learned a lot, particularly about diagonal weaving on pin looms which we knew about and had seen around but had not really taken much notice of. We had to admit there is much more to it than first meets the eye when we saw some really attractive and well-woven coasters (sample below), hot plate mats and even a blanket with planned design in colour.  We had a gift exchange and many of the gifts were of the diagonal woven variety. We were treated to a delicious morning tea and lunch during which we fraternised with the felters and had a look at what they were doing. A trip to Icon Gallery afterwards was a bonus and we were impressed with the exciting things happening there.

Part Two was on our normal meeting night which we had initially cancelled in favour of the Richmond trip but as so few were able to go on the trip some of us gathered at Bobbin Cottage as usual. 

 Betsy had quietly and methodically worked through the collapse weaving course and had her samples beautifully mounted in a folder with the appropriate paperwork. Well done Betsy . . . excellent job.

 Jen was not too sure of her shoulder scarf at first  but gained confidence when we all genuinely admired it. The general consensus was that it just needs one big button or brooch.

Tricia has been scrumbling again. This phone cover is a follow-on from the fantastic handbag she has exhibited. During the evening she manufactured almost half of another one.

 Rose had woven two scarves in different variations of huck lace using alpaca/silk yarn.

And this is one of her linen table runners.
Thanks to Chris for these photos.

At the Guild meeting a couple of days later Judy showed her Deflected Double Weave wrap woven in 20/2 silk.  Here it is on the loom.

And here is the finished product. So elegant!

Thanks for the pics Judy.


A bonus for those present was to have a preliminary look at some "Arizona Highway" magazines with amazing photographs of land forms, wildlife, wildflowers etc with colour schemes we don't see in our own green and pleasant land. There is a lot of inspiration to be gained from these magazines and we look forward to delving into them in the future.

Rounding out September

 More scarves from Judy.  Joan models the red one while Feltima looks on approvingly. Also Judy's is this fine one in the delicate lavender shades.

 Rose had been weaving linen. the top piece is a sample for Cross Country Weavers. Below are table runners in twill blocks.

 Joan had just returned from overseas. She is delighted with her book on basketry (above) and below she shows the only piece of hand weaving she could find on her travels.

Nancy brought along these poppies to show what the knitters are doing for a major Anzac project.

September Show and Tell

Anne has perfected her own style in both colour and structure - this just has to be hers.

Win has been delving into crackle weave blocks and come up with this cosy looking blanket.

Judy showed several scarves, as usual they were not only well woven but also beautiful.

Rose showed two completely different aspects of huck lace. One uses a chunky motif in 16/2 linen and the other a fine overall pattern in sewing cotton set at 40 epi.

More photos soon.

Deflected Double Weave

It may be difficult to believe but these are the front and back views of the same piece of fabric. This is sometimes called Integrated Cell Weave but also known as Deflected Double Weave. There are many variations and plenty of scope for colour.
Here is another sample, also front and back views.

The samples above are from Sue Broad's collection. The one below is Judy Bool's. It is woven in silk and photographed before washing.

September 2014 Meeting

It was great to see everyone again after what seems like a long time. Many of our members have been away recently and it was good to see most of them safely back home and ready to weave again. Barbara is the only one still to return. We did miss June and sadly that is permanent.

We had two guests from 'over the hill' ad it was great to see them both. Sue Broad talked to us about the work she has been doing with Deflected Double Weave and there was quite a buzz around the table when the samples and drafts and magazine articles began circulating. Let's hope we see some people taking up the challenge.  And Jane Clark came with Sue. It was good to see her as well and the collapse weave practitioners were able to show Jane their samples. It was Jane's generosity that provided us with the warps and drafts for the collapse weaving course from Anne Field. There are still some warps on hand for those who haven't yet had a crack at this challenge.

Not a guest but a returning member, we had Alison with us and it is so good to know she has re-assembled her loom. At present it is slightly too warped to weave but she will get that sorted and soon have her 16 shafts in order. 

Here are the first pics (more to come) and you will see that everyone is really paying attention. Thank You Sue.

A visit to an 'outlying' member

at age 97 Peg is no longer able to get to our meetings but here are a few photos taken on a visit to her today. As you can see she is still active, even if a bit slower, and still producing her linen-based wall hangings that are usually bursting with colour.

A few running repairs were required. It's as well Peg knows how this loom works because I'm sure mo one else does!

 On Peg's table she had some of her treasured possessions. There are three handwoven items in this photo: a damask linen runner she wove herself, a handwoven handkerchief and a beautifully made card  depicting a rooster (Peg's mascot) with a woven insert to look like feathers. It is now framed and in pride of place.

(Well done Chris)

No photos of the bellbirds that entertain on one side of the house but here are a couple of black dots that are actually tuis on the other side.  With the birds and the stretch of Marlborough Sounds and the hills beyond Peg certainly has an inspirational place to live and work.