Does anyone want this very wide rigid heddle loom? It has a 44″ weaving width, 8, 10, and 12-dent heddles, and a folding stand. The heddles are stamped “Beka” but I suspect this is some sort of homemade Frankstein dealie. Free to new home. Contact Kathy Tappan or comment here.
Loomapalooza Workshop 2015
We are planning a guild workshop for the fall. Many of you have expressed an interest. Now is the time to commit. This is open to all NVWG members, regardless of experience level, as long as you can warp your loom on your own.
Location:
The Faulkner House, 5 High Street, Acton
Dates:
Opening session (mandatory for all participants) Saturday 14 October 12-4 p.m.
Various flexible day and evening times during the week of 15-22 Oct (Anticipated time you will need to devote is dependent on the number of participants, but probably about 12 hours total. A typical round robin workshop is 3 full days, or about 18 hours. Think of this as a spread out weekend of weaving!)
Guild meeting Tuesday 24 Oct, 7 p.m.
Who:
This is open to all NVWG members, regardless of skill level or experience. If you do not have a portable loom, but would like to participate, we can help you locate a loom to use for the workshop.
Structure of the workshop:
Round Robin
Each member will be given a weaving draft that is appropriate for their loom and their skill level. Yarn will also be provided. Members will need to wind the appropriate warp (with help if needed) and warp their loom. They will arrive at the workshop with their loom completely threaded and a small sample woven at the beginning of the warp.
On the first day (mandatory for all participants), each person will share information about their warp, the weave structure and their loom operation.
Over the next week, the space will be open at various times during the day and in the evening. A mentor from the guild will be on location during all of the open hours. Participants will come and go as they are able and weave on each of the looms, marking their own weaving with supplied tags.
At the end of the final day (22 Oct), designated people will cut the pieces off the looms and take them home to wash, dry and cut up.
At our regular guild meeting on 24 Oct (which will be held at the Faulkner House), the results will be shared with the whole guild. Notebooks will be given to each participant, including the drafts and the samples they wove during the week.
To sign up:
Send an email to Penny chair@nvwg.org with your name and what loom you intend to use for the workshop. (Also indicate if you have another portable loom you’re willing to lend to a fellow guild member for the workshop.) If you are interested in exploring a particular weave structure, please indicate that in your email. Send a check for $75 to 96 South St., Berlin MA 01503 to complete your registration. Financial aid is available. Please contact Penny or Laura for information.
So that we can plan and everyone has time to warp their looms, the registration deadline is Wednesday 9 August.
Let us know if you have any questions!
New tool for finding a skeleton tieup…from Handweaving.net
New Skeleton Tieup Search
We have added a new page to help find skeleton tieups for weaving on rising shed looms.
Please see: http://reducer.handweaving.net
Skeleton tieups are useful if you have enough shafts to weave a draft but not enough treadles, and don’t mind using more than one treadle at once.
You can either enter the original tieup directly, or upload a WIF file containing it and we will try to find a skeleton tieup for it which can be woven on your loom.
The page uses some special custom parallel programming which runs using processing power provided by Amazon’s cloud services.
This was inspired by another similar page named Tim’s Rudimentary Treadle Reducer, but likely works very differently underneath.
Below is a sample showing a skeleton tieup for Handweaving.net pattern #59161, found here: https://handweaving.net/draft-detail/59161/page-xi-figure-208-posselts-textile-journal-june-1913-united-states-1907-1915
If this is popular we will probably expand it to have more features and to work with looms that are not rising shed too.
This skeleton tieup search was a learning project for me. It offered chance to use some brand new technologies while creating something that is hopefully useful to weavers, especially those with 4 and 8 shaft looms. This was actually surprisingly difficult yet fun to create…there is a lot of set theory math involved in treadle reduction and careful technical design and programming needed to find and present skeleton tieups. Of all the things I’ve programmed for Handweaving.net it’s one of the more complicated underneath even though it looks simple on the surface.
Enjoy, and please share or forward this to help others find it! –Kris Bruland
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Our mailing address is:
Handweaving.net
P.O. Box 1158
Coupeville, WA 98239
Volunteers needed! Faulkner House Demo, 25Jun3, 3-5pm
Hi Everyone,
The next Museum opening at the Faulkner House in Acton is set for 25June, from 3-5pm. I will not be able to make it to this demo, but am hoping that one or more of you might be able to get there. We’ve had a lot of fun doing these, they are low-key and relaxing. The “big loom” is in a state of transition, so whoever comes should plan to bring their own demo items. Small looms, spinning wheels, and drop spindles are all welcome, as are any other types of fiber demo. If interested, please email me at laura@northbrookalpacas.com for details.
Thanks!
Laura
Pillow Stuffing Anyone
I’ve got a large lining pillow 32″ X 19″ stuffed with polyester fill. You could get at least 2 normal size pillows out of it. Too large to pack for AZ. I can bring it to the potluck if anyone is interested.
Faulkner Open House Demo, 28 May 2017
Hi Everyone,
This weekend is Memorial Day, and the Faulkner House in Acton will be open on Sunday, 28May, from 3-5pm. I am planning to bring over some more weft for the big loom, and probably finish weaving the warp off. It’d be great to have one or more other people join me, either with small looms, spinning wheels or drop spindles. Anyone up for it? Let me know by commenting to this message, or by emailing me directly at laura@northbrookalpacas.com.
Thanks!
Laura
23May2017 Meeting Reminder – “Yarn: The Movie”!
In place of our regular May meeting, The Nashoba Valley Weavers’ Guild Presents
“Yarn: The Movie”
A screening at the Harvard Public Library, Volunteers Room
4 Pond Road, Harvard MA
Doors open at 6:30, screening starts promptly at 7pm.
The film follows several artists who are redefining the tradition of knit and crochet, bringing yarn out of the house into the world.
The screening is free and open to public. Advance registration is recommended.
Due Date/INFO for entries to NEWS
Hello all,
This is directed to Susan T. I am entering two pieces to NEWS. Both Andrew and I are still fuzzy on the details of how we do this. Could you please let us know what we need to have for the mid-May initial due date, what that date is, and where we submit the materials. We believe photos are needed in May, but what else? WE don’t want to mess this up.
Thanks so much!
Marie
Yarn: The Movie coming in May!
Save the date! May 23, 2017, 7pm
In place of our regular May meeting, The Nashoba Valley Weavers’ Guild Presents
“Yarn: The Movie”
A screening at the Harvard Public Library, Volunteers Room
4 Pond Road, Harvard MA
The film follows several artists who are redefining the tradition of knit and crochet, bringing yarn out of the house into the world.
The screening is free and open to public. Advance registration is recommended.
Meeting Reminder, 25 April 2017
Our April meeting will be a discussion over “tips and tricks” that make weaving easier and more fun! Please bring along any tools, books or ideas to share. Or just come with questions and take home inspiration.
We’ll also have a Show & Tell time.
Gathering time is 7 pm at the Fiber Loft for snacks and library browsing. The meeting will start promptly at 7:30.