Log Cabin Placemats - NOT

This winter I finished up a pretty piece of cloth, woven in Color and Weave, log cabin pattern.  I planned to make a set of placemats, but unfortunately didn't plan for a wide enough warp.  I now have 3 yards of cloth, 10 inches wide.  I don't have a clue what to do with it, but as a temporary measure it makes a nice table runner with the unfinished edges tucked under.  I could hem a section for a table runner, or use it to sew a vest, or make a whole lot of bags.  Inspiration may come one day on just what this cloth should become.

Gary's recent woodturnings, a set of candlesticks and a bark edged bowl, look wonderful on the cloth.

Date Finished  January 2014

Loom   Baby Wolf

Weave Structure  Log Cabin

Reed  8, 16 epi

Warp     Fiber  Cotton

              Count  5/2

              Color  Burgundy and Black

              Mfr  Valley

              Source   Webs

                  

Notes

Many Projects - One Warp

Warping the loom is the part of weaving that I like the least. One of the things I love best about weaving is planning projects and identifying as many projects as possible from a single warp using different weft or different treadlings. Because of this, my recent projects involve putting a 6-7 yard warp on the loom and working on a number of projects.  I recently put on a 7 yard warp of two colors of 8/4 cotton rug yarn, planning to make fabric for a couple of rag rug bags and maybe some placemats.

I ended up making fabric for two bags and not making any placemats.  The bags are lined with fabric and one has cotton webbing straps and the other uses leather belts for handles. The finished size of the bags are 15" X 17" tall.







Fabric to cover the pillow on my weaving bench.

A small rag rug

3 small bags.  More on these bags in a separate post.

Date Finished  October 2013

Loom  Newcomb

Weave Structure  Plain Weave, log cabin thick and thin

Reed  12 epi

Warp     Fiber  Cotton

              Count  8/4

              Color Dusty Rose and Eggplant

              Mfr  Maysville

              Source  Earthguild

Warp     Width in Reed  20"

              Ends  240

              Length  7 yds

Weft      Fiber  blue flowered cotton rags cut in 1 1/2 inch strips and carpet warp alternating

              Count 6 ppi - 3 rags, 3 carpet warp

              Color

              Mfr

              Source  Old Curtains

Beat                       50/50                     

Size

Notes

Baby Blankets

Brittnee's twins, Hunter and Walker, were born in late July and I just finished a baby blanket for them.  My excuse is that they were born 2 months pre-mature, so instead of being 3 months late with the blanket, I should only be one month late.  No excuse of course.  My other rationale is that the big loom is in NC and I was in Montana the first couple of months, where my looms have a maximum weaving width of 26", definitely not wide enough for a blanket.  The boys spent their first month in the hospital but are doing splendidly now, gaining lots of weight, and doing what babies should do.

The blanket is based on a design from Handwoven January/February 2012.  Fortunately I found the correction to treadling on Handwoven's website.
http://www.weavingtoday.com/media/g/corrections/default.aspx

I absolutely love this fabric, which is 50% slubby cotton and 50% rayon chenille, and so it has some structure from the cotton, but the chenille adds a nice softness.  I selected colors a little darker than recommended in the magazine and the blanket is much more vibrant.  I hope the twins and Brittnee like it as much as I do.

The darker shades in the blanket, blues, purple and turquoise, would look great as a scarf, 3 blocks wide or about 6 inches wide.  Warping the loom was not fun, given the alternating colors and natural cotton and the frequent color changes.  But once the loom was warped, it was a breeze to weave.  The only issue was the different stretchiness of the rayon vs. the cotton.

Date Finished  October 2012

Loom  Newcomb

Weave Structure Log Cabin
Reed  12

Warp     Fiber  Cotton Flake Noho

              Count  1100 yd/LB

              Color  Natural

              Mfr

              Source  Webs

Warp     Fiber  Rayon Chenille

              Count  1450 yd/lb

              Color  turquoise, blue, purple, pink and salmon

              Mfr

              Source Webs
Warp     Width in Reed 36 inches

              Ends  423

              Length  4 yds

Weft      Same as warp

Beat                       50/50                     

Size       36 X 50, after washing 

Notes