A few weeks ago, my son and I were out for a walk, chatting about this and that, when he announced with great fanfare that he had a plan for a Real Business. (I think our entrepreneurial lifestyle might be rubbing off on him.)
"The name of my business," he said importantly, "is Stupid Ideas."
"So how does it work?" I asked.
"I've figured it all out", he said. "People pay me money, and I tell them a Stupid Idea. That will help them a lot, because they will know an important thing not to do, and they will be safer."
"Intriguing," said I.
"And I've got my first idea already," he said. "Skipping with swords."
Sadly, despite my support and encouragement, he neglected to compile a definitive list for my own edification, which might explain this:
Sticky mohair boucle as warp. The shed has to be manually pried apart, thread by thread for every. single. pass.
The worst part is, it's really pretty, which makes it difficult to justify hacking the thing off the loom. At this rate, it could take weeks to finish (though avoidance may be playing a wee role there) and I had great plans for some light and lovely silk wraps to take to the summer market.
Sigh.
Speaking as someone who hasn't actually tried weaving yet (I'm not letting myself start until after I graduate), would something like pick-up strings help at all, or would they just get stuck on the bouclé loops?
Posted by: naomi | 28/05/2009 at 05:57 PM
(The finished fabric *is* very nice...)
Posted by: naomi | 28/05/2009 at 05:57 PM
Very pretty - too bad it is beastly to finish. Can I ask what kind of look you have - I have been eyeing a Cricket - but not sure.
Posted by: johanna | 28/05/2009 at 07:45 PM
freudian slip - meant to ask what kind of LOOM you have :-)
Posted by: johanna | 28/05/2009 at 07:46 PM
May I make a suggestion? Use a ruler or flat stick to separate the warp strings each time. Lay it in the shed up by the beater/heddles, and wiggle it through to the other side, then bring it back down to the fell, to open up the shed. Might help...
Posted by: hollyk | 28/05/2009 at 08:39 PM
I just LOVE the 'stupid ideas' business of Liam's! What a GRAND idea! Smart boy, that one. :)
Posted by: Kerri | 28/05/2009 at 10:34 PM
Skipping with swords, hee hee, thanks for the free sample.
Posted by: elan | 29/05/2009 at 05:01 AM
Please tell your son he may be onto something important and, having also made your "challenging design decision" I can only say ARGGGGGGG on your behalf!! Fabric is lovely but....
Posted by: Joan | 29/05/2009 at 08:18 AM
Okay, no skipping with swords... how about dancing? A highland sword dance...
Pretty clever of the mohair to be so incredibly pretty. Almost makes up for it's annoying sticky-ness... almost.
Something like shed sticks... the only thing I can think of, but I'm no great weaver...
Posted by: Kathleen C. | 29/05/2009 at 08:51 AM
Yup, my friends call me 'mohair girl'. I love that look too, but have been in the same situation, with the same loom! I had good luck with the pink heddle (can't remember the number just now) and I used Fleece Artist's goldilocks - a boucle mohair that is much thinner. It still fills out nicely because of the texture, and is a really lovely drapey fabric. And because it's so thin (relatively) it (mostly) doesn't stick. Otherwise, I just love what you have there. It may be inspiring me to actually finish what I have on my small loom and put some mohair on. I've got one of those pesky mohair projects languishing at the moment...the colours just aren't working the way I thought they would. Sigh, and I had to be efficient and warp it for three scarves. I've been trying to think of what to do with the warp so it doesn't get wasted.
Posted by: Holly | 29/05/2009 at 11:22 AM
your boy is Brilliant. I love it!
and as I have just gotten into loom weaving, I was reading about similar project where the threads were sticking- the plan was to coat the yarn in a substance to keep the fizz and stick minimized- such as a coating the yarn in a flour/water mixture, weave, then you can wash the goop out with no ill effects. just tossing the idea out there-
the fabric is really nice looking !
Posted by: colleen | 29/05/2009 at 06:29 PM
In the past, I've tried coating mohair threads with a starch solution. It's a bit messy--you might want to put some plastic under the threads. Mix a solution of liquid starch (the starch used for ironing clothing) and paint it on the threads between the heddles and the back beam. Let it dry before trying to weave. It will hopefully tame down the loose fibers. Once the fabric is off the loom, it should wash out completely. I'd try it with a short section and see how it works with the loopy yarn you're using.
Posted by: Karen | 30/05/2009 at 09:32 AM
I'm still laughing about skipping with swords -- the boy has a future in comedy writing.
Posted by: mary lou | 31/05/2009 at 07:09 AM
Hollyk is right on track. I use a chopstick or long wooden shishk-a-bob stick. It works great and it's quick too. The small circumference made it through pretty well when I tried it last.
Good Luck!
Posted by: Lizzy B | 05/06/2009 at 04:07 AM