Sunflower II - Sample 1

*** This is a gnarly one, so it's perfectly OK for you to look at the pics and shake your head. *** 

 

After Sunflower I, I was curious about the relationship between the lifting and how pattern wefts manifest when weaving with two pattern wefts. So with the first sample from Sunflower II, (let's just call it for convenience sake,) I tried a few combinations. (Again, there are lifting mistakes, skips, and "brushed" warp ends due to bad tension, and a threading mistake. Please ignore them. Sample photos were taken over many days with two devices; in real life it's a bright, saturated sample.)  

To make it easy to see what was happening, I simplified the warp color scheme to AB-BC-CD-DE-EF-FG, then back to AB, then back again to end with FG, in random numbers.

Threading is 1-p-2-p, in "point", but in random numbers. Detailed photos below show mostly the right one-third of the piece. Tie-down is woven 1-2-2-1. Tabby weft was the same pale olive green throughout.  

As well, let me remind you how the lever on this loom is positioned, and you'll know why I don't think lineally/numerically, but geometrically, and the way I record the shaft numbers vary, i.e. sometimes by position, sometimes in numerical order. I usually lift/weave randomly, but for the purposes of this sample, I stuck to the same pattern for each diamond of 12 picks.  

Can you see better? My notation of shaft numbers may look chaotic, but it's really super easy to weave if you have this kind of an arrangement. 

 

I shall also describe each section in the simplest way possible, (because you don't need to know exactly which shafts I lifted in order to experiment similarly if you're curious;) then with some detail, and in one, first, instance, the exact lifting so you can understand my descriptions. 

Sections A&B: top

Sections A&B: reverse

Section A: 3 vs 3 counterclockwise; or three pattern shafts, then three "opposite" pattern shafts; 4&6&8 (orange), then 7&5&3 (pink); 6&8&7, then 5&3&4, etc. This is the cleanest way to divide pattern weft colors. So, to weave the very first diamond: 

    1&2 (pale olive tabby weft)

    1&4&6&8 (orange pattern weft)

    1&7&5&3 (pink pattern weft)

    3&4&5&6&7&8 (pale olive)

    2&4&6&8 (orange)

    2&7&5&3 (pink)

    1&2 (pale olive)   

    2&4&6&8 (orange)

    2&7&5&3 (pink)

    3&4&5&6&7&8 (pale olive)

    1&4&6&8 (orange)

    1&7&5&3 (pink)

And then the pattern shafts move one position counterclockwise, and become 6&8&7 and 5&3&4. (Towards the end of this section I ran out of pink so I used red.) 

Section B: 2 vs 4, counterclockwise. Or, 4&6 (orange), then 8&7&5&3 (red); 6&8, then 7&5&3&4, etc.

 

Lifting means the warp thread appears on the top side, weft colors on the reverse. When 4&6 are lifted, orange appears on the reverse side; when 8&7&5&3 are lifted, red appear on the reverse side. 

 

When I hold the cloth, the difference between A and B can be seen in the proportion of orange vs pink/red in the reverse side; B has smaller orange areas and more red. On the top side, there are marginally more pink in A than red in B, but the difference doesn't seem as pronounced as on the reverse side. 

Sections C&D: top

Sections C&D: reverse, or "Packman" according to Ben

Section C: 2+2, counterclockwise; 4&6 (orange), then 4&6&8&7 (red); 6&8, then 6&8&7&5, etc.

Section D: 2+2, clockwise; 6&4 (orange), then 6&4&3&5 (pink); 4&3 (orange), then 4&3&5&7 (pink), etc. 

The ration is the same, only the weft pattern movement is the opposite, so there is little difference in the way pattern wefts appear, but I like the way the pattern weft colors blend on the top side, while the blocky look on the reverse has a more contemporary, graphic look. 

Sections E&F&G: top

Sections E&F&G: reverse 

Section E: 3 vs 2, numerically +1; 3&4&5 (orange), then 6&7 (blue), 4&5&6, then 7&8, etc.

Section F: 3 vs 2; numerically +1; 3&4&5 (blue), then 6&7 (orange), 4&5&6, then 7&8, etc.

Section G: 3 vs 3; lifting is identical to A; the pattern weft colors are blue, then orange. 

I know, these are interesting, aren't they? With E and F, the lifting is identical but the pattern weft color order reversed, and that makes a difference in where the blending appears, (and rather nicely,) on the top, or where the warp colors show on the reverse. Just one more. 

Sections H&I: top

Sections H&I: reverse

 

Section H: 3 vs 3. Did you notice? It's the same lifting as G, pattern weft colors orange and dark purple. 

Section I: 2 vs 2, numerically +1; 3&4 (orange), then 5&6 (dark purple); 4&5, then 6&7, etc. 

 

This was an experiment mostly in hue contrast, and I'm very curious because the "cells" where orange and purple both appear almost red, as seen on the top side. In fact, the section below H is also in the same color combination!

 

My main focus here was how the pattern wefts appeared in "similar" sheds as opposed to "opposite" sheds, but also I wanted to see how "sympathetic" (close in hue) pattern weft pairs looked in contrast to unsympathetic ones. Looking at the sample, there wasn't enough of the latter, although I did plenty in Sunflower I and the purple one, (didn't I give it a fabulous name at one point??) The current warp is 5.5m so I could easily do more.

Because of the threading mistake, I must rethread, (or add a temporary heddle, etc,) but instead of just fixing, I have been contemplating threading pattern shafts in networked undulating twill or similar. It will be a while before I post the next in this series, but we've plunged into spring, so the light will be better in stash room. 

 

However, with subpar pics and even blurrier eyes, I reread this post that took days, and am not sure if anyone needed to know the gory details. In fact, I'm certain nobody else needed to know, and I, I have my wobbly notes. Furthermore, when I return to using this technique to weave proper pieces with harum-scarum warps and slaphappy threading, (can you tell I found a better Thesaurus website?) I don't even know if I'll look back to these findings. Still it's OK, I'm having fun creating new looks. It's never bad to learn new things, and since the samples are so visual, I'll keep going for a while.