NEW YEAR, NEW DIRECTIONS

 

It all started when I heard a feature on radio 4 about Anni Albers, a 20th century weaver. 

 

I looked on the internet for more information and discovered there was to be an exhibition of her life's work at the Tate Modern.  As I planned to be visiting the family in England during October I knew I had to go and see this new to me craft.

 

I arranged a day out in London with a friend and what a fantastic day we had.  The exhibition was amazing and we were able to get really close to the weavings and take as many photos as we wanted.

 

The textures and colours Anni combined in her textile arts were a joy to see and the patterns she achieved seemed incredibly complex to our eyes.

 

We saw many of her working drawings and plans for carpets and furnishing fabrics and spent a very happy couple of hours soaking up the inspiration.

 

I have been given a quantity of yarns by a friend who was clearing out a cellar and now I knew what I had to do with them.  In the museum shop there was a small hand loom which I studied carefully and decided that I would get one for myself after my return home.

 

 

I found exactly what I wanted on Amazon for only 35 euros made by the Small Foot Company.

After a practise run with the yarns provided with the loom it was time to make my own picture. 

I decided to make myself some more shuttles as the loom only came with two rather chunky ones.

I bought a length of bevelled hardwood from the DIY store, cut it into 4  pieces and set about making the slots in the ends using Bob's electric drill, a saw and file and sandpaper.  You can see them in this photo at the front.

 

I had been for a walk to the beach on a windy afternoon and still had the image of the waves in my mind's eye so I went in search of suitably coloured yarns in my boxes.  I set up the warp, the longwise threads, using a neutral cotton yarn and wound the different wefts onto the shuttles, and got started on the weaving. 

I found the process very calming as it's impossible to go too fast without making mistakes.  I really enjoyed choosing the mixes of colour, blending in the white for the surf and working out how to make diagonal lines. I soon learned not to pull the yarn too tight at the sides because my edges started to curve inwards.

 

When the background was completed I took it carefully off the loom and attached it to an iron-on interfacing to keep it in shape and to prevent the warps from coming un-woven.  Then I hand embroidered the seagulls and the details on the islands and the beach to complete the picture.

 

 

The final job was to turn the weaving into a cushion cover.

I'm really proud of my first woven project and I've already made another piece but you will have to come back in the new year to see what it is.

Happy new year everyone!