Bringing Out the Big Guns.....

Sometimes, ambidextrous comes in handy.  As in when you are trying to weave in both directions on a hand loom...

 

I went out thrift shopping with April and Amare this morning.

 

Amare found a doll carriage just the right size for him to push, complete with baby.

 

Unfortunately the batteries in my camera sent me a message that they didn't want to take any more photos, about the time I tried to snap one.

 

We decided that taking care of a baby would teach him responsibility...And besides, I think that he would have been in a very bad mood all the way home if we put it back. 

 

When I got home from the adventure, I decided that, if I am going to work on the Weaver's Workshop it needs more weaving.

 

Tessie refused to start weaving rugs before I finished the building, so I was on my own.

 

The big gun in the title was my BIG beading loom. With that, I could weave a room sized, wall to wall rug. Mini, that is. 

 

I threaded it up with regular sewing thread(cotton mercerized) and went to work.

 

First I used the same thread to put in the bottom edge of the rug. In theory, this keeps the rug from creeping in towards the center and having a wedge shaped rug.  Great theory....It works on big Navajo rugs.  Not so much on minis. 

For me, which ever side of the rug I am working on is the hand I use.  A lot of people have to turn the loom over or weave across themselves.

 

When I get to an edge, I weave back across.  Then I put the needle down in between the first and second warps of the row that I just did, before pulling the thread down to lay on the proceeding row.

 

In mini, sometimes I do an extra wrap on the outer threads to keep the weaving from slanting down on either side of the rug also. 

 

As you can see, I haven't gotten too far yet.  This is the largest one I have attempted.  If it turns out, I may just get brave and try for a patterned one....Later....

 

I need to get back to it and see just how far I can go in one day....I don't expect to finish it before tomorrow.  It is very time consuming.  Be patient please....I promise to get it done...That is if Tessie doesn't try to help.

 

Back to work.

 

See you tomorrow.