Mother

Leanna, thanks for the info. I might have to try some as I made fingerless gloves last year for my DD and she loved them. I'd like to make a few more pair for others and especially for my hunter guys. CGA. I have several knitting boards of different sizes. They are very easy to make. I haven't used one of them for knitting in the round as I also have different sizes of round looms as well. Does the center partition come out of yours so it can be used for straight knitting, for say a scarf? The knitting board can give a wonderful thick scarf with all sorts of different patterns. I was wondering if you can do both pair of socks at the same time, one on each side. It looks like you would need another row of center pegs and pegs at both ends to do that maybe? I can see where it would be easy to stop and start on the sock without having to figure out where you are. That's a really nice looking loom. Looks like I need to explore the possibilities in my small looms more closely. Only wish there was more time and energy to do it all

It sure sounds like you all have some projects in mind even if you can't start them yet. Sorry, but I couldn't help laugh at Frank and his penchant for tatted doilies. Are you sure he didn't just decorate his home with it, knowing quality stuff when he sees it? CGA, like Arby, I have some small round looms I've always wondered if I could make socks on but I know that's not what you have. Would love to see a pic of it. Arby, congratulations on your progress. I have the same problem with pushing the points of my needles and having sore fingers but after a while they get tough and I don't notice. CLee, Aren't grand kids wonderful. Sounds like you are having a great time with your tiny one. I love the looks of the Buttercup sweater. It doesn't look real difficult but still has some really pretty borders. IGP, nice to hear from you. I haven't used elastic thread in regular socks but I've used it in the cuff of tube socks to help hold them up. The trick is not to use too thick of elastic and not to pull it much when you are knitting it. Hard to do! First one I did it with I pulled out three times before I got the hang of it but when I got done I still wasn't entirely happy with it. It sort of makes the yarn it's knitted with pucker. It wasn't too bad to wear though. Let us know if you try it. Great catching up.

Congratulations Arby. I also had a couple of false starts with my first pair of socks and had to take them out. I did tons of tube socks before Christy directed me to a good way to turn a heel and now I have it. I still have to follow the directions when I first start the heel but at least it finally turns out nice. I ended up with #1 DPN's because I tend to knit so loosely and that's about the right size for me but they are really small to work with. A friend gave me some sock yarn that is supposed to make a pattern automatically when you knit, we'll see. I haven't started them yet for the same reason you mentioned, clutter/cleaning/kitchen stuff but I will soon. I did get a few more warp braids done for warping my floor loom but that is slow going for me because of my muscles. I have 120 out of 330 done though so slowly getting there. Keep knitting, Arby, and let us know how it's coming. What are the rest of you working on now? Anything?

AHHH Yes! Move over Christy.

I LOVE that giant tea cup. I want one. Just the thing to relax in and take one's worries off......well one's WORRIES!!! Christy, is that thing VERY expensive? I can just imagine the shipping costs too. Hmmmm I bet there's a way to make one though. HMMMMM...

I use my old Jiffy corn bread mix to make corn pudding. (works with new too) I cup sour cream, 2 eggs, I can cream style corn, 1 can drained whole corn, 1/2 cup melted butter, and 1 box Jiffy corn bread mix. Beat it all together and put it into a greased casserole dish. Bake 350 for apprx 45 minutes. Sometimes takes longer so depending on the size of the casserole. You can add chopped onions, peppers, and/or celery and stuffing spices for a different taste.

Gee, Thanks, CGA.....Now I have MORE projects I want to try. I have actually seen this before but this web site really explains it well and I can see it's a bit like the finger weaving. In thinking what I might be able to use to do this on I realized that I had some frames that once held hanging files that might work. I'm going to have DH dig them out today and we'll see. Christy, I've seen dozens of different kinds of reenactments, participated in half of them myself, but never a Viking one. I bet that is something to see. Knowing and learning the skills of the past has a direct link with being prepared today. Not to mention the fact that if we don't carry these skills into the future they will be lost.

CGA, you are right, Knitting instructions ARE a foreign language. Annarchy, I haven't tried doing bobbin lace. It always looks fun and challenging though. Please let us see pictures if you start a project. My daughter used to do what she calls hair braiding. It's done with a round table with a hole in the center and the hair is on bobbins to braid it. It's what they used to make some hair jewelry on. I wish she'd take it up again. It was pretty neat to watch.

Annarchy, Thank you for those links. I hadn't even thought about checking online to see if there were archives or ? of those articles. The names of the authors bring back fond memories of not only those catalogs but also of the early Mother Earth News, another of my collections. I have been spending the morning rereading some of the articles and bringing back memories. Considering we got our first snow today (only an inch or two though)It was really nice to set by the wood stove, watch the fire with a nice hot cup of herb tea, and think back. DH tells me we still have two or three of the Whole Earth catalogs in a tote but this was even better. Mrs. S people are some of the most helpful people out there. I praise you all. (Annarchy goes above and beyond the call though, thanks so much.)

Annarchy, in the info about the spinner I caught the mention of the Whole Earth Catalog. I have not heard that mentioned in forever. They were wonderful books. Sort of the book form of Google for us alternative living people. I have a couple yet just because they have some handy info. How interesting to see that mentioned.

Now THAT'S ingenuity at the basic level. It is so much fun to see what can be done with 'found' or repurposed items. I've seen them made from an unused CD also but I wondered about the weight. Not having done it before I had no clue what was needed to keep them spinning. Okay, now that's a good idea for the spindle, what about alternatives for carders? That is assuming that the fiber does have to be carded before you can spin it?

AH! I see, It looks like a knitting board. They are fun to use and very easy to make. Thanks for the close up picture, Annarchy. Now I can even see the loom better, LOL. What a super place that must be. Lucky you to have gone there! It looks like they have a bit of everything fiber...

I like the small rigid heddle loom on the shelf. But,,,I too would love to learn to spin. I have some raw alpaca fiber I would love to learn on. I had been hoping to make a drop spindle to practice on. I sure like the looks of those smaller wheels though. Annarchy, Do you know what that box like item is on the shelf above the loom? Curiosity is getting to me. LOL Thanks for the peek.

It would DEFINITELY be a giant Cat Toy.

Arby, you don't need to mount anything to the top and bottom of the door to use it. You can wrap your yarn around it (top to bottom direction) and give yourself two five foot sections to weave on (front and back of the door). I say five foot because you can't weave way to the top and bottom. If you wrap it loosely to begin with and find something to use to make the warp tight (thick wooden dowel, paper towel cores, 2X4, etc used inside the bottom of the warp) you can loosen it as you weave and slide the work forward (around) and make it one continuous piece. That way you can keep the work at whatever level you want. By using a bit of ingenuity you can even make/find items to use for makng the sheds more easily than hand picking them. Though I have to say that hand picking gives a whole lot of patterns to choose from. My favorites are string heddles though they take more time to tie on. I pair them with a flat lease stick for the opposite shed and the weaving goes pretty fast. Christy had a couple of good pictures of a primitive hanging loom where the warp threads were hung from a beam and had weights on them at the bottoms. I believe that's in the Pioneer living forum. A person could easily use a sturdy curtain rod for that type of weaving. The double pointed needles I use are all bamboo. The small ones I use for socks are a bit too flexible but the rest are great. I broke one of the small ones and replaced it with a wooden skewer by simply sanding the ends. Worked so well I used a pair just as they were with a bit of sanding to do some other knitting with. I feel badly that we seem to have lost our other posters to this thread. I guess we're still on the subject of projects but I'd love to hear more about other projects too. I'm always looking for something fun and different to do. What IS in your work basket?

Good ideas for keeping yarn on the needles. Thanks. Arby, If you want to weave, don't wait until you can get some specific loom set up, start on small things. Weaving does not take any elaborate or even costly equipment. It doesn't need to be a permanent fixture nor a big one. As I've said before, an open door makes a good loom by just wrapping the warp (up and down threads) around the whole door and then weaving the weft (crosswise threads) back and forth. Nice thing is, you just close the door when you are done for the time and the thread just stays there until next time. As for yarn, don't forget you can unravel old sweaters and etc and repurpose the yarn from them. Think outside the box or even IN the box because I've seen some pretty neat cardboard box looms too.

CGA, That is downright SUPER. Don't you love how fast this weaves? I do like the way you use the curtain rod as a shed stick. What is the spacing on your nails? Looks like you could get by with a nice thick yarn on it too. That mohair will be SOOOOO nice when it's taken off the loom. I've used mohair on my smaller ones but it was only effective when I put several together to make a shawl. I always thought it would be nice on the bigger Triangle loom. Have you done other weaving so that you could compare this with it? I find you can't beat it for speed because there's no warping ahead of time and once you get the hang for tension the edges seem to always turn out fairly even. Great job, both on the building and on the weaving.

GOOD for you CGA. Don't let it frustrate you. Once you get the pattern down you will see how easy it is. Your shed stick is probably a good idea but once you get into the work you will see that you start with the same move each time (can't remember if it's the over or the under, it's been a while since I worked on it again) but when you look at the warp you will see where you need to put your hook easy enough. Yes, it is difficult to get those last few threads down through the center but not that difficult. I use a yarn needle for them. It is true though that you have to get just the right tension on each pass, and especially in the first few rows. But it does come more easily with each piece. It's the same for almost any hand woven piece. Can you post pictures of what you've started? I'm looking forward to seeing it.

Good going on getting the roof fixed Arby. That might be important if another big storm comes and this one hits you. I don't blame you for wanting to learn the socks. I made ton's of tube socks over the years and they are okay and can be warm but I enjoyed learning to do the heels. So far I've been making more slippers with heavy yarn but what I'm starting now are sock weight yarn. And as Clee says, they are a great project to take along. I can just stick them in my big purse and go. Speaking of taking them and going. How do the rest of you keep the stitches from coming off the points when you transport them? I've used the rubber needle guards but they end up coming off so now I fold the sock so that all five needles lay together and use small rubber bands on both ends. Is there a better way?

I really like the idea that you are "making do" with what you have on hand. Tipping those wires outward should work. The really tough part of the Tri pattern is just as you are finishing up the piece and you have a very narrow window to weave in. You will be pulling on those at the point and the middle on the upper board. You may want to use a yarn needle to weave the yarn through at that point. I do that with my small Tri and Square. I can't remember the number ratio from the top to side of a Tri but if the boards are made to be taken apart, as in bolted or? together, I would think it would be worth it to try a rectangle out of it. Will it be long enough though or more squarish? I know the rectangle ones are quite a bit longer than wide. I like the idea though and even if you don't have exactly a long enough rectangle, can you improvise on the weaving? Perhaps someone is out there reading this who will jump in here with some advice. We've kind of high jacked this thread but hopefully they will forgive us in the interest of encoruaging others to think about alternative projects for the winter. You've certainly shown that you don't have to have a lot of money to fabricate something to use. This is the ultimate idea of being prepared. Knowledge ahead of time to make the SHTF a bit smoother. Knowing that you CAN 'make do' even in the craft department is important. And fiber crafts are not just for fun alone but could also be survival at it's basics. Now, we'll have to talk about fabricating and using home made knitting needles and crochet hooks and maybe drop spindles. Perhaps this winter might be a good time for some of us to take our crafts right to the basics just to prove we can do it. Let's hear some thoughts from the rest of you about this. CGA is a bit ahead of us on this but she readily admits she's not a carpenter. Should we make this a challenge?

I don't think the nails being crooked are going to be that important after the finished piece is off the loom. Yarn is pretty forgiving and if one seems to be out too far you can work it in along the row. The heighth doesn't make a lot of difference either except that you can get snagged on one that is too high and if one is too low the loop might come off it. Are you using headless nails or ones with a small head like finishing nails? On a first very small sample one we made we used headless nails and the yarn kept slipping off until DH went through and bent each outward a little. We made dozens of knitting boards for our local Museum to sell at one of their events and we used all brass small headed nails on those. They were super on those. Looked great, were slippery without being hard to keep the yarn on but they were too pricey for use on the big tri. We used finishing nails on it. Keep pounding and soon you'll be putting the yarn in

That first site is very interesting. I hadn't seen it before. I'm glad I didn't have to pay those prices for the tri and square loom I bought though. I paid about half of that I think. I haven't tried a rectangle loom yet but I've seen them worked on. It looks like once the pattern is figured out it would just be repetitive like the others. I was interested to see they had a travel size rectangle loom on the first site. Neat. Now of course, I will want one of THEM LOL. Nails, Yup, after you drill and drill and drill,,,, you pound and pound and pound, well and pound. Those big Tri's take a ton of nails. You have to be careful to get them all in the same depth too or you tend to snag one that sticks up. When we did ours we used the side of a big metal T-square to lay flat on them and tapped them down all the same heighth. I'd like to see a picture when you're done with it.

Yes, it's a continuous weave, CGA, only you start in the center and then work back and forth on either side in a similar pattern to the Tri. This first site has the tri instructions at the top. You will need to scroll almost to the bottom to find the square weaving. http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/triloom2.htm This second is a youtube, I believe by the lady that shows the Tri loom weaving in Christy's link. Not long but gives you the basic weave pattern. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RtWcZeRrgM My first big triangle loom was home made and it worked just fine. Just be sure to get all the rough edges off it or the yarn will catch. My small Tri and square ones are commercial made. They are perfect to take with me traveling. I have a tripod for a camera that DH modified to hold my looms upright in front of me. I can use it with both the Tri and the Square and also with my small wheel rug loom. Makes it easier to work them. I do like weaving or more correctly, I like the challenge of finding things to weave on and seeing what I can turn out. I don't weave a lot but I've woven on everything from cardboard to cupboard doors; from motorcycle rims to hula hoops; from pegs to fingers, and from big production rug looms to tiny three inch lap ones. It seems there is always something to weave on 'just around the corner.' The Triangle and square looms are unique in that they weave with one strand. Once you get the basics down there are a number of different textures, patterns, and weaves you can do on them. I'm looking forward to seeing how you do with yours.

Christy did indeed help me with the socks, bless her. Now I can make socks with the best of them. I recently got special sock yarn to try something different as this is supposed to make it's own pattern. The web site is HERE The video she posted for the triangle loom is very good. If you realize that it is a LOOP that you are bringing down through each time it's easier to understand. The loop only goes as far as the next nail, then across and etc. Only the hook is woven over and under. I use a long double ended afghan hook for mine and it works beautifully. I have a small Tri (24 inch) and also a rectangle one that is woven similarly. The triangle shaped piece that the tri-loom gives you can be used in dozens of ways. I've seen a couple of really neat jackets made with the pieces. If you want to practice it first before you go to the work or expense of getting one, use a triangular piece of cardboard with slits on the sides in place of the nails, spacing them just as you would the wooden loom. Make the slits deep enough that you don't pull the yarn out as you go. There is a great blog for weaving and all sorts of fiber arts. Love this guy, Franco's Blog As for my own projects. Well they are, as usual, many and varied. One of the big projects is an old jack loom that DH brought home a while back. It is about four foot square and of unfinished wood with no name attached and was covered with mildew. It was fully warped and had a finished rug wrapped on the cloth beam. It originally belonged to a ninety something year old woman and I have no clue how long it's been since it's been used. It sat outside covered with a tarp for quite a while I know. It took a ton of scrubbing to get it clean and we ended up taking all the treadles apart and cleaning/sanding/etc them so they would work. The price was really good though. It was FREE! Now I'm attempting to salvage the warp already on the loom to see if I'm physically able to handle a floor loom like this. I've figured out the pattern but not the treadling (six harness but only four used on this pattern. If the warp isn't sturdy enough to use I would at least like to use it to 'warp through' a newer warp as I like the pattern and it sure beats threading each individual thread through on it's own. I also have a pair of socks started, a small picture frame loom with a sampler of Navajo weaving started, a peg weaving project I'm trying to finish from "last year", am working on some crocheted dish cloths for Christmas gifts, have just gotten the pattern for a really neat vest I'd like to make for my DD, and I considered baby afghans for the grand baby and great grand, both due the end of November BUT,,,,, not sure those will happen. I'd also like to start finger weaving a chevron pattern sash (belt) I need for a blouse I wear often. I had a bit of a fiber set back in the last few months. We had a very moldy house and had to move last year to a remodeled garage and not having the room to store things, I had a lot of yarn in totes at the old house. When we brought them out this summer we found most of it smelled moldy. Being the frugal person I am and not wanting to just throw away hundreds of dollars worth of yarn I started washing it. I put it in old nylon stockings and the washable yarn I put in the washer and then into the dryer, letting the sun finish drying it afterwards. The natural fiber ones I washed by hand. Out of four totes I only had about five or six that I had to discard. YEAH!. I was lucky enough to have 75 skeins in vacuum sealed plastic and they were fine. I did have a couple dozen cones of warp I'm not sure I can salvage as I can't figure out how to wash it and as I'm allergic to mold I don't want to work it that way. It's in the sun now to see if that kills the smell and mold. Now the problem is,,,,, finding a place to STORE them all in our smaller house. Looking forward to hearing more of what projects you all have.