Monday 13 March 2017

March is marching on



My first exam of the year is over! There is always a feeling of a weight off my shoulders immediately after each exam and a sudden sense of freedom before the next one. I am sticking to my resolution to keep creating even during revision time and it has certainly helped me maintain an even keel and combat any stress. 

I got my mini Ashford rigid heddle loom out again after a long time gathering dust in the corner. Ages ago I bought a random selection of fine cotton and acrylic from The Handweavers Studio in London as I happened to have a placement nearby. Unsure of sett and epi and other equally strange words, I was incredibly grateful for the lady at the shop who pulled out a few spare heddles and went around the shop with me to find the perfect spools for me. 



I chose a range of blues and a canary yellow and royal purple although it looks blue in this photo. 

For a sample project I pulled out three of the blues to make a log cabin weave.





Can you spot the mistake on the right? I was tempted to fix it but I kind of like it. I have never woven with such find thread before so I'll be interested to see how it changes once it has been washed. 

For those interested, log cabin is a very simple pattern which is created by alternating two colours in the warp and the weft. The apparent change in direction of the lines of colour in the fabric is simply done by reversing the order of the thread colours every so often: BABABABBABABABAABABABA so that you have two threads of the same colour together allowing the order to change. 

Simple but effective! 

Have a great week everyone x

Sunday 12 March 2017

Spring! Sort of...



It's March! When did that happen?

We have had a sudden lull in the cold here in the UK. Or at least near me just north of London. The daffodils have come out in force and the wild garlic is showing its face in the woods across the road. 






I love wild garlic. The smell of it permeates the air in the forest when I go running and every year I tell myself I will cook with it. And every year it doesn't quite happen. Maybe this time I will.