Inkle Bonanza

10 Friday Feb 2012

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I’ve been inkle weaving my little heart out. In the past 7 days I have woven 9 inkle bands. I was trying to create a new design to replace the inkle band I wove last week that was too wide for the project I’m working on (to be revealed soon – I’m so excited about it!). I went crazy. It was so fun!

The results of my inkle weaving bonanza.

It’s amazing how changing the accent color can change the look of the pattern. The red/black and yellow/black bands are the same pattern. The yellow pops so much more.

The inkle bands are woven with garment quality nylon crochet yarn. Nylon is not normally a material I use, wear, or like, I am a cotton girl, but I love this stuff. It is soft and smooth with a great sheen – perfect for the soon to be revealed project. The only challenge is that the sheen makes it hard to tell the whitish colors apart from each other when next to black.

Top: beige/black; Middle: cream/black; Bottom: grey/black

In the end, the red/black – yellow/black designs come the closest to what I was trying to do, but overall I am pleased with all of them. I think they will look great in my project.

warp, weave, be happy.

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back to the inkle drawing board

03 Friday Feb 2012

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I’m working on a project and designed an inkle band in black and white that I really like. The only problem is that the band is too wide for my project. The pattern needed to be modified to fit a narrower width. So, I wove another inkle band in cream and black, which I really like too, just not as much as the first one.

I am going to give it one more try to see if I can come up with something a little closer to the original. Fingers crossed.

warp, weave, and be happy~ Jennifer

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Kindred Spirit

31 Tuesday Jan 2012

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$10 and one hour at an estate sale, that’s what it cost me to discover a kindred spirit I never had the pleasure to meet.

I slowly walked through the garage in awe, taking in the sight of what looked like a lifetime collection of creative interests. I don’t know if my kindred spirit was a hand weaver or even knew what an inkle loom was. But, I do know that she was a craftswoman of many talents. She knitted, embroidered, quilted, latch hooked, and tatted, all fiber arts that I have done, do, or want to do. We would have had much to talk about.

This luscious box of vintage silk embroidery thread was among the many goodies I chose. The colors are so vibrant. I can’t wait to see what creativity they inspire.

I totally related to the collection I saw that day. Some of the things in my crafty stash I have had since I was a girl, including inherited knitting needles and my grandmothers sewing basket.  Crafters collect. Like most crafters, my own collection continues to grow as my interests and skill levels change.

By the time I arrived it was the end of the sale that had been going on for two days. I couldn’t help but wonder what else could have been in the garage that I didn’t get to see or think about all the projects that were created with the supplies and patterns in front of me. It was a treat to get a glimpse into the path the interests of this fellow crafter took.

Kindred Spirit, we never had the chance to meet, but know that the wonderful treasures of yours that I am honored to now call mine will be put to good use by a kindred spirit with a crafty heart.

warp, weave, be happy.

An Inkle Celebration!

21 Saturday Jan 2012

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Celebration time – January is National Hobby Month! Really, there’s a month for that? How cool, a month dedicated to exploring one’s hobby. My hobby (a.k.a. passion) and reason d’être for this blog, is inkle weaving. We met two years ago. It was love at first warp.

An awesomely talented weaver (B.L.) in my guild, Weavers of Orlando (WoO), offered to teach me and a fellow member how to weave on an inkle loom. During that lesson I knew I’d found my weaving calling. The creative bug that lives in me couldn’t stop smiling. Nor could I.  The process was almost instant gratification. Warping and weaving were fast. The fabric it produced was beautiful. Oh, this was for me.

Every year WoO holds a holiday sale of members’ lovely handcrafted items. Being a new weaver with little time I had never participated. That year I wanted in and wanted a not too time consuming, but quality, project to submit. I came up with watches using inkle weaving for the bands.

my first inkle project

I recently turned the first band I wove into a belt for a friend. It only took me two years to do it, but she loved it.

My first band.

Merrium-Webster’s dictionary defines a hobby as “a pursuit outside one’s regular occupation engaged in especially for relaxation”. Yes, inkle weaving is relaxing, but it also energizes me. I find so much joy in watching my inkle bands grow as I weave and coming up with ways to use them. While January is designated as National Hobby Month, I celebrate my hobby every month.

warp, weave, be happy!