Good-bye Sisty

My sister Janet died last week, unexpectedly, and I am missing her.  This is a picture of her about 3 years ago with our daughters Carolyn, Rachel, and Becky.  Her memorial service was Tuesday, and it was very touching how all of her children pulled together to do the service.  I've never used so many tissues at a funeral, and I wasn't the only one.  I think she would have laughed about how we were passing the Kleenex box around.  It would have reminded her of a sad movie we went to years ago when we did that.  She had such a great sense of humor, and I think I will miss that the most.  Whenever we talked on the phone, we always ended up laughing about something that happened when we were younger.

Sisty was quite creative, and always made thoughtful gifts for her family.  Her sister-in-law brought Annie Bear to the memorial.  It was something she had received from Janet years ago, along with a couple dolls she made.  I especially like the photo of Sisty, behind the bear. We certainly shared a love of Teddy bears!

It's been so long since I saw her children, and I don't know if I ever saw then all together, so it was nice to get a few photos.  Here they all are with Poppop Windy (our dad).

We called each other Sisty, which is short for Sisty Ugler.  We started that after hearing a funny story, where someone twisted the words to Cinderella around. The sisty uglers were the ugly stepsisters of Rellacinder. 

I guess I could keep telling stories, but work will come early tomorrow.  I need to get to bed.  I miss you Sisty!  Rest in peace.

Weaver's Delight Restoration - More Taken Apart

The loom is slowly getting taken apart, mainly to clean rust off most of the cast iron brackets, and to get metal parts out of the way so I can sand and varnish the wood.

Two days ago, I finished painting all the black trim on the wood.  After that dried, I started getting the first coat of varnish on the wood framework.  I will lightly sand that first coat and then add another. 

The wooden bars with the pegs on the sectional beam needed to be cleaned and sanded.  I managed to finish that, and got a coat of varnish on them, also.  I will lightly sand them and get another coat of varnish on them, and then be able to assemble the sectional beam.

The frames to raise and lower the shafts were in pretty good shape, with minimal rust.  I finished removing them from the shafts last night, and used a wire brush on the drill to remove what little rust there was and then painted them tonight.  I finished painting the one side remaining in the photo tonight.

These parts to the shafts aren't going to be fun to clean.  The two that are done were cleaned with navel jelly and a lot of elbow grease.  I'm having to give my right hand and wrist a bit of rest from the sanding.  It was affecting my nerves last night and today.  I need to get my grip back to normal.  Electric sanders and drills speed up the cleaning process, but the vibration isn't too good for my body!  

I took the handle off the beater bar.  It is cast aluminum, and was ugly, so I primed it and painted it hunter green, like the other metal parts.  I think it looks much better.  I'll get a photo of it once I clean up the screws and reattach it.

The breast and back beam rollers are a very rough wood, and no amount of sanding is going to smooth them, so I just put a coat of varnish on them.  Hopefully, light sanding between several coats of varnish will help smooth them out a bit.  I think they rotate, so I don't think smooth is critical.  Obviously the loom came that way, and I'm sure many rugs were made on it through the years.  This is the front of the loom.  Even one coat of varnish has made a difference to the beam.

I still haven't touched the cloth beam, except to remove it from the loom to make it easier to paint the trim below it.  I still need to unwind the apron to see it's condition.  Hopefully it is just dirt that I will have to deal with, rather than replacing it.  Even if it needs replacing, it won't be too big of a deal.  I'm just hoping I don't need to run to the fabric store to purchase canvas and grommets.  It does look pretty dirty!

I like how the wood is starting to look.  This has the black trim finished, and one coat of varnish.  I am done with working on it this week.  We have a happy occasion to celebrate this weekend at the 65th anniversary picnic for Bob's mom and dad.  Next week, we have a sad occasion also, when we go to my sister's funeral.  We just found out about it tonight.  It was unexpected, and I'm sad.

Weaver's Delight Sectional Beam and Reed Restoration

I started my day off by removing the rust from these two large cast iron ends to the sectional beam.  Bob bought me a wire brush that could be put in a drill.  It worked great for these large pieces.  It was quick, and best of all, I didn't have to soak them in vinegar, or coat them with navel jelly.  The blue painter tape on the left one is covering the brake surface.  I'm hoping I didn't get the surface too smooth while removing the rust, since it is supposed to be a bit rough.

I did use fine sandpaper and navel jelly on the reed, and lots of wire brushing by hand.  I still didn't get all of the rust off, but it should be enough for some rugs.  After I wire brushed the jelly for several minutes, I rinsed the reed with water from the hose.  I did it in several sections, because I don't like the navel jelly drying on the metal.  It turns white, and the metal turns black if allowed to dry.  When I was finished, I wrapped the reed in an old towel to dry it as much as I could and then finished with a hairdryer.  I left it in the sunshine so the wrapped strings around the edges could continue to dry.

 The rust is worse on the ends, with some pitting.  I don't think I'm going to fuss with it much more.  I'll weave with it first, and if it harms my warp threads, then I'll think about cleaning it again or replacing it. 

I also did a bit of sanding on two of the bars of the sectional beam, and the top bar of the beater.  There are still two more bars to do for the sectional beam.  They will all get a couple coats of wipe-on polyurethane varnish to protect the wood and to make it a little easier to clean in the future. 

After looking at a couple of my other reeds, I decided to get some cloth tape to cover the edges of the reed.  I bought the 1 1/2" wide stuff and it went on easily.  If the glue gives out eventually, it can be stuck down again with tacky glue.  The stark white is a little glaring, so it might get a bit of spray paint to tone it down.

Bob found a supplier of square head bolts called Blacksmith Bolt and Rivet Supply in Portland, Oregon, so I may replace some of the overly rusty ones. Here is a link:
Blacksmith Bolt and Rivet Supply
We thought the cost of the 5/16"-18x2 1/2" bolts, at $.27 each with a minimum order of 10 was quite reasonable.  They have a black oxide coating, so they won't be bright and shiny.
Bedtime.  My thumb, arms and shoulders are sore and tired.

Weaver's Delight Renovation--Straps

My long weekend was over last night.  Today was a long day at work, so I didn't get too much done on the loom when I got home.

Last night, I started soaking the warp beam straps in straight vinegar.  They have overall style buckles on the ends that were quite rusty, so I left buckles in the vinegar till I got home today.  I still had to use the wire brush to get the rust off, but it was easier and a lot more came off than with just elbow grease.  One precaution to take if using vinegar, is to rinse it well, and then use a baking soda and water rinse to neutralize the vinegar.

Here are all 18 straps on my drying rack after being washed, and the rust removed.  I actually think I will be able to use them.  The straps were in good shape, except for being dirty.  Once the straps are very dry, I will get some lubricant on the buckles to help prevent rust.

I also oiled up all the screws, bolts, and nuts that were painted.  I'm calling it a day!

Day Two Weaver's Delight Restoration

This is my loom number.  I found out the following information about the loom from Leslie, at Riverside Loomworks, in Eaton Rapids, MI:  it left the factory Nov. 15, 1949, on its way to Lydia Olson in Cokato, Minn. The next owner was Clifford Smorstad, in Decorah, Iowa. No date on that. And any later changes either weren’t reported back to the factory or occurred after the company went out of business (early 1980s). The loom cost $137.50 new. 

The top back beam and the warp beam were removed from the loom before I brought it home, so I could get it in the van.  The metal parts on the blanket looked like someone had started restoring the loom, but that is as far as they got.  

There was a little rust on the metal, so I removed them, brushed the rust off, primed and painted them, along with the cams and a couple braces.

Poking the bolts into an old piece of styrofoam made it easier to paint the heads. 



 

Starting the final color.  It isn't quite as dark as originally on the loom, but it's close.

The black trim had faded quite a bit, and was flaking off, so I cleaned the dirt off, let it dry, and started painting it.  I still have more to do on the other side of the loom.

This is big, with heavy cast iron ends that have a fair amount of rust.  All of the dowels are there, some replaced by the previous owner, so all they need is a little sanding to smooth them out a little.

Bob helped me remove the heavy cast iron.  I haven't cleaned either of these parts, but did start on the bolts.

I got out my trusty staple remover, but hardly needed them.  The staples were so rusty, they just fell apart with a little pull.  I got all of them out, checked for metal ends still sticking out, and either pulled them out, or pounded then in, so I don't scratch myself with something rusty.

The straps were dirty with years of dust, and the loop ends were quite rusty.  I washed the straps, and now have the rusty ends soaking in vinegar to try and remove rust.  I probably shouldn't have started that tonight, because I need to do some scrubbing on them, and I'm too tired.  I may chance leaving them overnight, and take care of them after work tomorrow.

That's it for today!

Weaver's Delight Loom Restoration

Since I was last on here, I purchased an old Weaver's Delight loom, made by the Newcomb Loom Co.  I had to wait over a month to get enough time off work to make the trip to Minnesota to pick it up.  This is a view from the side and back, taken by the seller.

This is a view from the front.  It is in pretty good shape, so hopefully the restoration will not take a long time.  I spent today laying the parts out in the garage, getting some before photos, and going the the hardware for navel jelly, and a wire brush for removing rust, kerosene for cleaning gunk off the cast iron parts, and something to clean the wood.

I thought I would start by trying the navel jelly on the rusty heddles.  It worked pretty well on most of them, although there were a few that were pretty rusty.  I may be throwing some of them out.  I coated the bunch with the jelly, wrapped them in plastic wrap, and let them sit while I washed windows and screens inside and outside the studio.  When I came back to the parts, I rinsed the jelly off, and then used my wire brush to remove a little more rust.  Once they were as clean as I could get them, I put them on cookie trays in the oven (on low) for a while to dry them.

This is about half of the heddles.  The rest of them are still on the shafts.  I also tried the navel jelly on the most rusted cam, and the nuts, bolts, and washers that held on the top part of the beater bar.  They cleaned up beautifully. 

The cam will get a coat of Rustoleum to help prevent rust in the future, and everything else will get a light coat of machine oil, also to help prevent rust.

There will be more pictures to come, as I continue with the restoration.

Emily Starts Weaving a Scarf

A couple weekends ago, the weekend of the big snowstorm, our granddaughter Emily was over, and asked if she would be able to weave a scarf.

She picked out some pretty chenille yarn, and I helped her design her warp.  She picked white, a varigated purple, and mint green, and got most of it on the warping board before she had to go home.

Emily was back over this weekend, so I showed her how to tie her warp, so it could be removed from the pegs without becoming a tangled mess.

Here she is starting to wind the warp on the back of the loom.  She's  learning lots of new terminology along the way.

Here she is with the warp almost all wound onto the back.  Three pound weights helped keep everything under control.  No glitches so far!

I helped her with the threading, with one of us on each side of the loom.  We did half the warp on Saturday night, and then today, we reversed positions, and finished the threading.  It gave her some experience with choosing the next yarn from the cross on the lease sticks, and then choosing the correct heddle and threading it with the hook.

I showed her how to tie the warp onto the front of the loom, but did it myself, since she hasn't mastered the tight knot-tying skill yet.

Here Emily is starting the weaving.  This is an odd little loom (a Leicester Dryad, 4 shaft countermarche), with no brake release. While she got started with the weaving, I set up the live-weight tensioning on the back (note the bar-bell weight dangling down on the rope).  With the live-weights, this has been an ideal loom for the kids, since they can easily wind their work forward without help.

This is an easy weave, with just plain weave, so she can concentrate on learning the proper way to hold and throw the shuttle, and where to put her hand on the beater.

 I'm having her use paperclip temples to help keep her edges straight.  She was able to get about 5" woven before we had to stop for dinner, and go home.  Hopefully she will have it done soon, or at least by next winter!

Removing Samples or Projects From a Long Warp

When I weave a new project design using yarn I might not be familiar with, or want to check the sett or shrinkage, I wind extra warp and weave a sample.  This is a pictorial guide to removing the sample in a way that minimizes warp waste, and doesn't require the warp to be tied back onto the front rod.  This is not my idea, just my photos. 

Weave 1/2" to 1" past the sample.  It depends on the yarn thickness--thinner yarn needs less.  Coat that area with Tacky Glue or equivalent and allow it to dry for about 30 minutes.  While it dries, go do stretches, check your e-mail, run a load of laundry, eat lunch, call Mom and Dad, or any number of things being neglected. ;^)

Cut the sample off, leaving the glued strip on the loom.  It's a good idea to remove any individual thread weights from the back of the loom before cutting.

Pull the rods forward, over the breast beam.

Carefully cut the sample from the tie-on rod.
I have already cut one towel off before this one, so my tie-on knots aren't in this photo.  If this was the first sample, this is where the knots would be.

Slide the rod closest to the reed out of the remaining strip and tie-on cords.  I use Texsolv cord to attach my two rods.  Some weavers lace on.  This warp is only about 16" wide, so I only used three tie-on cords, one at each edge of the warp, and one in the center.  The end cords should be as close to the warp edges as possible.  The rod will bow if they aren't close, and that will throw off the warp tension.

While holding tension on the warp, insert a wide stick into a tabby shed.  This is an extra step, but will make it easier to insert the rod, especially if you are doing it without help. 

Find the center of the warp.

 Mark the center with a pencil, on the glued strip.  If lacing is used, or more tie-on cords, mark the spacing on the glued strip.

Insert the rod into the first tie-on cord and then into the shed formed by the stick.  A bit of tension on the warp, and an extra hand helps.  Bob helped me out so I could shoot a picture.

Bring the rod through the warp at the center mark (or at your first mark if you are lacing or using more cords).  Attach the second cord, and then feed the rod through the rest of the shed.

 







Attach the final cord close to the end of the warp.  Make sure the rod goes through the proper hole in the cord, unlike me, in two pictures above, where I put it in the second hole, instead of the first.  I caught it before I got too much tension on the warp.

  Remove the wide stick, center the rod, and tighten the warp tension.  If you weight your selvedges separately, do so now.

 Weave three picks without beating.  Don't worry about getting them tight against the selvedge threads.  Close the shed and beat multiple times.  The three picks will come together, evenly spreading the warp, and pulling any uneven tension toward you. 

Repeat again, bringing the weft closer to the selvedges.  If it draws in more than the width in the reed, unweave, and do it again.  In most cases, the loom should be ready to weave your project.  I usually weave a few more rows, so I can add my paper clip temples.

I have a lot of baggy warp threads on this piece, because I had been weaving lace with a pick-up design in the middle, so the warp take-up was different across the piece.

The advantages to this technique are:  very little loom waste, no lumpy knots to cover, and the sample can be wet finished before starting on the project.  It can also be used to remove projects before running out of warp.

I hope the photos are helpful.  

Here is a photo of the project I removed from the loom.  It's in taking a bath right now, so the finished project photo will have to come later.  It is Atwater-Bronson lace done with pick-up on a four shaft loom.  The design will show much better after the bath.

Slowly Getting Back to Weaving Again

I can't believe I haven't written anything since the beginning of January.  I think the bears took a lot out of me, so I haven't been doing any weaving since Christmas.

On January 30th, I had a mild heart attack, but even a mild one has affected me quite a bit.  I was too tired to do much of anything for at least a week, and after I started back to work, I didn't have any energy once I got home.  I think my brain finally kicked in to where I can actually concentrate on something for more than a few minutes.

I finished winding the linen warp that I was working on when I had the attack, and got it onto the loom a couple days ago.  I did a little weaving yesterday, checking for threading errors (I found two) and was thankful that my Leclerc Fanny came with a few snap-in repair heddles.  They are so easy to use.

The linen I am working on is for some cloths to use at church for communion.  I threaded an Atwater-Bronson lace, and then designed a cross to weave in the center, using a pick-up technique.  It took a bit of thinking, but finally figured out the treadling sequence for the pick-up.  I have to push two treadles to get a single shaft to rise on my counterbalance loom.  I could have done a direct tie-up, but I didn't feel like crawling under the loom to change the treadles, so what I figured out works for me.

Anyway, here is a photo of the cross, with as much as I could do tonight.  I have about 12 more pattern rows to finish.  It went faster than I anticipated, so maybe I can finish it tomorrow if I'm not too tired after work.

The x's on the design weave plain weave, and the lace is all around the cross and in the center of it.  It will show up much better after the cloth has been wet finished.  The lace threads will migrate toward each other, and leave larger lacy holes.

Here is a larger photo of my design, and a close-up of the bottom of the cross.  Clicking on the photos will enlarge them.

It feels good to be weaving again!