I was wondering if I could have some help , regarding a wider plain weave border with pebble weave centre. I am using 2 string heddles , well trying to at least but my problem lies in a few warp threads that are floating ( they are in either heddles
I have taken many pictures of my problems . I am trying to weave a 22 revolution pattern from your book 1 , page72.
I wound the warp on 4 stakes. I selected the pebble shed warp the huancayo way, making the cross and made the heddles for each shed . I also made continuous string heddles but was a little lost as you do not make reference as to how to heddle them meaning whether the selected pairs go into one heddle or they go in singley. I have over the past three days tried pairs, singles and remade the continuous string heddles each time.
This is what I have read and followed on page 57 first book regarding the huancayo way of selecting pebble sheds.”Enclose the two sets of warps in heddles and remove the dowels. Do not remove the original cross sticks C and D.
Also to just start the weaving in a plain sort of way before starting the actual pattern, do you select 1 plain shed, 1 pebble shed 1, 1 plain shed and 1 pebble shed 2 .
I am so sorry that I have so many questions all at once. I have done lessons 1 and 2 and can do pickup birka patterns on inkle loom it just seems that I have definitely done something terrribly wrong.
Also another question on picking up at the cross sticks on each pebble shed. Do I pick up or drop only what is say on pebble shed one or do you borrow from pebble shed 2, this is what i seem to be struggling with as well. I understand the picking up and dropping when there are no string heddles but once they are present I get a mental block and they seem to block the warps. That sounds like a weird question doesn’t it.
Here is just one photo, and I am so embarrassed to show it.
Reply from Laverne
It’s quite a big jump you have made from doing the very narrow bands in lessons 1 and 2 with the 2 rev projects without string heddles to this large project of 22 revs and your first time using the string heddles. Basically, the floats are caused by having some threads in both sets of heddles which means that you made some mistakes when you picked the threads for the sheds.
But, for me, the big problem here is the fact that you have leaped too far ahead in the instruction. I can understand your excitement to get into bigger more challenging things but I feel that you have not had enough practice with the basics yet. The mistake in the heddles is not a big deal…that happens to all of us at some time. My biggest problem is your confusion over the pick-up.
You have successfully woven the Lesson 1 and 2 projects and have understood how to do the pick-up. My suggestion would be to keep working on that kind of width with that number of ends and add string heddles to those smaller projects and slowly work your way up. There are skills involved with operating the two sets of string heddles that need to be built first. You need to be comfortable with warping, setting up, and the way the structure works before moving on to larger pieces. For some reason adding the string heddles has you confused about the basic pick-up technique and you need to go back to narrow projects and make sure that you really understand what is going on. You can add string heddles to even the tiniest of bands if you want (even the 2-rev ones) and build your skills that way.
I will PM you with more specific information but I urge you to stick with narrow bands. Work up to 4 rev patterns and just 4 revs of border until you get this straightened out. The techniques that I show in the appendix are more advanced options and things that can make the process more efficient but only once you are thoroughly comfortable with the basics.
string heddles andean pebble weave
Sent at 11:34 PM Yesterday
Hi there,
Let’s see if I can help you with your problem. Howvere, my suggetsion that I wrote in the forum still stands. Stick with the narrower bands until you are thoroughly at ease with the set-uo and the structure before getting into large projects.
No thread in your purple pebble section should be in both sets of heddles. The fact that you have floating threads there could mean two things…either you are not getting a clean shed when yoiu raise the heddle and some threads are sticking or you have not created and heddled the pebble sheds correctly.
I would go back to basics. Don’t do the advanced Huancayo way of making the pebble cross.I don’t think you arereday for that.
Pick up pebble shed 1 alone and place those threads into heddles one by one. Then pick up pebble shed two alone and place those threads into heddles one by one. BUTbefore you make the heddles you will need to deal with the border threads and sort them out as they will also go into the heddles.
It looks like from your picture that you doing the thick border from lesson 4. This is a good idea if you are using lots of border threads. Using lesson 4 pictures and instructions select the border threads that go in pebble shed 1 (shown on finger 1) and add those to the threads that you picked up for pebble shed 1. The border threads go into heddles as PAIRS. You could also put them into heddles singly but there is a danger of crossing them and putting them in heddles in the incorrect order if you do so. It is safer to put them into heddles as pairs. Do the same for the border threads that go along with pebble shed 2.
But I urge you to keep your projects small until you get used to using the two sets of heddles. Stick with 4 rev patterns and use only 4 rev of border to start with.
As for the plain start to the weaving, yes, the sequence is always plain shed, pebble shed 1, plain shed, pebble shed 2. This is something that you need to have perfectly clear before attempting wide projects.
Your question about picking at the cross sticks….your cross sticks are holding the two colors….cross sick D holds the dark threads and half the border threads cross stick C holds the light threads and the other hafl of the border threads. What you pick up there has nothing to do with what threads are in pebble 1 or 2. You simply pick up a light thread when needed and drop its dark partner according to the pattern chart. Then you have to clear that shed through the two heddles to get the threads down to the weaving line so you can beat and pass the weft. You need to do this with the warp under tension.
Please do not be offended by what I am saying but I really believe that you have jumped way too far ahead with the process with this project that you have warped up.I would take out the string heddles, keep inthe original cross sticks in place and put the whole thing aside. Please go back to smaller bands.
Message me any time you need help.
Laverne
July 3, 2014
7:41 AM
andean oebble weave
Sent at 2:45 PM July 2, 2014
Hi there, I just saw your post in the backstrap group. It’s nice to meet you.
Lesson four describes a thicker border…not a wider border. I can understand a possible misunderstanding. Andean Pebble Weeave is a three-shed weave…you have pebble shed 1, pebble shed 2 and a third shed that you pick by hand. These three sheds alternate to create the structure. The first lessons in my book combine the pebble weave with a plain weave border.
Pebble Weave is a warp-float weave. The fact that the warps are floating on both faces of the fabric means that the pebble part is thicker than the plain weave part which doesn’t have floats. The floats sort of squish over and float over their neighboring warps which creates a thick fabric…thicker than the plain weave (I am talking about thickness here…not width). If you have been weaving the pebble weave samples in the first lessons you will have noticed that the pebble weave part is thicker than the plain weave part. this is very attractive and makes the pebble weave look very lofty and three-dimensional.
What I am showing in Lesson 4 is a way to have your band all the same thickness. This means that the border which is a solid color will be the same thickess as the pebble weave…again, I am not talking about width here. I am referring to thickness. This is done by making the border a three-shed structure just as pebble weave is. You can weave these bands on a rigid heddle loom. You would simply use the rigid heddle loom frame and not the rigid heddle and set up the band exactly as I show in the book with the cross sticks and two sets of heddles. SEt up the warp as I show in the book and simply lash it to the front and back beams of your rigid heddle loom frame.
It is more complicated to set this up on an inkle loom and will depend on your particular loom. You need a lot of space between the front beam and the heddle beam so that you can use the two sets of additional strng heddles. I strongly suggest trying it on your rigid heddle loom frame first (if you don’t want to try backstrap) before trying it on the inkle loom. Once you have a good understanding of the technique, it will be easyer to adpat this to your inkle loom. You can ask me for help if you get to the point where you want to use your inkle loom but it will be easier for now to use the frame of your RH loom.
It is more complicated to set this up on an inkle loom and will depend on your particular loom. You need a lot of space between the front beam and the heddle beam so that you can use the two sets of additional strng heddles. I strongly suggest trying it on your rigid heddle loom frame first (if you don’t want to try backstrap) before trying it on the inkle loom. Once you have a good understanding of the technique, it will be easyer to adpat this to your inkle loom. You can ask me for help if you get to the point where you want to use your inkle loom but it will be easier for now to use the frame of your RH loom.
I am thinking that you misunderstood what I was talking about in Lesson four and thought that I was talking about wider borders. It is just a way to make the border thicker so that it is the same thickness as the pebble weave….it is nothing to do with width. Follow the instructions and you will quickly see what I mean. You need to separate the borders as I show into two groups and add them to the pebble sheds. Then put everything into heddles.
If you haven’t tried the first lessons yet, i urge you to do so before attempting lesson 4. Weave narrow bands so that you get a good understanding of the structure.
I am on my way back to Bolivia now and may not be able to answer you right away if you reply.
re: andean oebble weave
Sent at 8:41 AM July 3, 2014
You are not the first to ask! I am sure that it is very uncommon to be told how to make your fabric thicker! I am glad that it makes sense now. I also have an Ashford RH and set up my warps on that when I was writing the book. I also set up warps on my firend’s Cricket loom and on another friend’s Easy Weaver.
On an inkle loom, you need the space to add the two sets of string heddles for the pebble sheds and it will be easier to do the pick-up if you ease off a bit on the warp tension. I keep it relaxed enough so I can get my hands between the layers comfortably and then I just grab the warp and pull to create tension only when I beat. I have the Ashford inklette and it is not ideal for this sort of thing. It is simply too lightweight. I ca’nt pull up on the heddles without picking up the whole loom and have to clamp it to a table. I can’t even lodge it between my knees comfortably. Hopefully your inkle loom will be better for this.
Good luck. Maybe I will make it to Brisbane some time to the guild. Please don’t hesitate to contact me or the group if you have other questions.
Laverne
