Have Loom, Will Travel

Greetings from the Bay of Fundy!

Last week was a frenzy of packing and prepping for our trip up to Kent Island.  The highlight, as usual, was our trip to BJs wholesale club to pick up a bulk order of food.  Ever bought $1200 of food in one trip?  On top of that a trip to the grocery ($300) and Walmart ($100); then we buy about $500 of food every week.  Feeding 20 people takes a lot of supplies!

Loom burrito and a traveling studio.

Jane (my Louet) came up riding safe and secure in our truck -- good thing because it poured buckets first thing in the morning!  I wrapped her in several layers of bubble wrap (a good investment) and then in a vinyl tablecloth -- a loom burrito!  We also took apart her stand and luckily it fit right in my work bin.  Hopefully I have all I need to be productive here on the island.  The trip is like "Planes Trains and Automobiles" -- start by leaving at an ungodly hour (5 am); drive to Bangor and turn right onto the "Airline Road".  They don't build roads like that anymore . . . .  Dodge moose, deer, and bears, then cross into Canada.  Try not to anger the border guards.  (They wanted us to post a bond because we brought so much scientific equipment, but DH talked them out of it!)  Then, it's a mere 3 boat trips and hike across the mudflats to get to Kent Island!

Walking on the ferry while cars are offloaded from the previous trip.

The stern deck of the "Black Ferry" -- an amazingly warm day on the Bay of Fundy.



The north end of Grand Manan -- looking out at the cliffs called "Seven Days Work".



Taking the old ferry, running in place of the damaged new ferry,
meant I got to photograph some of the old signs.  She's a charmer!

The harbor at Seal Cove on Grand Manan.

It's been a busy few days since we arrived -- lots of unpacking, cleaning, and organizing.  Last night I set up Jane down by the wharf, but some further cleaning will need to occur before I get out any warps.  When we say dirt here, we mean dirt.  Makes me appreciate how easy it is to clean with running water and electricity.

One load of supplies coming up from the wharf.
The cottage in the background is where I live -- it was built by
Sterling Rockefeller -- a story in and of itself.

On a last note -- I finished my pinwheel scarf in bamboo!  This was a really fun project and Ihave to say came out beautifully.  The colors were lovely and really complemented my friend's complexion.  Now to see about getting a warp on that loom with a view . . . .

A tale of two shuttles

I am busy this week working on a bamboo pinwheel scarf for a friend leaving for graduate school.  She has that wonderful Irish coloring and red hair, so this should complement her very well:

Working this pattern is really fun.  It's wound with 8 ends of one color, 8 of the other; and the weft is the same.  I'm catching the non-working weft along the right selvedge as I go, which slows things down just a little.  Using Jane, rather than a loom that is not direct tie, means I have to flip multiple levers as I go.  I keep track by using high-quality scientific tape (used to label tubes and samples) that leaves no residue and is very, very sticky. 

I have 2 small shuttles from Schacht for this project.  They look very similar, don't they:

But in reality, one has no bottom and the other does:

And one is an 1/8th of an inch wider than the other:

So the dark shuttle really flies and the light one struggles to make it through Jane's smaller shed.  The nice thing about this pattern is that there are distinct reminders to advance the shed -- every 3 pattern repeats, which equals an inch.  This helps me have even weft and keeps my shed regular.

Beyond weaving, I like everyone else here in New England am wondering when the rain will stop.  I'm thinking of building an Ark and gathering the animals two by two.  It makes for gray days:

Low tide at Wolfe's Neck State Park in Freeport, ME.

But also makes everything wonderfully green!

Weekend at Webs

I spent this weekend at Webs in Northampton, Mass.  What a place.

I took a Weekend Weaving course with Carol Birtwhistle and had a great time.  A nice surprise was the number of people in the class who had Norwoods -- two others!  I never meet anyone with a Norwood.  But I guess they're out there!

We're weaving a scarf from Alpaca Silk.  Although the Alpaca Silk is beautiful, it is a bit difficult to use as a warp.  Kinda sticky in the lease sticks.  To minimize problems, we doubled strands in the cross -- less friction that way.  Most of us had Wolf Pup looms and I have to say they're cute but kind of dinky compared to my Norwood.

Webs never ceases to amaze me.  The registers were ringing away all day.  Sunday they are closed and it was like Night in the Museum -- us in a big warehouse full of yarn.  Their packers are there even on Sundays, though -- apparently yarn-lovers are doing their part for the economy!

On my loom now:  Jane has a 8/2 tencel (also Webs) on it, with an undulating twill.  This is my second warp on her and I'm just tying on.  DH finished the window seat in my Room of Contentment, so I need to get a cushion made up for it.  Looking forward to lounging on it!