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I wrote two posts recently and saved them as drafts so that I could add pictures. Bob was out of town with the camera both times, and I was waiting to have access to it. Now both posts are gone. Obviously it’s human error, but I can’t imagine what I did since the “save as draft” button is as big as life, and the only other button is “publish” which certainly didn’t happen since the posts are missing!

We are going through another bout of absurdly cold weather. It was only about 15-degrees F today, with snow. It’s not the snow I mind at all! I couldn’t bring myself to work in my basement studio. Even if the heat is on down there it just feels cold.

I’ve added another link at the bottom of the page. It’s the online guild I joined at the new year. What a great group! Every month there is a new online workshop to join, with lots of online lessons and homework. I got a calendar with photos of members’ work which is just lovely, and the calendar is perforated so that the photos can removed and saved when the calendar is no longer useful. And lastly, I received a printed journal from this group with interesting articles and terrific photographs. I had no idea that there would be a journal included in my dues. This is a great group and membership is quite a good deal.

Since this month’s workshop is weaving Summer & Winter, I’m posting a photo of a project Bob and I did together a couple of years ago, in honor of both our parents’ 50th wedding anniversaries. I wove the polychrome S&W cloth on my AVL. What a bear pegging the treadling sequences! I should have woven it on my 8H jack loom with a skeleton tie-up. I thought I was being so clever to put it on the AVL, but it was actually one of the stupidest things I’ve ever done! Well,”experience is what you get…”

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Saturday, March 3, 2007

I wrote a post about a week ago, and it is lost! That just shows how little I know about what I’m doing here. Oh well.

I have come down with a cold on these first few days of March. Perhaps that has contributed to my funk lately. In spite of my lethargy and less than optimistic attitude, I have been weaving. Sometimes I avoid the things I love doing when I’m down, and sometimes I find quite a lot of solace there, even when I cannot seem to cheer up. I am weaving what feels like acres of solid color plain weave on my historical tapestry. I should post photos soon, although who wants to see an acre of solid color plain weave?

I make very small progress on my fabric projects: runners in Monk’s belt on a borrowed Norwood loom, a small hanging of autumn red maple leaves in Theo Moorman technique on my Baby Wolf, and those same red/tan, 8 harness, log cabin dishtowels on the AVL. I could be weaving a silk scarf, an 8 harness network twill on my small Purrington table loom if I would just tie on and get going.

A few more birds are joining the chorus these days as the light stays longer. On a couple of days I’ve noticed that spring-like bouyancy in the air, a combination of humidity and warmth, at least in the sun if not in shade. Hopefully soon we’ll be in the midst of what e. e. cummings called “mudluscious,” a time I always find ridiculously hopeful!

This photo shows a detail of a scarf designed and woven byBonnie Innouye. I took the photo during a class with her last fall. This is the type of thing I have on my Purrington table loom. I should get back to it….

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I’m counting down the days to the end of winter now. I do this every year. I don’t mind more snow. I love snow in early March. What I don’t want is temperatures lower than 30 and please, please, PLEASE no more wind unless the temperature is over 40F. The wind has been so violent lately and I’m so worn out from it.

My older son has an early March birthday. Out of his (almost) 23 birthdays, I’d say 20 of them have been white, and he was born during a wild snow storm when about 12 inches of snow fell in just a few hours accompanied by thunder and lightning! What a night. March is e e cummings to me: the poem about the balloon man and the word “mudluscious.” What an image!

I am just finishing a three day workshop with Nadine Sanders, the singing weaver, who is well known for advancing the Theo Moorman technique. Maybe “advancing” is not the right word. She is certainly passing along the knowledge of the technique and she has done some interesting things that Theo Moorman did not do. Imagine being in a weaving workshop, busy as a bee at your loom, and having your instructor sing to you and play the violin for you. She even sang her good bye to us today. If you get the chance to study with her, grab it! We had too big a group in this workshop, and three people did not get their looms warped for weaving until the last day of the class, and yet Nadine sailed through these hurdles with grace and even a helpful, caring disposition.

I want to talk about my project, but it doesn’t seem appropriate since I my camera is on the other side of the country now with my husband skiing in Utah. How about if I just say go check out Nadine’s website: