Saori Hat (One Seam!!!!)

I wove yardage for a second No Sew Hat (the sequel) but decided to sew it instead. 

Front view of the hat.  

I knotted the fringe from the beginning of the piece to the the fringe from the end of the piece and made a Mohawk.  I wasn't sure if the pink would work , but I like it as an accent.  

I turned the fabric inside out.   I found the mid point of the top and folded the outside to the center and made a half inch seam across the top.  Then I turned it right side out.  

My new friends at Saori Worcester were very excited to see how easy the hat was to make.  I think there are many one seam hats in their future.  

Herringbone Saori Style

Here is the warp. The warp has two gray threads alternating with two purple threads.  There is a section in the middle with all gray threads.  That is the Saori in me - making up your own pattern or lack thereof.

Here is a portion of the project still on the loom.  I had to double up my yarn for each shot because the pattern was too small otherwise.  So I did one shot of 1/3 in gray (2 threads) followed by one shot of 2/4 in gray (2 threads).  Then I switched to green or pink/purple mixed.

I also mixed in some basket weave (see the pink and purple section on the right).

Portions of the scarf with side fringe.

End section with braided fringe on the right.

Finished scarf on our head model, Saki.

Labradorite Tunic

My favorite rock is Labradorite.  Which is named for Labrador, Canada, but can also be found in the Adirondacks of New York.  It is typically an iridescent blue and green colored stone that is polished into cabashons. 

This is my weaving inspired by the rock.  I used a combination of blue and green cotton thread for the warp and the weft.  My plan is to make it into a tunic adding the fabric to the top. Note, I used stretchy yarn for the straps.  If you haven't used stretchy yarn yet you have to try it.  But you are going to wish that you had octopus arms because you have to stretch the yarn taunt before you weave it in.  I was trying to keep both sides going at the same time.  I did a pretty good job of making them even.  One thing that worked out particularly well was weaving an inch and a half of regular yarn before starting the stretchy yarn.  What it did was pleat the fabric near the blue stretchy straps.

The first thing I did was measure across the width of the top part and cut a section out of the fabric.  Then I cut the rectangle in half to make two smaller rectangles.  I sewed the rectangles to the underside of the back and front of the top.

I will probably add some pleats under the arms or other details but the overall shape is done.   I recieved a lot of praise for my use of stretchy yarn for the straps.

This is the back side of the tunic.  

Fibonacci Finished Jumper

First things first.  Five yards is a lot of weaving.... Until you go to sew something out of it.  Here is the fabric:

I figure I wove about a yard a day for five weekend days.  On one or more evening I had to stop weaving so my parents could go to sleep.  I was a woman with a deadline.  I had to finish my yardage before my intensive at Saori Worcester.  Thanks to Jame, sis, for letting me use her programmable washing machine.  The fabric has to be pre-washed for shrinkage prior to sewing otherwise my dress would fit a Kokeshi doll.

Last night I arrived in Worcester and showed my fabric to Mihoko and showed her a few photographs that I pinned in Pinterest that I liked.  Particularly, there was one sewn on the bias (diagonal) with some pleating in the front.  There is always a moment of right before you take a pair of scissors to the fabric that panic sets in.  You sew a straight line on either side of the cutting line and then pause....  After you actually cut the fabric and it doesn't fall apart in a clump of threads then you can start to breathe again.

This is the front of the jumper.  The section on the lower left is pleated to the section on the right.  The hem is asymmetrical, if you square up both side the bottom is actually straight across, it because it is constructed on the bias it appears longer.

This is the back side of the jumper.  I decided not to pleat the back of the jumper because it would take away from the patterning.  The neckline is created by folding over the fringe end on the front panel and sewing it to the folded fringe end on the back.

There is some seaming around the right arm hole, but the seam on the left is just the front overlapped the back.  

As mentioned above, five yards does not go as far as you would like so, I use the word JUMPER loosely.  It is probably more like a tunic since it will need leggings underneath it.

Spreading Saori Joy

My friend Faith is a Saori Guinea pig.  She came with me to my parents house and I showed her some of the Saori techniques I have already learned.   The warp was already on the loom.  After showing her how to throw the shuttle and switch treadles I let her loose with a variety of weft items including yarn, ribbon, roving, and cloth strips.   

I am amazed by the beauty of her project.  She has a good eye for color and proportion.

The above photograph is her finished wall hanging.  Gorgeous.   

Ecodyeing

We pre-washed the 100% silk scarves in Dawn simple clean and then rinsed out the soap.  The scarves were placed in a stainless steel pot and brought to a boil.  The heat was turned back to simmer the water.  The dry weight of the scarves was 0.7 oz.  0.1 oz of Alum and a pinch of cream of Tatar was dissolved in warm water and added to the pot.   The scarves simmered for one hour.  

Our natural dye products include rose petals, eucalyptus leaves and leaves from yellow flowering weed located beneath my parents deck.  The eucalyptus leaves were placed in water prior to starting.

Rose petals, and weed leaves were scattered across the silk scarf.  The eucalyptus leaves were dipped in vinegar and then placed on the scarf.  Matter root was sprinkled on the scarves for added color.  The scarf was folded in half and wrapped around a block of wood.   One purple scarf was overdyed because we had an uneven number of white ones.  Rubber bands were placed around the scarves to keep them secure and to identify the creator. 

Three of the scarves were placed in a steam basket and three were placed in the bottom of the pot.  A moisture of water 3/4 cup of vinegar and more eucalyptus leaves was brought to a boil and then reduced to a simmer.   The scarves simmered or steamed for 2 hours.  

The projects were taken off the heat and allowed to cool, the plants were removed and the scarves were rinsed in water.  

The photos above are the results of the Ecodyeing.  The rose petals did not seem to add color.   The Orange is the Matter root.  The green is the eucalyptus and the yellow is the mystery weed.  The scarves that were in the dye bath had a lot more color than the steamed ones.   The rubber bands created some resist and added a shibori like quality to the project.