Lots of work in the studio this week, both by my student and by me. Laura finished three rag rugs on Tuesday night and cut them off the floor loom. She was quite happy with the results!


Great job for first time weaving experience and maybe not the last she'll have as she's planning to buy a small floor loom for her own use.

On Wednesday I put a warp on the same loom, natural color of two weights of cotton, to weave curtains for my doors of the studio.

I like Atwater-Bronson lace weave and used that structure for the threading, weaving it in two different ways for each door. I hadn't used my AVL end-feed shuttle in years so it was nice to try it out again...holds yards and yards of weft and the selvedges turn out pretty well when using it.

I finished the weavings on Friday, washed and dried the fabric, finished hemming and hanging the curtains yesterday. Each were 33" wide by 42" long for the lace area, 46" long each to include the hems/casing for rods.



I also warped the new/old Ruthie loom for the first time. I decided to try the full 60" width at 6 epi but not too long for the warp. The cartoon that's being designed will be turned 90˚ when finished...I'm working on another tree design based on sketches from last year. The width will be 24", so the warp length is 24" plus quite a bit of loom waste...am not sure about the amount the loom will use so wanted to be sure to include enough. I have only tied the first stage of the knots and will finalize the tie-on tomorrow.





And, finally...the beautiful ginkgo tree in the studio yard lost its leaves this week!

I mentioned sitting in the yard while they began to fall in earnest. The next day I took photos. When I wove ginkgo leaves a few years ago I did a bit of research about the tree and learned it's one of the most primitive trees still in existence. There's quite a bit of legend and lore about the tree, as well. Here's a quote from a nursery website about the ginkgo:

The Gingko tree, Ginkgo biloba, is the sole surviving species of a group of Gymnosperms that flourished 65 million years ago, the time when dinosaurs existed. Ginkgo trees are also called Maidenhair trees. This tree can have a lifespan as long as 1,000 years. It is the only living gymnosperm (which includes pines, firs, and spruces) that sheds its leaves during the fall.... Tree can attain a height of 100 to 122 feet with a girth of 3 to 4 feet.

I picked up a few of the leaves to scan them...might try a tapestry to include quite enlarged ginkgo leaves in the future....Goethe wrote a poem to a young woman about the ginkgo, pasting two leaves at the bottom of the page. The translated poem reads:

This leaf from a tree in the East,
Has been given to my garden.

It reveals a certain secret,
Which pleases me and thoughtful people.

Does it represent One living creature
Which has divided itself?
Or are these Two, which have decided,
That they should be as One?

To reply to such a Question,
I found the right answer:
Do you notice in my songs and verses
That I am One and Two?