New Christmas Table Runner

The runner is from the booklet "Monk's Cloth Afghans for Christmas" and called "Snowy Sparkles" and I, of course, changed the little border a bit.  It's fun to put your own stamp on your work.  I used the Caron's "Simply Soft Party" yarn in royal and silver grey...I've used the white with the silver grey and they also go well together.  

I had added some of the grey to the fringe along the length but decided it looked better without it so I took it off.

I had posted the photo of another table runner but mistakenly credited the design to the wrong person.  I was actually threatened with a lawsuit for my innocent mistake!  My apology was thrown back in my face so I won't be using any of her patterns any more.  Let's face it, we're all human and make mistakes but I shouldn't have to take verbal abuse when it was an honest mistake on my part.

Solving Caron's Simply Soft Party Yarn

Those of you who have used Caron's Simply Soft Party yarn will most likely have come across the problem of having the metallic strand break while you're weaving.  This is such a pain because you have to remove the complete row and start over again.  The problem is caused by the metallic thread being wound around the yarn and not woven into it (like the Bernat).

I had gotten into the habit of tying a knot in the yarn as I finished each row to keep it from unraveling further and you can see by my photo how the end unravels without the knot.

I was working on my latest project and continually concerned about breaking the thread but I was lucky for a while until the inevitable happened.  Just inches from the end of the row, the unraveled end caught somewhere and broke the metallic thread.  

I looked at the completed rows and saw how tight the knot was and wondered if I knotted it at the very beginning if it would slide through the floats.  I could only try because it had become too frustrating any other way.  Well, you could feel a tiny catch as it went through the floats but it caused no problem otherwise.

And so that's how I'll use Caron's Simply Soft Party yarn from now on. 

Choosing One Yarn Over Another

This is part of the Christmas table runner I'm presently working on.  The yarn I'm using is a rather thick Bernat Happy Holidays.  Just below the final row of green is a row of red and, for some reason, I thought it might look better if I used a thinner yarn, Caron Simply Soft Party.  I thought the contrast might look nicer than using only the Bernat.

When I'm unsure like this, I will weave in both yarns for a short distance just to see which one I like best.  I've decided to go with only the Bernat because, to my eye, it seems nicer.  There is no set way to do this because all of us will look at a project differently and, whichever you choose, will always look just fine.

Just a note:  When I post photos of finished projects on Facebook, I don't write in all the details of why I chose what I did, what I liked or didn't like about my choice of yarn, etc.  That is what the blog is for...for readers to learn from my experiences and for me to learn from their's.  I think it would be very unfair for me to take up space on someone else's Facebook page telling you everything I just wrote here.  Facebook serves one purpose and the blog is for me (and you) to expand on what we're doing and why.  I was criticized by one lady for directing readers to the blog because she thought I was getting rich on it.  I made $100 all of last year and I'm not quite sure how that works...I think I get a fraction of a penny when a reader clicks on one of the ads but I'm not sure.  The blog has continued to grow in popularity so I'm making a little bit more this year ($70 in 6 months).  It doesn't matter to me.  I do Swedish weaving because I love the craft.  I post photos on Facebook because it's a learning experience for us weavers.  I write the blog because it's fun to do and also informative.  I'm actually very surprised that I've had to explain all this just because of one very rude lady but life is full of surprises.  Anyway, I know the blog is popular and serves a good purpose so one critic isn't going to change it. 

Shelley's Choice!

Shelley asked me to make her a red on red Christmas table runner and I was lucky enough to buy a large red remnant from a friend.  I have no more red now and don't know if or when I'll ever get some more.

I used Simply Soft Party yarn which has a metallic thread running through it.  I don't recommend this yarn because it can be troublesome to use but pretty when it does work out.  The pattern is a slightly altered "Holiday Cheer" from the booklet, Monk's Cloth Afghans for Christmas.

For anyone making table runners for Christmas bazaars, the ones I made with red cloth and red yarn were the most popular last fall.  

Scrap Runners Turned Beautiful

I think these table runners prove that it's pretty darned hard to produce an ugly Swedish weaving project.  I had a remnant of "potato" colored monk's cloth that had come out a little blotchy after being washed but I thought I might be able to do do something with it.  I decided to cut it in half making 2 narrow runners about 10" wide and just do a simple design and use them as dust covers for some books.

Since I have a large supply of half skeins or small amounts of yarn, I chose 2 at random that looked as though they'd be sufficient.  Both were Caron's Simply Soft, one in bone (kind of a golden beige) and one in passion (a dark plum).  Who would have thought they'd look so good on this very drab fabric?

Anyway, I didn't use a pattern but what I threw together look very much like established patterns so I can't claim ownership.  The more I worked up the pattern, the more surprised I was at how pretty it was turning out.  I wanted to use both pieces together but I never make identical copies and that's why the patterns are different.

The blotchiness still shows a bit on runner #2 but I still think they are lovely!

Yarn and Fabric Hoarder

I started preparing my spare bedroom (where I keep the majority of my craft supplies) for the new shelving I'm getting.  It will look so much neater and better organized than before but I now have to face the reality that I probably have way, way too much Swedish weaving supplies than I'll ever need.  I don't think it's possible for me to part with any of it and that sounds very much like a hoarder.

I'm a psychology nut and watch the show "Hoarders" because I love to analyze these people.  I see how upset they get when even the tiniest part of their hoard is taken from them.  I can sympathize.  

I've come to the conclusion that I can never buy either fabric or yarn again, not only because I don't need any, but because I'm determined to have a nice, neat, sensible stash of supplies for my favorite craft.  I won't give up what I already have, though.

Crafters are a breed apart.  It doesn't matter what your craft happens to be, you will get all silly and happy when you are surrounded by new and beautiful supplies.  There is a better than even chance you won't be able to resist buying some.

If I was younger, I'd probably continue buying fabric and yarn because it gives me pleasure to do so.  But, at 77, someone is going to inherit a whole lot of what I have because I can't possibly use it all up.  And, so, my buying days are over.  Now I'll get my enjoyment from organizing my stash and creating what I can.

Shelley's Christmas Table Runner Started

Shelley had told me she wanted a red on red table runner for Christmas but I had used the last of my red monk's cloth.  When my friend, Marion, offered to sell me a huge lot of monk's cloth at the price she'd paid a few years ago, I was thrilled to find a piece of red fabric in the lot.  I have so much monk's cloth in many colors so I really don't want to pay today's price for a bolt of red but I might have to do that.

Shelley has a huge diningroom table so I'll make this runner a little wider than I usually do...close to 18" maybe.  I usually use remnants to make table runners so mine are never uniform sizes but I've never made one that is 18" wide.  I'll have Shelley measure her table width before making my final decision.

I mentioned before that the Christmas table runners I took to the craft show in November sold better than the every day ones so I'm going to concentrate on Christmas designs for the next few months.  The very first table runner sold at that craft show was the only one I'd done with red yarn on red fabric.  Using the same color for yarn and fabric makes an elegant item.

Well, it's a long time before Christmas rolls around again but here in southern Ontario there is still snow on the ground.  What better way to spend your day than doing Swedish weaving!