Colored Monk's Cloth

There has been a rumor that monk's cloth manufacturers will no longer produce colored monk's cloth and I'm sorry to say the rumor is definitely true.  I e-mailed one company and just received an e-mail back verifying they'll no longer provide us with colored monk's cloth so I'd suggest to all weavers that you try to obtain as much as you can now.  The white and beige will still be available so it's not the end of the world for Swedish weavers.

I thought I'd beat the trend by ordering a bolt of red in November but the order got screwed up and only 1 yard was sent to me.  By the time the order was corrected, the red was no longer available.  I have lots of other colors in my stash but I guess my Christmas items will have to be woven mainly on white and beige.

And now a thought.  If anyone has any red monk's cloth they don't need or want, I would be happy to buy it from you.

I won't be back on the computer until after January 3rd so I wish everyone a Happy New Year!  

Merry Christmas 2018

I say "Merry Christmas" because I come from a christian background but that doesn't mean that I don't respect the culture and traditions of other religions.  Enjoy the season your way and don't be offended when you hear "Merry Christmas".  I'm definitely not offended by being greeted in a friendly manner by people who celebrate December a little differently from the way I do.  This should be celebrated as a season of peace, harmony, and generosity no matter what your background happens to be.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Following a Pattern

This is an unfinished Swedish weaving table runner where I had trouble following the pattern so ended up doing it my own way.  It is often very difficult to follow these old patterns that are printed in black only instead of having each line a different color.  That's the problem I ran into with"Tropical Paradise" which is in the first Avery Hill book of patterns.  Whoever thought to color code each line of pattern is a genius!!

Anyway, I just couldn't decipher the pattern where the lines crossed each other and finally gave up and sort of created my own pattern.  Some interesting features were lost that way but it was the best I could do.

I'm using a very course and thick yarn...an old one without the wrapper to identify it...and it gives great texture.  It's rough to work with but looks perfect when done.  I like using a thicker yarn like this once in a while because you always get good heavy texture with it.

The monks cloth is a light sage and the yarn is a variegated green.  I've already packed my sewing machine in the car to go to Florida so any Swedish weaving I do right now will be finished in Florida.  

This will be my last post of the year so I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  Keep on weaving!

Copying Patterns

There's been quite a debate on the Swedish weaving Facebook pages about how no-one should copy a pattern but always buy them.  A few even went so far as to call anyone who did copy a pattern a thief.

I understand that the Swedish weaving pattern designers have copyrights on their work and only receive payment when the pattern is bought but it's unreasonable for them to expect someone isn't going to just copy a simple pattern instead of buying it.  No-one has bought more pattern books than I have but occasionally I see something very simple and just work it out on my own instead of buying the pattern.  To be called a thief for doing that makes me want to steer clear of groups which are way too militant.

We copy recipes, songs, posts, and heaven knows what.  If we get too stringent with rules that some people are insisting on then a lot of the fun has gone out of the group.  

I hope this blog remains friendly and informative...and it's free.

Unfinished Table Runner

I wasn't going to add this runner to the blog yet because it's unfinished.  I haven't done the fringe yet because my sewing machine is already packed in the car ready to go to Florida.  I have a couple of runners I'll complete once I get there and post them at that time.

This one is a little different, though, and I thought it might be a good lesson for new Swedish weavers.  Placing diamonds between the patterns is a common practice to fill in spaces.  I love playing around with the diamonds, making them different sizes, etc., and decided to create this table runner using diamonds only.  I love it.

My original plan was to weave all the diamonds in with royal blue yarn (Simply Soft Party) but I stupidly didn't check to see if I had more of the blue than just the remnant of a skein I started with.  Well, I didn't.  No problem, though, because we are crafters and crafters can always find a solution.  My solution was to use both the royal and the silver/grey yarns because they go well together.

I think I ended up using more silver/grey than the royal but it looks nice.  I didn't use a pattern, just found my centers and started weaving in rows of diamonds and using different sizes of diamonds.  I would have done more with the royal if I'd had it but I like this runner so much that I just might keep it for myself.

Finished Odd Run Runner

Using the Odd Run fabric is not quite as comfortable for me to work on and I still do prefer the regular monk's cloth but this runner, which I'm laying at the end of a twin sized bed, was not difficult to handle.  It looks navy in the photos but it's actually a grey that looks almost black in reality.  The yarn is Caron's Simply Soft Harvest Red.  I used only part of Christine Allen's Magical Mirrors pattern.

This runner is going in a bedroom/craft room that I have started to decorate in red, black, and white.  I'm still looking for a white coverlet, preferably one with little red flowers on it.

I haven't been crazy about using the Odd Run fabric but honestly had no trouble at all on this project other than my usual difficulty in working on dark colored fabric.  It's hard on my eyes and I can't imagine doing a whole afghan on dark fabric but it is a beautiful background for any yarn pattern.

I still have some of this fabric left and will use it all for table runners, just cut it shorter than the full width it comes in.

Going to Work on the Oddrun

I'm not looking forward to it because the "oddrun" fabric is sort of flimsy to work on but it's the right color (dark grey that looks black) for my purpose.

I installed some really nice shelving from Ikea in the summer...white cubicles...in the spare bedroom where I keep all my craft items and loaded the open shelving with red canvas boxes (I'm not sure of the proper name for these). I also made a black quilted cover for the tote box where I keep my finished table runners.  I've been trying to find a white coverlet with little red flowers for the bed thereto complete my color combo but I haven't found one yet.  On the end of the bed I will place the grey/black runner.

The other day I pulled out the fabric and some red yarn for the Swedish weaving but wondered if I should add another color, too.  Right now I'm thinking I'll stick with just the red but we'll see.  I can change my mind if it doesn't look right.

One of the Swedish weavers who posts on Facebook showed a photo of exactly what I'll be doing and it looked great so I may be on the right track.  Anyone who does Swedish weaving should follow the groups on Facebook because it is really informative.  I learn from it every day!