autodenter

Warp already reeded, now some minor adjustments and it will be a weaving Easter.
This gizmo is an autodenter, a very high tech sounding name for a mechanical tool :) and it came from here.
It does make denting easier once you've tamed the beast, which tends to fall apart in the beginning as it comes with a built- in learning curve. It should also come with tranquilizers, but no such luck.
In spite of all the above once you master it it's easy to use and efficient.
Some recommendations:

• i've noticed it works better( imo) with denser reeds, 10-15 ends x cm. and thin yarns. Actually, for thicker yarns and wider spaced reeds there is no need for one.
• You have to control the side push or else you'll skip dents. Yes, that happens!
• i'd start with 20-30 threads tied to the back of the loom and practice till you get the swing of it as it can generate some stress in the beginning. Then when you feel confident move on to using it fully.

This is just a visual presentation of the tool. go here for a vid on how to use it.




neki desu

things are not what they were

Actually, nothing is the way it was anymore :) . Had to rig the loom with a magnifying glass in order to be able to thread the 15 ends X cm reed. And this is a rather open sett. And having trouble still.Thinking that this project can qualify for the small things in life TIF as the yarn is very small.
And it could also qualify for slow cloth as i've been warping and threading for 2 weeks.

The warp is silk doupioni dyed with kakishibu and ai. The kakishibu ranges from a golden brown to an almost black and the ai is a light blue value. Still debating whether the weft is going to be a peachy kakishibu silk or a medium dark ai silk. It's going to be a very simple crepe weave because the emphasis will be on the colors. The crepe will add just a bit of texture and the colors will gain depth with the way crepe reflects and absorbs light.
And this stole is for yours truly.

For the fast track lane i have been screen printing some fabric. It is batching so i will post it later on the week.

neki desu

more shibori

These handkerchieves were found in Yonezawa a town in Yamagata-ken in the northern part of Honshu, the main island.

Why did i go out there? Weaving and dyeing, of course! Along with its beef, toys and winter sports Yonezawa is also known for its indigo dyeing. And for being a very charming small town.

For Japanese standards these handkerchieves were inexpensive so i thought they might not be indigo, but now that i can read some Japanese it came as a very pleasant surprise to know they are real indigo! The top one is kumo shibori and the bottom one is an itajime. Notice the lovely greenish cast.

The left one is tazuna stitching and tsuki-dashi dots shibori and the right one is kumo shibori not ironed flat so it still holds the lovely raised texture. They are also indigo dyed.

This last one was bought in Tokyo in a small shop in Ya-Ne-Sen. It seemed unusual to me because the kumo dots were first wound to reserve the white of the cotton handkerchief, dyed a soft grey and bound again and dyed red, thus resulting in grey colored background kumo shibori. It was dyed with synthetic dyes, but that's ok :)

neki desu