Oh, hi there! Where have I been the last few months? What have I been weaving?
Well, in April and May I finished a commissioned wall hanging inspired by art from artist Graham Yarrington. I was asked to make a piece that pulled from the colors and feelings in images like this:
I used an overshot pattern with a grey tabby weave as the background. In order to give the grey a little life, I mixed a few different shades darker and lighter into the pattern yarn. So even where I’m using grey on grey, there is still some subtle gradation. For the colorful parts of the pattern I used a mixture of fibers, including bamboo, cotton, wool, and mystery-stash-yarn. The grays were mostly wool with the occasional cotton when I couldn’t find a dark enough shade.
As I started on the warp, I did a little sample to see how the colors blended and the overshot pattern held up with all the different fibers. My sample is a sort of squashed sun-sphere on a grey background. Not sure what I’ll do with it yet, but hopefully inspiration will strike.
At the beginning of this commission I drew a sketch in colored pencil, so the idea could be approved before I started. I marked the inches on my drawing and as I wove, periodically measured to make sure I was staying somewhat faithful to the original idea.
When the piece was complete I wet-finished it, sewed on a stiff backing fabric with channels on the top and bottom for dowels, and shipped it out to it’s new home in Ohio. Saying goodbye to a piece is bittersweet. I’ll miss it, but I’m happy to see the things I make find good, loving homes.
The Woven Good 