One connecting thread runs through most of my projects, they tend to take longer to complete than I anticipated.
The project I am sharing today is no exception. On the contrary, it might hold the record for longest running project I have done to date.
It all started about three years ago, while I was trying out different fibres. I got my hands on a blend of 70% Merino wool and 30% Mulberry silk. And I fell in love.
At least with the result.
The fine wool fibre mixed with the smooth silk, can be a challenge to spin. It is an electrostatic nightmare, and quite often I ended up with fibre clinging to me all over.
But the yarn it yielded was wonderfully soft, with a nice silk shine to it. Perfect for making a scarf.
Enter the first time consuming factor. I did some calculations, and realised I would need to spin quite a few skeins of this yarn to be able to weave a scarf. I had to buy more fibre several times to achieve this goal.
Spinning in-between other projects, it took me about one and a half years to produce 8 skeins approximately 50g in weight, measuring between 50 and 80 m each.
But even then, the yarn was still white, and would stay that way for some time.
I intended to dye the yarn blue, and if you use plant dyes that basically leaves you with one option…
Indigo
But reading about the process of using Indigo, and all the chemicals involved, made me more and more skeptical if I really wanted to face all that.
On thing was certain, I would only embark on the experiment for a larger set of fibers. And thus my Merino/silk yarn sat patiently in the corner, waiting for me to gather enough fibers for this endeavor.
Last spring, everything fell into place. I had enough yarn, and a warm, sunny day loomed. I certainly did not want to handle hydrosulfite in my kitchen.
My experiences are easy to sum up. Gorgeous colours – huge mess. Just getting my pots clean again was an effort I don’t want to embark on again. Not to mention the problematic disposal of the toxic dye bath.
But at least now I had gorgeously blue Merino/silk yarn. I had split the yarn into three different dye baths, but the first two were indistinguishable in colour. That left me with six dark and two light blue skeins.
My custom length for scarves is 2m long and 25 cm wide. I did some calculations ans settled on a sett of 4 threads per cm. That should ensure having enough yarn to finish the project.
From that point forward, everything went like a breeze. Warping my rigid heddle loom took barely an hour. I like to use this loom for these kinds of projects because it produces less waste than a floor loom.
To use the yarn effectively, I settled on a sequence of four dark threads, followed by two light ones.
Distributing the threads into the eyes of reed didn’t take long, and soon the loom was ready to go.
Weaving took no time at all. I had anticipated some trouble with electrostatic and abrasions on the warp threads, but was surprised how smoothly my work progressed.
I had some left over light blue yarn, and used it to add stripes every 10 cm.
It only took me three years, but I was finally able to finish this project. It rewarded me with a beautifully soft scarf, with a nice silk shine.
Snathanna 