Burrito West Blog

A friend was kind enough to loan me a Schacht table loom earlier this year. I managed to finish two projects and have satisfied my weaving urge for a few months at least.  (And returned the loom, much to Peter's relief.... it did take up a lot of space in our tiny apartment.)

The first project used a spool of black yarn I've had for a while as the warp and a variegated yarn as the weft. I was a bit nervous about this, having never used variegated yarn in weaving before, but only one way to learn (after googling things extensively)!

I maxed out the warp width on this one to get a nice full scarf.  In retrospect I wish I had gone a bit more narrow so that the color stripes would have been longer, but I still like the end product, so, I'll call it a success.  My weaving was nice and even and my edges were pretty good too, not bad considering I haven't woven in two years!



Project 2 I sneaked in because I've had this reflective thread I've wanted to work into a weaving project for years. I tend to wear a lot of black and we have many dark, rainy days/nights in Vancouver where I worry I'm pretty invisible. I like the idea of things that look normal by day and are reflective at night.  Example, this awesome bag I bought myself.

I made a half-hearted effort to use this reflective thread when I had my floor loom, but I didn't think the thread would hold up under tension (and it's too wiry to use as weft). This time I was willing to take the chance and remedy any snapped threads if necessary. So I got some silver yarn (Patons Metallic; which I don't think is going to wear well) to match the thread and ran the reflective 3M thread along with the yarn in the warp. I went for a narrow scarf because I wanted something light (and a fast project).  There are some tension issues with the reflective yarn; once I was done and got it off the loom, I went through and pulled each strand to pull out the excess, which helped.

I decided to turn this into a circle scarf by knotting the fringes together. I'm now half way through weaving in the 488203 ends.  By the time I finish, it will be August. So, probably won't take this one out for a spin until next fall.  Interestingly my tension/beating changed dramatically on this - I started out beating hard for a nice tightly packed weft, then by the end was super loose (really terrible). Not sure what I was thinking. It bugs me, but I'll learn to live with it.

You have to look at it just right to see the pattern

I always weave right to the very very end of the warp

Photo on the right is taken with a flash to try and show the reflectivity; not bad, eh?

I started my holidays on Friday. It's been fabulous.

I took photos of adorable kittens.

And a hedgehog (wearing a cowboy hat).

Some of the kittens may also have been forced to wear the cowboy hat.

I'm very pleased with how the photos turned out - especially considering the photo shoot took place in a dark basement.


I've started weaving on my borrowed table loom. My first time using variegated yarn and I'm enjoying it, watching the colour change as I go (through no effort of mine).

Peter and I have been spending a lot of time playing puzzle-solving games on his ipad (The Room, now Lost Forever). Very addicting.

Tomorrow is the big day in Peter's family so we'll be out in the burbs. Looking forward to amazing homemade perogies!

I hope everyone else is having fun and getting some time off to relax.

Weaving with variegated yarn

borrowed table loom

fun colour changes

Here is a great recipe for being dissatisfied with what you have (even though you have lots):
1. Decide you want a loom so you can weave again.

2. Lust after a small floor loom, but realize that that isn't going to fly in your tiny apartment (tried already) so look for a table loom.

3. Get frustrated with how expensive table looms are relative to floor looms.

4. Start looking at apartment listings and daydreaming of having a light-filled space for a small floor loom. (I fantasize about living in 800sqft. Looked at a listing for 1000sqft and actually gave a wistful sigh at the thought.)

5. Get really depressed at the real estate market in Vancouver. (To be fair, it's partly my own fault for insisting we live within walking distance of the ocean, mass transit, and my dance studio.)

6. Look at very high end apartment listings ($10,000/month+) and wonder "who are these people?". Decide you want to start a revolution to turn over these penthouses to people who will put them to better use. (1 penthouse could easily be a crafting studio for 10-15 people, am I right?) Oh look, this one is only $9000/month, what a bargain! And they allow cats, how nice of them.

7. Get down about the fact that so many people are struggling and crammed into tiny (and growing ever tinier) units while a tiny portion of the population has such a degree of excess wealth that they can waste $10k or $20k a MONTH on space they may not even use very much. And even if they did live there - you do not need 4.5 baths for a 4 bedroom unit! You just don't. Stop it. You're wasting resources. Also - if I'm paying $9700/month - you're really going to tell me I can't have a cat? Really?

8. Go a borrow a table loom from a very kind friend, eat some cookies and try to calm down.

There is weaving in progress again, finally!

This is my first weaving project that actually takes advantage of all 4 shafts of my loom and had a complicated threading pattern. So far everything is going okay.... it's taking me a while to select a weft yarn that I like - I've decided to go monochrome and use the warp thread for the weft. I feel the diamond pattern is quite busy and having it in contrasting colours is too much for me.

Now that I've actually made that decision - this will probably go pretty fast!

Did I ever mention that I finally finished my last weaving project? The one I took off the loom months and months ago? Yeah.

Took forever to get that last step done because the only way I know to finish a scarf is with fringe but I really didn't want fringe on this one. I finally took a day and sorted it out and am pleased with the finished product. I'm listing it in my etsy shop though because I just really really do not need another scarf. Really do not. Our apartment is too small for me to have an enormous scarf collection. It will be listed tomorrow, in case anyone is itching to do some shopping.

Last night Peter and I went to the taping of CBC Radio Book Club where Douglas Coupland was the guest. He's a super interesting guy - has a very unique outlook on the world. He's a writer and artist. You probably know him for Generation X or Microserfs or JPod but he also recently had some of his artwork unveiled at a new waterfront park in Toronto. It was really neat to go to the CBC building, to experience the taping process, to see people geek out at seeing/meeting someone they're all fangirly for, hear him get all philosophical and funny about things. Great way to spend an evening!

So the weaving project I started during the holidays... I finished the weaving portion during the holidays and now just have the dreaded finishing finishing to do (gotta finish the ends properly and wash it to relax the fibres). I'm not super thrilled with how the it came out, it's a little more rustic than I had in mind. Still, I will finish it and show it off properly, but here's an action shot to give you an idea!







Also - check out my new hat. It's a bit big but I'm loving it. I love being able to make my own hats. It's weirdly satisfying.

My first real weaving project is off the loom!! And washed!! It's just a narrow scarf done in some cheap yarn, and it didn't turn out anything like I expected (need bolder colours), but it's still pretty awesome. Also - very excited to have finished something, I've been in a rut lately. The cats will be happy that the noisy loom is done with.... now I just have to get it back to the weaving guild with my thanks. I like weaving, but definately need a quiet loom to work on.... maybe in a few months I'll snag one from craigslist. In the meantime I should be quite busy with my sewing machine (and the 50% off or more sale at the fabric store has set me up nicely).

Technical details: it's a 3/1 twill with grey warp and light pink weft and I had to use floating selvedges to work it. Made with cheap but soft acrylic yarn. Length: 1.6m

Pictures ....

YAY long weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Peter and I are about to take off on a small road trip, but before we do.... exciting news..... I'm about to take my weaving sample off the loom finally! I know, you're falling over with excitement, right? Me too!

Seriously, getting a full time job seriously interrupted the whole learning-to-weave process but I'm still going. Here's proof. Now keep in mind that the colour choices were not entirely in my control since I had to use contrasting colours. I'm not a fan of the very 1970s vibe going on, but it is what it is. Also, I have no idea what this is, I just did it to learn, I have no actual use for a really long, ugly thing woven from wool yarn. Suggestions are welcome.

Here we are - I've woven as far as I can:


Proof that I've woven as far as I can. On the right: the woven bit, on the left: the lack of yarn to do any more weaving.


A whole lot of, uh, woven fabric wound up on the front beam - can't wait to actually see it all at once in all its ugly-but-made-by-me glory:


And a shot of my fabulously even weaving, note the perfection:


After Peter and I get back from driving around and exploring weird bits of nature I'll take it off the loom and see what it is!

Yesterday I measured the warp, slayed the reed, threaded the heddles, beamed the warp, and tied onto the apron rod and all of that means that today I was ready to weave! (Technically last night I was ready to weave but in an effort to ensure weaving doesn't consume my life, I met up with friends at the Atlantic Trap and Grill to celebrate a classmate's thesis defense - he's from Japan and we gave him a little taste of East Coast Canada complete with live music. I'm very proud that I tore myself from the loom, put on my Fluevogs(!) and went out.)

Notes on weaving: 1. It's LOUD. 2. my "dining room table" is suddenly too small and too high. 3. the plumbing guys working in my apartment are fascinated and two of them have requested scarves. 4. weaving is by far the most jargony craft so far. 5. it's awesome. I think I love it.... even though I'm weaving with wool in awful colours that look like something beamed to my table directly from the 1970s, I can see the potential for not-ugly items. Setting the loom up requires skills I have in abundance, mainly the ability to be really, absurdly detail-oriented and get totally lost in some mind-numbingly repetative task.

[pictures later]

In other news, our new bathtub is now matched by new shower tiles and the dude is supposed to put up the shower curtain rod today so we can end the period of baths-only, which, while fun at first, quickly becomes inconvenient. It's quite funny in our bathroom because the tub and shower area is shiny and new and the rest of the bathroom is a disaster. Also - apparently they're setting up the apartments for in-suite washer and dryers and I was asking the dude where the dryer vent is going to go (they've run the water pipes into the closet) and he said they're using a new all in one washer/dryer unit that doesn't require a vent. That's crazy! I'm so behind on washer/dryer technology.

Hello, it's my birthday! (Party like it's my birthday)

My Peter started off the day by spoiling me and continuing his reign as best husband-like-person ever..... he got me a pair of Fluevogs! ! ! A total surprise. I'm in love. They're so cute and ridiculously comfortable. I had no idea heels could be comfortable. Peter may have just created a rival for himself.

Also, there is a loom on our "dining room table", thanks to a lovely member of the guild who drove me home with it and everything.


And, to finish off the package, I have a job offer. No details until something is official, but I don't think that will take very long.

So the birthday is going well. =)

ps. also should add that the plumbers redoing the pipes installed a new bathtub for my birthday! And they didn't turn off the water today!

They turned off the water today to repipe the kitchen. It's less than convenient. At least the window replacement guys got postponed until after the plumbing guys are done. It's fun times around here. ;)

In more exciting news - put your thumb and pointer finger together, now pull them about 2 mm apart. That's how close I am to having a loom in my apt. I'm going to pick it up tomorrow and the very nice lady is going to drive me home with it since it's a bit ackward to take on the bus. She says the looms she has for rent are not in the best condition, so they don't operate as smoothly as a newer loom would. She seemed a bit worried that as a total newbie I would be starting on that but I'm sure I'll manage. We'll see how it goes!