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Katrin How on earth did they do it?
27. März 2024
Ah, that's good to know! I might have a look around just out of curiosity. I've since learned that w...
Heather Athebyne How on earth did they do it?
25. März 2024
...though not entirely easy. I've been able to get my hands on a few strands over the years for Geor...
Katrin Hieroglyphs.
23. Februar 2024
Yes, that would sort of fit that aspect - but you can also go from bits of woods to sticks if you ar...
Bruce Hieroglyphs.
23. Februar 2024
I think the closest English equivalent would be 'Down the rabbit hole'. It has one entrance (No, not...
Harma Spring is Coming.
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I'm definitely jealous! Mine disapeared except for one pathetic little flower. But the first daffodi...

More from the Mini-Loom, Part 5: Spacer Chain.

The next thing that I sort of dreaded: the spacer chain.

For many, many years, I had answered all questions about whether or not I knit with "No, I don't, that is too modern for me!" and the same is true for crocheting, which is even more modern. So I'm very, very far from being a heroine of the hook - and it's just that who would have been needed for that next step.

As you have seen on the picture with just the weights on and without the heddles, the threads on the loom tend to lump together. It gets better with the heddles in, but they still run together as they near the weights - something that is made much less obvious by adding a spacer cord to the bottom.

The spacer cord is basically just a chain of chain stitches made around the individual threads of each layer, in order. (Obviously in order.) Making the spacer cord was the job I had most trouble with (see above: Heroine of the Hook, not), and it took me three starts to get it right enough to pass muster.

The first tries were made even harder by using the same thread I had used for the heddles (another cotton thread), which has a tendency to split when handled with a crochet hook. The final chain is made with Gütermann silk, and it does do a nice job at spacing.

You can see the difference this puny little chain makes on the picture:

setup_2
I had hoped, at the start, I might be able to omit the spacer chain - but this picture shows very, very clearly that it would not have been an option. At all.

So, after a lot of cursing and trying a larger and a smaller crochet hook, and finding that no, sometimes it's not the tool but the tool wielder who just needs to practice more at that, dangit, and finding again that it is ridiculously easy to make mistakes, I had finally finished chaining all two layers of their 109 ends each.

Whew.

And with that... the loom is set up completely, and ready to go forth and demonstrate how a warp-weighted loom does work.
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More from the Mini-Loom, Part 6: Wrap-Up.
More from the Mini-Loom, Part 4: Shed Issues.
 

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Freitag, 29. März 2024

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