A lightbulb moment

It's amazing what a bit of time away from something can make it 'click' when you get to trying it again! I felt this way the first time I tried tatting. I just couldn't get the knots to sit correctly. There was a lot of pulling hair (figuratively speaking of course), throwing the shuttles down in frustration, and scissor action! I put it away after being brought to the brink of tears of frustration. A short while later, having refused to be beaten, I tried again. AND SUCCEEDED! I don't know why or how, but it clicked.

So, I felt (almost) the very same thing when I first tried loom bead weaving with the shedding device. The first two rows were okay, but it was downhill from then on! I followed the instructions - specifically a Mirrix video on YouTube - but it just didn't seem to be working! I didn't want to up the frustration level so decided to just leave it for another time.

My loom is empty since I cut off the panel for the purse, so I thought I'd try loom bead weaving with the shedding device again. This time, I used double delicas (size 8), with Nymo for the weft and top stitch thread for the warps. I figured it would be easier to do with larger beads. So I set to warping, getting the shedding device and the heddles on with ease. I watched a recent video that concentrated on the weaving part, and wove as followed it. And guess what, it WORKED!!!! The beads were going into their spaces nicely, and there were none out of place at all!!!!! It's just a sample, so I'll have to try it on a 'proper' project before I give a full review!

So I cut the sample off quite quickly and was once again left looking at a naked loom! I thought I'd make a start n the patterns I designed for the side of the violin. I made the mistake of taking out my stash of delicas and other beads. I ended up having three projects I wanted to work on. So I warped the loom for three. Here is what WAS on the loom up until this afternoon.

I'm not entirely happy with the middle bracelet, but someone likes it so I'll finish it and give it to them. I wasn't happy with the bracelet on the right, so I undid it and changed the deign entirely. There is an element still to be added. This will be done when it's been cut off the loom as I think that will be easier.

I'm absolutely loving the design for the side of the violin. I also drew these up, and will loom them eventually as well. Hopefully they all look s good!

If you're still awake after reading this, thank you for doing so, and I hope you enjoy! Happy beading, and enjoy the remainder of your weekend.

Saved warp thread

I my last blog post, I talked about two projects that I rally want to loom, and how I couldn't choose which to do first. Someone then suggested I could get them both on the loom. There are two options for this. Firstly, I could loom one, then advance the completed weaving and then loom the other. secondly, I could warp as usual and push the warping bar all the way down. Then I would be free to use both sides of the loom simultaneously. The latter sounded more like what would be the suitable method.

Now, the two projects are 152 and 162 beads wide. I don't want to jump in at the deep end, as it's crucial for me to get them absolutely right. With that in mind, I decided to try out this way of using the loom before proceeding with the portrait and purse. I warped as usual, then pushed the warping bar as far down as I could. It doesn't quite fit underneath the loom so it juts out slightly at an angle.

I encountered no problems in warping and moving the warping bar. I then loomed two rows at top and bottom of the warps for the (two) projects that would go on the back. There was no need to do this for the front project, as the coil was enough to space the warps. I did add a line of beads on the front of the bottom bar, but found I couldn't quite place the warps in it once I had moved the warping bar downwards. However, this can be very effective in spacing the warps towards the bottom of the loom, if you don't have the bottom spring kit. Thank you to the person who suggested it to me (you know who you are).



As you can see I am able to work on three projects at the same time. Without the extra warping bar kit, a substantial amount of warping thread is used for warping. This is one way to reduce this warp wastage, as long as the warp colour chosen matches what you plan to loom. So, a little forward planning helps. As I often like to (or inevitably) work on several projects, this makes things easier for me - I don't have to keep swapping looms to work on each, and my thread doesn't go to waste.





So, I think this could be something I use again in the future if I have multiple projects that can fit on the Mirrix at the same time. For now, I have the two bracelets at the back, and the front of a photo purse to complete. Some warp cutting is necessary for the bracelet on the left, but I may leave that till the front project is all loomed. I'll make up my mind as I go along.

I'm off to nurse my cold and get some sleep. Hopefully I can do some more tomorrow evening. The purse (front) takes some time to set everything up - more than 26 colours need to be laid out on bead mats, in a particular order. It's a little boring but needs must! Sweet beady dreams!