Riding the Waves

Riding the Waves

I haven’t been weaving very long, but am already eager to give some things a go. For example, I wanted to try adding beads, surface embellishment with crochet and embroidery, new yarns, and the wavy shuttle. Why not do all three in one project?

The wavy shuttle has some mixed reviews because it doesn’t always stand up to wet finishing. Hmm. Challenge accepted.

I spent some time researching and decided on an approach. I would do a long wrap with cotton bocule (sticky yarn) and play with thicker yarns on the weft (DK, Bulky, and my favorite Bamboo Bloom with lots of texture). I also decided to incorporate some beading, surface crochet, and embroidery. Why not? The only rule was off white yarns and beads with gold tones. Okay, all set.

I started off with tons of ambition. Weave this way, try clasped weft, add some of this, add some of that. After about 21 inches and realizing it was going to take FOR-EVER to complete, I decided that the middle section would focus on yarn and waves. That sped things up considerably.

Once I got to the end I decided to finish off with some natural pearls. Lovely.

Off the wrap results: Wah! All those lovely, bold waves are now gentle ripples.

Wet finishing results: Boo! All the waves are gone! The only section that still has some of that life left is where I did extra embroidery stitching over the top.

So, the wavy shuttle appears to be a gimic. TONS of effort and time and zero results. But I do like the surface technique and beads. So, not a total loss. I still ended up with a nice scarf.

Craft Joy!

Caré