Friends don't let friends weave boucle

I had heard this adage before, but the video I watched on weaving Peruvian diamonds involved boucle. After rewatching the vid, I realized the weaver was using *silk* boucle, not mohair like mine. Mohair boucle is *sticky* to the nth degree. I kept telling myself that once I got going, things would get easier, but they didn't. Another issue was that the space between the heddle and the back beam of the SampleIt does not leave enough room for manipulating two pickup sticks. So I switched to the larger rigid heddle loom, using a ribbon yarn in place of the boucle.

I haven't made any diamonds yet on this piece because I keep having other problems before I even get that far. I *really* want to make this work, as this is the weaving guild's diamond jubilee, and we are tasked with weaving something with diamonds by the June meeting. Fingers crossed that the Peruvian diamonds work out.

Knitting: Nearing the end of the body of the L-bag.
Spinning: Finished spinning a second bobbin of silk/merino/tencel blend yarn, which I want to chain ply. Wound the two-ply silk/merino/tencel blend off its bobbin; it's not very balanced.
Weaving: Abandoned the Peruvian diamonds on the SampleIt, and restarted them on the 24" rigid heddle. Warped the frame loom and started weaving a flag motif tapestry, a la Jasper James.

A fiber friend suggested that I learn chain plying by practicing with commercial yarn instead of my precious handspun. I think this is an excellent idea and plan to give it a go later this afternoon. I'll keep you posted.