Potholders!

The program at this week's weaving guild meeting was about weaving potholders. The best part - we all had the opportunity to weave a potholder. I didn't have time to finish mine at the meeting, but I did so the next day. Fun, but a little hard on my arthritic hands and wrists.

There were lots of examples of patterns one can weave on a potholder loom...

... including houndstooth.

Not sure how one weaves this house.

There were also examples of what one can make from the potholders, like a bag...

... or some balls.

One of the presenters had on a top that looked like it was made from potholders, although it wasn't. Wish I had taken a pic. If you are potholder-curious, here are some resources:

• Facebook groups: Potholder People, Potholder Design Genie, Radical Potholder Weavers
• Friendly Loom Wizard
• Online community, loops, books, patterns, kits at Kate Kilmurray
• "Make a potholder loom" with Kelly Casanova
• Piglet's Potholder Patterns

And of course there are many YouTube videos to help you along this path.

Spinning: I 2-plied the yarn that was on the spindle.
Weaving: Besides finishing my potholder, I finished the mug rugs - separate post to follow.

An item on my fiber arts "bucket list" is to dye with indigo. I've done this in a class or two over the years, but I don't really understand the whole process. Maiwa School of Textiles offers online classes, including one called Journey into Indigo. I'm very tempted.

Potholder and a bucket list

In preparation for a program I am leading on weaving for the spinning guild, I dug out a potholder loom I purchased many eons ago, when my granddaughter was young enough to maybe be interested in using it (she wasn't) and made a potholder. Unlike plastic potholder looms, this one is made of wood and cotter pins; the latter help keep the yarn loops in place while you weave. I purchased this one from Homestead Weaving Studio when we were in that neck of the woods.

I don't care much for the loops that came with the kit (they are left over from sock manufacturing), but I did manage to make a potholder, in hounds tooth, using a pattern "wizard" from Harrisville Designs that may be found here. Too bad I didn't check for floats before taking the potholder off the loom.

I see Harrisville sells potholder looms and loops as well, if you are interested.

Knitting: I finished the socks; separate post to follow. The L-Bag is on its fourth color.
Spinning: Still working on the silk/merino/tencel blend.
Weaving: Played with potholder weaving (as described above). And I applied Minwax to the Freedom roller parts and the double heddle kit.

The owner of Tabby Tree Weaver led a workshop for our weaving guild a while back. While I did not take the workshop, I did attend her talk the night before. One thing she said that has stuck with me is, now that she had retired from her "day job", she planned to tackle her bucket list of weaving.

I'm retired. Here is my fiber bucket list. (Subject to change.)

Dyeing:

• With mushrooms
• With lichens
• Precipitate natural dye from the dye bath

Weaving:

• Double weave
• Weave with two heddles

Spinning:

• Chain-ply
• Core spinning

Projects:

• Weave rugs from tee shirts
• Weave rugs with all the rug yarn I have
• Weave rugs from "rags"
• Weave with "plarn" (yarn made from plastic bags)

Do you have a fiber bucket list? I'd love to hear about it.