A Glimpse of 2014 and a Tour of Fiber Studio Progress

We have been working for the last three days on getting the Fiber Studio put together. Mack brings in the fixtures and I fill them. Even though we are still lacking some trim work and finishing I decided that I needed to get my work area organized. We will keep working on the rest and eventually it will get finished.

Here is a little tour of what we have so far.  This is what you see when you walk through the door.

The Ymmyarns have a new home! This will make it so much easier to reorder. It is rigorous duty being a keeper of yarns but somebody has to do it.

I have thought about three goals with this space, and though compact it is working out the way I planned. A place to display the shop items, a place to work and a place for friendly visits and classes. I do still have two rooms in the house for the floor looms, sewing , pressing, and drafting table. I would love to empty one of them but I will have to work on that.

This is looking down one side of the room from the front door. I am still waiting on the water cooler to be delivered and it will go in the far corner.

On the back wall is the Gobelin loom with the new Tapestry Diary for 2014. It is the only weaving I have been able to squeeze in with all the setting up we have been doing. I have really been enjoying working in this space.

My Mirrix Joni loom has a space in the corner where the easel fits nicely. I haven't gone shopping for my larger table and chairs but that is next on the list.

Here is a view of the front door. I have the Sheep Sampler tapestry on a 16 inch Mirrix there. I usually work on it when I do shows but I am working towards completing it and having a new demonstration tapestry for the Spring/Summer shows coming up.

The small tapestry on the wall is one by Ruth Manning titled "Cowgirl" and I knew she would fit right in when I saw her.


I have put a link to Ruth's website and blog on the right under links.

This is another view of the front corner,

















and the area that is beside the yarns.

For the 2014 TD I decided to warp the Gobelin about 40.5 inches wide and 8 epi, then I wove a base for the entire width and the months will be woven as columns 27 warps wide with a final border across the entire width at the top. It took a while to get going on the daily bits because of the size. This will be the widest tapestry I have undertaken but now that it is started the daily parts should be easily woven in under an hour.

Here is a closer view of how I am shaping the border for the columns,

and a better view of January so far. I still have today to finish.

I have decided that starting a new TD is a like starting a new sketchbook and can be a little uncomfortable at first but I am beginning to warm up to it.  The daily weavings will be different heights this year although the width will remain constant. I started out with the idea of a woven path through the months but I am taking a lot of liberty with that plan!

Recently a copy of The Threads Course in Tapestry has come in the mail. What a wonderful book! I really like the way the technical drawings are shown from both directions. I brought it out to the studio today thinking I might incorporate some of the interesting variations into the TD this year.

Rebecca Mezoff has a wonderful video review of the book on her blog and Tommye Scanlin has mentioned it on hers as well.

Hopefully I will be settling into a regular routine of work soon and carry on the finishing of the 2013 TD and the Mango Hunters. I have just put the finishing touches on a piece to send for the ATA unjuried small works show in Rhode Island this July. Even better, I am planning on attending the retreat myself and taking a workshop with Susan Martin Maffei!