Finishing ( Finished ) Party

 There have been many days this month when I have been grateful my commute is so short. March has thrown everything from snow storms to tornados at Oklahoma but Spring is beginning to bust out of the seemingly endless winter.

My new Fireside Loom is also behind schedule and has not arrived yet. this is not surprising given the winter in Pennsylvania where it is being built. I can't complain because it has given me time to finish my works in progress.

The new Ymmyarns and color cards for wool and silk have arrived! I am happy to have new color cards in stock so if you have an interest in these yarns just send me an email.

The last time I posted my 2014 tapestry diary now titled, Red Dirt Days/ A Journey Through 2014, it was face down on the finishing table and here it is finished.

I photographed it against a backdrop to include the edges. This one took a while to finish and the first day I could hang it on the wall was pretty exciting. After a moment of silence though I swiftly moved on to finishing the smaller tapestry on my 16 inch Mirrix loom.

Here is the last picture of Hands On/ Slow Selfie on the loom. This one is about 14"x 12.25" and I have been weaving on it for a much longer time than expected but it is now finished. I have learned a lot with this one!

Here is a shot of the back right after taking it off the loom. A sea of loose threads!

It is on the finishing table here and the threads have been trimmed and secured. The warp is linen so I decided to use a half damascus edge to allow little knots of linen to show at the top and bottom. I thought that would be a nice touch since the linen warp is also used as weft and I planned to make a linen mat for it. The batting covered board that will become the mat is shown behind it against the wall.

I had three different linen fabrics so I decided to lay the tapestry on top of each one and take a photo to help with the choice of which one to use.

I am not sure much difference is visible in the photos but the first one is a natural color and best matches the thread I used as warp.

The second is a little lighter and also has a more pronounced linear look to the weave which I thought was distracting.

The third fabric was the lightest.  I decided on the first darker linen for my mat.

Here is a photo of the finished piece stitched on the linen mat. I intend to choose a frame for it soon, something very simple I think.


It feels great to have both of these pieces finished and now maybe I can start on the paint box cartoon before the new loom arrives.

Meanwhile back on the mountain, here is a photo  of the 2015 daily tapestry through March 24th.

Here is a detail showing the first part of March at the top,

and another taken yesterday through March 26th.
I an enjoying my tapestry journey through 2015 and excited to see it rising day by day.

With all the finishing done I am ready to move onto to a few other neglected areas including entering some shows and maybe I will finally do an artist page for ATA.

Also right around the corner is a trip to South West Oklahoma State University in Weatherford to enjoy talks, workshops and an exhibit when Archie Brennan and Susan Martin Maffei visit during April. There is a lot to look forward to!