“Fun With Advancing Twills” (My Article)

Members of study groups at Complex Weavers are often invited to submit articles to the Complex Weavers Journal.  As a member of the Fine Threads Study Group, I submitted an article about my study from last year and  it was accepted!  Images of my work from the article including a WIF file of the draft below are posted on the CW website together with images of the beautiful work of my fellow weavers.

Here’s my article, hope you enjoy it:

Complex Weavers Journal, June 2010, issue #93

Fun With Advancing Twills

by Eva Stossel

Fine Threads Study Group

My fascination with advancing twills led to some interesting experiments using my weaving software, but I realized that it was necessary to narrow down the variables because the possibilities became overwhelming.  I decided to design different patterns by varying the tie-up only and keeping the threading and treadling constant.  Using an eight-end advancing point draw on 16 shafts and tromp-as-writ treadling, I was thrilled with the intricate and beautiful designs that were produced by different tie-ups.

To weave the samples for the Fine Threads Study Group, I used a tie-up that is a fancy twill pattern (#548 in Oelsner’s book).  Looking at the drawdown I thought this design would be great to use for weaving a fabric with an interesting and playful pattern when viewed close-up as well as at a distance.

I used cotton sewing thread doubled up for the warp and 20/2 cotton for the weft with a sett of 42 epi and approximately 45 ppi.  The longest float is five ends.  The piece was handwashed, steam ironed while still damp with an overall shrinkage of about 4%.

Looking at the finished fabric, I just love the way all those little squares and diamonds grow in and out of each other and that so many of them are unique in their appearance.

"Fun With Advancing Twills" Fabric

"Fun With Advancing Twills" Fabric (detail)

"Fun With Advancing Twills" Draft

Bibliography:

Inouye, Bonnie. Exploring Multishaft Design. Weavingdance Press. 2000.

Oelsner, G.H.  A Handbook of Weaves.  Dover Publications (republication of the original edition published by The Macmillan Company in 1915).  [this classic book is also available online for download in its entirety here at handweaving.net]

van der Hoogt, Madelyn.  The Best of Weaver’s: Twill Thrills. XRX Inc. 2004.

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