Retreat and Cut-pile Weaving

The beauty of the retreat is the freedom to work on whatever you want to, whenever you want to. Those so inclined, gather in the morning with cups of coffee and knitting, and those so inclined, do that until inclined to do otherwise. In the midst of said activity, I was bitten by the lace bug - more on that later. Pajamas, breakfast and showers are on your own timetable - no class deadlines. There's no race to do anything, except be on time for the gourmet dinner that our sponsors prepare themselves. We are inclined to go early, but not invited until the dinner bell rings.

My picture makes my point. Allison is knitting on a commission, and to save her image, I'll spare the details. Dee is swatching some handspun and in the far back, Sara is evaluating her samples. In front of her are Eileen and Sue, both who are weaving cut pile pieces on Ashford table looms following Sara's instructions. At the same time they are also proofing the text for Sara's book on cut pile weaving to be published next year. I can't wait!

This is Eileen's piece. She has chosen a geometric Indian image, has charted it and these are the colors she has selected for her design.
On the other hand, Sue chose to chart Polish flower and is working from the top of the design so that the image will always be upside down while she's weaving. The technique is very simple, but you have to keep your picks square. Dee was working on a piece but the image was skewed and she is going to have to start over. She and I both learned from that.
Herme decided to make a pillow cover for her cut pile weaving and is working in her own handspun, hand-dyed Wensleydale. I was wrong when I thought I couldn't use my luster long wools that I been dyeing with natural dye. It's what you must use. Good news for me.
Allison took a class from Sara a couple of years ago so is ahead of the rest of us. She has several samples under her belt, and is finishing up what will soon be a bag. She's finished the cut-pile part and is weaving sumac for the flap.







Several of us took a walk at dusk one evening, and when I saw this rock, it made me think of Allison's bag.

A Virginia City canyon at dusk. Please click for big.