Nappy's Butterflies

It is interesting how the best made plans.....don't always work out. The beautiful cloth I was weaving a few weeks ago with the natural silk cocoons layered between fine merino wool and held in place with another type of silk, didn't work out. Glad I captured the idea with a photo. The problem was the sett on the layers 3 and 4. Layers 1 and 2 were sett @ 10 epi. Layers 3 and 4 were sett further apart -- approx. 6 epi. I did this to create a felted movement in the final piece.

Again, great in theory, but not in practice. The final scarf has incredible drabe and texture, but not what I was planning. The final product will be my next post. But in the meantime, check this out:

A woman at the weaving school (Saunderstown Weaving school that is) had to leave for the summer and left her 20/2 olive cotton warp on one of the looms threaded to Nappy's Butterflies -- an overshot pattern found in Marguerite Davidson's Handweaver's Pattern Book (1944). I took over the warp after Barbara's project came off and decided to work with a Honeycomb treadling. I am using a fine blue bamboo weft with a heavier and darker blue/green wool for the honeycomb thread. I looks just like blue butterflies! I can't wait to see the piece once it has been gently finished!