Weaving; A Metaphor for Life

"We look at life from the back side of the tapestry. And most of the time, what we see is loose threads, tangled knots and the like. But occasionally, God's light shines through the tapestry, and we get a glimpse of the larger design with God weaving together the darks and lights of existence."-----------John Piper

When I started this post, I went looking for a quote on weaving to borrow for the title.  Instead I found quotes using weaving as a metaphor for life.  We each weave in and out of each others lives - some of you weave in and out silently and I never know you were here. That is okay.  It just means that my life influences yours and I never know how or how much (or how little.)

Since I got the new loom I have been weaving quite a bit.  In fact until last night the amount wasn't apparent to me.  I unrolled the cloth beam to show a friend. The cloth just kept coming. Oh MY! I couldn't get it all in one picture!

My plan is to take this cloth and make a shirt from it. At this point there is a little over eight feet of fabric that is 10 1/2" to 11" wide.  Most of the material in it is cotton and cotton/linen blend so it should not be too hot for summer wear.
There are some interesting inclusions in this piece.  Vicki at Field Trips in Fiber  mentioned cutting the threads off of her freshly dyed fabrics.   I immediately thought "What a great way to add little pops in weaving!"  So I emailed her and asked if we could work out a deal on getting a small amount to try it.  She was quite agreeable.   While it isn't obvious in the above pictures, this cropped out bit will give you an idea.

All of the single row bits there are waste thread.  But it is wasted no longer.  This is a great recycle trick. I am also saving scrap trimmings from batiks and hand dyed fabrics when I trim blocks.  Those thin bits that are colored on both sides are excellent for this also. And when I have a scrap of yarn I save it for this also.  And sometimes, I am cutting small bits of yarn when the piece "needs" something in a section.

Now how much more will I need to weave to make that shirt?  I really don't have a clue.  I plan to weave out the entire 6 meter warp and hope it is plenty.


My blog is http://blog.geneblack.com
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