Progress on First Wood Series Scarf

I'm about halfway into the first scarf in the latest Wood Series warp. You can see the yarn colors by going back a couple of posts. One warp is a medium pink, the other a medium walnut brown. The weft is the skein dyed with brazilwood and fustic - the darker, duller orange color. All three yarns are quite similar in value.



When viewed straight on, it's difficult to make out the pattern ("Pattern? What pattern?" a visitor asked). From the side, the design shows a bit more, but it's still very subtle.



This design will be more apparent after wet finishing, but because of a difference in luster rather than because of a difference in hue or value. The pink warp is a 100% Tencel yarn with a lot of luster. The weft is silk - again, lots of luster. The brown warp, by contrast, is a blend of Tencel and silk, and has a much more matte appearance. It's very loosely spun and loosely plied, while both the 100% Tencel and the 100% silk are tightly spun and plied. This difference contributes to the visual contrast between areas where one or the other yarn predominates.

A finished wood surface often has this same quality, because it may have face grain in some areas and end grain in others. The two surfaces absorb finish differently, and take a polish differently. These differences in grain are what make each piece of wood unique and give it personality.